MTV's Choose or Lose and Associated Press Bring Senators Clinton & Obama Together With Young Veterans for Candid Discussion on 5th Anniversary of Iraq War

NEW YORK, March 17 /PRNewswire/ -- As part of its ongoing Choose or Lose effort to once again mobilize more than 20 million 18-30 year-olds to vote, MTV, in conjunction with The Associated Press, today announced a hour-long special event that will bring together Presidential candidates Hillary Clinton (http://think.mtv.com/profile/HillaryClinton08) and Barack Obama (http://think.mtv.com/profile/BarackObama), as well as eight young veterans just back from at least one tour of duty in Iraq, for an intimate discussion on the 5th anniversary of the Iraq war. Taped in Pennsylvania, home of the next critical Democratic primary contest, each candidate will hear directly from those who have served on the frontlines of the war, as the soldiers engage the Senators, sequentially, in a dialogue on how they will lead America's armed forces and a variety of other national security issues.

MTV News Correspondent Sway Calloway (http://think.mtv.com/profile/MTVSway) will be the facilitator in each conversation, and the same group of veterans will participate with each candidate. Senator John McCain (http://think.mtv.com/profile/mccain2008), who participated in an hour-long MTV/MySpace presidential dialogue, was invited to participate in this New Veterans special, but was unable to join due to scheduling issues. "Choose or Lose Presents Clinton & Obama Answer Young Veterans" will premiere Thursday, March 20th at 6pm (EDT/PDT) on MTV, mtvU, MTV2, MTV Tr3s, MTV Hits and MTV Jams with limited commercial interruptions, and also be available on numerous other platforms, including:

-- Associated Press Online Video Network will be streaming the show on Friday, March 21st and Monday, March 24th at 1 PM EDT/10 AM PDT. -- Distributed via the Associated Press Online Video Network, encompassing more than 1,800 media sites with an aggregate reach of 61 million unique visitors -- Streamed on mobile devices via MTV Mobile -- Broadcast on radio via MTV and Associated Press Radio -- Available permanently on demand on http://www.chooseorlose.com/

Millions of young adults have cast their ballots in the early contests of the 2008 presidential election, doubling, tripling, and even quadrupling their turnout in nearly every primary or caucus thus far. The war in Iraq, and the overall war on terror, continue to dominate the concerns of young adult voters and have helped drive this unprecedented youth turnout. Recent MTV research shows that nearly six in ten (58%) 18-24 year-olds personally know someone who has served in Iraq, and this special aims to ensure America's youth get real answers from those vying to be the next Commander-in-Chief.

The eight veterans featured in "Choose or Lose Presents Clinton & Obama Answer Young Veterans" include:

Chris Weimer, San Diego, CA Ernest Johnson, Bridgeport, CT Ryan Groves, Washington, DC Max Nitze, Cambridge, MA Wendell Guillermo, Santa Monica, CA Jessica McDermott, Durham, NC Christina Correa, Los Angeles, CA Herold Noel, New York, NY

The eight veterans will have profiles , blogs and videos about their experiences on Think.MTV.com -- MTV's online community where young people, their friends and some of the biggest names in pop culture come together to bring about positive social change. In addition, viewers will be able to go to think.mtv.com to find resources and content on how they can support the veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan.

"Choose or Lose Presents Clinton & Obama Answer Young Veterans" is part of "Choose or Lose '08," (http://www.chooseorlose.com/) the current installment of MTV's Emmy-Award winning campaign to engage, inform and empower young voters on the political issues that matter to them most. First launched in 1992, the campaign has helped fuel several of the largest youth voter turnouts in US history, including in 2004, when it helped inspire nearly 22 million 18-30 year olds to register and vote.

Other elements of "Choose or Lose '08" include the pioneering MTV / MySpace Presidential Dialogue Series, which has featured Senators McCain, Clinton, Obama, Edwards, Governor Huckabee and Representative Paul taking unfiltered questions -- in person and online, in real time -- from youth nationwide; and MTV "Street Team '08," 51 specially-recruited citizen journalists, one in each state and Washington, D.C., covering the 2008 elections from a youth perspective. "Street Team" members file weekly multi-media reports, tailor their coverage for mobile devices and focus on the political issues that most impact young people in their respective states. All "Choose or Lose" content -- plus more information on the candidates, issues, registering to vote and a spirited debate -- can be found on http://www.chooseorlose.com/.

About MTV

MTV is the dynamic, vibrant experiment at the intersection of music, creativity and youth culture. For over 26 years, MTV has evolved, challenged the norm, and detonated boundaries -- giving each new generation a creative outlet and voice that entertains, informs and unites on every platform and screen. On-air, MTV has been the number one rated 24 hour ad-supported cable network P12-24 for 16 straight years. Online, MTV.com scored double-digit growth in 2007 and MTV launched ten dynamic online communities and six new virtual worlds. On the go, MTV Mobile is the #1 music brand in the wireless space -- delivering 90% more streams than in 2006. And MTV's successful sibling networks MTV2, mtvU and MTV Tr3s each deliver unprecedented customized content, super-serving music fans, college students and young American Latinos like no one else. MTV is part of MTV Networks, a unit of Viacom , one of the world's leading creators of programming and content across all media platforms. Wanna know more? Come on in ... http://www.mtvpress.com/.

About The Associated Press

The Associated Press is the essential global news network, delivering fast, unbiased news from every corner of the world to all media platforms and formats. Founded in 1846, AP today is the largest and most trusted source of independent news and information. On any given day, more than half the world's population sees news from AP. On the Net: http://www.ap.org/.