Sewanee: 'Hacking Democracy' Aug 24th

Hacking Democracy, a documentary film about the dangers of voting machines used in U.S. elections, will be screened at the Sewanee Community Center Friday, August 24, at 8 p.m. The film is free, and everyone is welcome. A discussion will follow for those who would like to stay after the showing.

The film was broadcast on HBO in Nov. and Dec. 2006. It has all the elements of a fictional thriller, but it's true. It follows citizen activists and computer hackers who travel from Texas to Florida to Ohio, uncovering secrecy, votes in the trash, election officials rigging the presidential recount, suspicious memory cards, and hackable software. It culminates in the famous "Hursti Hack," in which computer hacker Harri Hursti from Finland takes on a random Diebold voting machine.

The two Ohio election staffers who are shown in "Hacking Democracy" were sentenced on March 13 of this year for rigging the 2004 presidential recount. Footage from this documentary film was used in their court case as evidence.

Electronic voting machines count about 90% of America's votes in county, state and federal elections.