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Michael with his parents, Susan and Marc, and sister, Olivia
Better
Democracy
Through
Technology
Does Michael Brodsky have an
algorithm to fi x our electorate?
BRYAN GOTTLIEB SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS
A
s America counts down to next
month’s midterm elections, a
frenetic drive to bolster civic
engagement is playing out across the
republic and a transplanted Silicon
Valley wunderkind named Michael
Brodsky believes technology can provide
the cure to our ailing democracy.
The 29-year-old Metro Detroit native,
a vice president at the San Francisco-
based technology and media company
Countable — a free, subscription-based
information clearinghouse that informs
users of upcoming legislation currently
12
October 4 • 2018
jn
under consideration in Congress —
believes the platform is the most effec-
tive way to offer voters the information
necessary to make informed decisions.
Brodsky’s role is on the enterprise side
of the company, which provides media
outlets and various civic-minded com-
panies the back-end infrastructure and
related content that disseminates the
information. His client roster includes
media heavyweights like NBC and ABC.
While the content itself is nonpar-
tisan, given the nature of the work,
it is inherently progressive. The site
acknowledges that only legislation hav-
ing a reasonable chance of receiving
a floor vote is presented. It all aligns
with Brodsky’s worldview, which can be
summed up in a few fragments: more
inclusion, more information and more
engagement; it all makes for better
democracy.
“Democracy flourishes in daylight,
which is what Countable offers users,”
Brodsky explains by phone while walk-
ing home from work. “The more people
who truly understand what legislation is
being considered in Washington make
our democracy stronger and our repre-
sentatives more accountable.”
Brodsky is on a mission to make
democracy stronger, and he thinks tech-
nology is the tool to make that happen.
He believes the intersection of social
media and civic engagement is the sweet
spot, or “nexus,” for capturing voters’
attention, especially millennials like him.
Countable founder Bart Myers, who
made his money after his first tech
company SideReel was purchased by
TiVo in 2011, and who is Brodsky’s
boss, compares his young employee to
the protagonist Truman from the 1998
movie The Truman Show; the two share
an earnestness that sets them apart
from others. “He believes in the best in
people, wants to do his best and expects
a ton from himself … extraordinary,”
Myers explains.
“He’s incredibly thoughtful and dili-
gent in his work and interests, applying
himself and challenging himself to do
the best he can,” Myers adds.
Brodsky will be honored this month
with the New Generations award by
the New Israel Fund during its annual
Guardians of Democracy dinner Oct.
14 at the Four Seasons Hotel in San
Francisco.
For someone who has both achieved
so much and is unarguably beloved by
so many — and all before age 30 —
Brodsky grew up in a self-described
“unremarkable” way in 1990s West
Bloomfield. His parents’ secret sauce in
raising a mentsh? “We were loved,” he
says matter-of-factly.
THE BUSIEST MAN IN AMERICA
As the oldest of Drs. Susan and Marc
Brodsky’s two children — his younger
sibling, Olivia, 25, is attending graduate
school in New York and studying to
becoming a cantor — the general agree-
ment by his family is that young Michael
was, shall we say, highly enthusiastic.
“He was hyper,” Susan states, as only
a mother could. “He would run from
one end of the house to the other and
talk nonstop.” However, never once did
Susan, a retired dentist, express any
exasperation when describing her son’s
energy. In fact, she painted a picture of a
little boy whose passion was endearing
and appreciated — as only a mother
would.
“Michael has a special gift and it’s his
personality,” Susan says.
Brodsky’s mother shared several
stories to color the picture of a young
continued on page 14