White House Used Facebook Poll To Decide Thanksgiving Turkey Pardoning

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The annual U.S. Presidential turkey pardoning ahead of Thanksgiving is a tradition dating back to President Kennedy, but the White House upgraded it for the 21st century this year, launching a poll on Facebook to allow users to pick which of two birds — Gobbler or Cobbler — should be pardoned and named the official National Thanksgiving Turkey for 2012 (neither will be killed and both will henceforth reside at a livestock enclosure George Washington’s Mount Vernon Estate and Gardens).

To vote for which bird should have the honor of being the National Thanksgiving Turkey, Facebook users had to “Like” and/or “Share” their desired candidate bird’s page. The contest closed on Tuesday night, though, so the winner has already been decided. The White House will announce the winner today at the pardoning ceremony at 2 p.m. ET, which will be streamed live online

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