We journalists tend to think of ourselves as public servants , but we sure do n't act like it all the time . The institution has one foot firmly planted in elitism : Editors know what you need to know before you know you need to know it . It would be foolish to think that -- gasp ! -- the public could help decide what matters . But things do n't have to be that way , right ? We 're better people when we work together . It 's in a spirit of democracy and inclusion that I 'm asking you to vote on the stories I should cover over the course of the next 12 months for a new CNN project called Change the List . It 's not that I do n't have ideas about what I 'd like to do , or that the views of professional journalists do n't matter . They do . It 's that I also trust your judgment and I want to write about issues you find important . Vote here : You pick it , CNN covers it . I also want you to participate in every part of the storytelling . With help from lots of smart people , I 've selected 20 story ideas I think are worthy of your attention . Each highlights an extreme case : The country with the least access to toilets ; the state with the highest incarceration rate ; the nation where malaria is deadliest ; the place where 1 in 100 live births kills the mother ; the country where the largest number of new leprosy cases is diagnosed each year ; the one country that ranks below North Korea on free speech . The goal , as the name Change the List suggests , is to start a conversation that could -- just maybe , and over time -- bump these places off the bottom of the list . It 's a project that supports the world 's underdogs . The aim is n't to shame the places at the bottom of the list ; it 's to give them a megaphone and support . Go to the Change the List homepage -- http : //cnn.com/changethelist -- to pick your top five stories from the list of 20 before voting closes on Monday , June 17 . Think of this as your chance to be a CNN assignment editor . You 're my boss , in fact . ( Dear people who pay me : Please keep doing that ? ) And as my new ( and hopefully benevolent ) Internet-based overlord , you have every right to tell me these 20 ideas are junk . Instead of firing me , I 'd ask that you send me an e-mail ( ctl @ cnn.com ) or a note on Twitter ( @ jdsutter ) with an idea for a story you think is more important or interesting . We 're going to include a sixth wild-card choice in the coverage plan -- and , while CNN 's editors will have the final say , that idea could come from you . Since I hope you 'll take me on as an employee , I should probably tell you a little bit about myself . I 've been at CNN for more than four years now , covering all sorts of topics , from video gaming in South Korea to prisons in Norway and slavery in Mauritania . If there 's one thing this place has taught me it 's that stories are more powerful , memorable and meaningful when you participate in them . I saw this last month when strangers on Twitter helped me navigate a somewhat treacherous walk through the 17-mile path of an Oklahoma tornado . I was n't alone on that two-day trek . I was on a journey with dozens of new friends . `` @ jdsutter maybe I should tweet you a picture of the bottom of my foot as an example of why tetanus shots are important ? '' And I saw it after dozens of CNN iReporters sent in `` messages of hope '' to former and escaped slaves in Mauritania , which I visited in 2011 . Support videos came from all over : from Saudi Arabia to South Korea , California to Kentucky . `` I want you to know that all of us are so proud of you ... , '' one woman said to the group of former slaves , who were taking classes in Mauritania 's capital . And I saw it last year when a videographer , Edythe McNamee , and I did the pilot for Change the List . We featured Hawaii , the U.S. state with the lowest voter turnout rate . Less than half of Hawaii 's residents voted in the 2008 presidential election . We were n't able to change that in one month , of course , but we did get people talking . Hawaii tied West Virginia for 49th place in voter turnout in the November 2012 election . And , more meaningfully for me , three of the six nonvoters we featured as part of a story called `` Convince me to vote ! '' ended up voting because of messages CNN 's readers sent to them via social media . `` I feel good about it , '' one man said of his decision to vote for the first time . It 's journalism with an agenda . I 'm not ashamed of that . The main agenda is for your voice to be heard -- and for us to work together to amplify the voices of people that are n't often heard in the news . And it starts with a vote . So tell me , boss . What should we cover ?
Vote on which of these stories you like best and CNN will cover the top five . Comment: Sutter : Change the List aims to bring attention to places that need it most . Malaria , polio , women 's rights , Internet access and free speech all are on the list .