citizen reporting

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October 13-15, 2008
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Wireless Technology for Social Change

Read the new report on trends in mobile use by NGOs:

Wireless Technology for Social Change.

The report was commissioned by the UN Foundation/Vodafone Group Foundation Partnership and written by Katrin Verclas and Sheila Kinkade.

MobileActive News Aggregator

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Aug 26: The High Price of Text Messaging in Zimbabwe

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Mobile Reporters in Africa: Guest Blog from AfricaNews' Mobile Voices

August 14, 2007 | KatrinVerclas

file under:
citizen reporting, mobile reporting, mobileactive

We are pleased to welcome Bart Lacroix to MobileActive.org. He will be writing an occasional blog on AfricaNews' Voices of Africa project, an experiment in mobile citizen reporting. AfricaNews currently has three citizen reporters covering stories in their using mobile countries, phones to produce video footage, written reports and photographs.

Using GPRS-enabled phones, on-the-ground citizens reporters don’t need an internet connection at all - only mobile coverage - to send video, voice, and text. The Voices of Africa is deploying reporters in Ghana, South Africa, and Kenya to date who are using Nokia E61i phones to send in their stories. These countries have, admittedly, better mobile coverage than others, so are good for this pilot project. Bart will tell us how it's going, what citizens are reporting on, and what they are learning about content and technical production before sacaling up the project.

A bit of background from AfricaNews' press release:

SMS as Information Channel in Post-Election Kenya

January 21, 2008 | CorinneRamey

file under:
africa, citizen journalism, citizen media, citizen reporting, kenya, m-payments, m-reporting, mobile, sms election

Post-election violence has exploded in Kenya in the wake of the December 27 presidential elections. Ethnic killings -- which today's New York Times suggests may have been carefully planned -- have increased, and estimates of the death toll range from 650 to over 1000. In the midst of this, people both in and outside the country are using mobile phones in innovative ways to communicate political knowledge and circumvent the media blackout.

Voices of Africa: Citizen Reporting With Mobile Phones

August 16, 2007 | bartlacroix

file under:
citizen journalism, citizen media, citizen reporting, mobile phones, mobileactive

Mobile phones change the media landscape in Africa. AfricaNews (www.africanews.com) starts working with mobile phone reporters. The mobile reporters cover current events in their area, using the mobile phones to produce video footage, written reports and photographs. With this innovative project, African citizens – from the sprawling metropolises to the most isolated villages – can let their voices be heard across the continent and around the world.

Africa is witnessing impressive growth in the development and use of mobile communication networks and the Internet.