Citizen Reporting via Mobile - Cases, issues, and tools

From MobileActive Wiki

When Mobile Journalism Works

• lack of internet connection
• need for real time reporting
• need for rich media materials
• immediate footage/relevant
• do people have the attention span for watching videos?
  • short and sweet
  • music and graphics
  • good editing
• how to give context
  • how to frame/create larger picture

What is citizen journalism?

• not professional journalists
• user generated content
• social concerns?
• “citizen” produced content

Why citizen journalism?

• “public good”
• civic engagement
• freedom
• privacy
• information availability
• “can an image change the world?”
  • Tsunamai example
  • photos result in individual philanthropy
  • are images without political context more powerful?

Ethics: is it ok to pay citizen journalists?

• payment changes motivation
• lots of ways to manipulate/edit video – even camera angle matters
• legitimacy
• depends on source – different for mainstream media?

The Hub

• hub.witness.org
• YouTube for human rights
• create online campaigns
• helps frame issue
• from the Hub website:

The Hub is an interactive community for human rights, where you can upload videos, audio or photos, or simply watch, comment on and share what’s on the site. You can use each media item on the site to encourage individuals to learn more and to get involved by providing direct links to resources, advocacy groups, campaigns and actions that they can take to make a difference. Additionally, you can connect with groups or create one of your own to feature your work on the Hub. Every week you can watch the three most urgent videos contributed to the Hub, and hand-picked by our editors.

How different than YouTube?

• videos are mistagged on YouTube – hard to find stuff
• YouTube videos use wrong terminology
• witness videos give context to an issue, show a video in a larger contect than YouTube

How to make anonymous?

• is there direct mobile upload?
• Witness can’t guarantee anonymity

Marketing/Outreach

• outreach to allies
  • Amnesty, Human Rights Watch
• need case studies to show that the Hub has impact
• film festival participation?
• show which videos are mobile
• mobile alerts/SMS? Email/petition?
• Global Voices

Mobile Blogging: Moblog.kiev.ua

• started October 2006
• how it works
  • register on website, receive own mobile blog
  • receive email address @moblog.kiev.ua
  • send material directly from mobile phone – send through MMS or email
  • material published on blog
  • both individual and collective blogging
  • 150 users
• How do you make money?
  • marketing actions for mobile phones
  • contests, mobile blogging projects?
  • send video, photos from events

examples

• report from London underground bombing sent to British mobile blogging project
• reporting from Tsunamai
• report from “Ukranian Insurgent Army march” – 14 Oct 2006
  • report was popular in Ukraine – moblog was first place for info to appear

What can we do to change people’s attitudes?

• Citizen journalism as way to empower people
• Uganda – govts had to publish budgets – helped to get rid of corruption – how can this happen with mobiles?
• Burma – protests
• Amnesty Intl in Ukraine – neo Nazi symbols on street, people took pictures with mobile phones and then sent pics to mobile blogs
  • used their own email network, anti-fascist network
  • organized an exhibition to educate people on this took
  • used for a handbook for the police

• MobileFest – pics, bring information

Citizen journalism resources

• [http://moblog.kiev.ua/
• Picturephoning
• The Hub
• TextAmerica
• fotoreporter?