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20 Powerful Moments in Human Rights Video
Every year on December 10th, human rights organizations mark International Human Rights Day. To highlight our 20th anniversary and Human Rights Day, we're sharing 20 significant human rights video moments. Compiled by the entire WITNESS team and presented in chronological order, the list reflects instances where video (or film) made a difference: as evidence in a court or tribunal, galvanized mass mobilization or outrage, marked a turning point, a new use of technology for human rights, and more.
Matisse Bustos Hawkes
December 10, 2012
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The (Virtual) Bystander Effect: Witnessing Human Rights Abuse Online
When a video goes viral, millions of people become witnesses. Whether it is a clumsy kitten, an adorable child, or a gruesome protest, we as viewers are transported to that moment. We see everything. We hear everything. But we change nothing.
WITNESS
July 20, 2012
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Visual Anonymity and YouTube’s New Blurring Tool
Today YouTube announced a new tool within their upload editor that enables people to blur the faces within the video, and then publish a version with blurred faces.
Sam Gregory
July 18, 2012
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Whose Media Is It?: How Police Requests for Unreleased Footage Blur the Line Between News and Evidence
A near 6-month battle between British news broadcasters and the police has recently concluded: last December’s court decision that ordered television companies including BBC, ITN, and Sky News to surrender to police hours of unaired footage from the violent October 19th Dale Farm eviction, was thrown out. Journalists are now hailing the decision as a landmark victory in the fight for news neutrality and confidentiality.
WITNESS
May 31, 2012
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Tactical and Technological Defences For Facial Recognition Technology
In my last post I looked at how facial recognition technology (FRT) works, how it's now in our phones, social networks and media management, and how legislators and regulators are reacting to this. But it's also increasingly used by law enforcement and for surveillance of "public" spaces.
WITNESS
May 18, 2012
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Are News Photography Standards Out of Touch With the Cameras Everywhere World We Inhabit?
A growing global trend of employing facial recognition technologies (FRTs) has increased risks of compromising the privacy and safety of anyone filmed or photographed, especially in countries with repressive governments.
WITNESS
May 2, 2012
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Kony 2012: Juggling Advocacy, Audience and Agency When Using #Video4Change
"Kony 2012" is now the most rapidly disseminated human rights video ever. In six days it reached an aggregate 100 million views – faster than other pop culture phenomena like Susan Boyle (9 days), Rebecca Black (45 days) and ‘Charlie Bit My Finger’ (445 days).
Sam Gregory
March 17, 2012
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The Face of a Revolution: Debating Privacy in the Digital Age
You probably know a 26-year-old woman. Is she your sister? Friend, or daughter? Perhaps she’s fiery and stubborn. Perhaps she takes singing lessons. Perhaps she’s engaged to be married.
WITNESS
March 11, 2012
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WITNESS, Technology and #Video4Change at #SXSW
WITNESS is at #SXSWInteractive, one of the world's largest conferences focused on interactive technologies and online innovation.
Sam Gregory
March 10, 2012
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Understanding #Kony2012 as #Video4Change
Over the past several days, there’s been a flurry of activity and online discussion around “Kony 2012” the now-ubiquitous video on Joseph Kony created by the U.S.-based group Invisible Children.
WITNESS
March 9, 2012
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Join the Call: No More Evictions for Rio 2016 Olympics
We’ve joined forces with our local partners in Rio and Amnesty International to call on the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to address the complaints of hundreds of poor families that have been (or are at risk of being) forcibly evicted from their homes under the pretext of the XXXI Summer Olympic Games to be held in Rio in 2016.
Priscila Néri
November 15, 2011
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Yahoo! and YouTube Share Learning on Business Practices to Protect Human Rights Content Online
The latest in the Carnegie Council’s lunchtime workshops for Ethics in Business took place on Tuesday, September 20, 2011 in New York and brought together a range of business stakeholders to discuss the unique challenges that currently face the ICT sector.
WITNESS
October 4, 2011
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#Video4Change Weekly Digest: August 26, 2011
The weekly digest has been on an unintentional hiatus... I have been helping out on some exciting projects here including our forthcoming Video Advocacy Online Toolkit and planning some outreach for our soon-to-be published report on current challenges and opportunities for human rights video.
Matisse Bustos Hawkes
August 26, 2011
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Did Citizen Media Help Get Us the Story That Counts in the London Riots?
Almost as soon as riots exploded in the streets of London two weeks ago - indirectly sparked by protests over the shooting of 29 year old Mark Duggan – hundreds of videos and photos capturing the violence became available online. For days every major news outlet in the UK gave center stage to citizen-shot content, inviting people to send in their photos and videos to be published online.
WITNESS
August 24, 2011
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Stopping the Construction of a Dam to Prevent Your Home from Being Flooded
The roughly 300 families that live in Temacapulín – a tiny town nestled between four green hills along the Verde River in the state of Jalisco, Mexico – have been fighting against big odds for the past five years for the basic right to stay in their homes.
Priscila Néri
April 12, 2011