Best practices in citizen video for human rights
The creation of the Human Rights Channel is a preliminary step to address some of these questions. Curation by human rights experts is one part of the equation, but due to the sheer quantity of citizen videos uploaded from places as disparate as Syria, Gaza, and Bolivia, it is not enough.
Activists and amplifiers alike would benefit from a more systematic way for content to be flagged as human rights related. We look forward to more conversations with our partners in the tech industry, including YouTube, about how their tools can improve the efficacy and responsible use of human rights video.
This video is one in a growing number of complex examples of how video can expose human rights abuses. It is up to human rights organizations, journalists, activists, concerned citizens and judicial bodies to make sure that the people behind the cameras are not recording in vain. The future of citizen video, like the cell phones recording Syria’s war, is in our hands.
