AC FORUM 2008: Social Networks, ICT and Worldwide Mobilization
11.24 AM — A lively coffee break on the Casa's terrasse has been truncated by a hearty whistle and I can hear the translation microphones crackling to life again in the hall. Sit tight; here we go.
Hit the link below. I am now on the floor of the main hall before the panelists.
11.32 AM — Amy Weesner tells us that ICT has gained “incredible momentum” at the UN in recent years. She says that this is very important for purposes of transparency; many UN skeptics cite an opaque bureaucracy as one of the restraints inhibiting the organization.
11.35 AM — The microphone has now passed to Johan Farid Khairuddin (or JFK as he has introduced himself) of Astro Media in Kuala Lumpur. In one of his many roles he serves enthusiastically as a youth advocate. He is now telling us about his projects across South and Southeast Asia; of of the most important elements, he tells us, is to utilize media which are fun and engaging for youth.
According to JFK, the media landscape of these regions is sometimes difficult to navigate. He encounters restraints, both bureaucratic and cultural, because these societes are traditionally more closed to free expression and less welcoming of dissent than the societies of Europe and North America.
11.45 AM — Kevin Darling, who manages aspects of Amnesty International’s websites, is now behind the podium to tell us about his Facebook campaign “Reach Out for Kenya”. He is now detailing the challenges of activism online.
Facebook’s event invitation apparatus was used to mobilize people to participation in street events. In this way, Kevin’s campaign was able to build an “instant community”. However, there is a danger of superficiality; it is much easier for one to signal their attendance with a click than to ensure their participation in a real event.
11.53 AM —I’ve just sighted the filmmaker Robert Lamb in the audience. He is due to begin an instructional session in the downstairs workshop at noon. I will escape there in just a moment to tune you in, but will be sure to return to the main hall for the forthcoming debate here.
13.21 — All right, forgive me for the neglect, I got tied up with Robert Lamb in the workshop room downstairs. Mr Lamb gave a very clear-eyed presentation, with the aid of his video clips, of the challenges that coming generations of the sustainability project will face.
As have many others today, Mr Lamb emphasized the indispensability of independent and responsible media. He humorously told the story of his recent “death”; another filmmaker by the same name recently passed away, and when a journalist (I believe at the Times of London) went in search of a biography they uncovered that of our guest. Mr Lamb thus one day opened the paper to his own obituary.
However, what was remarkable about this, he said, was the way in which the obituary focused on Mr Lamb’s role as an iconoclast and a disturber. The editors were much less concerned with the substance and implications of his work.
I unfortunately have now missed the 12.00 seminar about responsibilities of communication in a scenario of conflict. For this my apologies. I have just a moment to grab a coffee and I will be back at the 13.00 seminar on Raising Public Awareness with panelists from the United Nations Development Program, Amnesty International, and our associated organization ACT Responsible.
JFK goes on camera following the debate.