Digi Active For Mobile Active 2008 Final

Mobiles for Activism & AdvocacyExamples, Challenges & Opportunities

Patrick Meier Director of ResearchDigiActive.org MobileActive08, Johannesburg

Presentation Focuses on

Grassroots Digital Activists…

Limited Resources Loose Networks Anonymity Individual Actors

Security Low/No Budget

Examples…

1. Using Mobile Phones to Organize and Coordinate Protests…

Protests…

Philippines ‘01 - “Coup de Text”

Protests…

Philippines ‘01 - “Coup de Text”

Spain ‘04 - “The Night of SMS”

Protests…

Philippines ‘01 - “Coup de Text”

Spain ‘04 - “The Night of SMS”

Pakistan ‘07 - “Flash Protests”

Protests…

2. Using Mobile Phone Videos to Document Human Rights Abuses…

Videos…

Egypt - “Exposing Torture”

Videos…

Tibet - “Media Blackout?”

Egypt - “Exposing Torture”

Videos…

Morocco ‘08 - “Exposing Abuse”

Egypt - “Exposing Torture”

Tibet ’08 - “Media Blackout?”

Videos…

Using a Camera Phone and YouTube to Expose Police

Brutality in Morocco

3. Using Microblogging Tools to Bridge Between Mobile Phones and

Internet Activism

MicroBlogging…

MicroBlogging…

Egypt - “Twitter out of Jail”

Egypt - “Twitter out of Jail”

China - “Live-Twittered Arrest”

MicroBlogging…

Egypt - “Twitter out of Jail”

China - “Live-Twittered Arrest”

MicroBlogging…

Egypt - “Twitter to Safety”

Issues to Consider…

1. Network Structure

centralized decentralized distributed

source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_networks

2. Security

Surveillance

Content Filtering

Traceability

Network Integrity

2. Security

NonID Prepaid Cards

(Anonymity)

“Mobile” Mobile Activism

(On the Move)

Avoid Centralization

(Distribute Risk)

2. Security

3. Cost

NGO Budget

Premium Rate Number

Prepaid Cards

Top-up to Subscribe?

3. Cost

4. Dissemination

Calling for Action

Using Relays

Distributed Public Sphere

Using Complementary Tools

4. Dissemination

Thank You

www.DigiActive.org

patrick@digiactive.org

Twitter.com/DigiActive

iRevolution.wordpress.com my blog