Today’s a big day for us as we launch Amnesty TV, our new fortnightly show bringing you the best in satire, campaign stunts, leading opinion and all the essential human rights news. You’ll find new episodes on Facebook, amnestytv.co.uk and as a podcast every other Friday.
It’s an interesting time to be launching an online TV channel, especially if you’re in the business of human rights. Authorities are toppling, media empires are crumbling and information is leaking out into the world for ordinary people to see. The Internet lies at the heart of this change – it’s pulled the rug from under the old structures of power and we’re still discovering what it can really do.
There’s a joke in the first episode of Amnesty TV about a sneezing panda – at 108 million views, its one of the most popular Youtube videos of all time. Now as we all know, there’s nothing wrong with watching clips of fluffy animals, but the revolutions in the Middle East kick-started on Youtube and Facebook so there’s a lot more we can do online when we put our minds to it.
If you’re reading this, you’re most likely living in a country that allows Internet freedom. You don’t need to ask permission to consume or produce content. You don’t have to compromise on what you want to say. And you can share your ideas with as many people as you like. But a third of the world’s online users aren’t allowed to access sites by organisations like this one (or even Facebook); which is why we’re launching Amnesty TV.
Amnesty TV isn’t just a product of Amnesty International. Our digital friends at MadebyMany have given their time to help us develop an online space for the show. The comedic talents of Cassetteboy, Misery Bear, Modern Toss, Heydon Prowse and many others are helping us get our message across. And we’ve many more giving their time as each episode is published, so keep watching!
50 years ago, one man wrote to the media about a human rights abuse and a network of activists was born. 50 years and 3 million members later, we’re launching our own media. We’re using our freedom of expression online to protect those who have none.
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