Hi everyone! Have you heard about the Kony video? At the beginning of the year we talked about viral videos, with the example of the University of California Davis pepper spray incident. Last week, a video went viral even more quickly--in fact, "Kony 2012", below, has become the fastest-growing viral video in history. (This article, in the Guardian, explores the implications of this kind of "virality".) At the time of writing this post, it has more than 74 million views.
The video aims to* raise awareness about Kony, a Ugandan warlord whose rebel army is known for abducting children and turning them into sex slaves and child soldiers. I thought we could talk about it on Wednesday in English Breakfast. It is quite a bit longer than your average popular video, at almost a half hour, but if you watch the first ten minutes and last three or so, you get a general sense of it (it includes English subtitles). Alternatively, you could read this article in the LA Times which presents some of the criticisms of the awareness campaign (or this shorter one in simpler English).
Some questions to consider: What do you think about the use of this kind of social media and marketing to raise awareness about such serious issues? Do you have any problems with how the issue was presented? Do you think the campaign is/will be effective, or do you think that ultimately it could do more harm than good?
*tries to, intends to
You read my mind. I wanted to post it! Thanks for doing it. It must be let viral!
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