Community Media
From Map Kibera
Contents |
Summary
Collaborative media space. Training in web communication.
Strategy
Kibera's community media currently includes three news sources: Kibera Journal, Pamoja FM, and Kibera Worldwide (a video team). Additionally, Hot Sun Films and People of Kibera are two initiatives that can fall under the mantle of community media. Our goal is to create connections among these producers of content of various kinds among each other, in order to foster better reporting and self-representation, to enhance the skills of these groups in terms of digital media, and to support the sharing of information about Kibera composed by residents themselves with the rest of Nairobi, Kenya, and globally.
We envision doing this via the Ushahidi website which can act as an amplifier and enable the involvement of more residents via SMS. This would be a collaborative effort with all the entities named above and possibly more that we're not aware of. There is also a need for technology training of various kinds so that all groups have a web presence to begin with. Finally, there is specific training on video journalism with Kibera Worldwide and possibly others.
The primary goal is to enable Kiberan residents to tell their own story, to each other and to outsiders, via a variety to technologies. We believe that this suits our mission of enabling communities to own their own information and can be supported by the map and can also give context to the mapped information. There is also the opportunity to connect young reporters to platforms for more training and broadcasting of their reports, as well as an understanding of the usefulness of such documentation for advocacy of every sort. Therefore, it fits our broader mission of using technology to empower communities.
Project Components
Ushahidi Media Aggregator Collaboration and Community Media Network
Journalism and Reporting Training via new technologies
We can give some mappers cameras just to take a photo of the outside of each clinic/health spot. Since they will already fill a form (I think) for "survey", added to the form will be photo number and exact time and gps coordinates. This way later we can coordinate with the spot and it will support the atlas or illustrated online map, whatever.
For those with video camera access (4 mappers) we can ask them to shoot a few seconds outside and grab a still shot from that if needed, in much the same manner. However, this is getting a bit complex since cameras are currently assigned to video teams and i don't want to screw up the careful process there. It's too good an opportunity to miss, though, having them get on tape some of the "interviews" with clinic staff while filling the form, don't you think?
Caviats:
VERY important: to get the "procedure" correct, the workflow, everything, or we'll have one big mess of stuff.
Also VERY important: to avoid disrupting the flow of the video teams still in formation. it's important to most of all support the news team to be actual journalists. So far, the best part is they are in NO WAY our project - or even kcoda's - they are owning it and can't be "told" what to report at this point or we'd lose that element...... it would be way too easy to break that fragile balance. Yet, there must be some proper way to go.
By the way even today, so many of the stories could be easily, easily mapped. Meaning they are location-dependent: ie, one about the adopt a light in one particular spot, one about a small landslide that occurred. I love the idea of the hyper-local aspect. So already, I'm sure almost everyone could point to where each interview took place.
Technology support via website development
- Domain support
- Styling
- GeoPress
- Training
- http://pamojafm.wordpress-mu.mapkibera.org/
- http://kiberajournal.wordpress-mu.mapkibera.org/wordpress-mu/
Support to Video Team
We will provide specific support to Kibera Worldwide, the Flip video reporting group based out of Carolina for Kibera. These youth have been trained in the use of Flip camcorders and some video editing, but there is a need for strategic support and regeneration of the group via recruitment of new members. There is also no one with a video or journalism background managing the group directly among the primary CFK staff, as their programming is concentrated elsewhere. We have offered to provide further training and leadership support with the goal of developing a more sustainable and productive video news production team.
Activities:
- recruitment and training of new members
- weekly meetings and training in reporting skills and video editing
- organizational support
- outreach to other media for training and co-reporting of stories
- sustainability advising and outreach
- linkages with training and video screening opportunities in Nairobi and elsewhere
- strategy for Youtube site and syndication
UNICEF radio spot
UNICEF video spot
Connections to Kenya and International Media and Web
- Ory offered guest blogging to mappers and community media
Technical Needs
- Voice of Kibera
- WordPress MU
- Audio Hosting
- Use of map on others sites
- Adobe Premiere?
