Viral videos, a brilliant way to spread information

The Joseph Kony 2012 video that went viral on various social networking websites recorded over 77 million hits in the last ten days.

The thirty-minute video which aims to sanction the arrest of Ugandan rebel leader Joseph Kony has been flooding on walls of Facebook users across the country. 
 Joseph Kony is accused of abducting countless children, to use boys as his fighters and girls as sex slaves. He is allegedly responsible for the brutal murder of over 30, 000 people in the last 20 years and has been wanted by the International Criminal Court since 2005 for various crimes against 
humanity.

Khaleej Times asked 10 young Facebook users in the UAE as to what they think of video virals and if they knew who Joseph Kony was.

Five of the ten users said that a viral is a powerful tool to spread information, but they must be used with caution.

Three had no idea who Kony was, and the remaining two had heard of him through friends and other social media, but they admitted to not having seen the video. All the 10 users are active users of Facebook, and heard of Kony through the social networking website. Kony 2012 is a film created by Invisible Children, Inc and is aimed to promote the charity’s ‘Stop Kony’ movement to make Kony internationally known in order to arrest him in 2012.

As of March 17, 2012, the film had over 80 million views on YouTube, and over 16.6 million views on Vimeo. A video viral is something that becomes popular through the process of Internet sharing on websites like You Tube and Vimeo.com. Of 2,909,860 users of Facebook in the UAE, 21 per cent belong to the age group of 18-24 and 47 per cent in the age- group of 25-34.

Twenty-four- year old Jordanian national Moataz Barqawi, who is in Dubai on a short trip, admits to being an active user of Facebook.

He said: “I saw the video about ten days back when it had 22 million hits. It’s interesting how a video can create such a big impact, and though the feel on the organisation that launched the campaign has changed in the last two days, the video still makes a huge impact. Kony’s crimes are atrocious, and the viral is a powerful tool that can be used to raise a revolution. Such campaigns can bring to light not only dictators like Joseph Kony, but also other rebel leaders in Africa.”

Barqawi added that as long as the cause is good and it does not mislead people, online video campaigns are good. Tunisian national Ahmad Hachami, 25, said: “I am very active on Facebook. It’s addictive and I am on it all the time.

No, I have not heard of Kony, but I do keep track of news happening in my country using Facebook. It’s the fastest way to know what is happening around the world. Video virals must be made judiciously though; sometimes a bad video can tarnish reputation and mislead people.”

Indian national Swapnil Bhandari, 24, said: “I am in Facebook really often. No, I have not seen the video yet, but I intend to. I read a few articles of what the video is all about through a link I found on twitter and I think he is a dangerous man. I also know the video is something about discrimination in Africa, but mostly the video is trending everywhere and the minute I get a few free minutes, I would sit down to watch it. Video virals are a great way to educate people; I now know what is happening in any corner of the world.” Sajan Golay, 24-year-old sales executive, said: “I have not seen the video, but I have read a few articles and write-ups on this man. A few of my friends also told me that he is a serial killer of some sort. But, I will see what the video has to say for myself.”

Thirteen-year-old Preksha Jerajani, a student, said: “I use Facebook to see what my friends are up to. I log in almost every day and check for updates at least two-three times a day. I have no idea who Kony is. I think you can learn a lot from the videos you see on Facebook.”

Moldovan national Natalia Gradinar, 25, said: “I log into Facebook every once in a while. Kony is a horrible person and he must be bought to swift justice, and if this is the only way to bring him to light, then so be it. Viral videos are a very powerful tool to educate the masses.”

Nazeen Mohammed, a 23-year-old Emirati, said: “I have seen the video and it moved me enough to share it several times and talk about it to my friends and class mates. It’s a very well-made video and can bring about great change in the way people perceive issues of what is happening elsewhere around the world. Here in the UAE, we lead protected lives and it’s very sad to see these are the occurrences around the world. A video viral must be made and projected carefully, because sometimes information available online can be very misleading”.

dhanusha@khleejtimes.com

• UAE