Official YouTube Blog: activism

Face blurring: when footage requires anonymity

Wednesday, July 18, 2012

Cameras Everywhere report

Video Enhancements toolkeep your video privateprotect yourself and the people in your videosHuman Rights ChannelAmanda Conway, YouTube policy associate, recently watched "Russian court refuses to free anti-Putin punks."

A new channel to help businesses in Eastern Japan

Thursday, May 19, 2011

Cross posted from the Official YouTube Japan BlogYouTube Business Support Channelhot springs innsorganic rice farmersryokanShinjuku Alta VisionTai Hasegawa, Product Marketing Manager, Japan, recently watched “Wankosoba (soba noodles in broth eaten repeatedly in small servings) Shop is open for business in Iwate.”

We’re turning off our lights, in honor of Earth Hour

Friday, March 25, 2011

Earth Hourwww.earthhour.orgRamya Raghavan, YouTube News and Politics, recently watched “Earth Hour Challenge”.

After 500 days in captivity, “Free the Hikers” releases music video

Wednesday, December 15, 2010

freethehikers.organswered “Piece of Time”

To see more videos from Free the Hikers, check out their YouTube channel, and to find out what you can do to help, head over to freethehikers.org.

Steve Grove, Head of News & Politics, recently watched “Sarah Shourd speaks about her time in prison.”

Art Imitates Life: Re-enacting Prop 8 Trial on YouTube

Wednesday, June 16, 2010

YouTube channelWhat is the inspiration behind MarriageTrial on YouTube?We realized on January 13, when the U.S. Supreme Court blocked the broadcast of California’s Proposition 8 trial, that this was really significant. When the American public was actively prevented from accessing these public proceedings on YouTube — precisely because it is so accessible — well, that’s a flat-out dare. We had to fill the void. We both believe that citizens should have access to the judicial process that will likely determine the future of marriage equality for our entire country.

First video in the series:

How has YouTube helped meet the goals of your project?
There is really no better venue for 60+ hours of film. Many blogs and news media websites have embedded our videos. Because of this, our coverage has become an integral part of the media’s reporting on the trial. Ultimately, this serves our primary goal, which is to bring transparency to the court process.

We have followed behind the scenes of the trial, as well. When the Defendant-Intervenors filed Motions to Strike testimony, we were able to “red-line” the proposed strikes, guiding people to the excerpts the motion sought to exclude from the official record. In fact, our re-enactment will remain accessible, regardless of what may be redacted from the official transcript. That is an extraordinary victory for transparency in our judicial process.

YouTube’s “time seek” functionality allows us to link evidence that is introduced in the trial. Most of our viewers are active consumers of the information, many of them reading along with the transcripts and searching for further references to each witness’s testimony. Yet many others just run the videos in the background. One of our subscribers, who cranks up her speakers and cleans the house, told us she considers our channel better than the books on tape.

Has the amount of attention been a surprise?
We were astonished at the press coverage we received, from local and national media. The international press, too, took a great interest in our project. The fact that they could access our video on YouTube made it very easy to cover and most TV and radio outlets broadcast clips directly from our YouTube channel. In a way, our YouTube Channel served as an Electronic Press Kit (EPK), which saved us quite a bit of time and marketing money.

We were featured in the New York Times, then on Bill Moyers Journal on PBS. Other national and international coverage followed. These reports commented on the way we were getting this video out to the masses…that our effort signifies a new type of “citizen journalism,” not only accessible to the world, but faster and cheaper to produce than traditional forms of media broadcast.

Describe the use of captions in your videos.
A few hours after we uploaded our first chapters, automatic captions miraculously appeared! We then formatted the official court transcripts and used YouTube’s auto-alignment tool to produce accurate captions. Our actors followed the transcripts word-for-word and the captions make it clear what a great job they did. It was so easy to provide captions, which, traditionally, can be very expensive (often prohibitively) for filmmakers. The new Interactive Transcript feature is a great way for users quickly jump to specific parts of the video directly from the transcript.

Comprehension and retention of the concepts introduced by witnesses, for example, get a major boost when viewers can read along, without having to pull up the PDF transcript. And of course, the trial re-enactment is immediately available to people with hearing loss, as well as people whose native languages are not English. The auto-translate function makes these captions available in so many languages. We could never have even approached this level of accessibility as independent filmmakers.

If the ruling goes into appeals, will you continue with the re-enactments?
Yes. We plan to follow Perry v. Schwarzenegger to the U.S. Supreme Court. According to most experts, this court’s ruling will be appealed to the U.S. Ninth Circuit, regardless of whether it repeals or confirms California’s Proposition 8. From there, it will inevitably be appealed to the highest court. We expect the first appeal within six months or so, then for it to go to Washington, D.C. by next fall. We are already planning for those re-enactments. It’s a bit early to cast the Supreme Court justices just yet, but we know that is in our future.

Bottom line, this case as a landmark in America’s civil rights history. We are proud to have created this permanent record as a resource for generations to come. Its ultimate impact is tied to YouTube as an integral part in our country’s political and cultural tapestry.

Interview by Obadiah Greenberg, Strategic Partnerships, who recently watched “NASA Team Captures Haybusa Spacecraft Reentry.”

Film Your Issue, Share it With Thought Leaders

Thursday, January 28, 2010

Film Your Issue competitionFilm Your Issue channel

www.youtube.com/filmyourissue

Ramya Raghavan, Nonprofits & Activism Manager, recently watched "2010 State of the Union."

YouTube Salutes Vets and Their Supporters

Wednesday, November 11, 2009

communicate their wartime experience

created a social network

www.youtube.com/veteransRamya Raghavan, YouTube Nonprofits & Activism, recently watched "Interview: Army Sgt. Valdez"

Join Jude Law and Speak Your Peace on September 21

Monday, August 24, 2009

Last year, in honor of Peace Day -- a United Nations-sanctioned day of global nonviolence and ceasefire held on September 21 -- a nonprofit called Peace One Day helped persuade Taliban forces to lay down their arms for the day, making it possible for 1.6 million Afghani children to be immunized against polio.

This year, to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the effort to make peace a reality, YouTube is partnering with Peace One Day and actor Jude Law to spread the message of Peace Day to an even wider audience through the "My Take on Peace" contest. All you have to do to participate is upload a video to www.youtube.com/peaceoneday telling the world what you'll do to create peace on September 21. The winner will receive a new HD camera and participate in a workshop with award-winning filmmaker Jeremy Gilley. Find out more about the program from Jude Law, here:

You have already stood up for peace in a variety of different ways: by performing songs that entertain and inspire us, by making us laugh while making us think, and by creating homemade films that have mobilized thousands of others. Your actions don't need to be revolutionary, just heartfelt and creative.

The deadline to submit your video is September 30, but entries submitted before September 21 will have the opportunity to be showcased on YouTube and in the annual Peace One Day Music Concert, which, last year, was viewed by a television audience of more than 250 million people.

Upload your video now to www.youtube.com/peaceoneday and show us how you're promoting peace and changing lives.

Ramya Raghavan, YouTube Nonprofits & Activism, recently watched "Boyfriend Story - Pressure Pic Problem."

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