· May, 2008

Stories about Video from May, 2008

Brazil: Visible and Invisible Indians and Scoops

  31 May 2008

Brazilian Indians were in the spotlight of world media this week. From the images of an uncontacted tribe in the Amazon, to the enraged protest caught on camera against the building of dams along the Xingu River in the Amazon basin where an official of Brazil’s national electric company got slashed by traditional machetes and clubs.

Japan: Grumpy Jiisan on Nico Nico Douga

  30 May 2008

The latest hit at Nico Nico Douga, Japan's popular video sharing service, is a retired man from Arizona calling himself “Grumpy Jiisan” [Grumpy Old Man], who shoots videos in which he comments on his favorite Japanese anime. Subtitled versions of Grumpy Jiisan's videos at Nico Nico Douga are so popular that they have drawn thousands of comments.

Jamaica, U.S.A.: Everglades Litany

  30 May 2008

“In anticipation of Caribbean American Heritage Month“, Jamaican litblogger Geoffrey Philp is running video series, which begins with one of his own, entitled Everglades Litany.

China: After the quake, hoping for aid

  30 May 2008

From inside and outside China, concerned citizens are helping, and putting their hands out to help the victims of the devastating 7.9 in the Richter scale earthquake that leveled out industrial cities, transforming them into refugee camps where people are living under plastic bags, trying to find out their relatives and remake their lives. Four different videos bring us perspectives on how people are dealing with their losses all around the world, and how reaching out to help others could help help ease the pain.

Australia: Ethnic Macedonian Protest

S.M. of Macedonia: Cradle of Culture, Land of Nature posted photos and videos from the recent protest of over 30,000 ethnic Macedonians in Australia, who demanded that their government stop using derogatory prefixes when referring to the Republic of Macedonia and ethnic Macedonians.

Iran:Ballgard,a Persian Funk Group

LegoFish, Iranian blogger and designer, informs us that Ballgard's new CD is now available. Ballgard draws from the musical styles of Funk, Hard Rock and Iranian Folk music themes. Watch Ballgard's video here and get more information here.

Colombian anti-military youth group commemorates 10 years of resistance

  23 May 2008

Last May 17th marked the ten year aniversary of the Antimili sonoro, an event organized by the Youth Network as a way to spread the word about resistance to the mandatory military service in Colombia through music. The date was celebrated with a concert, and the whole month of May was programmed with conferences, talks and marches commemorating the 10 years of the youth organization's Disobedience and Civil Resistance movement. Showcasing the invitation to the events, the promotional clips and a short video from one of the ska bands playing in the concert.

YouTube starts citizen journalism channel

  22 May 2008

Giving citizen journalism videos more airtime has just gotten easier: YouTube video uploading website has opened a new channel exclusively for citizen videos named CitizenNews. Vloggers who specialize in reporting what is going on where they live can now subscribe to the channel and let the world know what is going on.

Videos: Creativity in facing the water crisis

  20 May 2008

With two very recent natural disasters in mind: the cyclone in Myanmar and the Earthquake in Sichuan, China, the topic of getting pure and drinkable water to needy populations has come back into the conversation. Following, several videos which propose different solutions to supply clean water or at least make it easier for people to have a healthful liquid to drink.

Palestine: Balfour to Blair

Palestinian blogger Haitham Sabbah links to Al Jazeera special 30-minute film, Balfour to Blair, which investigates the role of British policy in the Middle East from the beginning of the 20th century to today.

Palestine: One State Solution

From Jordan, Ali Dahmash writes: “I’m one of a few who believe in a One state solution since either side can't get rid of the other. As crazy as it may seems, but a two state solution is simply impossible and all that effort put on unrealistic Peace process is...

Paraguay: Marginalized Sectors Drawing Attention to Demands

  19 May 2008

As the start of Paraguayan president-elect Fernando Lugo's government approaches, many marginalized sectors of society are making their demands heard. RESCATAR [es] writes that there are “positive social tensions”, as some groups such as the landless movements are occupying lands in order to draw attention to their demands.

Egypt: Torture for Bloggers and Activists

Egyptian bloggers, cyberactivists and activists on the ground continue to pay the price for speaking up against the rising cost of living and calling for higher wages and a better life. What started as a call for a strike on April 6, quickly spiralled out of control, with a face off between rioters, protesters and the police. Here's an account of what has happened and is still happening to some of the activists who have used the worldwide web to spread news of what is happening at home.

About our Video coverage

Juliana Rincón Parra
Juliana Rincón Parra is the Citizen Video editor. Email her story ideas or volunteer to write.