Re: [videoblogging] Sept 2: International Blogging for Disaster Relief Day

[Andy Carvin]

Andreas Haugstrup wrote: On Thu, 01 Sep 2005 16:13:24 +0200, Andy Carvin <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: Why haven't we see a Katrina-related blog of TsunamiHelp-like proportions? You would think that the US, the birthplace of blogging, would have been able to catalyze a who's who of bloggers to coordinate information sharing, just as TsunamiHelp did. Instead, we've seen a scattering of blogs pop up here and there, doing their best to share information. But it's distributed and dispersed, with no coordination between them. The Southern US is a lot easier to cover for CNN and friends than South East Asia. And the scale of the disaster is not even close. My guess is that these two facts make the need for a blogging endavour much smaller. Could it be that there's simply no need when people can just turn on CNN? One could make the argument that there's no point in us vlogging or blogging in the first place because we could just rely on the media to do their job. And so far, it's been quite extraordinary watching the major news networks struggling to cover the story. Nothing like this has happened before in modern America. Even 9/11 was much better covered, because everyone was in place throughout the event. For Katrina, news crews had their satellite trucks washed away, their generators stolen by looters. It's a whole other ball game, and an ugly one at that. Meanwhile, I've also noticed that many blogs have gone on with their daily lives as if Katrina never happened. Sure, they may have mentioned it once or twice, but have they posted any Katrina resources? Have they linked to the Red Cross? Have they encouraged people to donate blood? Red Cross? The US is a rich country (Bangladesh is not) and they have the ability to pay for disaster clean-up. I imagine that's why you haven't seen "donate money here" links like you did with the tsunami. Yes, the US is a rich country. But does that mean bloggers shouldn't try to help out? Being European donating blood is not something I've given any thought. Even if I was in the US I wouldn't be allowed to donate (us Europeans apparently all have BSE and can't donate blood). Please read further down in my original post. It's not about having Europeans blog about giving blood in the US - you're right, that's pointless. But what about blogging about relief for victims of Paris hotel fires? The Baghdad stampede? The idea is to take a moment and blog about some kind of relief effort relevant to your community. Katrina was just the catalyst for the idea. Some, yes. Most, no. Anti-Bush blogs continue to bash Bush, while pro-Bush blogs continue to praise him. Travel blogs continue to talk about travel. Tech blogs talk tech, pet blogs talk pets. Can't we all just take a break and focus on helping disaster victims for just a moment? People pick their own battles - that's what a free country is also about. You may not agree with their choices, but being condenscending leaves me with a bad taste in my mouth. Something must be getting lost in translation, then - I didn't say anything condescending. I was just merely observing what I've been seeing on many blogs, and suggesting that people should pause and find a way to help out. Therefore, I'd like to unilaterally declare tomorrow, Friday September 2, as International Blogging for Disaster Relief Day. I like that idea. Cool, then. :-) Any suggestions for making it work are most appreciated. take care, andy - Andreas -- ----------------------------------- Andy Carvin Program Director EDC Center for Media & Community acarvin @ edc . org http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.tsunami-info.org Blog: http://www.andycarvin.com ----------------------------------- YAHOO! GROUPS LINKS  Visit your group "videoblogging" on the web.    To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:  [EMAIL PROTECTED]    Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service.