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Daily Stream: WITNESS Activists' Guide to Archiving

David Filipi & Melissa Starker

Jun 01, 2020

A young woman of color with her back to the camera sits with her arms raised in front of a line of police officers during a protest for the death of George Floyd in Columbus, Ohio, Saturday, May 30, 2020; photo: Mary Barczak

"In this age, when the mass media rest in fewer and fewer hands, we must have strong, vital, independent voices if we ever want to hear all the stories or seek justice. We have an incredible opportunity to change lives."

The quote above is from musician Peter Gabriel, who was moved nearly 30 years ago to cofound WITNESS, a human rights nonprofit that facilitates the sharing of citizen journalism and works to help ensure that it's preserved for future generations. While there have been some amazing images captured by working reporters this weekend of the protests around the country in response to the death of George Floyd, anyone who's been following this story on social media knows that there's equally valuable and powerful documentation coming from protesters. (The photo above from Saturday's protest in Columbus was taken by a participant, Columbus artist Mary Barczak.)

To that end, the organization has created the Activists' Guide to Archiving Video, an online resource that guides creators through an eight-step process from capturing to sharing, covering topics from organizing file names to metadata to copyright issues. Each section can be referenced separately on the WITNESS website or you can download the complete guide for easy reference and sharing. Scroll for a link and an introductory video to the program.

Read the Activists' Guide to Archiving Video.

 

Lead image, photo: Mary Barczak

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