When logging to X (formerly known as Twitter) for the first time, the feed may include bile and bigotry, yet few discussions on development. When initially browsing on TikTok’s “For You”-page, one is likely to find content featuring young folks performing the latest dance trend or other forms of fast-paced entertainment, yet one will probably not interact with any sort of humanitarian communications.
A similar experience awaits social media users on Insta Reels, Threads, or YouTube Shorts. At this point in time, Communication for Development (ComDev) related debates can be found on all media platforms. The authors of this blog explore questions such as: Should the discussions take place on those platforms? Is TikTok an appropriate place to discuss postcolonialism? Is Facebook the right place to reach out with humanitarian appeal?
From a ComDev point of view, navigating the media landscape in 2023 is probably as confusing as charting the contradictory world of humanitarian aid and development politics. Perhaps the terrain of social media is more colourful and entertaining than the latest UN communique or the MSF’s annual report. Yet, no matter the type of message, development communicators are facing the same old predicaments: the ethical concerns of querying how to communicate for those affected in crises, the rights and wrongs of fundraising and the implications of adopting new technologies and communication channels.
As this small group of five authors is trying to make sense of communicating for and about development in the digital age, this blog space will soon expand with various thoughts, topics, investigations and questions. Our main focus is the use of new media platforms for ComDev purposes, employing new technologies, and considering how the old and the new often occupy the same communication space. Unsurprisingly, the topics of ethics, decolonization, and the intent to make a difference will be ever-present.
We hope that you – the reader – will not only visit the blog as it grows, but also engage in discussion and exchanges about topics that we will grapple with.
What are the opportunities and pitfalls of humanitarian organizations using platforms like TikTok, or creating podcasts to communicate about development? Elbe will investigate how the pandemic impacted the usage of different media channels for knowledge distribution and acquisition amongst Gen Z and Millenials and how and when NGOs should (and should not) tap into those channels to reach a younger audience.
Is art and culture one of the tools that can bring communities around the Baltic Sea closer to each other? Nina will examine how Floating EKA (an international art foundation run by migrants and refugees) strives to create physical and digital spaces for social engagement, and what role digital channels play in their strategies.
What are the ethical concerns around photographing individuals for NGO communications and fundraising purposes? Are those depicted in humanitarian storytelling being given voice and fair representation? Chris will be exploring issues of representation in storytelling, and evolving ethics in humanitarian and development communications, with an emphasis on decolonization.
The subject of visual representation in ComDev will be explored by Georg. He will look at social media presence of native and foreign media professionals, mechanisms behind advertising and fundraising for global catastrophes, and visual styles of images created in the context of development.
Moreover, another author explores how science and technologies can be used to fight for human rights, and to build trust in science-based evidence and eyewitnesses/survivors’ testimonies. Selim will look at ground-breaking ways in which multi-disciplinary research group Forensic Architecture has been harnessing various technologies and disciplines to challenge (and to communicate) human rights violations by state actors.
We hope to poke, probe, and scrutinize many self-posed questions that inspire and interest us within the field of Communication for Development. Although we might not find definite answers to those questions, we are committed to investigating, exploring, and discussing our findings and insights in various blog entries. Expect five articles per week by our brilliant authors, feel free to share articles with your friends and follow along on this explorative journey!