digital activism – Frontline Club

Women, Whistleblowing, WikiLeaks

Laura Gane — Tue, 12 Dec 2017 10:38:36 +0000

“It’s been striking to me that, in my years of working in the world of digital activism, from WikiLeaks to a diverse range of internet groups, women are active and hold important positions, yet are seldom prominent. This is not because women lack the assertiveness to occupy a role in the foreground, as is so often claimed with a certain paternalism. It stems, in part, from the unwillingness of mainstream media to appreciate and fairly report the role of women” – Angela Richter

The most controversial activist organisation of the 21st century, WikiLeaks has attracted strong, divergent opinions from across the political spectrum. Lauded by its supporters for its indispensable role in holding governments, corporations, and human rights abusers to account, its advocates and journalists have been excoriated by opponents as traitors, threats to legitimate governments, and misogynists. Yet so much media attention is focused upon founder Julian Assange, and his ongoing confinement in the Ecuadorian embassy in London, that the broader dimensions of WikiLeaks are rarely aired. Especially critical in these omissions is the role of women, both in the organisation and the more general struggle for information freedom.

The protagonists of the new book:Women, Whistleblowing, WikiLeaks will be in conversation to discuss the themes of their new book and show the various ways they’ve been at the forefront of such activity: acclaimed journalist and human rights advocate Sarah Harrison, Croatian-German theatre director, activist and author Angela Richter, and Renata Avila, a celebrated Guatemalan human rights lawyer and digital rights expert. Ranging widely, from the dishonesty of the mainstream media and its contrasting treatment of Edward Snowden and Chelsea Manning to the terrifying monopolisation of personal data under tech behemoths such as Facebook and Google, join us for an ongoing debate around digital activism.

Link to book can be found here.

Chair

Pamela Anderson has a portfolio of work that encompasses entertainment and activism. She is a supporter of the Courage Foundation, that supports whistleblowers including Edward Snowden, Julian Assange and Chelsea Manning. She is a board member of both PETA and The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society. The Pamela Anderson Foundation supports organisations and individuals that stand on the front lines, in the protection of human, animal, and environmental rights

Speakers

Renata Avila is a Guatemalan human rights lawyer and digital rights expert. She has played a central role in the international team of lawyers representing WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange and his staff. An access to knowledge activist, she is on the Board of Creative Commons and is a trustee of the Courage Foundation.

Sarah Harrison is a renowned British journalist and human rights defender. A former researcher with the London-based Centre for Investigative Journalism and the Bureau of Investigative Journalism, Harrison left to work at WikiLeaks during the height of its groundbreaking publication of US military and State Department documents in 2010. She is also a co-founder of the Courage Foundation.

Angela Richter is an acclaimed Croatian-German theatre director, activist and author. She founded the Fleet Street Theatre in Hamburg in 2001, and was house director at the Cologne National Theatre Schauspiel Köln from 2013 to 2016. Her interest in WikiLeaks led to the 2012 theatre piece “Assassinate Assange.” In 2015, Richter staged the large scale transmedia-project “Supernerds” in co-production with German national TV WDR, dealing with mass surveillance. The text was based on conversations with digital dissidents and whistleblowers, such as Edward Snowden, Daniel Ellsberg and Julian Assange. “Supernerds” received the Eyes & Ears Media Award, was nominated for the SXSW Innovation Award in Texas, and is nominated for the BANFF Award in Canada.

Screening: We Are Legion – The Story of the Hacktivists + Q&A

Deborah Dwek — Mon, 03 Sep 2012 18:00:00 +0000

The screening will be followed by a Q&A with director Brian Knappenberger

We Are Legion: The Story of the Hacktivists explores the historical roots of early hacktivist groups like Cult of the Dead Cow and Electronic Disturbance Theater, and tells the story of how they evolved into groups such as Anonymous. Director Brian Knappenberger traces the birth of a powerful democratic online activism which in these rapidly changing times is beginning to make corporations and governments very nervous.

Knappenberger takes us inside the world of Anonymous, the “hacktivist” collective with no defined leadership or structure that has taken responsibility for numerous acts of a new internet-based civil disobedience. In a time when a number of the group’s most prominent activists face long prison sentences, Knappenberger tells their stories and explores the precedents these trials might set for the future.

In the course of the film we hear from a group that began as a forum to share jokes, we learn about the development of their ideology and their ability to mobilize thousands worldwide. Through interviews with current members and those awaiting trial, as well as with other major online figures, writers and academics, we gain an understanding of their motives and what it means to be involved with groups defining online activism.

Directed by Brian Knappenberger

Duration: 89 mins

Year: 2012

Open City preview screening: High Tech Low Life

Frontline Staff — Mon, 18 Jun 2012 19:00:00 +0000

Followed by a Q&A with director Stephen Maing

High Tech Low Life follows two citizen journalists who tell the untold stories from inside China. Zola is a smart, tech-savvy and playful youngster from rural China; Tiger Temple is a 50-something self-proclaimed citizen reporter living in Beijing. Armed with digital cameras, cell phones and laptops, they each travel the country to report stories that would otherwise remain unknown.

Director Stephen Maing portrays two different generations, each with their own reasons to take big risks despite being followed, kept in the country against their will and removed from Beijing during a party conference.

High Tech, Low Life depicts how people living in an environment of censorship and repression can still communicate with the world, both locally and globally. This documentary captures the determination and fearlessness of a new digital generation and gives a unique peek behind the notorious Great Firewall of China.

This screening is in partnership with London Open City Docs Fest (21-24 June)

Directed by: Stephen Maing
Year: 2012
Running Time: 87′

In partnership with:

Wael Ghonim in conversation with Ben Hammersley: Revolution 2.0

Millicent Teasdale — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 19:00:00 +0000

Named one of Time magazine’s top 100 most influential people, Wael Ghonim, is credited with having sparked Egypt’s revolution with a Facebook page he dedicated to a victim of the regime’s violence.

The ‘We are all Khaled Said’ Facebook page that he created after the young man’s brutal murder and torture by police in Alexandria became such a focal point of the uprising that Ghonim was imprisoned for 11 days.

The former Google executive will be talking to Ben Hammersley, Wired UK‘s, editor at large about the revolution and the role of technology in mobilising people to take to the streets. He will also be bringing us up to date with what’s been happening since the jubilant celebrations a year ago and his work since he left Google in April this year.

Wael Ghonim’s new book Revolution 2.0 is published by Fourth Estate on 17 January.

FULLY BOOKED Wael Ghonim in conversation with Ben Hammersley: Revolution 2.0

Phil Brown — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 19:00:00 +0000

Wael Ghonim’s new book Revolution 2.0 is published by Fourth Estate on 17 January.