September 11, 2001: What We Saw: Frequently Asked Questions
"we've compiled a FAQ to answer common questions: Q. Why did you choose to release the video now? A. We have wanted to release the video for some time, but had not found the appropriate venue. We offered it to a local public television station, but they did not respond. ...
Q. Isn't this video missing important scenes? A. We did not capture the impact of either plane or the start of either building's collapse. As many have surmised, the impacts of the airplanes and collapses of both buildings did catch us by surprise.
Q. Why did you edit this video? A. The version we released on 9-11-2006 was intentionally and obviously (using dissolves) edited for length and size only. About 10 minutes of mostly redundant video was removed. None of the media services could host the unedited file at sufficiently high resolution.
Q. Will you release the unedited version? A. We had intended to, but our plans our on hold at the moment due to time and logistical concerns. We do not feel the high-res version shows anything more than the edited version, and we don't wish to stroke any purient interests. We do not intended to sell or profit from this video in any way. ...
Q. Who shot the video? A. Video was shot by Bri and Bob on a Sony DCR-TRV11 Camcorder. A few days after the tape was shot, we transferred the video to DVD using Apple iMovie and iDVD. The tape and DVD have never left our possession. The released video was transcoded from the DVD. The unedited version was re-transferred from the original tape."
(What We Saw, http://wtcbpc.blogspot.co.uk/)
Fig.1 Bri and Bob (9/11/2006). "September 11, 2001: What We Saw", [transcript from introduction to the video: "5 years ago today, we watched and filmed the attack on the WTC out of the window of home, 36 floors up and 500 yards away from the North Tower. Releasing this tape was a difficult decision for us because of its emotional and personal nature, and the potential for misuse. We feel, however, that our unique perspective has an important historical value, and shows the horror of the day without soundtracks or hype often seen in other accounts. Please be respectful of the contents of this account and be aware some may find the scenes on this video very disturbing. Please share only in its entirety.
We chose Revver to distribute our video because of its artist-friendly licensing terms and support for the Creative Commons. Bob and Bri 9/11/2006"].
CONTRIBUTOR
The Constellations ProjectSHARE
Citizen Reporting of the London Bombings
"The last speaker is Stuart Allan, speaking on citizen journalists' reporting of the London bombings. He begins with a review of some of the citizens' reports of the bombings, and the political rhetoric responding to it. How were the components of a local news story of instant global importance drawn together? The social phenomemon of citizen reporting especially as aided by mobile devices demonstrated its potential to challenge and change the journalistic reporting process. Stuart notes the late James Carey's view that the core purpose of journalism is the report, and the discussion of and challenge to what is taken to be real. The industrial processes of journalism may interfere with this process, however.
What constitutes journalists and journalism, and how reporting works, then? Interestingly, in the immediate journalistic response sites such as BBC News responded to the tension between reporting as soon as possible and making sure that no misinterpretations became established as apparent truths by posting reporters' logs as well as citizen eyewitness accounts and photos; in addition, other London-related sites and Londoners' blogs began posting their own reports and commentaries as well. The significance of participatory journalism is at stake here, and the event significantly challenged the industrial formula of news as well as definitions and ideologies of what constituted citizens, reporters, reports, and the news."
(Axel Bruns 23/06/2006)
[Axel Bruns' comments about presentations made at the 2006 International Communication Association (ICA) Conference (ICA2006) in Dresden, Germany.]
Fig.1 Eliot Ward (2005). camera phone photograph of Adam Stacey, on a tube train between King's Cross and Russell Square, London, July 7, 2005, during the 7 July 2005 London bombings.
CONTRIBUTOR
The Constellations ProjectSHARE
Smart Mobs: the next social revolution
"Smart mobs emerge when communication and computing technologies amplify human talents for cooperation. The impacts of smart mob technology already appear to be both beneficial and destructive, used by some of its earliest adopters to support democracy and by others to coordinate terrorist attacks."
(Howard Rheingold)
Rheingold, Howard. 2002 Smart Mobs: The Next Social Revolution, , : Perseus Publishing. 0738206083.
CONTRIBUTOR
The Constellations ProjectSHARE
