KONY 2012 CAMPAIGN

If you've been on Facebook and Twitter in the last few days, you've probably been inundated with status updates and tweets about the viral Kony 2012 Campaign video made by a young American filmmaker, Jason Russell. It's all part of a viral meme by the NGO Invisible Children, calling for the capture of Joseph Kony, elusive Uganda warlord and criminal known to abduct children and then force them to be child soldiers fighting for his Lord's Resistance Army (LRA).

While most people would agree that Kony is a criminal who needs to be captured and punished, there are a variety of opinions about the intentions of the organization and its questionable finances. But what is undeniable is the integral role that social media played in the campaign. Kony 2012 is undeniable proof that social media is so effective. The use of Facebook, Twitter and celebrity bloggers has been spreading Jason Russell’s message across the globe with more than 100 million views garnered so far by the video.

In the video, Jason sets out a specific plan to target celebrities and politicians, encouraging supporters to message these individuals via their social networks. Another aspect of the Kony 2012 plan is to encourages its advocates to incorporate social media in their movement by assigning a unique identification number to each Action Kit bracelet. By entering the ID number online and geo-tagging your Kony 2012 posters, individual progress can be tracked creating an interactive approach to activism.

On April 20, 2012, the Kony 2012 Campaign plans to “Cover The Night” by hitting the streets at sundown till the sun comes up to cover the streets with Kony 2012 posters for the world to wake up hundreds of thousands of posters. This will show the true power of social media and social networking systems.

"Whether one agrees with the organization’s methods or not, there is no denying that it has mobilized millions of young people into action. The Kony 2012 campaign is a great example of how to connect with these young people by using social media and social networking tools to deliver that message. It connected using tools that young people relate to, such as art. It had a convincing messenger. It provided a specific plan and mode of action. It delivered the message using available social networking systems. This, after all, is what social networking and crowdsourcing is all about." — Olubunmi Emenanjo