Mark Bridge writes:
A couple of weeks ago I was wandering through London, wondering whether mobile streaming could erode personal privacy… and whether anyone cared.
But there’s a positive site to the immediacy of streaming, as Bambuser reminded me today.
It says thousands of Egyptians have been using Bambuser to broadcast back-stage scenes of the country’s general election. On Sunday alone, over 10,000 unique broadcasts were uploaded to Bambuser’s platform. With the UK and US governments both expressing concerns about reports of state agencies interfering with Egypt’s election process, these live-streamed videos make fascinating viewing.
Måns Adler, one of Bambuser’s co-founders, said “This is a fantastic illustration of how Bambuser is revolutionising the way in which we report and share key news events with the rest of the world. This is a clear example of how citizen journalism can report the events first hand, providing un-biased coverage with a greater level of transparency than portrayed by mainstream media.”
When video footage is uploaded within seconds of having been seen – and can then be viewed online around the world – there’s nowhere to hide. Everyone becomes accountable for every moment they’re awake. That’s not good for personal privacy… but it can be very good for democracy.
| We spoke to Bambuser’s CEO, Hans Eriksson, in June 2010. Click here to listen to our podcast. |