July 4: Bring out the balloons

July 2, 2009 at 4:30 pm (Campaigns, Green Balloon Campaign, Iran)

Since the unfortunate passing of two major celebrities in the past week, the subject of Iran has all but dissipated in the public eye and we are almost back at square one in terms of global awareness. The battle is far from over, but you wouldn’t think it if you’ve been watching nothing but mainstream TV news recently. The entire world does not use Twitter, and so does not have access to the same information as we do. The fact is that the entire world is not even on the Internet, and so still relies on the regular news channels to receive what we have so readily at our fingertips. We need to bring it back into focus.

What can we do?

We can transcend the American day of independence and share it with the world. Let’s celebrate liberty and freedom for all. Not only do the people of Iran deserve their freedom, they have a right to it.

A GBC leaflet in the fleshIn order to spread awareness and bring the subject of Iran back into the mainstream news and into the minds of the people, a group of us have decided that during daylight hours on July 4 2009 we will reignite the sea of green and fill the sky once again with balloons, each carrying with it a simple message to educate and inform any who might stumble upon one.

We ask that you join us, no matter where you are in the world in making this a global event: the more support we can get the more chance we have of making this national news and bringing the topic back into the public eye!

To facilitate this, with the help of @Kintay I have put together a PDF template that you can print out and attach to your balloons.

To download, right click the appropriate link below for your preferred language and click “Save as”:

If you need the leaflet in another language then please send me the translated text here and I will create a template and publish it with the others.

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The template can be printed in either color or black and white, and can contain either three double sided leaflets per page folded over and glued (to give the leaflets some durability and so that it doesn’t matter which way up they land), or six single sided leaflets per page which can be rolled up as miniature scrolls. In either case, ensure they reach their targets and fasten them securely.

Please video your launch by any means you are able, upload your videos to YouTube and then send the link(s) to me here, or to @CajunTechie and/or @unscannable on Twitter. Once collated, we will post a page on this blog to commemorate the occasion and to show our united support for the people of Iran, and then we will relay them to as many news networks as we can.

If you have any questions in the meantime, please don’t hesitate to contact me directly by email here, or post a comment below, or send a message to @unscannable on Twitter. All messages go directly to my cell phone (including comments on this blog) and I will endeavor to reply as quickly as I can.

You’re amazing!

It’s no secret that Iran would most likely have been plunged into complete darkness were it not for the sheer dedication and voluntary commitment of all those people both inside and outside who:

  • Ensure the flow of real news in and out of the country, diluting the government propaganda the people in Iran are subjected to.
  • Dedicate time and bandwidth for secure and anonymous proxies to ensure the people in Iran stay connected with the world.
  • Watch Twitter and re-tweet important news, giving it weight and spreading awareness.

Even the smallest action has not gone unnoticed.  If you have done nothing more than change your Twitter location and time zone to Tehran, then you have helped.  Yes, I’m talking about you.  Even the fact that you have read this far shows you care enough to want to know.

We really can make a difference.

Thank you, and keep being you!

P.S. I apologise profusely for the short notice on this. The idea only came to me late July 1st and I have been working almost non-stop since with the help of my insanely dedicated girlfriend @athenagibson to produce and organize this.  Special thanks also to @CajunTechie, @MattBCardenas, @Kintay,@hussypussy, @hollyinfrance and @Samtagious for their help and support in helping to make this happen.

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Sorting wheat from chaff.

June 23, 2009 at 5:27 am (Iran, Twitter)

As anyone who has been following the progress of the Iranian elections and consequent protests on Twitter knows by now, there is an awful lot of information and misinformation and it’s difficult to determine what is real and what is not.  The problem is that the only people who really know what is going on are those on the ground, on the streets, in Iran.  As we’ve seen over the past few days we can’t even trust the major news networks to report verified and accurate information.  Partly because (conspiracy theory or not) news networks by nature produce sensationalist articles in their daily race for ratings, and partly because with no journalists allowed in Iran (and those who were there being since ejected) they are in exactly the same boat as we are.  The only news you can trust is that which has come from reliable sources on the inside, of which there are few.  With the amount of propaganda being broadcast on Iranian television, radio, and printed in newspapers, even those in the thick of the action don’t have the whole picture.

So who can we trust?

Although there are a few reliable sources, the answer to this question is still cloudy, and you still can’t believe everything you read.  However  there are efforts such as those on the Huffington Post (read from the bottom up, and check the links at the bottom of each article for other days since June 21) and the “Green Brief” that aim to provide an account of the events since they began.

As for users on Twitter, there are genuine Iranian people in Iran posting, but they are interspersed with posts from extremists on either side, and alleged Iranian government agents which only serve to confuse and distort the picture and cause dissent on both sides of the fence.  It is important both for the safety and validity of the Iranian people that their protests remain peaceful, and that those of us on the outside do what we can to check and re-check our sources to ensure we are propagating accurate news, and to ensure that news is safe for those on the inside.

There are users both in and outside Iran who can be trusted to check and verify their sources before posting.  Among those are:

  • @austinheap – sourcing and validating proxy servers for the Iranian people to circumvent government filtering and access the internet.
  • @iran_translator – collating verified news reports and posting them in the Green Brief.
  • @jamaldajani, @AliveInTehran, @jamez85, @change_for_iran, @iran09 and @jimsciuttoABC, @LaraABCNews – posting verified news reports from Iran.
  • @void00110000 and @unscannable – sourcing trusted people outside Iran who can offer proxy servers to add to Austin’s efforts.
  • @CajunTechie – sourcing proxy servers and relaying news and information into Iran.
  • @iran_firstaid – posting first aid links, hints and tips for those in Iran who don’t have access to or can’t reach hospitals.

How can we ensure we are posting accurate news?

The short answer is that because of the reasons outlined above, we can’t ensure everything is accurate.  But we can limit the damage and reduce the clutter that is currently enveloping the #iran, #iranelection, #neda and #gr88 hash tags.

  • Don’t assume that just because you’ve seen a bunch of people tweet and re-tweet something that it is accurate.
  • Don’t assume that just because something is reported by a major news network that it is accurate.
  • Verify your sources by following links and checking where they got their information from.
  • Don’t assume that just because something was reported from someone in Iran that it is correct.
  • If you’re not sure, then ask someone who might be.  And if you don’t know who to ask, don’t post it until you can verify it, or make a point of saying that it is unverified.
  • Talk to people.  Essentially that is what Twitter is for, and we have the opportunity to group together and collectively discuss this.

How can we keep the Iranian people safe?

We may be a thousand miles away but we still have the ability to inadvertently put the Iranian people in danger.  Whether the Iranian government is watching Twitter or not, it is still a possibility.

  • If you post or repost pictures from Iran, obscure the faces of the protesters.  If you can’t, then find someone you can trust who can.  If you can’t find someone, then simply don’t post them.
  • Don’t post the locations of any people, demonstrations, or events.  Don’t make the task of finding the protesters easier for the Iranian government.
  • Be careful with any advice you give to those on the inside.  Bear in mind that anything you suggest may put someone or their family in danger.

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