The "KONY 2012" Hype

The KONY 2012 video had been getting loads of social media attention, a little too much that it's starting to get annoying. Well, I have to say, for most part, the video is well produced, but that may be another whole new problem. The first thing I could think of is, how much money had been spent on this? We all know that many NGOs require funds to keep on going and they try to reach out to public the best they could. These recent years, social media has no doubt helped in many ways in that aspect. But how much do we actually know about these NGOs?

In just a couple of days, more than 20 million people have viewed the video KONY 2012 made by an American charity organisation - Invisible Children. The video is about the plight of children in Uganda being abducted and forced to be child soldiers by a guerilla group called LRA (Lords Resistance Army) led by its leader Joseph Kony. His group has allegedly abducted more than 30,000 children. Invisible Children had in reality been condemned several times. Last year, they spent $8,676,614. Only 32% went to direct services, with much of the rest going to staff salaries, travel and transport, and film production. They haven't had their finances externally audited, does that sound dodgy or what?

Whilst the video had its touching moments, it also annoyed me in some ways. Why oh why does this man - Jason Russell - had to include his kid (Gavin) in the video? What is the purpose of that? We could see that Gavin is incredibly adorable but it served no purpose except making it seemed like the story was coming from one man's point of view. And this one man, Jason Russell, is the hero. He started this campaign, and he's going to end the war. Oh and he is coincidentally an American. This may seem generic but for years, Hollywood has always been making movies in which one hero saves the world. You can't blame people for thinking that is somewhat an American culture. In university, I took a course in Cultural Management, and America was a hot topic in Individualism. My professor reiterated my thoughts that Americans like the idea of one man saving the day, i.e. Superman, Barack Obama, etc. In case you think this is some bias argument, my professor happens to be American himself. The video began shortly with Gavin (his kid) being born to the world at the hospital. How personal is that? It was sweet, but unnecessary for a video about an Ugandan warlord. The tipping point of annoyance came when Gavin said he wanted to be like his dad when he grew up, he wanted to go Africa with him. I can see how proud Jason Russell is of his work, but this is getting somewhat egotistical.

An Ugandan journalist, Rosebell Kagumire posted a response to the video on YouTube. She said that the current situation in Uganda is very different from what was portrayed in the KONY 2012 Video. The abduction and the killing were more prominent in 2005 but right now, the war is about something else, not just Joseph Kony, who isn't even in Uganda anymore for 6 years now.

Social media is fun and a fast way to share information. Clicking share on FaceBook requires no effort at all, and its amazing how Invisible Children managed to reach out to people in such a short period of time. Their marketing and PR skills is indeed commendable, that is no surprise considering how much of their funds go to that sort of thing. But before people start getting too much into it, perhaps it's wise to do your own research and find out what is the real situation. The wars in Africa are not so simple. It does not end because of one hero, and certainly does not end with capturing Joseph Kony, although it would be wonderful to see that sick bastard get arrested. As long as there still are diamonds and oil fields in Africa, corruption and colonialism will go on. Some other warlord will rise again. I'm not saying that we should give up and sit back watching the terror going on outside our PC world. For a start, you could help by understanding the real situation in Uganda and conveying accurate information to others.