Idea Lab

Freedom Fone Helps with Election Monitoring to Agriculture

by Amy Saunderson-Meyer
2008 Knight News Challenge Winner

The eagerly awaited Freedom Fone Version 2.0 has been released this March 2011. The innovative platform, initiated by The Kubatana Trust of Zimbabwe and funded by The Knight News Challenge, was inspired by the desire to reach out to the burgeoning number of ordinary mobile phone users in developing countries. The all-women management team of information activists from Harare, Zimbabwe, came up with the concept in response to the frustrations of trying to communicate in a highly controlled media landscape, where 90% of the population does not have Internet access. There has been a great deal of hype recently around...

• April 5, 2011
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7 Lessons From the Egyptian Revolution

by Amy Saunderson-Meyer
2008 Knight News Challenge Winner

As an information activist working in Zimbabwe, I've found the role of digital technologies in Egypt's revolution fascinating. Here are some observations surrounding the 18 days of protest, which successfully challenged President Hosni Mubarak's nearly 30 years of rule. 1. People at the heart. Whilst information and communication technology (ICT) provided critical channels to mobilize and magnify the revolution, it was the motivated, driven activists, such as the leaders of the April 6 Movement who effectively and deliberately used these tools to organize the protests. Millions of brave, determined demonstrators took action and met on the streets. Thus, it was...

• February 16, 2011
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Balancing Positive and Negative of New Media for Political Activism

by Amy Saunderson-Meyer
2008 Knight News Challenge Winner

In my previous post for Idea Lab, I began examining how new media has and hasn't proven effective in helping push political change in countries around the world. That was in advance of the "New Media: Alternative Politics" conference at the University of Cambridge. This post follows after my participation in the conference. What qualifies as new media? After all, what's new today is old by tomorrow. And, as Firoze Manji, founder of Pambuzuka News, said at the New Media: Alternative Politics conference held recently at Cambridge, is it really new or is just old wine repackaged in new bottles?...

• November 8, 2010
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New Media as a Force for Mobilizing Political Change

by Amy Saunderson-Meyer
2008 Knight News Challenge Winner

Does the dramatic uptake of new media tools such as mobile applications, digital media, blogging, social networking and video activism mean that citizens, citizen groups and service organizations have the power to challenge the state and mobilize political change? This is a question that I'll be pondering along with my fellow participants at the New Media: Alternative Politics Conference at the University of Cambridge. Below are some of my thoughts on the topic, as well as a specific look at the situation in Zimbabwe. After the conference is over, I'll share some of the opinions expressed by key researchers and...

• October 14, 2010
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New Media Tools Play Pivotal Role in Kenya's Constitution-Making

by Amy Saunderson-Meyer
2008 Knight News Challenge Winner

Kenya is moving towards greater democracy and more transparent governance thanks to the recent constitutional referendum that received 70 percent "yes" votes. The new constitution, which is scheduled to be signed into law on Friday, replaces the one drafted during Kenya's colonial era. It includes a Bill of Rights, which states that all Kenyans should have access to clean water, decent housing, basic sanitation and quality food. The new constitution aims to decentralize political power, increase government accountability, create more robust checks and balances against corruption, and foster a move towards fairer distribution of wealth. President Mwai Kibaki said, "The...

• August 25, 2010
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Freedom Fone Succeeds with Call-in Soap Opera; Plans Activism

by Amy Saunderson-Meyer
2008 Knight News Challenge Winner

Freedom Fone version 1.6 is now available for download. This version builds on existing core features and adds some useful new functionality, and we hope it will inspire new deployments. Freedom Fone provides a voice database where users can access news and public-interest information via landline, mobile or Internet phones. Users can call in and then dial specific numbers to find the information they need. Deployments of 1.5 Since the public launch of version 1.5 six months ago, there have been over 230 downloads of the software from the website, hundreds of email enquiries and thousands of visits to the...

• August 4, 2010
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Freedom Fone Adopted by Bulawayo's Pioneering Voices

by Amy Saunderson-Meyer
2008 Knight News Challenge Winner

I had visions of Bulawayo, Zimbabwe being a sleepy little hollow, and perhaps in some ways it is. But last week, after arriving at Radio Dialogue offices in Pioneer House in Bulawayo's central business district, I was very pleasantly surprised. We were in the City of Skies to run a practical two-day workshop with six local organizations on using Freedom Fone. Pioneer House seemed to me to be pioneering the way! Radio Dialogue is a community radio station that opened nine years ago and resides on the ninth floor of Pioneer House. Like all community radio stations in Zimbabwe, it...

• June 7, 2010
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Freedom Fone Answers Questions on Zimbabwe Constitution

by Amy Saunderson-Meyer
2008 Knight News Challenge Winner

Two weeks ago the latest version of Freedom Fone, affectionately known to his handlers as "Fred," was set loose. Inspired by the cockney rhyming slang "dog and bone" (meaning phone), the Freedom Fone dog logo and quirky character of Fred was born a few years ago. Fred is still young, but after a few years of software development (and dog training!), and thanks to Knight News Challenge funds, he's now ready to go out into the world on his own. This is a report on his recent adventures since the launch of Freedom Fone version 1.5. To learn more about...

• May 4, 2010
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Competition in Internet, Mobile Services Boosts Democracy

by Amy Saunderson-Meyer
2008 Knight News Challenge Winner

Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) such as the Internet and mobile phones are often recognized for their role in helping connect people and communities, and spread knowledge and information. People may be unaware, however, that they're also a powerful force for international development -- provided that they are not suffocated by regulation and censorship. The ICT Development and Initiative Dossier from June 2002 [PDF file] stated that, "since the beginning of the 1980s almost all national telecom and information technology markets worldwide have been transformed by technological innovation, product diversification (especially the introduction of mobile/cellular telephony and Internet) and market...

• March 29, 2010
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Freedom Fone Promotes Information for All in Africa

by Amy Saunderson-Meyer
2008 Knight News Challenge Winner

Bottom of the Pyramid (BoP) strategies are viewed in many contemporary business circles as the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. BoP refers to the 2.6 billion people who live below the $2 a day breadline and many business strategists argue that if targeted correctly, these consumers can offer businesses access to one of the fastest growing markets. Even if the price of products and services has to be reduced, profit can be made up in volume. A more neutral view of BoP strategies is that they are not simply a means to make millions. Instead, they...

• March 12, 2010
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