WORLDbytes Volunteers Take Part in 5k Fun-run to Put Freedom to Film in London on the Map
WORLDbytes, the online citizen TV station has long been a champion of the Freedom to Film and on Saturday the 12th of October its volunteers will be participating in a sponsored Fun-Run in Victoria Park in East London to draw attention to the fight
Online, October 7, 2013 (Newswire.com)
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Press release: immediate
WORLDbytes volunteers take part in 5k fun-run to put Freedom to Film in London on the map
WORLDbytes, the online citizen TV station has long been a champion of the Freedom to Film and on Saturday the 12th of October its volunteers will be participating in a sponsored Fun-Run in Victoria Park in East London to draw attention to the fight for this essential freedom.
WORLDbytes' crews of young volunteers learning to shoot alternative news programmes are often stopped from filming on the streets of London. Yet it is not against the law to film or photograph in public spaces. Many film-makers and photographers, both professional and amateur face similar problems at the hands of over-zealous security guards and council employees.
WORLDbytes director Ceri Dingle said today:
"The grounds on which these 'jobsworths' attempt to prevent filming are always daft and their reasoning relies on the most conspiratorial of thinking and regulatory impulse. It seems that in the minds of these self-important officials, to film in public automatically makes one a potential terrorist and/or a predatory paedophile. Freedom to film is vital not only for creative expression and to tell the story of the city, but to ensure the public's right to have their say on camera."
WORLDbytes volunteer Rossa Minogue described his recent experience: "We were prevented from shooting outside the British Museum because the management feared we might inadvertently get a security guard in shot, which a terrorist could then use to replicate their uniform and infiltrate the museum. Yet images of British Museum security guards in uniform can already easily be found using a simple internet search."
Rossa's experience is far from unique and making London a no-go area for citizen film-makers and photographers is a profoundly anti-democratic step.
For more information and interviews contact:
Ceri Dingle or Rossa Minogue on Tel: +44 (0)20 8985 5435 Email ceridingle@btconnect.com or world.write@btconnect.com
Notes to editors:
WORLDbytes is a unique online Citizen TV channel featuring reports and programmes created by young volunteers learning to shoot 'on the job'. Its programmes aim to get behind the headlines and promote a people-first perspective on a wide-range of issues. The channel's credo is "don't shout at the telly, change the message on it".
WORLDbytes is run by the education charity WORLDwrite, registered charity number 1060869. The charity champions quality citizen reporting and provides free film training to make this possible.
For more information, please visit: www.worldwrite.org.uk & www.worldbytes.org