From Burma to College Park: The power of video

"Burma VJ" tells the story of the uprising of 2007 through video shot on Handycams and smuggled out of the country via the Internet and couriers by the Democractic Voice of Burma, a collective of underground video journalists.

As I watched the film, I couldn't help thinking of the video shot by a student in College Park that showed police beating students who were out celebrating earlier this year after Maryland beat Duke in basketball. The one video snippet, blew up all the police lies about who was doing what to whom and who was or wasn't breaking the law. It resulted in four law enforcement officers being suspended, while charges against students were dropped.

Think back to all the coverage and empty-headed blah-blah-blah about the students that took place in the media on the day after the game. Think how this one set of images turned what everybody thought they knew on its head. The first teller of the real news of that night was not a member of any mainstream or even alternative publication. It was a student with a digital camera who captured a slice of the event.

Last week, the Sun was offering training sessions for reporters to learn how to shoot video for our website. Meanwhile, I was using "Burma VJ" to try and inspire students in a "Reporting" class at Goucher College.

I was trying to explain the power of telling stories truthfully that citizens need to know even when the authorities don't want those stories told. While the technology and potential of the tiny cameras are wonderful, the greater power, I told the students, is the tradition that they are plugging into with those cameras when they go out into the world and use them to tell stories like the ones that were found in Burma and College Park -- and then broadcast throughout the nation and world via satellite.

There's a big essay here, and I'm just nibbling at its toes with this post. Hopefully, some readers will get to see this compelling HBO documentary and stop back to share their thoughts and elaborate on the theme.

Most of all, I hope some of my colleagues who are not feeling so great about the profession these days will check out the film. It's a reminder of the risk, greatness and power of honest reporting. You will not only feel great admiration for the members fo the Democratic Voice of Burma. It will make you proud to be part of this profession.