The power of the cell phone in exposing social injustices – 02/29/2024 – Education

The way military police officers in Porto Alegre (RS) approached a black motorcycle courier and a white resident in front of a building made news in the main newspapers in recent weeks. The repercussion began on the internet following a video in which passers-by were heard accusing the officers of racism against the app delivery person, who was allegedly stabbed by the man. The military brigade investigation investigated and denied any abuse by the police. But the fact is that, if there wasn’t a cell phone recording the episode, the approach would go unnoticed and wouldn’t be a subject of debate.

When used responsibly, new technologies have played a fundamental role in highlighting situations that have been occurring for centuries, but which were not treated with significance. Examples abound. Also this month, social media helped publicize the incident in which a same-sex couple was attacked by a woman with homophobic insults in a bakery in the center of the city of São Paulo. After being identified by the images, she was summoned to give a statement.

For those nostalgic for a predominantly analogue world, the discourse that demonizes digital resources, especially the internet, is recurrent, as if it had distorted moral precepts of interpersonal relationships. In fact, the internet may have given more visibility and reach to prejudiced, disrespectful and unethical speeches. But, on the other hand, it also allowed more voices to be heard, shedding light on previously veiled prejudices.

This use of audiovisual resources to highlight social injustices has already been observed in the last decade. According to the report Video as Legal Evidence for the Defense of Human Rights in Brazil, released by the organizations Artigo 19 and Witness in 2015, this media is essential for exposing episodes of human rights violations. With the evolution in the quality of smartphone cameras and the expansion of internet access in the country, more cases began to be based on videos as a legal tool.

The phenomenon intensifies as cell phones themselves multiply in everyday life. According to a study published by Fundação Getúlio Vargas in 2023, there are 1.2 smartphones per inhabitant in the country, totaling 249 million cell phones with cameras in use. Therefore, it cannot be denied that these digital tools have the potential to give autonomy to citizens who can now witness facts that often did not gain the spotlight in the news and disseminate them through their device to a private audience.

Of course, there is a danger in relation to the quality of this information that is generated, but there is also a gain in the exercise of citizenship. In this scenario, media education appears to be fundamental. Recording everyday situations has become a habit, but not every video can be shared on social media because it includes each individual’s image rights or the need to protect children and adolescents from exposure, for example. Media literacy promotes the mastery of technical skills and critical sense precisely to learn how to deal with situations that arise in the midst of ethical debates. Furthermore, it aims to emancipate the population so that they can identify the misuse of these tools, such as manipulated videos published in dubious contexts.

Recognizing the benefits of technological resources should not be seen as an expression of supposed ignorance. After all, through media education, it is possible to extract the positive aspects of new media without a shallow binary. Cell phones and social networks are a good example of how they can contribute to helping combat social injustices. Using them in a responsible, critical and respectful way can bring significant results and changes to society as a whole. Like any medicine, the way they are handled makes all the difference to their effect.