The article argues that systematically ignoring and silencing the voices of the poor and marginalized worldwide does not serve society or democracy well and must be countered. While new technologies such as AI could provide an opportunity for change, we contend that these technologies need to account more effectively for their realities. Therefore, we propose a research and policy- oriented action agenda to confront this issue in the near future.
By Lieve Fransen and Jessica Mayberry | Dec 2024

Policy Brief: Mind the Gap – Citizen-Led Efforts to Build Bureaucratic Responsiveness in Rural India
By Gaby Kruks-Wisner and Tanu Kumar, Governance and Local Development Institute, University of Gothenburg | Dec 2024

Video Volunteers, in collaboration with students from Brown University and Brigham Young University, examined YouTube’s first-person storytelling on disability, incarceration, and homelessness. Despite many channels raising awareness, they found few that featured voices with firsthand experience. This report explores why first-person storytellers in the United States garner limited awareness, engagement, and support. We seek to spark dialogue and discover new ways to elevate social justice content creators sharing their own lived experiences.
By Jessica Mayberry | Dec 2024

The study examines the digital transformation of 117 Community Content Creators (CCs) from 2023 to 2024. It explores how these grassroots leaders, empowered by training from Video Volunteers, have leveraged social media to amplify their local issues and drive social change. Through case studies and data analysis, it highlights the growth in CCs’ digital reach, the challenges they faced, and the strategies that led to their success. Overall, it provides valuable insights into building impactful community-driven digital movements.
By Saloni Yadav, Heena Singhal and Jessica Mayberry Oct 2024

This report showcases the significant impact of Community Content Creators (CCs) in influencing local officials and securing over 67 collaborative projects addressing key social issues. This has led to a 59% increase in resolved cases and a 45% rise in lives impacted, touching an additional 4.5 million people. It also covers insights from a survey of 1,200 officials demonstrating a strong interest in collaborating with citizens, particularly on awareness campaigns and local surveys.
Jessica Mayberry and Heena Singhal Sept 2024

Social Brokerage: Accountability and the Social Iife of Information

In Comparative Political Studies
Dr. Gabrielle Kruks-Wisner of the University of Virginia | May 2022

State–Society Synergy at COVID-19’s Invisible Front Lines

Dyuti Saunik | Avani Kapur | Gabrielle Kruks-Wisner | Jessica Mayberry | Aug 2021

Patriarchy In India

A glimpse towards transforming women’s identities to Dismantle Patriarchy | Oct 2020

Video Volunteers’ pilot for resilient roots

This case shows how a civil society organisation can adapt digital tools and tactics to bring its primary constituents into organisational decision-making and governance, build a listening, learning and training community and grow its accountability and resilience.

2019 HERBERT I. SCHILLER AWARD

The International Association for Media and Communication Research (IAMCR) presented this award to Pooja Ichplani, Archna Kumar, Rupa Upadhyay and Jessica Mayberry, for their joint paper “Communication Processes, Community Mobilization and Normative Shifts: Learnings from Video Volunteers’ India Unheard Program”. Read the press release and read this award-winning research report on VV’s model.

American Jewish World Service

VV’s work is cited as a best practice of Feminist Research by the organizations IDRC and American Jewish World Service

Pooja Ichplani & Archna Kumar, Dr.

The Journal of Development Communication | Engaging Rural Communities in Communication Processes. Lessons from Video Volunteers’ India Unheard Program | 2018

Pooja Ichplani & Archna Kumar, Dr.

Video for Change, Wumen Bagun: Communication for Development and Social Change Bulletin | 2018

Alisa Zomer

India Unheard: Community Journalists Turned Activists Take on Rural Issues | 2018

Tackling stigma through stories

| Video Volunteers’ work to Combat Human Trafficking | 2017

VV Model 2017

| THE VIDEO VOLUNTEERS’ REPORTING AND DATA-SURVEYING MODEL | 2017

GENDER LENS

| Changing India one video at a time | A report on 10 years of VV’s work on gender issues | 2017

Pooja Ichplani

University of Delhi Masters Dissertation CC’s and Micro-Level Changes | 2017

PAUL CRAEGER

| Fulbright Scholar, Minnesota, USA | Research on Video Volunteers as a Model for School Education in the US | 2016

AKSHAY ROONGTA

| MA student, Alto University, Helsinki | Using Video and New Technologies as a Monitoring and Evaluation Tool | 2015

LUELLA AMY

| PhD Scholar, Department of Communication, Hyderabad University, India | Studying Citizen Journalism | 2014

ERICK MATZANZA

| Fellow at Kantari Institute, Kerala, India | VV as a Model for Kenya | 2014

TANIA NOTLEY

| Lecturer, School of Humanities and Communication Arts, University of Western Sydney, Australia | Video Volunteers Impact Case Study and Measuring Impact | Commissioned by the V4C Network | 2014

LIZZY GEBLE

| Bachelors Thesis for a German University | Indian Community Media, Comparing it to German Media | 2014

THE UNESCO CHAIR OF COMMUNITY MEDIA

at the University of Hyderabad did one of the first ever studies of community media looking at the content and products, rather than process. Dr. Kanchan Malik coded and studied 127 videos produced by VV’s Women Community Monitors, who worked as part of a large scale UNDP program. The videos were on women’s empowerment, and the goal of the study was to ascertain whether a video alone could capture empowerment. | 2013

MARTIN HEIDELBERGER

| PhD candidate, Humboldt University, Berlin | Local Actors of Global News Industry | 2013

MANJARI SHARMA

| Department of Development Communication & Extension, Lady Irwin College, University of Delhi |MA Dissertation on VV | 2013

STUDENT INTERNS

created reports on VV’s role in the global freedom of expression movement around ‘right to voice’. The business model of a rural stringers network, and an in-depth analysis of VV’s corruption videos (2013)

DAVID SHRAGA

| Masters Student, University of East Anglia, United Kingdom | Rethinking Media Development | 2013

EVA HOFFMAN & FRIEDER PIAZENA

| ASA Research Interns, Germany | Research on Community Media Models in Comparision to Mainstream | 2013

IIM AHMEDABAD, INDIA

| Report on Making Community Video Units Sustainable | 2011

KNIGHT FOUNDATION, USA

| Report on their Grantees in the Training and Empowerment Space | 2011

NAOMI HATFIELD

| Cambridge University, United Kingdom | Research Paper on Community Video Unit in Andhra Pradesh | 2010

Video Volunteers Booklet

| Power to Voice | Field Stories from Community Video Units in India | 2010

ALEXANDRA PINSCHMIDT

| Masters Thesis, Clark University, Massachusetts, USA | A Practitioner Report to Imagine India’s Video Volunteers’ Community Video Unit Modeled in an American Context | 2010

NYU STERN BUSINESS SCHOOL, NEW YORK

| Report on Branding Project on VV | 2009

VIDEOSHALA

| Videoshala – Community Video for Citizenship, Diversity and Education | 2009

VIDEOACTIVE GIRLS

| Toolkit Prepared by Video Volunteers for Videoactive Girls project of Global Fund for Children | 2009

PARTH S. SHASTRI

| Masters Thesis, Faculty of Journalism and Communication, Maharaja Sayajirao University, Baroda, India| A Study on Yuvshakti Community Video Unit at Halol initiated by Drishti Media and Video Volunteers |

NAMITA SINGH

| Tata Institute of Social Sciences | MA Dissertation on VV | 2006