Video technologies and participatory approaches to peace : from technological determinism to self-empowerment and social change : an experience from Kenya

Through the application of participatory approaches to video-making in the aftermath of a conflict, a process of appropriation of video technology occurs within communities who want to tell their own story. The possibility of using video to facilitate communication between enemy groups, victims and perpetrators, can open the path toward social change and sustainable peace. In contrast with theories of technological determinism, rather than lessening human agency, technology here empowers people by offering a channel for dialogue. A participatory approach also allows for flexibility in the use of the medium; this prevents the product from being defined by its own technology’s structure. Within this context, technology is neither to be viewed as an external element that is forced upon a group, nor as a value-free asset as it is still being regarded in certain practices, but as a new tool that allows communities affected by conflict to take ownership of their own development through communication. First, this chapter introduces the concept of participatory communication, explaining how communication theory has evolved from a two-step information flow to the recognition of a process of dialogue that takes place between sender and receiver. This section is then followed by an illustration of the relationship between technology and social change, with a presentation of the main theories that were developed in this area. This is accompanied by a discussion that questions these approaches and puts forward an alternative view of how communication technologies can bring about new communication practices that lead to social change in local communities, particularly through the application of a participatory approach to media productions. Views from some of the main authors on the use of the medium of video in this context are also offered. This theoretical discussion forms the preamble to the analysis of a participatory video project implemented in the Rift Valley of Kenya in the aftermath of the 2007/2008 Post-Election violence. The inquiry I have conducted through my field research demonstrates how participants in the Valley have actively engaged with the technology, recognizing its potential for communication and its actual impact. It also brings to light the perception that participants had of their video-production activities and subsequent screenings as a contribution toward the achievement of sustainable peace in their communities. Despite the wide scholarly debate surrounding the notions of participation and technology that has made both terms the object of a large number of different frameworks, the presentation of the findings arising from the interviews I carried out with those who were directly involved in the participatory media productions in Kenya show how a more focused approach can be utilized in contexts of peacebuilding and social change at the community level. This chapter demonstrates how the introduction of a new communication technology within a social system that was fractured by violence, can establish a new form of dialogue and lay the foundations for sustainable social change when the participation of its members becomes a key component of the media content creation process.