THE REAL NUKE

By Sanjay Sahay

A picture says a thousand words and a video moves millions, may be even billions of eyeballs. While the eye balls move, the heart and mind get fully operational. The end result is the shooting of the emotional graph. The connect is instantaneous. The more strange, weird, violent, soothing or catchy the video, the impact would move on a corresponding meteoric scale. The caption which goes on with the video also does wonders, in helping people to decide to watch it. Its dedicating your time at the end of the day. People have realised the power of the video and with the communication potential of the social media, it can put the world on fire in no time.

Life as it stands now has been completely mediated by screen. Video happens to the most fascinating of the formats of multimedia on display. The reach, intensity and quality has improved by leaps and bounds in last few years. If your video goes viral, you day is made. WhatsApp and YouTube have made it the running currency of the world. The way videos surface of any incident, is generally enough to nail the truth, that law needs substantiation of the same, is a different story altogether. A recent case of domestic violence recorded on video and the pace of official action on the same, gives a very clear indication of the lighting response it creates.

A more informed world means a world with more and more incidents and stories disseminated on this medium. Its leaves a mental imprint. It keeps playing on your mind. You can watch it any number of times. It becomes a reference point. It can also spread like wildfire. Remember the Christchurch shootings, it was even streamed on Facebook live. The TV channels have been using videos to unimaginable levels. Repeating it a thousand times, they force belief on you. A recent video of an ex-Police officer was doing its bid to establish him. From campaigning to propaganda, this tool rules the world. The arsenal of DeepFake, can make a fake, which would be next to impossible to differentiate. The world of Digital Marketing uses video with exceptional elan.

What Maggie did with the two-minute jingle, all of us have experienced. On a totally different side, the video of the brutal dealing of George Floyd by the Minneapolis Police officer stirred the world conscience and led to global protests. 2020 Black Lives Matter has been one of the largest movements in United States history. Just two days back the video of cremation of a rape victim is telling a tale of it’s woe. Might be the video is able to the take the real life to you, and given the communication technology accentuated by the social media, most of it is in real-time as well, for a much wider audience. May it be used for the betterment of mankind.

VIDEO HAS THE CAPABILITY TO PUT OUR LIFE THREADBARE, IF USED POSITIVELY AND PROACTIVELY.

The writer — Sanjay Sahay is Ex. IPS (ADGP), IT, Cyber Security & Emerging Technologies Expert, Management Guru, Pro Public Speaker & Writer, Bengaluru