Voice First
A Study on First-Person Video Stories that Inspire Change
In a world of constant media consumption, it is difficult to find the voices of marginalized communities. We see influencer’s opinions or news reports of homelessness but when do we see the homeless sharing their own stories? First person storytelling, where the person experiencing the topic shares their story, is essential in helping us connect and understand the experiences of those around us.
The nonprofit Video Volunteers and Susan Missner partnered with a team of BYU student researchers to study Youtube and its first person storytelling content. We did this by focusing on 3 social issues: Disability, Incarceration, and Homelessness and searched through Youtube using keywords and filters for channels that highlighted these social issues. We found a lot of channels that raised awareness for these social issues, but realized that most of the spokespeople for these channels come from an indirect source, rather than from people who deal with the social issue firsthand. Because of this, our research aims to understand why there is a lack of awareness, consumption, and support for first-person storytellers in the United States. This website shares the findings of our studies. We are not experts, but want to increase the dialogue regarding this important topic. Support first person storytelling and read our content below.
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First-Person Storytellers
Team
Jessica
Mayberry
About:
Jessica Mayberry is the founding director of Video Volunteers, a nonprofit media organization in the US and India that identifies, trains and empowers media producers from marginalized communities across India’s poorest districts, whose videos and data-gathering efforts have reached all corners of the Indian media. Video Volunteers’ reporting network has enabled more than 1000 successful village-led action campaigns on issues ranging from gender, to human trafficking, to corruption, to improvement of local government programs.
Susan Missner
About:
Programs that resonate with your stakeholders and fulfill your ambition to make a difference. Programs that make employees want to work for you, donors want to give to you, customers want to buy from you, partners want to join forces with you and media want to cover you.
I combine business rigor and data analytics with creative thinking and a uniquely interdisciplinary approach at the intersection of policy, marketing, and strategy – the sweet spot for meaningful and measurable social outcomes.
I embrace ambiguity and recognize the power in transforming differences into opportunities for partnership and collaboration. I see what is possible through the lens of my eclectic experience including roles with Stanford University • communications firm KemperLesnik • valuation and corporate finance advisor Duff & Phelps • aerospace and defense technology company Northrup Grumman (fka Planning Research Corp.) • global law firm Dentons (fka Sonnenschein Carlin Nath & Rosenthal)
University of Chicago, BA and MBA | George Washington University, MA
Social Impacts Projects, Brigham Young University
About:
Where to go from here...
We hope to establish a collaborative network that brings together content creators, experts, and ally organizations.
Working together to promote research and elevate underrepresented perspectives, we aspire to catalyze a movement that empowers communities and drives positive social change.
With a focus on amplifying the voices of marginalized communities through high-quality first-person storytelling and citizen journalism.