Webcasts brings gender equality message to wider audience

Young activists from Bangladesh, the Philippines and El Salvador recently toured Eastern Canada to raise awareness about the global movement for sexual and reproductive health and rights.

David Gordon Koch – Local Journalism Initiative

The panel discussions were organized by the Ottawa-based group Inter Pares and local co-sponsors including the NB Media Co-op. When the tour arrived in Moncton, we helped the organizers amplify their message by livestreaming the entire event, which is now archived on our website. The event had a special significance in New Brunswick, a province where teenage pregnancy rates are almost double the national average.

One of the organizers told us the webcast was a big boost for their efforts. “Livestreaming of the event allowed many colleagues and supporters, in Canada and abroad, to watch the event and allowed the voices of the experts to reach a much wider audience,” said Rita Morbia, co-manager of Inter Pares, in an email to the NB Media Co-op.

“Having the event on YouTube will help Inter Pares amplify the messages and the experience of the public event, even beyond what we expected with the five-city tour,” she said. The overall online audience, including those who watched via livestream and those who watched the archived version, was several times greater than the original in-person event.

In October, we also webcasted an event in Moncton which brought together several political party leaders to discuss gender equality and economic issues affecting women. This is only a beginning. We hope to host livestreams more often as our organization grows in capacity. 

We were able to livestream these events using a professional camcorder connected to a laptop with streaming software. This equipment, in turn, was operated by a full-time journalist on the NB Media Co-op staff.

This work has been made possible in part with funding from the Government of Canada's Local Journalism Initiative, administered by the Canadian Association of Community Television Stations and Users (CACTUS). The program involves passing on video production skills to volunteers, helping to build a stronger community.

As we reflect on the past year and look forward to 2025, we can see that social justice movements face immense challenges, notably an emboldened neofascist movement following the re-election of Donald Trump in the United States.

When it comes to reproductive rights alone, the situation south of the border is looking increasingly dire. We need media watchdogs connected to social justice movements to challenge these trends. The Local Journalism Initiative contributes to these efforts.