Ukraine shares a lot of characteristics with all of the popular uprisings of the last five years. Like the Egyptian revolution, a grassroots movement picked a public, central space and camped out, making their message impossible to ignore. Like Syria, the rebellious groups are organising via Facebook and other social media, circumventing traditional channels. And like all the recent revolutions, from Libya to Egypt to Syria and around the world, handheld video has been beamed live from the front lines onto screens around the world--by amateurs.
Streaming video from phones has changed the game. Where once a government could issue a clampdown, and stifle reporting by closing off the mainstream media, now live, on-scene reporting is a multi-headed hydra. Activist groups know the importance of ensure their situation is seen globally, and train new recruits on how to stream video, so that no matter what happens, the world is a witness.
This is the story of Spilno.tv, a group of Ukrainian "streamers" who kept the pictures flowing despite the best efforts of pro-Russian forces trying to jam their freedom-fighting message. Try as they might, Moscow can't disturb the flow of the streamers.
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