Hypermediacy and Humanitarian Efforts

A friend of mine recently sent me an email for a fundraiser. It was powerful because it was linked to a website that hypermediated a tragic experience that happened to a young married couple. The hypermediating of the experience reminded me of my own wife and brought new meaning to their experience as I underwent my own experience. The website, though, is a new media haven, linked with pictures, videos, updates, a discussion board, and a place to donate money. The power of New Media is felt through this tragically hopeful experience, which is hypermediated through the Internet.

Another form of humanitarian hypermediation is being done via the One Campaign, which is attempting to motivate people to rid the world of poverty. They send emails regularly urging people to write to their congress person, invite their friends to join, etc. They also hypermediate the tragedy of impoverished nations through celebrities. Watch this video for more information.