If spreading hate and misinformation online requires creativity & strategy, countering it requires it even more. Esp for teenagers trying to make sense of the online world.

Wrote about Instagram+Youth-centric ventures training teens to fight hate speech

https://tech.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/internet/inside-instagrams-teen-training-camp-for-positive-advocacy/76803173

Why? Because Instagram is fast becoming the new home for the proliferation of racist memes and screenshots of fake news. Teens are affected the most by this as they don't have safe spaces to process violence & rage.

https://tech.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/internet/inside-instagrams-teen-training-camp-for-positive-advocacy/76803173

How? By giving them tools like ad budgets to amplify their content’s reach, tutoring on hashtags, on the art of tagging, and most importantly, preparing them to deal with trolls and hate-mongers online.

https://tech.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/internet/inside-instagrams-teen-training-camp-for-positive-advocacy/76803173

Something fascinating about what to keep in mind while training teens to talk to policymakers in this nugget: “You often can’t, for instance, use the "S" word while talking about sex education..."

https://tech.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/internet/inside-instagrams-teen-training-camp-for-positive-advocacy/76803173

An important part of this exercise is listening to the voices of teenagers that are often snubbed because “they’re just kids”.

Ending this thread with one of the most beautiful examples to illustrate just how much of a difference their voices can make.

https://tech.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/internet/inside-instagrams-teen-training-camp-for-positive-advocacy/76803173