Eek, watch out for Keek!

My kids love ‘You’ve Been Framed’ or as they call it, ‘Funny People Falling Over’ and they’re not alone. The show has been running since 1991 and still occupies some of ITV’s prime viewing points with repeats seemingly on a loop on ITV2. It seems that however many times we see someone falling off a bike/trampoline/roof or a cat getting spooked or a dog going mad or a baby just kind of existing we just don’t get tired of the format. The success of YBF is replicated across many countries and seems to tap into a fairly primitive human instinct to laugh at other people. Of course YBF, and especially with the narrating genius of Harry Hill, is harmless fun. We can all have a laugh, no-one gets hurt and the contributor pockets £250 (although I think this should go to whomever or whatever was the butt of the joke, cats included).

Beadle - he'd have loved Keek

Since 2005 YouTube has, to some extent, fed off the popularity of this genre of TV show. Many of the most popular YouTube clips fit into the YBF model, the most viewed clip being ‘Charlie bit my finger, again’ with more than 528 million hits at the time of writing. But, because YouTube is not edited or censored in the same way as a mainstream TV programme it also leaks in the obscure, the surreal, the avant-garde, the magnificent, the abusive, the vile and the violent kind of clips that would never be seen on YBF. ‘Happy-slapping’ started to become a problem around 2004-5 (see Guardian article) when mobile phones were introduced with video capability and sites like YouTube emerged where these acts could be shared with the masses.

For many schools their experience of social media has moved from the early horror of not knowing how to control the technology which only ever seemed to promote negative behaviour to an understanding that both uses and abuses have been opened up by the opportunity to share so easily. Most schools now have a presence on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube etc, and many are seeking to incorporate social media into the daily learning experiences of their students. We still have to contend with friendship issues being played out on BBM and are still surprised at the language used by teenagers when communicating on Twitter, but on the whole we’re are starting to feel that we understand the phenomena and can engage with our students on a relatively level playing field.

But it seems the industry is intent on introducing new sites which seek to exploit the negative aspects of social media and ensure that teachers and parents remain one step behind. Ask.fm is a Latvian-based social networking site that allows users to remain anonymous in their interactions with each other. This essentially leads to the most awful, uncensored teenage communications imaginable and has been linked in the press to a number of suicides. Last week, while investigating an incident of bullying at my school that resulted in an inappropriate video being posted online, I came across the video sharing site, ‘Keek’.

Keek allows users to “Share 36-second video updates via webcam, iPhone, Android or Blackberry. Posting keeks is a fun way to meet new people, stay up to date with friends and tell the world what you're up to in real time.” That’s right, ‘keeks’ have a 36 second limit. Now I’m a big fan of using video to engage and educate and I’m happy to embrace new ideas that I can see may have some practical use, but what can you capture in a 36 second video ... ? Exactly. The most popular keek at the time of writing is Kim Kardashian filming her sister sun-bathing – I don’t recommend wasting these precious seconds in your life watching it. In fact, the Kardashians seem to be all over Keek which might be reason enough to steer clear. But it seems the 36 second limit provides a great opportunity for people to either abuse others, physically or verbally, or to promote their sexual assets to vast audience of shallow consumers who have been raised on a diet of pornography and reality TV. It is, I’m afraid, the ideal hunting ground of teenage abusers and narcissists.

Keek, and the even more abbreviated video sharing app, Vine, which restricts you to 6 seconds, are tapping into the Twitterisation of communication. Brevity is king in the modern age.  Now, 6 seconds potentially creates the same issues as 36 seconds, but it also introduces an element of genuine challenge for film makers. Could you set students the task of creating a video of 6 seconds to help explain/illustrate something? Schools should be aware of Keek and Vine but maybe like Facebook and Twitter before, the answer is for educators to occupy these places so that the benefits can be exploited at the same time as having to pick up the pieces when it all goes wrong.