Periscope & the Refugee Crisis

Paul Ronzheimer is a German journalist for the newspaper BILD. He and two other guys from his team came to Syria wanting to get an inside look at Syrians fleeing to Germany. They came equipped with camera and equipment but when they ran into some officials the camera and equipment were not allowed. So Paul entered the field with only his iPhone 6.

Ronzheimer used Periscope to give a live account of what was happening. He talked with refugees about why they were fleeing, their thoughts, hopes, and fears. He also got to get a first hand look at the struggle refugees face when it came to crossing borders. Periscope not only let us see a live feed of what is going on, but it also allowed the refugees to feel more comfortable. They weren't talking to a guy behind a camera. They were walking alongside a friend who had his iPhone out.

The Periscope I watched was a compelling live feed of many refugges attempting to cross a river. He posted a link to watch it again on his facebook: https://www.facebook.com/paul.ronzheimer/videos/10205957080873861/

In this video we see all kinds of people---the elderly, men, women, children---crossing a river attempting to make their way to a place of refuge. We see parents carrying their children. A rope was tied across the river and volunteers are lined up ready to help bring people to saftey.

Ronzheimer ended up making a 16 minute documentary out of all the Persciope recordings he had. It is informative, compelling, and beautiful. If you would like to watch it, you can find it here: https://www.journalism.co.uk/news/-a-day-by-day-digital-documentary-how-news-outlets-are-covering-the-refugee-crisis-on-snapchat-and-periscope-/s2/a567769/