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By Lynette Owens<\/p>\nBy Lynette Owens<\/p>\n
Since 2010, we have been running our annual \u201cWhat\u2019s Your Story?\u201d video contest as a way to engage young people in a conversation on a wide range of topics about life online.\u00a0 We see it is a way to give them a platform that allows them to express exactly what they think, see, and experience each day and as an opportunity for us to sit back and listen. \u00a0Every year, without doubt, we are amazed by their creativity, mastery of video creation, and perceptions and are enriched by the insight they give us into their life experiences which are so intimately entwined with the internet.<\/p>\n
The \u201cWhat\u2019s Your Story?\u201d contest asks students in the U.S. and Canada to submit a short video which answers a ![\"\"](\"\/internet-safety\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/WYS2015_Logo_black-150x150.jpg\"){kind=logo}
specific question.\u00a0 Contestants can compete in either the individual or school categories, and a grand prize of $10,000 is awarded in each category.\u00a0 Finalists are selected based on a combination of views and ratings, so all contestants are encouraged not only to create their entry, but to be advocates of their own messages.\u00a0 A panel of judges then selects the winners from a group of 20 finalists.<\/p>\n
When we began planning this year\u2019s contest, we were faced with an interesting question: what should the theme be for this year?\u00a0 The challenge every year is to select a theme that is relevant to the current environment.\u00a0 This year was particularly intriguing as there was one topic dominating the headlines and conversations about the internet\u2019s current state: fake news.<\/p>\n
Staying Relevant<\/strong><\/p>\n The mistake we can sometimes make, and which we wanted to avoid, was to assume that a topic of interest and importance to adults was in fact the same for young people.\u00a0 Was fake news something they were experiencing or being largely impacted by?\u00a0 Or was there something else?\u00a0 How could we focus the contest to shine a light on what is really going on at this moment for young people, without leading them too much?<\/p>\n We did make one assumption: that the internet is imperfect. \u00a0But we also felt that its faults and weaknesses might actually be different depending on whom you asked.\u00a0 So instead, we posed the question: \u201cIf you could change one thing about the internet, what would you change?\u201d<\/p>\n The answers this year were not only well thought out and well produced, but covered a wide range of topics. Privacy and security were also topics of concern, as young people seem to be increasingly aware of how little they have of it on the internet; entries such as \u201cInternet Safety Rules!\u201d and honorable mention \u201cTerms and Conditions\u201d took humorous approaches to this topic.\u00a0 And lastly, while we were unsure of its impact on youth, the topic of misinformation or fake news did in fact make its way into a handful of entries, including this year\u2019s Individual Category grand prize winner \u201cThe Speed of Impulse\u201d (see right).<\/p>\n Well-deserved Congrats<\/strong><\/p>\n We would like to congratulate this year\u2019s winners, finalists, and all of this year\u2019s contestants.\u00a0 There were so many fantastic entries; unfortunately, only a few could be named finalists.\u00a0 We would also like to extend our thanks to the members of our judging panel<\/a> for helping us make the difficult decision of selecting the 6 winners.<\/p>\n The 2017 \u201cWhat\u2019s Your Story?\u201d video contest winners are:<\/p>\n Grand Prize Winners in the individual and school categories \u2013 each will receive $10,000<\/strong><\/p>\n Individual Winners \u2013 each will receive $1,000<\/strong><\/p>\n School Winners <\/strong>\u2013 each will receive $1,000<\/strong><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"\/internet-safety\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/EyeMessage-1-150x150.jpg\")
The\u00a0majority of submissions focused on the concept of civility and kindness, or the lack thereof online.\u00a0 Many students, including the School grand prize winner \u201cEye Message\u201d (pictured left) attempted to address this, longing for people to abandon cowardice and rudeness behind a screen and own up to every text as if the recipient were right in front of you.\u00a0 In the same vain, some students also touched on the issue of social media and its role in encouraging a lack of authenticity among people, evidenced in entries like #TAKEOFFTHEMASK.
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