Introducing Kill Switch: The Rise of Internet Shutdowns Colourful Numbers

On July 27 Access Now and the #KeepItOn coalition is launching Kill Switch, a six-part podcast series exploring the devastating impact of internet shutdowns on the human rights of people affected by this extraordinary form of anti-democratic oppression. The first episode is going live on the opening day of RightsCon, the world’s leading summit on human rights in the digital age, which will take place completely online for the first time, and runs July 27 — 31.

Kill Switch features the stories of journalists, human rights defenders, activists, and others who have been deliberately cut off from the internet, and raises the profile of the NGOs, human rights advocates, and technical experts who are working to put an end to internet shutdowns globally.

From Myanmar to Ethiopia, each episode addresses topical issues, the broad range of urgent human rights concerns that shutdowns raise, and the strategies that those fighting these devastating blackouts are leveraging to defend and extend the digital rights of people affected by these cut-offs. Kill Switch serves as an advocacy tool for anyone interested in supporting the #KeepItOn campaign, as well as an educational tool to raise awareness of this unparalleled form of suppression.

Kill Switch is hosted by Felicia Anthonio, #KeepItOn Campaign Lead at Access Now, and produced by Volume with funding support from Internews.

The next episode will be available on the Kill Switch feed wherever you get your podcasts: https://www.volume.africa/kill-switch