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Why I Couldn’t Stop Thinking About ‘Kony 2012’
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Why I Couldn’t Stop Thinking About ‘Kony 2012’

Like so many other young people, I was sure—for a hot minute—that this viral video would change the world. A decade later, its rise and fall says more about our culture than most would like to admit.

Emma Madden
Oct 12, 2023
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Why I Couldn’t Stop Thinking About ‘Kony 2012’
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Photo courtesy of Jason Russell | Story edited by Brendan Spiegel

I was 16 when Kony 2012 was released. I remember watching as the video took over my Facebook feed one night after school, convinced that this would be a defining moment for my generation. Countless others felt the same way. Then the tide turned just as quickly. The astronomically successful video became a disaster, and faded into obsolescence. A decade later, as the video still lingered in people’s memories, I wanted to take a look at whether Kony had had an impact at all, as well as where it stood with the people who created it. 

In early 2022, I wrote a short piece about Kony 2012 for The New York Times, arguing that it was an important digital relic that — unwittingly — shaped the way we engage in online discourse today. Writing that piece was a somewhat stressful experience. Speaking to Jason Russell, the man behind Kony 2012, was crucial, but I couldn’t get him until the final hour — literally. After many, many, many…

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