How Data-Driven Journalism Illuminates Patterns of Injustice | Alison Killing | TED

TL;DR

Through a combination of YouTube videos, satellite imagery, and open-source investigations, the speaker uncovers the extensive network of detention camps in Xinjiang, China.

Transcript

Recently, I spent several days exploring Kashgar, a city in Xinjiang, northwest China. I got to wander the streets of the old town and visit the bazaar and several mosques and take in the sights. I've never been to Kashgar personally, but through the YouTube videos and Instagram posts of tourists, I was able to experience the city at a key moment i... Read More

Key Insights

• 🔍 Online and open-source investigations have become valuable tools in journalism and human rights monitoring, allowing for the use of photographs, videos, and digital traces to gather information.
• 🌍 China has been carrying out a campaign of oppression in Xinjiang against Turkic Muslims, including the Uyghurs, and this has been described as a genocide by several nations.
• ♂️ The Chinese government tightly controls the internet and restricts journalists' work in the region, making it challenging to gather information about the situation in Xinjiang.
• 📡 Satellite imagery has become a crucial source of information in investigating areas like Xinjiang since it cannot be controlled by the Chinese government.
• 📸 Baidu Total View, the Chinese equivalent of Google Street View, has been used to identify the locations of detention camps in Xinjiang when industrial estates were found to be photoshopped out of the imagery.
• 🔒 A technique was developed to locate the hidden detention camps by examining satellite imagery and identifying blank spots where the camps were obscured.
• 🗺️ Through mapping masked-tile locations and corroborating this information with government documents and media reports, 348 locations bearing the hallmarks of camps and prisons were identified in Xinjiang.
• 💡 Open-source data, such as satellite imagery and social media, has provided evidence of human rights abuses, corroborating eyewitness testimony, and creating a more comprehensive understanding of the situation for policymakers and legal proceedings.

Questions & Answers

Q: What evidence did the speaker find of the crackdown in Xinjiang?

The speaker found evidence of the crackdown in Xinjiang through online videos and posts from tourists. They observed visual signs such as checkpoints, metal detectors, surveillance cameras, and riot police in the streets. They also used satellite imagery to locate and identify detention camps in the region.

Q: Why was it difficult to gather information about what was happening in Xinjiang?

It was difficult to gather information about what was happening in Xinjiang because the Chinese government tightly controls the internet and restricts the work of journalists in the region. Journalists were often followed, detained, or faced obstacles such as fake roadworks or staged car crashes to prevent access to certain areas. Local people who spoke to journalists risked being sent to detention camps.

Q: How did the speaker use satellite imagery to locate detention camps?

The speaker used satellite imagery to locate detention camps in Xinjiang. They discovered that buildings and facilities, such as industrial estates, were being photoshopped out of ground level imagery on the Chinese equivalent of Google Street View. This led them to believe that the same was happening with detention camps. By zooming in on satellite images, they identified light gray squares above the locations of the camps, which inadvertently revealed their positions.

Q: What did the speaker find when investigating the network of camps in Xinjiang?

When investigating the network of camps in Xinjiang, the speaker found 348 locations that bore the hallmarks of camps and prisons. They estimated that these facilities were built to hold over a million people, and it's possible that the number could be even higher due to overcrowding. The speaker corroborated these locations using government documents, media reports, and interviews with former detainees. They believe that their findings are close to being the full network of camps.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• Satellite imagery and open-source data have been crucial in investigating human rights abuses in Xinjiang, China, where over a million people have been detained in camps.

• The Chinese government tightly controls the internet and restricts journalists' access to the region, making it difficult to gather information through traditional means.

• Open-source data, including social media posts and satellite imagery, have helped reveal the network of detention camps in Xinjiang and provide evidence of human rights violations.