Going crazy over Kony – the makings of a viral video

It's all over Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. It's being written about in the pages of
newspapers and discussed on the airwaves.

The Kony 2012 video has truly gone viral.

The half-hour-long video, part of a campaign to draw attention to crimes committed by
Ugandan rebel leader Joseph Kony, has garnered more than 35 million views in just
three days.

“It's an impressive feat,” says Alex Sevigny, an associate professor of communication
studies and multimedia.

“It's hard to make something political, like the Kony video, go viral because many people
find politics local and personal,” he says. “This video is about a country that seems far
enough away from Canada and the US, so that people can get excited about it without
incurring too much social risk by sharing it.”

Sevigny says it would be difficult for a similar video about Canada to gain such online
popularity.

“If the video were about Canada, then people would think twice before passing it along
or sharing it with their social networks because the risk of upsetting or alienating those
they care about is greater,” he says. “They might disagree with the politics the video
expresses and take it personally.”

Sevigny says there are five things necessary for a video to go viral:

1) A good set of evidence

2) Undeniable statistics

3) Emotional appeal

4) An interesting “twist”

5) One memorable line

“It's also best if the video is the first of its kind to appear. Most viral videos are bound to
be one-hit wonders, since it's the nature of the genre. If you copy a viral video to make
yours more popular, chances are you'll fail because your video will seem to lack
authenticity.”

Not all viral videos, however, have to be serious. Humour, though difficult to master,
can be effective, as can sudden slapstick events.

“And if in doubt,” he says, “film a cat video.”