San Diego - Digitaria, a full-service digital marketing and technology firm, and Invisible Children, a media-based non-profit organization dedicated to inspiring and educating youth around the world, today announced that “Displace Me,” (http://www.invisiblechildren.com/displaceMe/) is nominated as the Webby Awards’ best Activism Web site of 2008. The mission of the Displace Me event, staged by Invisible Children, is to raise awareness of the plight of children in northern Uganda.
“The event was unlike any other war protest. Close to 70,000 youth across America rallied together to bring an end to the 22-year war in Uganda,” said Laren Poole, founder of Invisible Children and director of Displace Me. “The Web site gave participants a chance to find out more about the situation and the results of the event – the State department’s appointment of a senior level diplomat to the Uganda peace talks.”
The Displace Me Web site was created by Digitaria and Invisible Children to inform the public about the event and to build an online community that allows supporters to interact and track the course of the movement.
“Displace Me is an extremely powerful movement, and we wanted to communicate that creatively on the Web,” said Daniel Khabie, Digitaria CEO. “It’s an honor to be recognized by the Webby’s for a Web site that promotes activism and inspires people to take part in such an important cause.”
Hailed as the “Oscars of the Internet” by the New York Times, the Webby Awards is the leading international award honoring excellence on the Internet, including Web sites, interactive advertising, online film and video and mobile Web sites. The Webby Awards is presented by the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences, a 550-person judging academy whose members include Internet co-inventor Vinton Cerf, R/GA’s Chief Bob Greenberg, “Simpson’s” creator Matt Groening, Arianna Huffington and Harvey Weinstein. The 12th Annual Webby Awards received nearly 10,000 entries from more than 60 countries and all 50 states. Of those, approximately 350 nominees across 70 categories have been selected as contenders. Category winners will be announced on May 6.
“The Webby Awards honors the outstanding Web sites that are setting the standards for the Internet,” said David-Michel Davies, executive director of The Webby Awards. “This Webby Award nomination is a testament to the skill, ingenuity and vision of its creators.”
From now through May 1, online fans around the world can cast their own votes for “Invisible Children - Displace Me” in The Webby People’s Voice Awards by registering at http://pv.webbyawards.com and searching for Displace Me in the Activism category.
About Digitaria
Digitaria (www.digitaria.com) is a full-service digital marketing and technology firm headquartered in San Diego with additional offices in Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. Since 1997, Digitaria has consistently led the field in creating digital experiences online through Web sites, intranets, extranets, digital asset management, interactive marketing campaigns and business solutions that are both measurable and memorable. Digitaria represents many of the largest brands in the world. Active clients include ASICS Shoes, Atlanta Falcons, Best Western International, CBS Corporation, Comcast Corporation, FOX Corporation, Gateway Corporation, Gordon Rush, Hasbro, Inc., KCET Hollywood, NBC Universal, QUALCOMM, Inc., VIZIO, Inc., Warner Bros. Worldwide Television Marketing, WPT Enterprises, Inc. and many others.
Digitaria believes strongly in the power of collaboration and strategic thinking and often integrates internal teams with the talented staff of its clients to ensure all stakeholders contribute to the success of the engagement. For additional information, please visit http://www.digitaria.com.
About Invisible Children, Inc.
Established in 2005, Invisible Children is a non-profit organization dedicated to providing financial resources to war-affected children by documenting their true, untold stories in a creative and relevant way. The organization was created after the release of the 2004 film “Invisible Children: Rough Cut,” a revealing documentary about the life of child soldiers in northern Uganda. Programs on the ground focus on long-term development through education and innovative economic opportunities, while awareness and advocacy efforts focus on educating and inspiring the Western world to use their unique voice for change. For more information, visit www.invisiblechildren.com.
About The Webby Awards
Hailed as the "Oscars of the Internet” by the New York Times, the Webby Awards is the leading international award honoring excellence on the Internet, including Websites, interactive advertising, online film and video, and mobile web sites. Established in 1996, the 12th Annual Webby Awards received a record 9,500 entries from all 50 states and over 60 countries worldwide. The Webby Awards is presented by The International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences. Sponsors and Partners of The Webby Awards include: Adobe; The Creative Group; .ORG; The Barbarian Group; Level3; Adweek; Fortune; Variety; Wired; IDG: Brightcove; PricewaterhouseCoopers; 2advanced.Net; KobeMail and Museum of the Moving Image.