Hello and welcome to a special announcement from the Anthems Podcast. Normally I'm here to tell you the story of a song that helps to tell the story of a nation.
And don't worry, the the newest episode will be released on schedule. And this is not me telling you that I am running late or that I am canceling my show today.
I am here to let you know that I will be participating in the very first fundraising event for the Creator Accountability Network or Cannes, and that this will happen on April 25. This does mean that you will have to find out what I look like if you've never been to my Facebook page.
But don't worry, my appearance is fairly unremarkable and I am not a scary looking guy. But I know that I'm at least a little surprised every time I find out what a podcaster looks like.
If you've been on the Internet for a while, you've seen or perhaps experienced the problems that CAN is trying to fix.
Harassment, abuse and harmful content are way too common, and they're also poorly addressed by most platforms and the communities that are around them. Or worse, just completely ignored. That's where can the creator members who volunteers, and now donors. Possibly you can come in.
They offer training for harassment and abuse prevention, a support hotline that you hear the number for on every episode I produce, and a restorative justice system that actually aims to address and reduce harm in online communities. This system stops people from just swinging the banhammer and calling it a day. Instead, it focuses on real accountability for bad actors.
That way people can have a chance to heal, and the people that act inappropriately can face appropriate consequences. This is also not just some third party telling people what to do. CAN was built by, for and from people that are actually in our communities.
They're staffed by folks who actually understand and care about making the online communities better safer spaces. Now, the fundraiser has a competitive aspect to it.
What it means is that if I raise more money than someone else during the session that I'm taking part in, I get to lord it over them a bit. In an ethical way, of course, because ethics is sort of the whole deal at can. The process of figuring out what that means is a work in progress.
But I do know that it means that I'll be asking my listeners to tune in and make donations during the segment that I'm on. So if you're going to be donating, please do it then. I personally donate to several nonprofits.
Can is one of them, and I do this on a recurring basis they're not large donations, but they do happen automatically. It's an important way to donate because it's a dependable source of funding for these places.
And without reliable sources of funding, organizations like the Creator Accountability Network, the United Way, and even National Public Radio are simply unable to continue to provide the services that they provide and and continue to do the important work that their mission drives them to do to encourage that. There are going to be some extra perks for folks who set up recurring donations.
I do not yet have all the details, but I know that at the end of the fundraiser, three lucky recurring donors are going to be randomly selected to receive a special thank you gift from Can. Of course, I know that not everyone is in a position to donate, and that's totally understandable.
And fine, we are cursed to live in interesting times, and times like that can have us financially pressed. But that doesn't mean that you can't support what CAN does.
As I mentioned in my credits, you can volunteer through their website, which is just as valuable as donating, because time is worth so much.
Whether it's helping out with moderation, offering technical skills, or just spreading the word about the organization, there is a way for everybody to be involved. This is a cause that I really believe in, and I think, at least I hope a lot of you do too.
We live in a time where accountability matters so much, and that's why I have made myself accountable to you by joining CAN as a creator.
If you care about making online spaces safer, if you've ever had to deal with harassment, or even if you just want to see me try to win this fundraiser, please mark your calendars. I'll be sharing more details soon, including exactly when I'll be live and how you can donate and how you can tune in, etc.
For now, check out Can's website at creatoraccountabilitynetwork.org to see what they're about and get ready to help us make an impact.
Maybe you'll even observe a co worker doing something especially ethical and it will prompt you to mention this very announcement and they'll become interested enough to get involved themselves. But even if all you do is listen to me talk about it one more time before the fundraiser happens, you're still some of my favorite humans.
Thanks for listening and I'll see you in another country on April 7. SA.
