Internet | 07 Apr 2008 :
The National Forum On Europe today launched a Channel on YouTube, the video sharing site which gets hundreds of millions of views per day. The new Channel (www.youtube.com/forumoneurope) will provide a window into the public meetings which the Forum is currently holding around the country on the Treaty of Lisbon. It features short video clips from people attending the meetings, as well as from the prominent speakers who have been outlining the case for and against the Treaty at each event.
The National Forum On Europe is the first Irish public body to host a topical debate on a YouTube Channel.
The Chairman of the National Forum On Europe, Maurice Hayes, says that the move is in line with the mandate of the National Forum On Europe to provide a neutral space for discussion on the European Union and Ireland's role in it. "You will find many shades of opinion on the Treaty reflected on the Forum's YouTube Channel. What we are also doing is tapping into a growing trend among public bodies and political campaigns in other countries to avail of this popular accessible form of democratic engagement".
YouTube was acquired by Google in 2006. Speaking on the launch of the Forum's Channel John Herlihy, Vice President of Google, commented: "we are delighted to see today's launch of a YouTube channel on the Lisbon Treaty. We hope that this channel will encourage public debate amongst all age groups on this vital issue." Google's European Headquarters is located in Dublin, where the company employs over 1,500 people.