YouTube or Google Video or whatever is a video sharing site. It allows you to create and distribute (or copy and distribute) videos as I do from time to time.
Certainly, to see old video clips of Johny Carson or Richard Pryor is cool. I dig seeing ncaa final four moments. I like to see recent Daily Show or shows with a less professional approaches to news journalism like CNN, MSNBC, Fox, etc. etc. clips of interviews.
But you know why the sites are so popular? Because we're all artists and we're all love. Love is creative. The process of creation is enrapturing, empowering and alluring. I've even got my own youtube channel people!!!
A GREAT example is one that a friend of mine (whose channel you can check out here) just sent me two.
PLEASE watch this, particularly if you like books!
And PLEASE watch this particularly if you liked my post on I've got a golden ticket!
I won't give much more away but the thing that makes all of this so popular is that it's creative and totally fun! It doesn't really matter if you are "hating". (BTW, Mom and Aunt Marie, hating just means that you have strayed from Thumper's Mom's advice on "if you can't say something nice, don't say anything" sort of).
I prefer to view the stuff that's fun, loving, interesting personally. But when we create it's beautiful.
I realize that a convergence of technological, societal and other forces have converged. Video cameras are cheaper and connect more easily to computers. Storage costs have dropped DRAMATICALLY. DSL and high speed internet continues to proliferate and become more affordable. The younger generation's adoption rate of technology will always be higher than older and that's now manifesting. Internet sharing sites are popping up all over the place. Blah, blah, blah....
I also understand (but am loathe to articulate...) that youtube has "first mover's advantage" and that their business model and user base has been validated and is sustainable because Google bought them. I get that their "footprint" is not only notable but will soon challenge the entertainment industry (they will, trust me). Blah, blah, blah......
But all of that is secondary to content. Content starts with creativity. And yes, I get that "production value" is comparatively low and we are not professionals. Yes, I get that the software makes "any joe or joanne blow" a "movie maker".
Guess what, we don't care. We love to create and we know you would too, try it. You'll like it more than Mikey likes Life Cereal (before of course he swallowed a fistful of pop rocks....).
The next wave, I think of this is animation. Someone is going to solve how difficult it is to make animation. When they do, trust me, youtube will be flooded with pixar jr's.
The one kink, currently, I see is that part of the experience is being open to feedback. Like blogging, video sharing is public. And if you think your self-critic may meet like minded critics blasting people for what they put up.
Yes, people fight back or whatever which I think is unnecessary. The key to my opening up creatively is to leave my self-critic behind. When I do that, I am indifferent to any type of feedback but am always open to learning from any and all of it.
I'm grateful to experience and be part of creativity's unfolding on a daily basis.
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