Found via Beet.tv, which you want to subscribe to if you want to keep up with what’s happening in online video. At the beginning of the year, I predicted that live mobile video blogging is going to be big (not that it takes a genius or anything to figure that out).
How big? How about “future of journalism” big. Game-changing, total disruption big.
Your thoughts?
12 Comments
Yes and no. I don’t think it will overtaking traditional text, but I do think it will grow much bigger. There is a feeling, at least with some people I know, that want to keep a lot of their personal lives to themselves, or at least try to keep their private lives a little more… private. Video might open that up more.
With mainstream media, I DO see it growing VERY big. Like reporters from far away locations uploading and the networks showing them online within minutes. We saw this in a small way at the beginning of the Iraq war.
I hope not. I HATE video blogging. I can’t STAND it. I wish this whole multimedia thing would go away.
Unfortunately, I’m in the minority. *sigh*
When I tutored at the student writing center in college, I remember this kooky old guy with long straggly beard who always wore a black beret with a bunch of pins and buttons on it. I remember how pissed he was when Microsoft came out with the Windows GUI. Man, he just hated on it. Not because it sucked (which it did) but because he was just a command line kinda guy and he knew everything was changing, moving away from that.
There will still be a vital need for great writing, James. And great copywriters will still get plenty of work and get paid gobs of money.
Television news didn’t replace newspapers (although the internet may eventually replace them both). The thing now is that the medium for the message is no longer tied to a physical medium, opening things up to new possibilities. Whether you choose text or images or video really depends on how appropriate it is for what you’re doing, and that can change for each post, moment by moment.
I bet all the people who made scrolls were pretty unhappy with Gutenberg. But we know that Gutenberg did way more than just put scroll-makers out of business. He changed the entire paradigm and all of civilization with it. The internet is like that.
I personally couldn’t imagine someone saying they hated to read anymore than you could, James. I’d rather watch a good video blog (like Ze Frank–who also happens to be a writer) than read a bad text one, any day!
I never thought about it that way. I’m usually the first one between Harry and I to embrace new ideas, try things out and enjoy shiny new toys, but I’ve had a really hard time accepting what I see as yet another way to suck us into a zone where all that matters is faster entertainment. Old values are lost and replaced with technology. Lately, I’m seeing a lot of friends burn out because of the frantic pace of the eLife, and I’m becoming a little rebellious of the effect that has on our society.
Sometimes, what worked for hundreds of years - like books - are the best things to offer the rest, the entertainment and the information that people need.
Of course, I’m biased because I write for a living - but I’d rather be happy than rich any day. I really believe in a life where values matter and I see video as a cheap replacement for many things.
Or maybe I’m just being stubborn.
Another issue that bothers me is how video cuts off people. Alright, reading does too - not everyone likes text. But I wish that there would be a blend of the two, a video with the written transcript or a text turned into a video so that both groups of people are pleased.
The deaf can’t hear video. The blink can’t see it. It excludes those people too. But of course, there are people who can’t read and braille isn’t easy to learn (is it?).
I’m not opposed to debating the benefits and cons to get an objective opinion, as you can see.
As for hats, can I wear my AE baseball cap and consider that my trademark look?
while I love the video revolution and the freedom
It brings, learning how to market through it is a whole other story
I have mixed feelings. While I see the advantages of video blogs, I almost never click Play when I see a video … because my preference is reading. I speedread and love it because I can get my info fast … and without having to toss on headphones.
But, there’s always a segment that wants video blogging, so I’m sure it will meet a lot of people’s needs …
I like real video posts as opposed to Camtasia style videos.
But it can be a problem if you are not happy with the pace of delivery.
Also, many of us don’t do video well and prefer to write!
@Andy - Pacing is an issue for sure. With text we’re free to read at our own pace. Not so, with video. But if you’re going to err, I say err on the side of speed. It’s easier to pause and rewind than it is to fast forward and end up in a good spot.
The vast majority of blogs are still mostly text, including this one. More people are doing video because it’s possible and it has its appeal. We can’t allow ourselves to feel pressured if we know it’s not right for us. Just do what we’re good at.
Something I’ve noticed from 1st hand experience is that wordpress blogs have an advantage over plain websites. My new local site http://www.evansvillemetronews.com is less than a month old. I’m already on page one for the keywords “Evansville Indiana Kim Mattingly” dealing with Don Mattingly’s wife from this last weekend, out of over 11000 results. I have a 0 PR and maybe one backlink at most (bloggingzoom submission) on this article that I wrote just this morning.
With Google atleast, blogs appear to have an edge up. Now add to that video blogging on the news. Because you have the possibility of getting a good search result, there’s a chance that you’ll get picked up by the local or even national media. How’s that for exposure?
@Shawn - I’d say that’s pretty damn good!
I agree that live blogging is going to be huge. But traditional text will be sticking around as well. I think ideally, an individual could watch a video post, but then also have the option of a transcript for their convenience or browsing pleasure. Thanks!
@Erica - I think automated transcription (similar to Dragon Naturally Speaking or Jott) will be more available and useful for this purpose. Otherwise, transcriptions are a pain in the butt.
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