Broadcasting Advances- YouTube

If Google would pay $1.65 billion in 2006 for YouTube, it must be important. YouTube is the new form of broadcasting. It is the birth of short internet movies. Clips are posted by independent producers and videos are in high demand. One of the great attributes of YouTube is viewers can replay the video anytime as long as it is still online.

The variety of videos is almost unlimited and includes music videos, presidential debates and family videos. It has become an industry “separate” from other media.

Though YouTube is highly popular, it does have some challenges. Credibility and authenticity continue to be the main issues.  YouTube and other groups also place restrictions on the videos that can be posted.  For example, the military must approve of videos taken on duty before posting them to the web.  This is to ensure that top-secret information is kept from the enemy.

Governments can also censor videos.  For example, China and Turkey surf the site for inappropriate videos.  Pakistan attempted to block the entire site from their citizens, but it caused a worldwide problem for YouTube users and it had to be unblocked.

YouTube also has community regulations. It forbids pornography, animal abuse, bomb making, graphic violence, and dead bodies.

Though YouTube has some obstacles and challenges to work on, it is highly used and liked by viewers and producers. Give YouTube a chance.

Blogging Takes Work

                Blogging takes effort in order to increase an audience. First, a blog must have a goal or an objective. The more you know about what you are blogging, the more successful your writing will be. Also design your blog to cater to your audience. For example, decide whether your audience will be professionals or the elderly. In your writing, you must be consistent and persistent in the frequency of postings.

Next, you must take time to make your blog more visible. Comment on other blogs similar to yours and post links to your blog on other social networking sites. As a writer you must be fearless and take risks that could benefit your blog. Push yourself to continually enhance your writing by learning and being true to yourself.

Try to make your blog user friendly and inviting. Encourage comments and try to make your blog interactive. Lastly, ask for help if you don’t understand changes in blogging. The blogosphere is forever changing and can be difficult to navigate if you don’t keep up on advancements.

The best way to advance your blog is by trial and error. My best advice to you is to get out there and get blogging.

For more tips visit ProBlogger.

“Me” Matters Most

In today’s society, people are principally concerned about themselves. In the year 2007, the Times named “You” Person of the Year. This attitude has had a significant influence on the media. People want to know mainly about what affects them. The internet has catered to this mindset.

Amateurs are given a voice to broadcast information about themselves or others with the push of a button. Topics covered are unlimited and can be published for the world to see on blogging websites, twitter, or facebook. Some worry that this is taking away from professionals and the authority of experts.

I believe that amateurs are not necessarily taking away from professional journalism, but are actually serving to enhance it. As a result, network journalism needs to take place. The two groups must work together in a collaborative effort. The public can get involved in a story before it’s professionally reported and can continue to contribute after publication.

It is my opinion that amateurs or citizen journalist often focus on news that the mainstream media overlooks or covers briefly. In addition to what the governor or Brad Pit did yesterday, I am also interested in what my neighbor next door or my good friend accomplished. A person doesn’t have to do something extraordinary to be newsworthy; they just have to matter to “you”.

For more information or opinions on this topic please visit The New Yorker.

New Generation

Every generation deals with challenges. The generation of the twentieth century has had to deal with rapid technological advancement and we are quickly becoming a digital nation. The world is at our fingertips and this technology can be dangerous without limitations.  Two emerging questions are: what is the proper age to allow children to have full unsupervised internet access, and should parents monitor their children online? In the film, Growing Up Online, children were shown to be online for large amounts of time. Because of this, they are losing opportunities to develop face-to-face communication skills.

With the click of a button, children are exposing themselves to the public. For example, girls bullied each other online and it lead to a fight at school. The fight was videotaped on cell phones and posted on YouTube. As a result, future employers and anyone can now see how those girls handle experiences.

The internet has become a social network between friends and strangers. Posting pictures and videos has become the norm. No one monitors online sites; instead, the internet is what you make of it.

I believe that children should be watched and their internet use limited until they are mature enough to make conscious decisions as to whether the material they are viewing or posting is appropriate. Without parental supervision, the internet can be dangerous. For example, children can be bullied and even learn how to commit suicide.

However, parents must learn that there is a fine line between protecting children and over stepping their boundaries by not giving their children the opportunity to make responsible decisions on their own. Each situation is different and must be judged accordingly. The Internet has many positive attributes but can be very negative if used inappropriately.  The internet is like other forms of media in that appropriate legal and ethical boundaries will have to be established.