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.