With Youtube becoming increasingly more popular, the average person recording, editing, and publishing video has become a common occurrence. As a student in the communications field, I personally feel it is extremely important to know how to at least edit video. It is quite possible that I'll one day be in charge of managing website content and nowadays a website without some kind of embedded video is pretty much pointless.
The role of shooting and editing video at home is rapidly becoming more popular among my generation. The film Napoleon Dynamite was shot on a minuscule budget, and edited in the director's home using a $6,000 Macintosh and the program Final Cut Pro. This film grossed over $40 million in the United States.
As far as for personal use, home video is everywhere. My Blackberry takes pretty decent video and I will video my friends and me in funny situations and then have the ability to immediately post it to Facebook or Twitter. Celebrities often update their Twitter accounts or websites with video blogs, making their fans feel appreciated and connected. I think that personal home video is actually connecting people in an amazing way. Three of my best friends live in Chicago, and when I post a funny video, they have the sensation of experiencing that moment with me, even though we're not together.
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Sunday, February 14, 2010
The Digital Switch
For many, the TV switch from analog to digital last summer meant nothing. Most Americans subscribe to some form of cable service, so the change over was pretty much irrelevant. However, there are those who still pray that the rabbit ears wrapped in aluminum foil will make the picture clearer, and for them, the switch meant total darkness.
As discussed in class, 98% of US citizens own at least one television. However, only 94% of Americans subscribe to some form of phone service, cell or land line. This information leads me to believe, although I have no firsthand experience, that the small percentage of Americans that can't afford phone service did not purchase the digital converter box needed for the analog to digital transition. I do know that when the switch happened, some 2 million Americans with televisions were left in the dark. I've heard that the government was offering a coupon for the converter box, but I can't recall seeing any sort of information on how to obtain that coupon or where to get the boxes for that matter.
My point? I think that with many Americans still shunning new technology or without the funds to embrace it, the digital TV conversion most likely left people without entertainment, or more importantly their window to the world. While I enjoy the clearer picture, I know that lots of people are now without television service. I think that the switch alienates those without the education, formal or otherwise, to understand it. While I haven't personally witnessed any severe backlash because of the digital to analog switch, I'm positive it's out there and that there are a large number of people without that link to the world.
As discussed in class, 98% of US citizens own at least one television. However, only 94% of Americans subscribe to some form of phone service, cell or land line. This information leads me to believe, although I have no firsthand experience, that the small percentage of Americans that can't afford phone service did not purchase the digital converter box needed for the analog to digital transition. I do know that when the switch happened, some 2 million Americans with televisions were left in the dark. I've heard that the government was offering a coupon for the converter box, but I can't recall seeing any sort of information on how to obtain that coupon or where to get the boxes for that matter.
My point? I think that with many Americans still shunning new technology or without the funds to embrace it, the digital TV conversion most likely left people without entertainment, or more importantly their window to the world. While I enjoy the clearer picture, I know that lots of people are now without television service. I think that the switch alienates those without the education, formal or otherwise, to understand it. While I haven't personally witnessed any severe backlash because of the digital to analog switch, I'm positive it's out there and that there are a large number of people without that link to the world.
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