As Jordan Nealy blows out four candles on her birthday cake in South Carolina, Irina Slutsky interviews a technology executive in Texas, and Helene Cardona recites a poem from a train platform in Los Angeles.
What's the common thread between these seemingly unrelated acts? They're all early April entries on three different video blogs, and together they illustrate the diversity emerging from the flourishing world of video blogging, which will take center stage this weekend in San Francisco at the Vloggercon conference.
Jordan, 4, is one of the stars of Erin Nealy's "Mom's Brag Vlog." Slutsky is the anchor for "Geek Entertainment TV," a somewhat snarky video news blog about Web 2.0. And Cardona is one of many featured subjects filmed by Gena Haskett on her socially conscious "Out on the Stoop" video blog.
Despite their varying demographics, technical skills, artistic styles and purpose, these video bloggers, or "vloggers"--along with more than 300 other participants at the sold out conference--share an enthusiasm for the format they use to tell their stories.
Some of the participants and video blogging pioneers feel they're a part of a "media revolution"--one that could finally give people "a viable alternative to commercial TV," says video blogger Josh Wolf. "People don't have to sit back and listen to whatever the media is feeding them."
Vloggercon organizer Schlomo Rabinowitz adds, "I can seek out work that's meaningful to me."
The vlog difference
The conference is also about the exchange of ideas and information: Discussion topics range from how the popular and quirky Rocketboom launched to its current viewership of 50,000 per day, to how to "pimp out" a video blog.
Nealy, a stay-at-home mom who happened on video blogging while looking for a place to host video of her kids, adds that she's most looking forward to meeting people she's gotten to know online. "I've yet to meet a video blogger in person," she says.
Video blogs, "vlogs," are just like regular blogs in almost every way. They're interactive online diaries, archived in chronological order with the most recent entry on top. The difference is that in place of text, or in addition to it, video blogs consistently offer original video clips, which can range from short feature films to news reports to raw footage of everyday life.
The government oppression of Mr. Wolf must stop, just as surely as it must stop against me or any other citizen who in any way exposes government corruption. More on this shortly.
I have a background as a former editor and photojournalist for an Ohio weekly (Call & Post) and reporter at a daily (IndyStar) prior to law school, where I extensively studied Civil Rights.
Last week I issued a comment on Crime and Federalism on Mr. Wolf's arrest as being violative of all the principles of Journalism that pertain to the public's right to receive derivative information as protected by the reporter's right not to divulge protected sources. In fact I even pointed out that reporters who do divulge those sources are being sued under Promissory Estoppel, so they are now in fact whipsawed.
As you can see, I made my points by and through the example of one Judith Miller, of whom I am no great fan, which is wholly irrelevant when it comes to the privilege that must be afforded to the Fourth Estate in order for it to effectively serve its mission.
I applaud Mr. Wolf's pioneerism as one of the world's first video bloggers -- because I am, too:
I am the first and only lawyer to post actual court documents and courtroom footage of a First Amendment case involving a bad cop, and to host a video podcast site detailing such a case, at KingCast.net no less. We've had video up since spring of 1995.
KingCast.net is now joined by a sister site that also uses video to expose corruption, aptly named Justiceforkids.net. That's why Dvorak Uncensored links to me regarding Michael Gannon's arrest for video/audio taping a police officer in his own home!
Wherein I say exactly what Mr. Wolf must be thinking:
"They wanna' lock me up? I'll start "prisonblawg" since all you need is a damn phone to blawg anymore, and like Attica, we'll foment a damn bloody insurrection up in that [facility]; document abuses in real time, too. That's what I'm serving up; watch my movies, coming soon to a new website and... ahem..... server near you. Near everywhere."
And you can hear some of the phonecasts right here:
<a class="jive-link-external" href="http://kingcast.net" target="_newWindow">http://kingcast.net</a> and <a class="jive-link-external" href="http://justiceforkids.net:" target="_newWindow">http://justiceforkids.net:</a> You can have our videos when you pry our cold, dead hands....
Google creates an animated doodle that features a boy, a girl, Google's search engine, and a jump rope. But might there be darker, more analytical, more troubling interpretations to this tale?
The Silicon Valley online payments startup grew by 1,000 percent last year and is hopeful it can repeat that level of growth this year. To do that, it's had to move away from its early friends-and-family roots and embrace small businesses.
Chamtech's spray-on antenna uses a nano material to provide a low-power boost to antenna range. The wireless-in-a-can product may some day bring an end to unsightly cell towers.
EnerG2 opens a plant to make an engineered carbon that will improve performance of energy storage devices and make storage for start-stop hybrid cars less expensive.
could put an end to vlogging's potential life--just as it's
beginning...
I doubt that Vorizon, AT&T, and the others will want to help
vlogging along, since it could seriously hinder their cable/TV
business.
Get ready for the slow lane on vlogger data...
<a class="jive-link-external" href="http://christopher-king.blogspot.com/2006/04/save-internet-from-congress-and-major.html" target="_newWindow">http://christopher-king.blogspot.com/2006/04/save-internet-from-congress-and-major.html</a>
Also, dig the NSA/Verizon and NAACP connection:
<a class="jive-link-external" href="http://christopher-king.blogspot.com/2006/05/verizon-nsa-and-naacp-ceo-bruce-gordon.html" target="_newWindow">http://christopher-king.blogspot.com/2006/05/verizon-nsa-and-naacp-ceo-bruce-gordon.html</a>
We'll see w'happens next.
Peace.
I have a background as a former editor and photojournalist for an Ohio weekly (Call & Post) and reporter at a daily (IndyStar) prior to law school, where I extensively studied Civil Rights.
Last week I issued a comment on Crime and Federalism on Mr. Wolf's arrest as being violative of all the principles of Journalism that pertain to the public's right to receive derivative information as protected by the reporter's right not to divulge protected sources. In fact I even pointed out that reporters who do divulge those sources are being sued under Promissory Estoppel, so they are now in fact whipsawed.
<a class="jive-link-external" href="http://federalism.typepad.com/crime_federalism/2006/08/no_privilege_at.html" target="_newWindow">http://federalism.typepad.com/crime_federalism/2006/08/no_privilege_at.html</a>
As you can see, I made my points by and through the example of one Judith Miller, of whom I am no great fan, which is wholly irrelevant when it comes to the privilege that must be afforded to the Fourth Estate in order for it to effectively serve its mission.
I applaud Mr. Wolf's pioneerism as one of the world's first video bloggers -- because I am, too:
I am the first and only lawyer to post actual court documents and courtroom footage of a First Amendment case involving a bad cop, and to host a video podcast site detailing such a case, at KingCast.net no less. We've had video up since spring of 1995.
KingCast.net is now joined by a sister site that also uses video to expose corruption, aptly named Justiceforkids.net. That's why Dvorak Uncensored links to me regarding Michael Gannon's arrest for video/audio taping a police officer in his own home!
<a class="jive-link-external" href="http://www.dvorak.org/blog/?p=5963" target="_newWindow">http://www.dvorak.org/blog/?p=5963</a>
<a class="jive-link-external" href="http://christopher-king.blogspot.com/2006/08/kingcast-sees-nashua-pd-finally-drop_04.html" target="_newWindow">http://christopher-king.blogspot.com/2006/08/kingcast-sees-nashua-pd-finally-drop_04.html</a>
In fact, I mention the Revolution specifically in one of my KingCast short films, specifically "Live Revolution."
And in a couple of blawg entries, such as this one:
<a class="jive-link-external" href="http://christopher-king.blogspot.com/2006/04/revolution-will-be-televised.html" target="_newWindow">http://christopher-king.blogspot.com/2006/04/revolution-will-be-televised.html</a>
Yesterday I discussed the Ohio Supreme Court, eminent domain and property rights:
<a class="jive-link-external" href="http://christopher-king.blogspot.com/2006/08/kingcast-applauds-ohio-supreme-court.html" target="_newWindow">http://christopher-king.blogspot.com/2006/08/kingcast-applauds-ohio-supreme-court.html</a>
Peace.
They have not managed to lock me up, as I noted in my "prisonblog" segments as I note at the bottom of this post:
<a class="jive-link-external" href="http://christopher-king.blogspot.com/2006/03/rollin-or-sold-down-river.html" target="_newWindow">http://christopher-king.blogspot.com/2006/03/rollin-or-sold-down-river.html</a>
Wherein I say exactly what Mr. Wolf must be thinking:
"They wanna' lock me up? I'll start "prisonblawg" since all you need is a damn phone to blawg anymore, and like Attica, we'll foment a damn bloody insurrection up in that [facility]; document abuses in real time, too. That's what I'm serving up; watch my movies, coming soon to a new website and... ahem..... server near you. Near everywhere."
And you can hear some of the phonecasts right here:
<a class="jive-link-external" href="http://christopher-king.blogspot.com/2006/01/what-people-are-saying-about.html" target="_newWindow">http://christopher-king.blogspot.com/2006/01/what-people-are-saying-about.html</a>
But they have tried to shut me down 7 times:
<a class="jive-link-external" href="http://christopher-king.blogspot.com/2006/04/naacp-trial-7-attempts-to-chill-first.html" target="_newWindow">http://christopher-king.blogspot.com/2006/04/naacp-trial-7-attempts-to-chill-first.html</a>
<a class="jive-link-external" href="http://kingcast.net" target="_newWindow">http://kingcast.net</a> and <a class="jive-link-external" href="http://justiceforkids.net:" target="_newWindow">http://justiceforkids.net:</a> You can have our videos when you pry our cold, dead hands....