Trolltown: YouTube as the new public sphere epicentre?

Most people seem to think of YouTube as simple a vehicle for online entertainment. Who doesn't want to watch videos of pranks gone horribly bad or baby sloths in a sanctuary? But the one thing that's allowed for the exchange of pretty much unregulated analysis, commentary and discussion is the ability to comment on a video. Keeping in mind the several thousand videos I've seen over my YouTube career, I'd have to say that YouTube's place as the leading entertainment video site on the net is slowly transitioning into that of a serious forum for online discourse.

For example, people can argue on a musician's page why a particular artist is their favourite, or skateboarders can decide which grip tape is best by scrolling through various video demonstrations. While some video uploader's choose to disable comments on a certain video, usually because of sensitive subject matter or the expectation of racist or sexist comments, a reply can also be made on a video in the form of a video response. This is done by referencing the topic in the video or in the video details section.

What prompted me to write about this is some of the shocking comment's I've read under some videos. Because of the anonymity that anyone can have online, the comment sectiosn on popular videos have turned into battling grounds for 'trolls', internet users with nothing constructive to contribute to a discussion. Trolls resort to profanity, personal attacks. Just look at the comments section for this Justin Bieber video (seems to bring out an opinion from everyone!)

It seems the only constructive dialogue is coming from the more 'niche' videos, such as discussions about a certain type of tennis string or relatively obscure musicians. This civility is immediately noticeable as soon as you scroll down. After going through several more YouTube videos, I've just noticed a relationship: the less views a video has, the more polite and civil the comments are.

What does this say about YouTube users? That 'trolls' just need a place to be noticed, being the type of people that will say something controversial purely to stir up opinion and response. So in order to avoid some of the stupidity that internet anonymity provides for, stay away from Justin Bieber videos. It's for your own good!

I like.. the internet?

When recently browsing through the extensive catalogue of videos on YouTube, i was directed to an odd home video. This video was of a little girl, Jessica performing her 'Daily Affirmation'.

"I like my house, I like my haircut, I like my stuff," are just a few of the things she declares to herself in the mirror. Her energy is so uplifting and positive which got me thinking, why do we treat the Internet in such a negative way?

There's so much focus on the negative side of Internet, always talking about bullying, privacy policies, creepers, stalkers, predators, addictions etc but where is all the good. Yes, these things are important to know about but can we not learn to balance the good and the bad?

By focusing on the bad, we are sometimes missing out on some of the greatest features and uses of the Internet. Skype and YouTube are two great examples of this. I mean where else can you go to watch funny videos to keep you entertained for hours? and have you ever been able to talk face to face with your family in a different country before? Not only are the entertainment aspects great but also in terms of updated, its the best place to turn. Online news websites such as New Zealand's own tvnz are always up to date and are often the first port of call for information about breaking news.

Online social networking sites are in particular shown in a negative light. This is especially highlighted with the recent focus on unsuccessful job applications due to social networking sites such as Facebook.

I think it's about time we get out of this negativity and stop focusing on the bad because we may miss out on the little gems of the Internet such as Jessica and her daily affirmation. We could all learn a thing or two from her.

Today on Youtube.

I couldn't help noticing this morning as I arrived on the youtube homepage that there had been a categorisation error for some of the videos. The Christchurch Earthquake was displayed under the entertainment headline and under the sport headline was a recorded online match of the Starcraft 2 computer game.

As I pondered these media highlights I realised that there may not have been a categorisation mishap at all. The Christchurch Earthquake was quite a devastating event for sure. Many people are without homes and neccesities and a young child rode his bicycle into a large crack that had developed in the ground. However I assume that for the vast majority of the people browsing youtube who are not affected by the event, this really is just an entertainment video. Many people are going to click on this video hoping to see buildings falling down and vehicles exploding, I notice I have done this myself sometimes. When the news comes on and annoucnes that a volcano has erupted and pelted a small nearby village with rocks before enulfing it with lava, I will say something along the lines of "Oh dear me, oh my, those poor people!", meanwhile my mind is tingling with anticipation for the upcoming footage. If it turns out it is just me that does this then I admit it, I have a problem. If it is not just me, then perhaps youtube has caught onto the way humans work and decided to categorise things honestly for once.

As for the sport section. Starcraft is a very serious game, at least in South Korea. If you do not believe me then type 'Korea national sport' in Google. Computer games are gaining traction around the world as serious competitive events with big money prizes and it is not just in Korea. Who knows where this trend will lead, perhaps the Starcraft World Cup?

Meme Girls

Everyone is kind of the same online.

Ok, maybe not everyone is the same online, but I've noticed a lot of YouTubers are. They're all the same mixture of neurosis, geekiness and dry wit.

This kind of persona is a way we conform on the internet. Conforming is performing identity.

It could be argued that the videos I linked to above are designed to be personable, to draw people in; after all, both communitychannel and charlieissocoollike (whose videos are embedded above) are YouTube Partners, which means they make money from every view they get. This is a valid point. However, it could also be argued that most (if not all) identities are designed to draw people in. Humans are social creatures by nature. Even the most introverted of introverts will have some very close human connections.

Memes are another great example of our social nature. There are no clear benefits from propagating a meme, yet they spread like wildfire.

Memes are a way of letting people know that we get it. That we're in on the joke. That, yes, we find the same things funny, and, oh, I've seen Mean Girls too, it's hilarious. In this way, I think identity (on and offline) is very much a performance. There is a persona we put on for the internet: it's the one that strives to be quirkily intelligent, coming slightly out of left field, but still accessible to your every-person. It's the one which reminds me of those posters for "indie" movies, you know the sort: the ones with that hand-drawn font thing going on.

In short, everyone becomes a little bit like Tina Fey.

Is it a coincidence that there are so many Mean Girls memes floating around on the internet?

Ridley Scott and YouTube: Life in a Day

I wonder if I'm just being a grumpy cynic. Here's the thing. I quite dig Ridley Scott. And I quite dig YouTube. But I can't muster a great deal of excitement about their joint venture Life in a Day ("a historic cinematic experiment"). The idea seems trite to me. And the trailer seems to suggest that they want footage for a feel-good global village parade: "I'd like to buy the world a Coke" - that kind of thing. I'd love to be proven wrong and for the film to really challenge the way we see the world. But to me, this looks like an unimaginative and rather boring embrace of "noo meeja" and sadly I'm looking forward to getting the old YouTube logo back about as much as I am to seeing the finished product.