Vox populi. A voice for the people. Or at least for those with the proper tech available. That was the small revolution in self-publication that the world has come to know as the blog. Within the span of a single technological breath, anyone with a computer, internet access, and ten minutes to spare could be published to the tune of thousands of potential readers. Online publication went from an arduous business for techies to something one's grandfather could do if merely pointed in the right direction.
All of the sudden, the wired world had an outlet for verbal creativity. And once that creativity began to burst forth, it naturally grew to express itself through different means, expanding its form. Audioblogging and podcasting added a new dimension to an already popular form of expression. And now, videoblogging, which has been evolving and streamlining itself over the last few years, may be finally becoming a feasible extension to blogging for the masses. Or at least for those with the proper tech available.
I am The Dane and I am a videoblogger. Since August 2003, I have been posting videoblogs (also known as vidblogs and/or vlogs) with meandering frequency as individual posts to a several blogs. What began for me as a means of more intimate communication between myself and the readers of a private blog soon spilled into more public venues and videoblogging quickly became the reason for much of my weekly traffic. Feedback was extremely positive and visitors were happy to find a more engaging blog experience. So then, what exactly is this new expression of the blogging community?
A videoblog can be as variously described or defined as can a blog. At its most basic, a videoblog is simply a medium for communication (much as is a blog). The what and the how of communication are entirely up to the videoblogger. One might simply follow a stranger down the street. Another might detail the steps involved in making banana bread. Still another could post on matters of political interest, while another might create a more mundane trip through a day's events. The results are as various as the creators themselves. Each videoblogger has his own purpose, his own reasons, and his own style. And this, much like with blogs, holds much of the allure.
Then again, perhaps it may be better to show than to tell. Here then, is a sample videoblog, created especially for this article:
Videoblogging is not new, but until recently, its relative rarity has made it more of a novelty than a movement with any strength beyond its own ballyhooing. The hard work of the several videoblogging communities have made great strides toward bringing videoblog production into the mainstream. In 2004, two such groups formed in order to bring community to those who had already been experimenting in the burgeoning medium; and fortunately, their particular visions were disparate enough to lend breadth to a movement still fledgling, still trying to come to terms with itself and all the possibilities now available to creative bloggers.
The first of the two communities, formed by Justin Johnson, was Vidblogs.com. Johnson's site featured links to hundreds of recently created videoblogs and allowed those developing video to see what other bloggers were creating; it was to be, according to Johnson's hope, "the ultimate public voyeur experiment." Interestingly, the majority of those involved in Vidblogs.com were presenting highly polished and lengthy productions. Copious
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