Taking a moment to ask, “What is Youtube?”
I think that most of us don’t really know what the platform really is and I’d like to have a discussion about that.
Over the last decade, Youtube has become my go-to for many things. If I want to relax, it is my television. If I need information on something that I want to buy, I’ll look up reviews. For open questions on how to do something, I can find tutorials on just about anything (seriously, it is crazy what you can learn on Youtube).
I know I’m not alone in how I use it, and recently I’ve come to realize that this is really only part of the picture of what the platform actually provides. Most of these actions are passive in nature and don’t underscore the interactive nature of the platform.
I’ve been working on a series of videos over the past few months and it occurred to me this past week for the first time that I’m not producing television, but something else entirely.
It is my first foray into video production and the process has been thoroughly invigorating. I love trying new things and experiencing the learning curve because I like a good challenge.
Just about everything I’ve done up until now makes me cringe at how amateur it looks and feels. I know there is a huge gap between where I am and where I want to be. It’s hard to figure out how to close that gap — and doubly so because I’m trying to figure this stuff out on my own.
With Youtube the learning curve is particularly steep as what you need to know is not just how to “make videos”, but how to:
- write scripts
- conceptualize and develop ideas
- understand the analytics and how to improve your productions in response to this data
- produce cinematographic content of high quality
- set up effective lighting
- sound and music production or licensing
- be comfortable in front of a camera
- act convincingly and self-direct
And much more. It is crazy how much goes into these videos if you want to produce videos that aren’t unwatchable.
But, what I want to talk about here is the “and much more”, because I think that most people who use the platform passively miss that entirely.
And much more
What has surprised me the most though is that the more I use the platform for production, the more I realize that I am thinking about it in an entirely different way when I use it like I used to.
Something in me has changed.
When I’m looking at content, I’m seeing it from the other side all of a sudden. The decisions that content creators make is fascinating. Some large channels actively discourage their users from viewing ads. Some make a living from Patreon. There are entire art projects online the likes of which you’ve never seen before. People vlog about every conceivable topic and their viewers are not just viewers, but actively engaged extensions of these people’s lives.
One of my favorite channels is a couple in west of Ireland who do all sorts of farm centered and tinkering projects. I care about what happens to these people, have interacted with them on their projects, and think about them regularly. These are not people that I know, and probably never would have known that they existed but for Youtube.
This is now true for me and the people who view me and my videos.
That idea has been racing through my mind the past few weeks. Putting yourself out there in video form is incredibly intimate, and you do it for complete strangers. This isn’t television, it is something else entirely.
They view me, and I view them. We talk, we evolve together, and we build something that is entirely new.
Because of this idea, I’m also now acutely aware of the interactions within the community in general. People have whole discussions within Youtube comments about everything you can or can’t imagine (for better or for worse). It’s a beast all unto its own and for whatever reason is something that for the past decade I’ve missed completely. There are niche communities around every topic imaginable, and even more than that, there are entire industries which are targeting these niches.
So what is Youtube?
It’s not television, and it isn’t a social media platform. It isn’t a search engine. It isn’t an ads platform, although many would say that because that is how it makes money it is.
I think there is nothing out there like it. I think it is a new way of speaking, and a new form of communication entirely.
A satisfying new light
Creating things has always been how I fill my free time, and how I “give purpose” to my life — obviously second behind my family, who I put first and foremost. I like to draw and paint, fiddle with computer hardware, gardening, and most recently woodworking are all some of my hobbies or pastimes.
None of these things is comparative to the nature of a social platform like Youtube.
Now I’m creating things about creating things, and interacting with other people who are interested in the meta-nature of that.
I’m reveling in the experience of learning about this hidden layer of reality we are all creating together. It’s blowing my mind.
