Life in the Network

First of all, let me start this post off by saying that I was completely disgusted by the treatment of the student. I showed all of my roommates, and they were actually really upset; I can only imagine how I would feel as a student who went to UCLA. However, this point shows exactly how powerful of a tool youtube.com is becoming. The combination of cell phone technology and youtube has given anyone the ability to be a producer, and many more things are being caught on camera and being broadcasted over the internet. Years ago, this would not even been an issue, because there would be no proof. However, today because of the videos taken by students, there was an investigation held on the matter in which there was evidence that couldn’t be denied.

This amazing tool affects all aspects of society, and is not just being used for human rights. Instead, there are many instances where people are showing things without any regulation, and I can see this as a breeding ground for material that is overwhelming for many.

As far as the entertainment industry is concerned, I do not believe it affects them negatively at all. So what, a music video is released on Youtube.com a couple days earlier than it normally would be. All this does is give the video more visibility and buzz. I feel the same way about old television episodes being uploaded. While many feel that this hampers DVD sales, I disagree. It is no guarantee that youtube will have the program you want, and with the consistency that people will be able to watch it anytime, whenever they want; which is the core value of many DVD owners. Also, I believe that it allows the shows to gain visibility by allowing people to see shows that they normally wouldn’t see. If they end up liking what they’ve seen, the will be that much more apt to tuning into the program during its regular televised time and place.