The widely known ‘You Tube’ video phenomenon started 8 months ago in June 06. It starts as a 'REAL' video diary voyeuristically bobbing through 'Bree', a 16 year olds life. It was revealed this was a publicity stunt by the 'New York Times' , and since has leapt into life with sketches in 'Epic Movie' and other media jaunts. We are all narcissists at heart, striving to nose into other people’s lives, such is the human way! Unfortunately curiosity does kill the cat.
The first posts did get my attention; the clever use of camera angles , fast forwarding scenes and using props to entice the viewer into her life is great.
From a business angle, what a great and clever idea, using an accessible medium and keeping the viewer interested, is very Blair witch of them. I wish I had been in on the scheme.
Unfortunately the media hype has ruined the innocence of the diary sequence, and since, many more 'you tubers' have stepped on the bandwagon. It has become far too commercialised and frankly has made the you tube viewers sceptical. The camera affects have become far too specialised and the human-interest aspect is lost.
But this diary hits the heart of 'you tube'; following the growth of a person is a beautiful thing. It has changed the face of the site and has shown the power of the Internet, with worldwide recognition. Unfortunately one great endeavour does not forgive all of the rubbish that pile onto the site daily. This is a great social experiment, view this, and leave the rest.
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I like that you had a go at reviewing this - and I think you're right about the whole thing becoming too commercial, too like a bad movie.
I think it does say something about YouTube and video blogging - about narcissism, as you say, and about voyeurism too. The attempt to blur the line between reality and fiction is interesting too.
It was good that you linked to different episodes...how many did you watch in all? Could you compare the whole Lonelygirl thing to other stories told on different media platforms? It would have been good if you could have embedded some of the video on your blog... but a good attempt.
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