Thoughts from a YouTube-aholic

This summer I've discovered the addicting wonders of YouTube. Ever since I was introduced by a friend to the channel of Julian Smith (juliansmith87), the possibilities have been endless! I mean, where else can you find hilarious sketches, random music videos, and ultimately entertaining stupidity? It is the perfect cable box. Entirely free and there is always something on.

Recently, I have discovered the emging world of vlogging - or video blogging. Despite their short length (usually 3-5 mintues), most of the popular "vloggers" are engaging and entertaining! Most of them talk about random moments in their own lives and some even speak off the top of their heads. Sure, you may be thinking, "Why would I want to know what goes on in the life of some video-nerd?" But believe you me, when you finish watching one, you'll be clicking on the next video under the "Related Videos" tab before you know it. My personal favorite vlogger is Charlie McDonald (charlieissocoollike). Currently, he hails from London, England and really knows how to keep his audience interested and entertained.

And, besides keeping my addicted face adhered to any device with a screen and Internet connection, YouTubers like Julian Smith, Charlie McDonald, and Rhett and Link (RhettandLink), had inspired me to join in with the YouTube community, leading to the making of my first ever video which you can view in the side bar to the left. I was even inspired to attempt to start my own vlog, however, I quickly found out that video blogging was not for me. The amount of time and knowledge needed to properly film and edit something like that was ridiculous - not to mention my lack of experience in front of a camera. I think it is probably best that I stick to a written blog.

Nonetheless, YouTube has become my newest summer hobby. I'll admit it probably is not the best one to be taking up, but it is probably just a phase. Conclusively, YouTube is the best personal TV to ever be created, granted there is some not so appropriate content on there, so be careful when exploring the millions of channels, but it also happens to be an excellent resource for entertainment and fun! And I will confess that as of this summer, I, Kristina, am a YouTube-aholic.

You can view my YouTube channel at:
http://www.YouTube.com/user/kristinalu22
I hope to have more videos soon, but for now, enjoy what is there.

YouTubers mentioned in this blog, check them out!:
http://www.YouTube.com/user/juliansmith87
http://www.YouTube.com/user/charlieissocoollike
http://www.YouTube.com/user/RhettandLink

Pop "Cult"ure

“Television is the first truly democratic culture - the first culture available to everybody and entirely governed by what the people want. The most terrifying thing is what people do want.” ~ Clive Barnes.

What has become of our society? Our lives have been completely submerged in the fatuous waters of which I like to call: the media. Pop culture has defined us. As Americans, we crave the latest scoop on whichever celebrity is challenging the constraints of normal rational reasoning or whichever tween idol has the best haircut of the season. We have become a race engrossly obsessed over human idols, gossip, and impractical reality.

            For instance, take pop artists. Whether we acknowledge it or not, we promote them. I bet some of you probably grimace at the recollection of some of today’s most popular (or most criticized) songs. For example, take the music video about America’s now most-hated-day-of-the-weekend. You know the one I am talking about; the one where “yesterday was Thursday…Tomorrow is Saturday, and Sunday comes afterwards.”[1] If you were to do a brief search on it, you would find that in just over two months of said video being posed on the Internet, it has received over one-hundred and seven million views[2]. And yet, the song has been considered to be a “whole new level of bad,” by Time Magazine News Feed; it is no surprise that the YouTube video ratings[3] do everything to support that highly popular claim.

The same is with certain Canadian teenagers with good hair or “musically-gifted” Disney Channel stars. However, in this case, the fetish over these figures amongst adolescents has come to be mainly image driven. Let us face it, T.V. stars look good. Many of us like to deny it or pretend that we do not care, but in reality, most of them are fairly attractive. And because of this, it is nearly impossible to walk into a department store, like Walmart, and not see someone’s obnoxiously well known face plastered on t-shirts, magazines, lunchboxes, books, calendars, etc. Unnaturally, the media has provided our society with many opportunities to form unhealthy fascinations. We are constantly concerned with the lives, actions, and appearances of individuals of which we do not even have any direct correlations to. So why is it that we care so much?

            Similarly, we cannot help but prey upon the latest captivating gossip. An incessant buzz of “those two are dating” — “she just had a baby” — “he’s in rehab” —or, “that guy thinks he is always winning![4]” constantly circulates around the proximity of our beings. The media delves into the lives of those subject to such discussion and publicizes them explicitly. What is it, or rather, why is it we want to know? Perhaps it is for our own entertainment, or maybe it is for the fulfillment of our subconscious desire to compare ourselves with those who publicly receive more attention. Either way, we all have browsed the periodicals in line for the check-out at the grocery store or tuned in once and while to see what the evening talk show hosts have to say about the latest public scandal. Our need for celebrity news encompasses every aspect of our lives, and, in doing so, creates a country fueled by the press and their views.

All in all, our opinions are being fed by what the media perceives the world to be. Our minds have become addicted and influenced by the drama of the rich, famous, and attractive. Pop culture and the media have defined us. We obsess over lives other than our own and make them major parts of who we are as a society. It is the source from which we, as Americans, thrive. And so, I ask one last time, why?

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[1] “Friday” – Single by Rebecca Black (See Works Cited for full citation)

[2] Youtube.com. 17 April 2011.

[3] Based on the “like/dislike” rating system available on YouTube for feedback for posted videos, “Friday” has only a received 13% like rate based on a ratio of 286,093 likes: 2,153,262 dislikes, as of 17 April 2011.

[4] “That guy thinks he is always winning.”: in reference to Charlie Sheen and an interview he gave to “Good Morning America.” Citation listed in Works Cited.