This is Lena's summary of the state of Web Video + Nonprofits + politics. Prepared as prep for the chapter in our upcoming book about Web2.0/politics/npos/youth
Web Video
What it is
Web video refers to video in digital format, transmitted over the Internet. The increasing availability of bandwidth, high speed Internet connectivity, the improvement of methods for compressing and transmitting video files and the ubiquity of digital video cameras have contributed to an explosion of this media over the last years.
Part of the popularity of web video is due to video hosting services such as YouTube, Blip.tv and others. These services allow users to upload short videos without worrying about compression formats, compatibility with different players or server bandwidth. They also offer features such as the possibility to embed video in web pages, rate and comment videos, subscribe to video channels or send “video replies”.
Web video is often produced at low cost, using consumer digital cameras, webcams or mobile devices, and edited with user-friendly software. TV and media clips are also digitalized and posted on the web, raising questions about copyright violations and privacy concerns.
Web video has become an essential element of social networks, not only the ones dedicated exclusively to video (Youtube, Google video), but also more general services such as MySpace and Facebook. It is because of the community links and the easy sharing mechanisms that a video can reach high visibility and become “viral”, shared rapidly over the Internet and achieving notoriety.
According to Pew Internet, a 57% of Internet users watch or download online video. In the age group of 18-29, the number goes up to 76%. An 8% of the users have also uploaded video to the web. 27% of online video consumers say they watch or download video from YouTube. More than half of the video users said they share the videos with other people and the majority also said to receive links to online video regularly. (source http://www.pewinternet.org/PPF/r/219/report_display.asp )
Many online services such as Youtube, social networking sites and blog platforms provide the tools to produce a video blog or a video cast. Users can subscribe to a channel through RSS and keep updated on the latest postings or episodes. Another way to use online video is providing a live transmission of an event is shared on the web.
Large video files and limited bandwidth had always been an obstacle to high quality video and long video features over the web. Bit torrent technology and peer to peer networks brought thousands of users the possibility of sharing large files from computer to computer by distributing them in a network. Today ,many people download (often copyrighted) material such as TV shows, movies, animation etc.
Video is a versatile media that allows a variety of formats. Some of the popular formats for user created content include interviews, documentaries, storytelling, alternative news casting, animation or just loose clips from mobiles and handheld cameras. Users also upload clips from music videos, movies, cartoons, ads, news and TV shows.
Web video is being incorporated by traditional media both offline and online. Many TV channels distribute clips of their programming on the web. Traditional media such as the New York Times or the Washington Post are incorporating video in their websites, to complement their written news offering. Notorious web video clips that appeared originally on the web have also reached the mainstream media.
Web video can present a change of perspective from traditional TV coverage. Web video can be generated by Internet users from all over the world, bringing different angles, languages and symbols into the public discourse. Web video allows people from around the world to give first person accounts of current events.
Because of its potential, web video is regularly used for political activism. Parties and politicians now recognize the value of social networking communities and the value of immediacy, intimacy and low production costs of web video, and have used it intensively for their campaigns.
Web video can highlight issues that are not featured in regular news. News sites, bloggers and other users can find old media clippings, expose shallow or incorrect coverage of an event, expose contradictions and gaffes. Some political bloggers also select interesting bits from C-Span and post them with commentary, making them more accessible to a larger audience. (example, http://mediamatters.org/)
Strategic approaches
Telling a story and getting direct audience involvement. A well crafted story with a carefully designed message can move the audience to action. The story can be told in many different formats but it must have originality. The audience can be involved not only responding, spreading the message or sending feedback, but also contributing ideas and modifying the original video. (example http://www.hometownbaghdad.com/)
Creating dialog and debate with video responses. Video sharing platforms can be used to generate dialog about an issue. If you plan and facilitate carefully, individuals or organizations can post their own video responses and offer diverse points of view. You could also use online debate points and questions to feed into a real life event. (example: http://www.youtube.com/debates )
Improving a website with multimedia. An organizational website that contains too much text, research reports and press releases can be highly improved by adopting web video. Showing what the organization does and the context in which it carries its mission is an effective way to create a more personal and emotional relationship with the audience. (example: unicef video podcast http://www.unicef.org/videoaudio/video_podcast.html)
Improving internal communications. From communicating what is the status of a project to transferring knowledge and building capacity on the staff, web video is a versatile and economic way to create dialog inside an organization and encourage creative outputs from projects and actions. Web video can also improve the communication with remote staff or people doing field work. (example, witness.org training videos http://www.witness.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=blogcategory&id=76&Itemid=216 )
Creating a video channel, a videoblog or videocast. Having a periodical and constant video presence on the web can be beneficial to establish a longer term relationship with the audience and get them involved through a narrative around your mission or your campaign. A serialized video gives you the opportunity to adapt your content according to your feedback and to introduce audience participation, i.e. reply questions from the public. (example, the Greenpeace channel http://www.youtube.com/GreenpeaceVideo)
Asking for video submissions from your audience. You can build a video feature by collecting video clips from a target group. Try to engage your audience by proposing them to create and participate in their own terms. Establish loose but clear rules for submissions and be ready to deliver a satisfying and meaningful final product. (example, http://www.24hoursfordarfur.org/, amnesty intl. close guantanamo http://noise.amnesty.org/site/c.adKIIVNsEkG/b.2482937/k.5BD3/Guantanamo_user_videos.htm)
Streaming live events on the web. You can include a wider audience by posting your event videos or by broadcasting directly on the web. Provide your online audience with enough tools to have a meaningful participation, i.e. provide a chat room or a mechanism so the online audience can ask questions on a live panel, etc. (i.e. live earth webcast http://www.liveearth.msn.com/green/gorewebcast)
Create a media archive for journalists, academics and other organizations. Collect, tag, categorize and publish video clips that are relevant and illustrative of your cause. These videos can be available from your website as informative material, media archive and knowledge base. You can also use video as a way to release quick response messages to the public. (example, http://fora.tv/)
Use feedback and stats to modify your content strategy. You can start your video interactions with a pilot project and gather qualitative and quantitative information about your audience response. You can use web statistics, surveys and viewer's feedback to direct and modify the way the message is being delivered, the channels of delivery or even the format and quality of the video files.
Use cases
YouTube08 You Choose and Debates http://www.youtube.com/debates
YouTube and CNN created a new debate format in which voters will send in video questions to presidential candidates to be answer in television forums.
Questions were posted to the “YouChoose” platform, a section tagged for election related material. The selection process for the questions was not public and it was not based on YouTube users views, comments or ratings.
The You Choose 08 platform is a special section on the site that gives each candidate a space to post videos with their views and messages. Every candidate that agreed to participate (11) had a week in the “Spotlight”, specifically highlighted to generate response from the YouTube community.
In the debate between Democrat candidates (held in July), 39 video questions were selected from more than 3000 that were received according to CNN.
One of the candidates that benefitted the most from the YouTube space is Republican libertarian candidate Ron Paul, who has attracted major attention on the Internet and has incorporated many Web 2.0 services on his campaign. Ron Paul also appeared on The Daily Show, a popular comedy show about news and politics, and the clip circulated widely on the Internet. (Source: http://www.wired.com/politics/onlinerights/news/2007/06/ron_paul )
Witness.org
This video advocacy organization was funded in 1992. The organization provides training in video advocacy and providing basic equipment for Human Rights activists around the world.
They have a media archive of more than 3000 hours of footage from Human Rights organizations that they make available to journalists, educators and other activists.
They are currently working on a pilot version of the “Hub”, a participatory media site to post, share and comment on Human Rights footage and provide tools to inspire action. Right now the pilot has a limited functionality consisting on a blog that points to existing content on the web, but even before the official launch they have already received significative attention from the blogosphere. (http://www.witness.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=576)
24 hours for Darfur http://www.24hoursfordarfur.org
This campaign aims to end the genocide in Darfur by using online user-generated media to put pressure on politicians to take action.
They are asking people to use their webcams and digital cameras to record an appeal to stop genocide in Darfur and submit the video through their website. People can also record appeals at film-in events, at a video kiosk in New York and with a roving video team filming on major North American cities.
Videos are automatically sent to political representatives. They are hoping to gather 24 hours of footage that will be used on a rally on September 2007. The rally will also be online on real time broadcast.
They are hoping that the campaign would go viral as people started sharing their videos and discussing on blogs and social networking websites. So far they have collected 500 videos.
Indymedia Seattle http://www.indymedia.org
One of the most important innovations that made a difference on the coverage of the WTO protests in Seattle in Nov. 1999 was the newly launched Indymedia website, featuring text, images and raw audio and video file downloads.
By mid December they had one and a half million hits on their website and reports of videos being downloaded and showcased around the world.
A documentary, "The Battle in Seattle," was crafted from thousands of hours of donated footage from hundreds of videographers.
The IMC model has evolved into dozens of centers around the world, using open source software to build alternative media platforms. (source: http://www.socialtechnology.net/node/view/110 )
Amnesty international video campaigns
As a large international organization, AI has used video in a variety of ways to highlight different issues and communicate Human Rights concerns around the world.
One example is a campaign in Amnesty-USA about torture and people's views on “extraordinary rendition”. They promoted the video on Youtube and among bloggers. According to the campaign organizers, the month in which the campaign was launched was a record breaking month in terms of list growth and fundraising. (source: http://www.netsquared.org/blog/britt-bravo/notes-ntc-age-youtube-using-video-online-reach-masses )
As part of the “Make some noise” online campaign, specifically directed to youth, they are asking users to upload videos demanding the closing of the Guantanamo Bay detention camp. They are aiming to put together a video and spread it through the web.
Technical overview
The difficulty of production, cost and quality of equipment and other technical details varies widely according to budget and how elaborate or professional the video intends to be.
Web video, as more traditional formats, also involves preproduction, production and post-production. Pre-production refers to planning, scripting, finding locations, setting up all equipment, arranging for sound and props. Production often involves shooting on different locations, setting lighting, doing interviews, directing actors, camera angles and takes. Post-production includes editing, adding titles, credits, opening and closing screens, mixing the sound, compressing and uploading the video files. A great source for information on how to produce web video is: http://makeinternettv.org/
The minimal equipment involved in video production is a camera, a microphone (often included in the camera), and video editing software. Depending on budget and production objectives, it is recommended at least to use a tripod for the camera, adequate lighting and a higher quality microphone. Video editing software usually requires a computer with good processor speed and ample RAM memory to run smoothly.
For video uploading and downloading it is recommended to have a high speed Internet connection. Dial-up connections and those that charge for the minute may not be cost effective.
Different video services such as YouTube, Blip.tv and others offer different conditions for hosting online video. When considering free services it is important to understand the terms of service, limits to file size or duration, formats, advertising, copyright and privacy considerations. Hosting videos on a web server can also be done with the appropriate software, taking in consideration that most hosting companies charge extra for the use of excessive bandwidth.
Major video sharing sites: Youtube.com, Blip.tv, Vimeo.com, VideoJug.com, Revver.com, Ourmedia.org, Google Video, Dailymotion.com (more here: http://www.lightreading.com/document.asp?doc_id=112147)
It is important to consider that users will play video in different applications (on a web browser, on a media player, even on a mobile device or an iPod). This will determine in part what formats and encoding is chosen for an online video. Lately, most video services and websites convert other formats to Flash video (FLV) because it allows rapid downloads by relatively lowering the quality of images, and Flash player is available for most web browsers, but may not work with iTunes/iPod.
When producing a series of videos, or when planning to upload video periodically, it is a good idea to either use a video service or setup a video blog that generates RSS to allow users to subscribe to video postings. In Youtube, users subscribe to a channel and see new videos on the web browser. In the case of a video blog, software such as Miro (formerly Democracy Player) and iTunes allow the easy downloading and viewing RSS video channels.
Some types of video may require the inclusion of subtitles, voice overs and other measures for internationalization. This is important to include from the planning stage, since it requires special software, translation and additional voice recordings. For quick, easy subtitling on the web, consider a service such as http://www.bubbleply.com/ or http://mojiti.com/
Video hosting services such as YouTube allow users to upload video directly from mobile devices and phones. Different services support different carriers and options, but in general video is uploaded as a Multimedia SMS, and multimedia charges apply depending on the mobile carrier. There may also be limitations on video size and quality.
Video hosting services provide basic stats and measurements, normally indicated how many times a video has been viewed, and how users have “ranked” the video on a simple scale. Video blogs and videos hosted in your web server can be monitored more closely using web statistics applications.
Getting started
Define your objectives and the audience you are trying to reach. Define also what is your budget and how much time, staff and resources can your organization dedicate to producing web video. Define a clear message and find a creative and unique way to communicate it. Find if what you want to do has been done already, and learn from what others have posted on sites such as Youtube and Blip.tv.
Make a plan. Find the equipment, software and skills necessary to produce web video. Be aware of new roles that this task could demand inside the organization: someone with acting or presentation skills, someone with editing knowledge, etc.
Craft a good story. Even very simple videos can benefit from previous scripting and story building. Write down the ideas you want to communicate and find the most natural and comfortable way to express them. Make sure to keep the video short so its easy to download or quick to load on a browser. Decide if you want to create serialized content (with different episodes) and adjust your script to create expectation for the next video post.
Shooting and editing. It is a good idea to learn about camera angles and basic notions on light and sound for video production. Make sure the environment for the action you are trying to record is appropriate (noise level, light or shadow, distractions etc.). In some types of video it is necessary to repeat shots several times. Use creative editing and incorporate appropriate transitions, background shots, titles and still photographs when appropriate. Make sure your organization's logo or name is visible.
Licensing your content. Many non-profits decide to use Open Content licenses for their web content, including videos. Open content licenses such as Creative Commons licenses allow the public to make a limited creative use of your video material. Assume that online video is dynamic content and it will get reproduced and modified without your permission. You can benefit from Open Content by using other people's materials in your production process, complying with the terms of the license.
Publishing your video. Find a web server to upload your video. You could start by uploading your videos to a service such as YouTube and then deciding you want more control or different features, in which case you will want to setup your own video blog or channel. Over time you may find appropriate to publish different versions of your video to adjust to user's players and Internet connections.
Promoting your video. Videos posted on popular sites do not necessarily get thousands of views automatically. You will need to promote your video among your supporters and try to locate bloggers that will find them interesting and post or link to them. If you're planning to send email promoting your video, send a small written summary or teaser and include a link to the video location on the web. When posting in a web video community it helps to try to build a subscriber set, comment other people's videos and make “friends” with others. Make sure it's easy to view and subscribe to your videos from the organization's website.
Getting feedback form your audience. Try to go beyond the number of views or user ratings in favor of more qualitative data. Read the comments carefully and try to extract lessons from the audience. Make note of positive and negative aspects of the video. If there are no comments, your statement or presentation may not be controversial or stimulating. Try to follow up on your video posted in blogs and other sites. You can even choose people from your audience and survey the group briefly on your video content, quality and effect.
Looking forward
Web 2.0 services are offering more possibilities to create and edit video directly on the web. Although performance is still limited and depends largely on the user's connection speed, several services such as http://eyespot.com/ and http://jumpcut.com/ allow to easily cut-off desired scenes, add background music, integrate animations, etc (see http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/free-video-editing-tools/). The service http://www.viddler.com/l allows to tag specific moments inside a video, discuss specific scenes and control access to videos.
Mobile phone companies are increasingly adding the capacity not only for shooting high quality video, but also basic editing and enhancing directly on the phone. The Nokia N95 is a notable example of a “smartphone” that includes this feature. Other mobile devices such as handheld computers can also run basic video editing software with limited capacities.
Many popular video blogs and videocast are staring to incorporate the user feedback and submitted video material to create a conversation and engage viewers in a more interactive way. For example, serialized storytelling could include the audience's ideas on plot development, dialog bits or contextual details.
Independent web video shows that were generated by users or groups of amateur videographers and producers are starting to be picked up by mainstream TV channels.
