In an age where people are constantly given public attention and exposure for seemingly idiotic things, it becomes very easy to desire one's own chance at addressing or entertaining the public. Every day we see reality television stars who enter the public eye and remain there for doing very little. If you have a talent or an idea, such as a comedy routine, an anime review show, or a cooking blog, you may wonder how you can get the attention that seems to come so easily for reality tv stars.
Back in the day, when people did not have the internet, they often turned to cable access television for sharing and broadcasting their talents and ideas. Local networks designed specifically for this purpose gave free or low-cost airtime in which the public could broadcast whatever they wanted.
The popular 1990s Saturday Night Live sketch Wayne's World was a satire of this phenomenon, featuring two high school students with dreams of becoming famous through their cable access show. The movie of the same title, which grew out of the sketch, followed Wayne and Garth as their show was picked up by a national network.
Although cable access still exists, many people these days turn to the internet, and particularly YouTube, with similar hopes to those of Wayne and Garth. Perhaps they simply want fame, or perhaps they have a message or a talent they want to share with the public. Either way, YouTube provides a platform for addressing as many people as you can get to click on your video.
In some cases, a video not only reaches a focused audience, it becomes inescapable, showing up on social networks and in email chains. This is called "going viral." Videos are sometimes created with this as a goal, such as the song/video "Friday" by Rebecca Black. Black wanted to promote her music. Other viral video clips have been the result of news broadcasts that the public decides are funny and begins circulating.
For those who do not necessarily want to perform in front of the camera, blogging can be a way to enter the public eye. Some bloggers, like Nate Silver, have achieved fame and fortune very quickly, causing people to call them an "overnight success." Silver developed a formula that predicted baseball stats, and eventually used it to predict election results through a blog about politics. This made him famous and made him millions of dollars.
One reason the internet has become a preferred venue over cable access is that it provides the chance to reach an exponentially larger audience. Cable access may expose users to people in their immediate, local surroundings, but the internet can connect them with people across the world. Even in the fictional situation portrayed in the Wayne's World movie, the characters' concept was changed and manipulated when it was adapted for a national audience. On the internet, however, one can maintain control of production while still reaching millions of people.
Whether it is an anime review show, a blog about cooking, or a sketch comedy program, the internet gives us a space to expose a wide audience to our talents and ideas. If you have a concept, do not be afraid to share it with the world. All you need is a webcam and a dream.
Back in the day, when people did not have the internet, they often turned to cable access television for sharing and broadcasting their talents and ideas. Local networks designed specifically for this purpose gave free or low-cost airtime in which the public could broadcast whatever they wanted.
The popular 1990s Saturday Night Live sketch Wayne's World was a satire of this phenomenon, featuring two high school students with dreams of becoming famous through their cable access show. The movie of the same title, which grew out of the sketch, followed Wayne and Garth as their show was picked up by a national network.
Although cable access still exists, many people these days turn to the internet, and particularly YouTube, with similar hopes to those of Wayne and Garth. Perhaps they simply want fame, or perhaps they have a message or a talent they want to share with the public. Either way, YouTube provides a platform for addressing as many people as you can get to click on your video.
In some cases, a video not only reaches a focused audience, it becomes inescapable, showing up on social networks and in email chains. This is called "going viral." Videos are sometimes created with this as a goal, such as the song/video "Friday" by Rebecca Black. Black wanted to promote her music. Other viral video clips have been the result of news broadcasts that the public decides are funny and begins circulating.
For those who do not necessarily want to perform in front of the camera, blogging can be a way to enter the public eye. Some bloggers, like Nate Silver, have achieved fame and fortune very quickly, causing people to call them an "overnight success." Silver developed a formula that predicted baseball stats, and eventually used it to predict election results through a blog about politics. This made him famous and made him millions of dollars.
One reason the internet has become a preferred venue over cable access is that it provides the chance to reach an exponentially larger audience. Cable access may expose users to people in their immediate, local surroundings, but the internet can connect them with people across the world. Even in the fictional situation portrayed in the Wayne's World movie, the characters' concept was changed and manipulated when it was adapted for a national audience. On the internet, however, one can maintain control of production while still reaching millions of people.
Whether it is an anime review show, a blog about cooking, or a sketch comedy program, the internet gives us a space to expose a wide audience to our talents and ideas. If you have a concept, do not be afraid to share it with the world. All you need is a webcam and a dream.