Community Media 2.0:

Building Online Video Distribution Networks

and navigating what's out there!

 

below is a bunch of notes from the writing of the article in June 2007

here's the final article: CMRarticleFINAL.doc

here is a link to the downloadable pdf of the entire issue published July 2007

 

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  1. Overview
  2. Projects of Interest:
  3. For Profit (but also for people):
  4. Possible Interviewees
  5. Some Interview Questions
  6. Sources
  7. Ideas for the paper

 

Overview

introduce YVXN

how do the challenges YVXN has faced mimick the bigger issues?

use it as a segue into highlighting various projects wich are relevant in terms of areas of development

  • distribution
  • collaboration
  • community builidng
  • social networking
  • NOT reinventing the wheel

 

Introduction

start off with concept of emerging technologies and digital tools changing backbone

potential to harness new funding sources through new media and "web 2.0"

moral of story - we both have initiatives and are connected and co-developed

point is that we are PEG access trying to utilized emerging technologies and bring system out of analog cable world onto a hybrid sustainable platform.

projects grew out of the fact

modelling our application after digital bicycle

db is the most

----

introduction

Whether you are a media worker, content producer, service provider, or distributor,.....

the  backbone of community media is changing as new 'communities' sprout up  that are not geographically rooted, and old ones harness the tools of internet collaboration and distribution regionally and beyond

 

only 20 % of households in US have a broadband connection (Pew report)

ther is no question of integration.  the

 

what are the elements that characterize useful distribution models?

 

within the realm of PEG access providers

-there seem to be a lack of relevant models and procedures [which integrate new & old distribution models]

-limited tech. skill - especiall with networks & web/software dev.

-what is the vision for the future?

-tight human and financial resources

new distribution models appear threatening to existing funding and organizational structures

   -sited from Felicia S.'s slideshow

 

Why did we decide to create the Youth Video Exchange Network?

-history of NYMAP tape-bicycling

 

the NYMAP network began bicycling tapes in 2000. (talk to Antoine)

From the idea was based less on creating purely a distribution network

 

building on existing NYMAP network

 - no real infrastructure or funding, but a passion and commitment to the importance of youth-made media.

developed a drupal website 

 

At a 2004 youth media conference hosted by The Open Society, 70% of the attendees said that distribution is the top priority for the future development of youth media – surpassed all other concerns such as training, outreach, or recruitment. Recent years have seen the emergence of excellent youth media projects and the production of high quality youth-made programming. However this has yet to be matched by the development of an effective network for youth media distribution.

 

----

background of NYMAP

The Youth Video Exchange Network was born out of NYMAP (the National Youth Media Access Project).  NYMAP was begun in 2000 by the Youth Channel at Manhattan Neighborhood Network, in collaboration with various other access centers from across the country committed to expanding services to young people.  With its founding, NYMAP sought to nurture the right of free speech, to strengthen the much-needed presence of alternative and youth voices, and to connect young mediamakers from diverse backgrounds.  The intent was to

tape exchange

leadership building retreats

collaborative productions

networking to build the field

 

youth media explosion

access centers still adult focused

 

YVXN

 

 

 

----

 The idea of Vermont Media Exchange (VMX) first appeared as a clear concept when a coalition of Vermont Access Network (VAN) organizations advocated for a “statewide interconnect” during the Adelphia franchise renewal in the major cable systems in Vermont in 1999 and 2000. Beginning in 2001 VAN established the first of several committees to research technical possibilities and community needs for a statewide network of PEG access stations.

 

Six years later the dawn of the Vermont statewide network approaches and phase one presents scenarios only vaguely imagined in the late ’90s – from Comcast acquiring 85% of Vermont’s cable service to the advent of the MP4 file format. One of the greatest sets of needs identified by Vermont access centers is to solve problems inherent in bicycling analog programs between stations. The costs, staff demands, and timeliness of sharing programs have always limited the ability of Vermont access organizations and community producers to make programs available to other community channels. For such a small state, Vermont can be extremely divided, more so in the winter, and the ability to share community dialog and local events is universally desired. The first phase of the Vermont Media Exchange provides the ability to share programs through a peer-to-peer network between access centers throughout the state.This application combines Drupal, which serves as its front end, with other open-source Web 2.0 technologies such as Pando, BitTorrent and Ffmpeg, along with customized scripting and transcoding processes to provide efficient automation and reduce staff labor.  

 

Later phases of the statewide network look toward tackling other identified needs. Active arts, education, community and government groups are eager to utilize an operational network to share their messages and reach out to new people around Vermont. With just over 600,000 citizens, 25 access organizations, and more than 30 channels covering the state, the technology of community media holds the potential to truly connect disparate groups from distant corners of the state. Once the foundation network is built, long-term goals of the VMX include expanding the digital file-sharing network to all cable systems and access centers in the state, sharing live events for statewide cablecast from remote locations, and enabling every access center to easily generate a live signal to other centers for use on-air or otherwise. These live signals are generated using streaming protocols, and again strive to use freeware and shareware programs. The first successful live streaming event was performed at the end of May with Middlebury Community Television (MCTV) generating a feed of Bill Clinton's Commencement Address to four other access centers around the state. This was done using business class internet from Comcast (less than a 1 mbps stream) and a third party company to re-broadcast the stream over greater bandwidth.

 

Conclusion

goal is to get other people involved in similar initiatives

by working with these projects goal is to put this out on a natl. scale and collaborating with server manufactures to integrate their systems seemlessly into our application

 

 

 

doing some analysis of MySpace and YouTube phenomena

 

community media - focus on the community - not the demographic(s)

 DIY vs. DIWO (do it woth others)

 

about developing new models of collaboration;   new rights structures (creative commons);  new...

 

we are living in a time when things are more able to be reshaped than ever in recent history.

internet has forced corporations to relinquish some control...  but internet is being commercialized. what happens to free space?

 

analyze the perception/illusion that MySpace and Youtube (as examples) are MORE 'community media' than TV because they are interactive.  why is freedom from corporate control an integral aspect of community-based media practice?

 

a critical understanding of the mediascape an important thing to cultivate in trainees

 

not just about new tools

aout new audiences & new models

 

Projects of Interest:

what are the various challenges that each project faces and how what are the strategies to overcome?

 

 

For Profit (but also for people):

  • SpinXpress
  • Pando.com
  • Blip.tv

 

Possible Interviewees

  • Jiah - FSTV
  • Frank - Submedia
  • Alba TV ??
  • Anna or Andrew - EngageMedia
  • jacob? - Snippet TV
  • Jay Dedman
  • Felicia Sullivan
  • Leandro Fossa - Digital Culture/Ministry of Culture - lfossa@gmail.com or leandro.fossa@cultura.gov.br
  •  

 

Some Interview Questions

  • explain such n such project 
  • future of media production and distribution
  • how does the development of digital media distribution systems change or evolve the role of facilitators of access?
  • what is or should be the relationship of community media practitioners to free culture and free software (and open source) movements?
  •  who are your audience(s)
  • what are the ripple effects of more collaborative media making?

 

Sources

 

Ideas for the paper

  • Thesis here?
  • Direction you want to take the research/paper
  • Need to do any interviews for primary sources?

 


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