Anti-Clinton '1984' ad rocks'¦ the web!

Alex Zaharov-Reutt
Wednesday, 21 March 2007 20:38

Opinion and Analysis

Put it this way: voters in the primaries that will help determine who the next Democratic party candidate for the next Presidential election may never see the anti-Clinton ‘1984’ ad – but if they watch the news on a daily basis, chances are they will have now heard of it and may well have seen some of it broadcast on television.

The number of people that will now try to take advantage of YouTube, other video sites and other online technologies to reach the widest audience possible will only multiply even further than it has been already.

No matter how big or little the difference these YouTube videos make to the final outcome of the campaign, citizens and voters of any mostly free, democratic country, now know they can get on their soapbox if they want to and get their own message out. They don’t need to be someone like Al Gore who easily has the contacts and the money, or the access to the money, to make their own movies – they just need some basic video editing skills, something as simple as a webcam, and a good, compelling message – and they can potentially reach millions.

1984 showed us a brave new world that no-one ever wants to truly live in, even if some might argue that we live in a world of double speak and see the reality of the ‘police state’ unfolding before us right now.

2006 and now 2007 are showing us that it’s not only Big Brother that can get his face onto their airwaves, but that the ‘common man and woman’ can do it to, if they truly want to, and help change outcomes, even if but through a short online video.

The revolution won’t be televised on pay-per view, it’ll be televised free, on YouTube. The “revolution” is probably still some time away yet, but no matter what Viacom does, YouTube isn’t going anywhere, and are probably getting their servers ready in anticipation for more traffic than they’ve ever had before.

The YouTube political video revolution has only just begun, and where it takes us is part of the adventure and fun of whatever’s coming next. I’m looking forward to the next ‘episode’ – aren’t you?