All of these thoughts are bouncing around,  inspired by the 12-04-10 episode of The Gillmor Gang,  where they have a really good conversation about Online entertainment media,  the cloud, streaming,  and the “Cartels” as Steve Gillmor likes to refer to the content companies.  Andrew wants an episode “devoted to the word ‘cartel’”..Steve tells him to do a “Keen on cartel”.   

But the gist of the hour and a half was all “entertainment media”,  and it energized me (which I sorely needed this morning,  since last night I went to sleep feeling down about being reduced to doing forum and blog posting for web marketing company for $8 an hour.  It’s not hard at all.  But it’s time consuming enough that I find myself torn between putting all my attention on it and getting it done,  and feeling that there are much more valuable things I could be doing.  Trouble is,  no one wants to pay me to do those things. Or,  the people who would pay me,  if they knew what I write about and what I can envision, and how I relate that to how churches should be investing time in learning about and DOING,  do not know that I exist). 

Back to online entertainment:  To have conversation about the emerging landscape of online content-presenting-media (like streaming video),  and how it is shaking up in the business world,  and how they are going to “business model” it,  is all very important for the church to be observing,  and at the same time,  involving  themselves as participants and apprentices learning a valuable trade.  The mash up of online audio/video with social that is continually expanding  the meaning of “social network” is CRUCIAL to people who are involved with church communication strategy and resources.

News agencies have to stop TALKING about doing multimedia reporting and START DOING IT!!!!!!  And if “production values” prevent even an entry into this arena to the extent that you do NOTHING instead of SOMETHING (and that SOMETHING can definitely be done “as well as we possibly can”  and that we can continue to work on what “production value” means in this context),  the important thing is that we start doing it.  Because if you’re not there, sooner or later you are a boy who cries wolf.  Our claim that we are “listening” and “regearing” to social media rings increasingly hollow. 

There are , indeed ,  NEW “production values” to add to technical performance.  That’s immediacy and involvement.  Online news reporting that involves video podcasting has the distinct value of having a quick turnaround.  If we’re stuck too deeply on old media standards,  then the value of immediacy is LOST COMPLETELY.  And if you lose immediacy,  you also lose the  benefit of hooking into social networks.  People are just not interested in it after it’s old news ad conversations have already been had and we’ve pretty much moved on.

  I have more,  but I’m going to post this now,  and maybe get some balls rolling.