Wednesday, March 21, 2007
Take a Mental Shower With Me
or click here to videobathe in mpeg4/mp4/Quicktime
Steven Bochco, acclaimed producer of Hill Street Blues, LA Law and NYPD Blue has decided to make a foray into online video. I find his ideas regarding video on the internet (and internet use in general) a little off-putting.
A distraction? Steve, I'm hurt. I agree that the internet can be distracting, sure, but to characterize the intercommunicative juggernaut that is The Internet as just something that can keep you from getting bored between scooping out the cat box and waiting for your dinner to pop out of the microwave is a little sad. You have saddened me, Steve. So what's he offering the new web 2.0 world? Confessions. Terrific.
Hmmm...okay. I'm listening.What else?
Well, that's certainly true.
I suppose I should be happy that a TV bigwig is joining the internet video world with a concept that doesn't (quite) attempt to copy television--there's enough of that already. But still, it doesn't sit right with me. I want more, I want different, I want better.
I think Steven Bochco can do better.
Steven Bochco, acclaimed producer of Hill Street Blues, LA Law and NYPD Blue has decided to make a foray into online video. I find his ideas regarding video on the internet (and internet use in general) a little off-putting.
Bochco says he views the Web as a medium best suited for snippets of entertainment that can be consumed between tasks, something he calls a "mental shower.""I think people go to the Internet, particularly younger people, assuming they’re not going for information, for a distraction between tasks," Bochco said.
"A good anecdote is like a good joke in terms of length, structure and punch line," Bochco said. "Here I am in the most embarrassing moment of my life — that's the punch line. A lot of people don't know when to stop. Find the punch line and go out with that."
Hmmm...okay. I'm listening.What else?
"The charm of this medium lies in its enormous spontaneity," Bochco said, "because these are completely unscripted and sometimes, for a geezer like me, shockingly candid."
Well, that's certainly true.
I suppose I should be happy that a TV bigwig is joining the internet video world with a concept that doesn't (quite) attempt to copy television--there's enough of that already. But still, it doesn't sit right with me. I want more, I want different, I want better.
I think Steven Bochco can do better.
