New York Times Media Critic as Media Innovator | Beet.TV

Ignore the article, watch the video. In particular, listen to David Carr (and ignore Andy Plesser who feels a need to answer his own questions and sounds too much like Wallace Shawn to be taken seriously as a host - yes, I am aware of the irony in my condemnation given my agreement on what Carr says) (See Update). Now here's a guy who knows where things are headed and has already jumped on board to steer the train.

"If you look at TMZ, which does gossip, you've got text, you've got headlines and you've got embedded video. That's what people are becoming used to, is within that frame all forms of media expressed, each carrying bits of information that they consume at the same time."

"Consumer video works on the algorithm of the wisdom of the crowd; the crowd pushes up that which the like, so they like funny, they like lewd, somebody that does a lengthy exegesis on the Holocaust on video is probably not going to do all that great."

So internet video panders to the dumb? Not necessarily. Chris Anderson points to this quote by David Foster Wallace.

"TV is not vulgar and prurient and dumb because the people who compose the audience are vulgar and dumb. Television is the way it is simply because people tend to be extremely similar in their vulgar and prurient and dumb interests and wildly different in their refined and aesthetic and noble interests."

TV, YouTube, the quote stands equally.

Beet.TV: New York Times Media Critic as Media Innovator -- David Carr is a Very Cool Video Blogger.....

[Update] Apologies should be made to Andy Plesser. I do enjoy his style of interview, and particularly his subjects. My comments were made while I was in a particularly foul mood.