Why do you Tube?

Posted on March 30, 2008 by Melissa Worden

A project for a Digital Ethnography class during the spring 2007 semester Kansas State University asked “Why do you Tube?” Here’s a text roundup of their findings:

Out of 370 people,

>> 1% say they hate it.

>> 5% say they escape reality.

“You’re escaping to other people’s realities so you aren’t completely losing yourself in fiction.”

>> 12% say they’re addicted

>> 16% say they want to be famous.

>> 17% sat it’s authentic.

>> 19% say they’re bored.

>> 25% say to be creative.

>> 33% say to express themselves.

>> 41% like watching

“It’s slightly voyeuristic. It allows you to watch other people without staring at them or making them uncomfortable.”

>> 43% say it’s fun

>> 61% say to connect … to old friends, to help a neighbor, to share ups and downs, to encourage each other.

Watching this video reinforces how personal YouTube is — the reason cited most that people do it, is to connect. How do they connect? They talk to the camera. It’s a talking head. They’re having a conversation with the person, whoever it is, on the other side of that monitor.

Interesting, isn’t it, that a lot of newspaper video takes pride in not having a talking head?