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A University of Sussex DPhil thesis Available online via Sussex Research Online: http://sro.sussex.ac.uk/ This thesis is protected by copyright which belongs to the author. This thesis cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the Author The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the Author When referring to this work, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given Please visit Sussex Research Online for more information and further details The Film of Tomorrow: A Cultural History of Videoblogging Trine Bjørkmann Berry DPhil Media and Cultural Studies University of Sussex September 2014 Page 2 I hereby declare that this thesis has not been and will not be, submitted in whole or part to another University for the award of any other degree. Signature: ……………………………………………….. Page 3 University of Sussex DPhil Media and Cultural Studies The Film of Tomorrow: A Cultural History of Videoblogging Page 4 Summary Videoblogging is a form of cultural production that emerged in the early 2000s as a result of the increasing availability of cheap digital recording equipment, new video- editing software, video website hosting and innovative distribution networks across the internet. This thesis explores the close entanglement of culture and technology in this early and under-examined area of media production – most notably in the self-definition and development of a specific community around video practices and technologies between 2004-2009. These videobloggers’ digital works are presented as an original case study of material digital culture on the internet, which also produced a distinctive aesthetic style. The thesis traces the discourses and technological infrastructures that were developed both within and around the community of videobloggers and that created the important pre-conditions for the video artefacts they produced. Through an ethnographically-informed cultural history of the practices and technologies of videoblogging, this thesis engages with the way in which new forms of cultural and technical hybrids have emerged in an increasingly digital age. The ethnographic research is informed by histories of film and video, which contribute to the theoretical understanding and contextualisation of videoblogging – as an early digital community – which has been somewhat neglected in favour of research on mainstream online video websites, such as YouTube. The thesis also contributes to scholarly understanding of contemporary digital video practices, and explores how the history of earlier amateur and semi-professional film and video has been influential on the practices, technologies and aesthetic styles of the videobloggers. It is also shown how their aesthetic has been drawn on and amplified in network culture, mainstream media, and contemporary media and cultural production. Through a critical mapping of the socio-technical structures of videoblogging, the thesis argues that the trajectories of future media and cultural production draws heavily from the practices and aesthetics of these early hybrid networked cultural-technical communities. Page 5 Contents Summary'..............................................................................................................................'4! Tables'and'Figures'............................................................................................................'7! Acknowledgements'..........................................................................................................'8! Chapter'1'–'Introduction'..............................................................................................'10! Back'When'Pluto'Was'a'Planet'(BWPWAP)'....................................................................'18! From'new/digital'media'to'digital'materiality'..............................................................'27! Structure'of'thesis'....................................................................................................................'32! Chapter'2'–'Critical'Background'................................................................................'34! Literature'Review'....................................................................................................................'35! Empirical!Work!on!Internet!Use!and!Video!...............................................................................!36! Approaches!to!Cultural!History!and!Video!................................................................................!40! Virtual!Communities!and!Social!Networks!................................................................................!52! Research'Method'and'Approach'.........................................................................................'62! Research'Ethics'.........................................................................................................................'71! Chapter'3'–'History'and'Context'................................................................................'74! Early'Histories'of'Moving'Images'.......................................................................................'76! Televison,'Media'and'the'Rise'of'Video'............................................................................'83! The'Rise'of'the'Internet'and'Digital'Video'.......................................................................'88! Chapter'4:'Making'the'Videoblog'Platform'.........................................................'106! The'Technical'A'Priori'of'Videoblogs'.............................................................................'110! Videoblogging'as'Technical'Constellations'..................................................................'118! Chapter'5'–'Videoblogging'as'practice'..................................................................'139! Becoming'Videoblogger'......................................................................................................'142! Space'and'Place'for'Videoblogging'..................................................................................'149! Time,'temporality'and'Videoblogging'............................................................................'155! Chapter'6'–'Videoblogging'as'visual'cultural'form'...........................................'161! Visual'Analysis'of'Videoblogs'...........................................................................................'161! Towards'a'visual'aesthetic'of'videoblogging:'documenting'the'face'..................'164! Personal'Videoblogging'–'Ryanne:'Excited'and'V)Blog.conversation'...................'169! Artistic'Videoblogging'–'Daniel:'World.Maps'and'Theory:.Practice'.....................'172! Page 6 Everyday'Life'Videoblogging'–'Juan:'Greetings'and'Sococho'..................................'178! Chapter'7'['Conclusion'................................................................................................'185! Videoblogging'is'dead,'long'live'videoblogging'..........................................................'192! Appendix'.........................................................................................................................'197! Bibliography'..................................................................................................................'198! Film/Videography'........................................................................................................'224! Page 7 Tables and Figures Figure'1:'Adrian'Miles'video'blog:'vog'(Miles'2000)'_____________________________________________________' 18! Figure'2:'Should'I'Stay'or'Should'I'Go'(Howe'2005)'_____________________________________________________' 19! Figure'3:'Mum’s'Brag'vlog'(Nealy'2008)'________________________________________________________________'111! Figure'4:'side'bar'with'blogroll'(Nealy'2008)'___________________________________________________________'111! Figure'5:'Typical'videoblog'post'(Nealy'2007)'__________________________________________________________'112! Figure'6:'Screenshot'of'iMovie'HD'_______________________________________________________________________'117! Figure'7:'Number'of'emails'posted'to'the'videoblogging'email'list'(June'2004'–'November'2012)'__'121! Figure'8:'Fireant'RSS'videoplayer'with'preTselected'channels' _________________________________________'125! Figure'9:'badges'promoting'community'sites'from'freevlog.org'_______________________________________'129! Figure'10:'Table'of'videoblogger’s'selfTdefinitions'______________________________________________________'144! Figure'11:'Quarterplus'(Rule'2004)'______________________________________________________________________'152! Figure'12:'VTblog'Conversation'(Hodson'2004b)'________________________________________________________'153! Figure'13:'Typical'credits'showing'use'of'URL'as'branding,'note'similarity'of'form'__________________'162! Figure'14:'Excited'(Hodson'2004a)'______________________________________________________________________'169! Figure'15:'Theory:'Practice'(Liss'2004b)'________________________________________________________________'174! Figure'16:'World'Maps'(Liss'2004c)'_____________________________________________________________________'175! Figure'17:'Greetings'(Falla'2005)'________________________________________________________________________'179! Figure'18:'Sancocho'(Falla'2006)'________________________________________________________________________'180!