”
Broadcast Yourself
”
is the tagline for the video Web site YouTube, and that’s
exactly what the world has done. Videos span a vast spectrum of
topics from silly homemade animation of ambivalent unicorns and
stupid pet tricks to poignant documentaries about the genocide in
Darfur and debates about some cultures’ practice of female
circumcision.
“Broadcast Yourself” is the tagline for the video Web site YouTube, and that’s exactly what the world has done. Videos span a vast spectrum of topics from silly homemade animation of ambivalent unicorns and stupid pet tricks to poignant documentaries about the genocide in Darfur and debates about some cultures’ practice of female circumcision.
News network CNN is reaching out to younger voters through YouTube, using questions submitted by viewers via YouTube in upcoming Democratic and Republican debates. And among this massive cross section of amateur and professional videos are clips from the South Valley.
“I think YouTube is a great tool for sharing your experiences, whatever they might be,” said former Morgan Hill resident Scott Caplener, whose posts include videos he made with high school friends in the early ’80s called “Morgan Hill Vice,” a spoof on the television show “Miami Vice.” “The videos can be of anything and they don’t have to look like professional quality. You can do a series of still shots set to music and people will watch it. YouTube is the democratization of story telling.”
Caplener has about 20 videos featuring Morgan Hill posted on YouTube, as well as videos of the Los Angeles riots and footage of New Idria, a ghost town in San Benito County. In “Morgan Hill Vice,” Caplener, his brother, Scott, and friends Wally Budz and Ray Rose drive around Morgan Hill in retro cars wearing Members Only jackets and wielding fake machine guns to the sounds of typical cheesy “Miami Vice” soundtrack music.
“Back when we made those videos, camcorders were rare and very expensive,” Caplener said. “But what we ended up with, other than a fun movie, is a time capsule of Morgan Hill. You see what the town looked like when it was still small with one cop car on patrol. You can see the old Morgan Hill school on the corner of East Dunne and Monterey that’s no longer there.”
Hollister resident Lauren Ramos, 14, took a hip-hop class at West Coast Dance Academy, which concluded with a performance at San Benito High School. Her brother Nick, 16, saw the video of the performance, thought it was good and posted it on YouTube for her. She also plans to post the YouTube video on her MySpace page.
“YouTube is for anyone. Even though I think more young people are into it, it’s not just stupid videos of young kids doing stuff,” she said. “You can find news and current events videos on there. Anyone can post and anyone can see the videos, plus it’s all free.”
Since posting videos for her art business on YouTube, Hollister resident Shannon Grissom has seen hits on her Web site double.
“A lot of people just think of YouTube as funny videos friends e-mail to each other, but it’s way more than that,” she said. “Look at me. I’m in Hollister and I have my own business. This Web site instantly made my potential client list go global instead of staying local. There’s a huge potential here.”
The Gilroy Garlic Festival has also been well-documented on YouTube, as well as real estate videos, the Hollister Independence Bike Rally, local parades, sporting events and a walk-through of Town Cats, a no-kill cat rescue in Morgan Hill.
“It takes five minutes to upload something to YouTube, and it gets shared with the world,” said Hollister resident Matt Weir, 18, who made a video called “Hollister Ninja” with his brother Tim and friend Robert Haynie. It’s been viewed 682 times. “Honestly, we make videos and post them on YouTube as something to do when we’re bored. We posted it a little over a year ago, and we get comments on it, advice and whatever. It’s a fun way to spend our time.”
