Happy 5th Birthday Youtube!!!
Has it really only been five years?
It feels like Youtube has been around at least as long as Google has. Or the Internet. Or home videos of any kind. Feels like forever. Anyone with a video camera and an Internet connection can use the site to “broadcast themselves,” and just like that, we’ve become a society of “youtube moments.” We gained “Rickrolling,” and for that alone, Youtube is teh awesome.
Right now, Youtube officials say that every minute, roughly 24 HOURS of footage is uploaded to the site. That’s insane. The site has been viewed billions of times, and videos have launched fame, fortune and laughs over the years (think of Lonelygirl15, the Chocolate Rain guy, the Star Wars kid, our own Sweatband Man and countless others that we all know of solely from Youtube). I’d be willing to wager that there’s not a person with internet access out there who HASN’T watched a Youtube video at some point. Even my daughter uses Youtube to watch Justin Bieber videos and air her own web show.
In the spirit of the site’s birthday, here are a few random Youtube videos I particularly like, in no particular order…
Evolution of Dance
Jill and Kevin’s wedding dance
Chocolate Rain
Like a Boss (EXPLICIT)
Christian the Lion (warning: have tissues handy)
Mark Cuban “Never Gonna Win it All” song (very popular on local radio)
Harry Potter Puppet Pals (there’s a whole series of these, and they’re entertaining to both me and the kids)
So what’s YOUR favorite Youtube vid? It’s only been 5 years, but Youtube is definitely part of our culture. It has changed the ‘net, it has changed how we see the world (and each other), and it gives anyone a chance to be a “star.”
