Is there any money in web video?  That question has been forefront on my mind of late.  I think the short answer is: some people are.  We’ve all heard the stories of people like Michael Buckley making a living from YouTube.  But let’s face it, Mr. Buckley’s YouTube success story is the exception, not the rule. Plus he’s an acquired taste.  As I played the video while writing this, my wife said: “make it stop or I’m going to come over there and smash your computer.”

Frankly, I’m more interested in people and companies who have created sustainable business models in this ecosystem – networks with a portfolio of successful web shows.  As two leaders in the world of web video startups celebrate notable milestones – Next New Networks, its one billionth video view and Revision3, its 5 year anniversary – the economic infrastructure of web TV seems to be maturing.

Can I Really Make Money Doing This?

In terms of how one makes money from web TV, the simplest answer is advertising/sponsorship. Regardless of what people say about “dialogue with community”, “marketing is a conversation”, “unmarketing” and other web 2.0 platitudes – the money transaction in video is audience for dollars. Trouble is, on the web, those dollars just aren’t adding up.  In this interview with Paid Content’s David Kaplan, Next New Networks CEO Lance Podell bemoans the disparate valuation of web vs. TV video viewing audiences.

We’re constantly being asked to educate and consult advertisers. And we’re more than happy to do it. Ultimately, advertisers have to put their money where their mouth is. The only way they’re going to find out what really works is to start trying new things. While we have brave advertisers, who have come back time and again—Warner Bros., Samsung, Frito Lay, Unilever—but we haven’t seen the number of advertisers that is commensurate with the pace of the viewers we are attracting.

- Lance Podell, CEO Next New Networks via PaidContent

That said, I think the key is to balance targeted, niche content (you’re not going to win on the commodities of generalized content) with a desirable level scale, demonstrating those key elements to potential customers (advertisers), and creating a price point that sustains your efforts and satisfies your customers.

In my mind, you need to create a sustainable competitive advantage in order to be successful.  TV is tricky in that regard.  There are always new shows nipping at your heels and audience taste is mercurial.  But part of being competitive in media is anticipating those challenges and creating new offerings.  While big media relies on celebrity, the web often derives value from social currency or trust.  Many successful web shows are hosted by trusted sources in their topic or niche.  A few years ago it would’ve been simple enough to just start creating video awesomeness and aggregate a sustainable audience.  Now there are just too many players.  So, if you’re thinking of creating web video for profit,  I would say to you:

• refine, with laser focus, what your show would be and who you would want to reach
• define how it is differentiated from competitors
• look where advertisers are spending now and create an offering that appeals to them (baby boomers?)
• do market research
• create a concept statement about your show and shop it around to potential customers
• from positive feedback, I’d write a business plan and take a hard look at costs/revenue projections

Thinking it Through

It is a complex ecosystem with a lot of moving parts – giving the prospective media entrepreneur a lot to think about.  But such is the life of a micro-media-mogul.  As you think about your show idea,  you’ll need to really define why people need to watch your show.  You’ll also need to consider the expectation for higher production value in web TV.  Many people are watching video “over the top”,  via devices connected to big screen TV’s.  It takes a few more steps to “tune in” to a web video show.  How are you making it worth the extra effort?  Why do people need to come back to your show?

These are just some thoughts that I’ve been kicking around.  Do you have a web show idea?  Are you thinking of launching one?  Have you thought it through?  What have I missed here?

Let my start by saying that my career in media has been paying the bills since 1988.  So I firmly embrace corporate media, advertising revenue and all media endeavors that enjoy commercial success. The lure of a life in TV (i’m a news cameraman by trade) was its combined appeal of an adventurous lifestyle and comfortable livelihood.  This is what prodded me to take my plunge into TV news.  But as with many things in life, my timing was off.  I came up in the ranks of cameramen well into cable’s affront on broadcast dominance,  admiring the legendary lenslingers before me, or more precisely their glorious tales of lavish travel and limitless budgets. Those were the glory days of TV news, and I got to see the vanishing apparitions – the vestigial remnants of those times.

Disruption Past

As a child of cable’s disruptive power,  I understood that challenge, that shift, that imperative for change.  So when blogging, podcasting and social networking emerged on the radar screen of my consciousness,  I wasn’t prepared to grasp their nascent and then unrealized impact on mainstream media.  Not until an unlikely series of events prompted the purchase of an iPod, did I come to realize that great numbers of people out there were dissatisfied with passively consuming mainstream content and advertising.  They were out there creating their own content and speaking to each other and were quickly becoming disintermediated.  With revolutionary zeal, web-preneurs sprang up like weeds creating platforms empowering people to share content and ideas.  Brands, of course, took note and migrated their messaging and their spending from TV, print, radio to the then “new” media.

Join the Conver$ation

This media revolution made YOU Time magazine’s Person of the Year back in 2006 – and was at once an empowering energizing force, but at the same time, made me fear for the future of my career.  Back then, it was all about the “conversation”.  As a brand, one couldn’t just stumble in and “sell”, one had to honest, transparent, conversational.  As social media has matured,  I get the sense that we have moved beyond that – and now we’re back to where we once were.  Brands just want access to us and the transaction remains the same.  Look, I understand that companies need to make money and that investors need to get returns on hopes of 10x exits.  But i’m struck by the rapacious speed with which social media, its adherents, and platforms are pursuing the buck.  Ironic to me, considering that it was dissatisfaction with traditional media and “push” advertising that in many respects gave rise to social media.

It’s strange, but I still haven’t completely shaken my nostalgia for the salad days of old media as I begin to feel twinges of longing for new media’s simpler times.  When old media was king it was advertisers buying access to passive audiences.  Now, marketers are paying to become part of this:

Power Shift

The mantra of the Social Media Club, “If you get it, share it” has been modified by “ninjas”, “gurus”, and “experts” in the field with the following addendum: “for a fee”. Meanwhile, tech/Web 2.0 headlines point to leaner, meaner more competitive times. Here are some trends pointing to a shift in social media from being people-powered media to corporate driven:

In a move akin to ABC News recent staff slashing, popular, free social network platform Ning is free no more and has cut its staff by 40%.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
How Facebook shares private information with third party companies is being scrutinized by Washington now, prompting one Senator to urge the FTC to get involved.
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Twitter has announced “sponsored tweets” prompting some to point out – if companies were using Twitter right, they wouldn’t need sponsored tweets.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Pepsi passed on Super Bowl ads this year in favor of a $20 million social media campaign, and it’s probably not just about meeting new Twitter and Facebook friends.

So while this post may seem wistful, and perhaps critical of the direction that “people-powered” media has taken – none of this should be terribly surprising and it is perhaps inevitable. I still believe that successful, profit-motivated media can coexist with the community/individual driven kind. For my part, I’m just trying to stay ahead of it all and finding my place in this ever evolving landscape.

The pace of change in media is happening so fast, most of us have barely wrapped our minds around current accepted notions, just as they are swept aside by technology driven evolution.  All of this overwhelms me, and I grasp that it is well out of our control.  But observing these patterns emerge is instructive and that’s why I think these four media trends are worth watching.

The iPad Changes How We Consume and Publish Media

I was at the local coffee shop the other day and a woman looking at the newspaper stand caught my eye.  As I stirred my coffee, I watched as she stood hunched over reading as much as she could above the fold.  I wondered if she’d be moved to buy the paper, but when here latte was ready on the bar, she grabbed it and left.  It occurred to me that there are folks who simply don’t want to have to deal with stacks of paper anymore.

The iPad is a further step, started by readers like the Kindle, towards an infinite world of  rich personal media consumption that lives in the palm of your hand.  The iPad is also forcing publishers to adopt HTML5 standards and has drawn a line in the sand on Adobe Flash.  From the White House to legacy media, web publishers are scrambling to re-tool their sites to be “iPad compliant” – and develop content apps for the device.

Thanks to HTML5 the iPad loves WhiteHouse.gov http://bit.ly/bSk1zX PLUS new mobile site looks nicer on phones – @Macon44

So this simple device has created a huge shift in how we create and consume content.  That’s power.

If the tablet device and Apple’s associated online shops become popular enough, the company could have a chokehold over publishing technology and content itself. It could become as central to the future of print media as it has become to the future of music..

How Apple Is Dogfighting To Control Your News – Ryan Tate, Gawker

Apple’s disdain for Adobe Flash also means that publishers who monetize with flash based banner ads are going to face considerable challenges. But Steve Jobs has a plan for that as well it seems.  A report in Ars Technica reveals that Apple is planning to launch a mobile ad network.  Now I won’t be one of those people standing in line when the iPad is released for sale in stores, but I will be paying attention to it’s impact on the publishing industry.  Here’s a look at the elegant iPad version of Popular Science. (HT Jason Kotttke)

Mag+ live with Popular Science+ from Bonnier on Vimeo.

Web TV Set Top Boxes Liberate the Living Room From Cable Box Tyranny

In 2006, friend and web entrepreneur Jeff Pulver launched Network2, a web video network that he hoped would  come to rival traditional TV networks.  Network2 never developed as hoped, and TV networks, while facing challenges, are still standing.  I think he and others in that space were just a tiny bit ahead of their time.

We recently bought a 42 inch LCD TV and a BlueRay DVD player.  Both of these devices have network connectivity.  The DVD player has Blockbuster, Netflix, YouTube and Pandora built in.  Now that Google and a host of others have introduced set top IPTV boxes,  I think there are new opportunities to build new Network2′s.  Like Apple, Google has the strength of a well established ad network behind it.  People are hungry for web content on the big screen.  “Digital living technologies” research firm Parks Associates just released their Digital Lifestyles: 2010 Outlook report.  In it they find that consumers are hobbling together game consoles and PC’s to deliver web content to their TVs.

consumer interest in Web-on-TV applications is so strong that households are making their own connections via PCs and game consoles. From 2008 to 2009, the number of U.S. households using Web-connected game consoles increased by 64%, and the number connecting a PC to a TV increased by 36%, according to the firm’s latest report Digital Lifestyles: 2010 Outlook.

Whoever delivers an easy to use system of delivering web content to the big screen will create new opportunities for content creators and audiences alike.  “Flipping channels” on the internet seems to be in our not too distant future.

Location Based Apps Unlock Highly Targeted Ad Opportunities

Earlier this year the technology world was abuzz with the revelation that Facebook had won a patent on its news feed. While somewhat overlooked and of equal significance, Google was awarded a patent for Determening and/or using location information in an ad system.  As location based apps continue to rise in popularity,  brands, consumers and media are discovering new and useful ways of interacting with one another.  Marketing strategists have long been predicting the death of display advertising on the web.  From clutter, to intrusiveness, to infinite inventory – those banner ads are pretty useless and easily blocked.

We’re moving away from interruption marketing and enter a world where advertising blends harmoniously with consumers in their everyday life. - Samir Balwani, Morpheus Media

Local, relevant, targeted, location based mobile ads do exactly that – usually when the consumer is near the point of purchase.  Or as Ryan Sholin puts it, it’s advertising “Street by Street, Block by Block“  Still,  Google and ComScore have given publisher reason to believe there’s room for improvement – and perhaps hope for unlimited creative potential in display advertising’s future.

3DTV is a Visual Game Changer

photo credit: Tom Murphy

While 3DTV made quite a splash at CES this year,  the technology sounded a bit faddish to me.  But the more I hear about it, the more I’m coming to beileve it’s the real deal.  My friend and fellow news cameraman cum new media trailblazer, Tom Murphy, recently had the chance to see the technology firsthand out in Burbank.  Tom, also a skeptic initially, has been made a convert.

The difference here is that this is more than just incremental change.

I am writing this as a convert. Just a few days ago if anyone has asked me what I thought of 3DTV I would have grimaced a little, murmured a few niceties and ended my answer with a sentence containing the words “marketing gimmick”… TV in action I can honestly say that this is not some incremental change in technology, but has all the signs of being a complete game changer. – Tom Murphy from “3DTV: Not a Marketing Gimmick, Rather an Awesome Viewing Experience”

And because Tom is someone I trust, I’m in 3DTV’s corner now as well.

This last example of transformative technology will require creation of new libraries of 3D content.  Panasonic has developed a prosumer HD 3D camera for those early adopters who want to get ahead of the curve.

So these are four technology trends I see shaping how we create and consume media in our daily lives.  How do you see these new trends shaping your media habits?  Or if you are a content creator, how will these change your approach to content creation?  Are there media trends that I’ve overlooked?  As always, I look forward to your input.

Speaking at the Direct Marketing Association of Washington’s “Era of Conversation” conferencePhoto by CC Chapman

Last Thursday, I had the unique pleasure of speaking before a group of marketing executives at the Direct Marketing Association of Washington’s confab in DC. I spoke to one of the many break-out sessions on “new media basics” – fitting for me as there there is SO much I’ve yet to absorb about the social web. In fact, I began by telling my breakout session: “I have no business speaking before a bunch of marketing executives, but..”

From that jumping off point, I discussed my nascent (only been blogging since March of this year), but reasonably engaging blogging efforts, and my use of Twitter as primary tools of social media. Essentially I riffed that if I can do it, you can do it, and basic tools are a good place to start, especially when shifting from less conversational communication. Fortunately for me, and for the rest of the attendees, there was an abundance of thought leadership on wide-ranging strategies for launching social media efforts. Overall I think it’s key to find the tools that are right for you or your organization.

For me, blogging is most rewarding when I leave my posts open-ended, and people WAY smarter than me complete my thoughts in the comments section.  Sure, you can be confrontational, and link-bait to generate traffic, but I like the notion of what Stephen Marino, of Ogilvy’s 360 Digital Influence practice calls “Return on Involvement”. The day was filled with terrific speakers, and I had the chance to meet some of the brightest minds in this space like keynote speaker Valeria Maltoni (she’s not yet convinced of Twitter so get over to her blog and give her a nudge!), and keynote speaker CC Chapman, who I’ve been eager to meet for some time. CC connected me with Geoff Livingston, another keynote at the conference who really did a great job of blogging the event with the help of Larissa Fair. Geoff pointed out, in support of Marino’s premise, that participation IS marketing.

In my presentation, I demonstrated how Twitter can be used and misused an engagement tool. At one point i called out to all of YOU on Twitter and asked if you’d say hello to the DMAW session. While waiting for some responses to generate, CC Chapman, in what can almost be described as a movie moment, stopped me and said almost chillingly: “Jim.. refresh the page”. You guys had come through!! Imagine if that hadn’t worked . There were no less than 80 immediate responses. (thank you!) I think that aptly demonstrated Twitter’s immediate, conversational, attention directing value. I also pointed out that Team Twitter had  helped shape my presentation in the comments on my blog. (again thank you!)

So despite this being my first ever presentation before a professional group, I think I was able to get people thinking about social media and what tools are right for them. Social media allows us to connect on a deep human level across social, cultural, and corporate barriers in a way we never could before. Conversations no longer happen from the top down. More importantly they are no longer controlled by corporations. Media that aren’t conversational or social are becoming less and less relevant. Funny that I felt like odd man out speaking at this event. At the end of the day I’m a network news cameraman, not a social media consultant. Ogilvy’s John Bell advises on his blog:

Spark ideas by mixing up odd-fellows and odd exepriences. Oh, and let go of the reins a bit.
John Bell

I think that’s fitting here. Social media enables the exchange of good ideas and allows the the best ones to take root and propagate, creating value, involvement, and engagement. So maybe that’s why I was invited. I want to thank Donna Tschiffely, Executive Director of DMAW, for bringing this all together. I hope i get a chance to do this again soon.

A few weeks ago CC Chapman connected me with DC area author, marketing strategist, and entrepreneur, Geoff Livingston. Somehow these two got it in their heads that I’d be a great speaker at the “New Media Marketing Day – The Era of Conversation” session that the DMAW is hosting. So I’ve got some ideas about discussing personal branding, avoiding missteps when using social media, video as conversation agent – and I plan on referencing the usual suspects: Robert Scoble, Connie Reece, Chris Brogan, and Chris Heuer to tee off some “big ideas”. I just want to make sure I’m not missing any important thoughts. Here’s my track from the DMAW website:

Track 1 – Sponsored by Executive Biz
New Media Basics: Hammers brass tacks into some of the more popular social media tactics. Forget the exotic. We’re talking about the everyday activity your organization needs right now to enjoy immediate success in the emerging social media/web 2.0 elements.
from DMAW website

This is where I need YOUR HELP. Do YOU think I’m using social media successfully? If so, why? How can big companies better use social media? What are important points that I should draw from our collective experience in social media? As always, your comments here MAKE this blog. I’m looking forward to your insights! Thanks.

Capricorn, Community, and Craft

Just before boarding a flight to the Craft Hobby Association show this past Friday, I gave one last check on Twitter. Twitter friend and resident astrologist @KrazyKritter had just posted Capricorn. Now look, I’m not normally superstitious, but the outlook for Capricorn resonated with me.

“Today is finally the right time to embrace a new idea and work on fleshing it out”horoscope for Capricorn, 7-20-07

I was energized by this message as i flew to Chicago to cover this huge crafting industry trade show for Crafty Nation our new media venture.

The show was a huge success for us, by way of coverage and for getting our brand out there. We met wonderful people working in this space who were very excited about what we are creating – folks like Margot Potter, Candie Cooper, Katie Hacker, Cari Clement, Debba Haupert, Nicole Mumma, and Amy Romano. Why build a social network and content channel for crafters? Well for one, it’s a natural for social networking. Crafters are passionate about what they do and love to share their ideas and their work with others. They truly are a community. Even at the CHA, which is a decidedly commerce driven event, the community was vibrant and energizing. Craft and Hobby is a 30 billion dollar industry and there are many brands out there looking to associate themselves with the online craft conversations.

promoting the Crafty Nation brand during an education session at CHA

Fleshing Out the Idea

Now it’s time to tackle the most important part of Friday’s horoscope: “work on fleshing it out”. This means listening to our “board of advisors”, the early adopters of CraftyNation’s social media platform. How do we build it and make it better? A drop dead simple, stare-you-in-the-face, idea about how to do that came from Margot Potter. She told me that crafters like to customize their profiles because they’re, well, creative. Thank you Margot!! @conniereece, @AnnOhio, @WickedStepmom, @Uavery, @brendajos, and many more “Twitter Knitters” have been tremendously helpful in pointing out usability issues. What we’ve done with our phase one beta launch is to take an idea that only a year ago was a discussion over coffee, between myself and business partner Toni Lyn, and turned it into a strong start for something that will only grow. As we build out Crafty Nation, it’s the feedback from our community that will drive the direction and growth of this space, so that we can help create real value. We want to give voice to the vibrant fabric of the craft community, and create a place where we’re merely custodians of something much larger than the site itself.

Niche Market Video Content Engaging Your Target Audience

Here’s a link to the programs we’ve created. We also did some quick turnaround daily dispatches from the conference. Video is a very big part of Crafty Nation. Our video content celebrates the creativity and spirit of crafters, and our hope is that it acts as a springboard for conversation and community on our site.

At a dinner on Monday night with Lee Aase and Dennis McDonald, that was supposed to include Jeremiah Owyang, we discussed social media, niche market content, and the evolution web video. Dennis and Lee both have tremendous insight into this space, and are lovely dinner companions. Great food and conversation. Jeremiah’s absence led us to wonder if he was in fact a real person, or just an avatar.

The CBS/Wallstrip deal that I wrote about on Monday got me thinking about how I and other people define themselves in this space. I’ve been making a good living in the media business for many years now and despite seismic shifts within the industry, I’m pursuing opportunities presented by emerging media models.

To create opportunity, I believe you have to think beyond the limits of the traditionally defined media roles of cameraman, producer, or talent. I think the emergence of the micro media mogulis emblematic of this shift, a shift that is blurring, if not erasing the line where media jobs fall above (executive and management) or below (crew and production staff). So as media workers begin to chart a new course in these re-defined roles, they are faced with a number of questions. Not the least of which is how much entrepreneurial fire do they have in their belly. Are you as passionate about the art of the deal as you are about the art of your media? Or do you prefer the comfort of steady paycheck?

What if you’re somewhere in the middle of those two options? An innovative media company called Next New Netwoks offers unique opportunities to those whose passions are weighted more on the side of media maker, rather than media mogul. I inadvertantly gave them kind of short shrift the other day when I asked this:

I have to wonder though, what is the value (read deal) for the content creator/micro-media-mogul, of aligning with a Next New Network.

Looking back, my wording seems a bit dismissive. Purely unintentional, as I truly wondered precisely what the deal was. Next New Network’s Tim Shey contacted me with more details about what an agreement with NNN looks like. Independent media makers can leverage their creativity for a regular show based fee by entering into licensing agreements with Next New Networks.

We create and build networks which are fully owned Next New Networks properties,
and then license or commission shows to run on those networks. Show
producers who work with us get a guaranteed, regular fee for the
right to run their shows, upon delivery, whether we sell advertising
or not (in other words, it is not rev-share dependent).

This model isn’t necessarily a perfect fit for every producer, but
we’re here to work with the people for whom that is; there are lots
of other options in the marketplace (YouTube, Revver, Blip,
Brightcove, Videoegg, etc) for people who want to bootstrap their own
independent network and have someone work with them for a rev share,
as well as companies like PodShow which will work in a joint
ownership / partnership model.

-Tim Shey via email, published with his permission

Next New Networks’ impressive leadership roster brings together a strong list of executives drawn from old and new media. In a media landscape of ever expanding opportunity for savvy, independent media makers, Next New Networks provides unique and creative arrangements for those who want to make a living doing what they love.

So where do you fit in to all of this? Are you a micro media mogul, or a media worker? Or maybe somewhere in between?

Wallstrip, the online financial news show where “stock culture meets pop culture”, has been purchased by CBS Interactive for a price tag reported to be far less than the rumored $5 million price tag. Wallstrip announced the news on their show in typically tongue in cheek fashion, asking CBS employees about the deal on the sidewalk in front of “Black Rock”

Click To Play

CNET reports that it was CBS Interactive president, and former Silicon Valley M&A maverick, Qunicy Smith that sealed the deal. In a NewTeeVee article by Liz Gannes, Wallstrip’s distribution and syndicaton are reported as favorable considerations in CBS’ decision to buy the show. As Wallstrip puts it: “Watch Wall Strip where YOU want!” Here’s a snip of Wallstrip chief Howard Lindzon’s reaction to the deal:

I am dipping my toes tomorrow. I like their syndication strategy and I am bullish on Quincy and the Interactive Division of course.

I am looking forward to making Wallstrip better every day. Congrats to the Wallstrip team for their hard work and our investors for their sheer genius. Awesome day.

-Howard Lindzon

This points to two trends that this content creator hopes to take advantage of:

Now big media companies can sit back watch while savvy media makers bootstrap their content business models, and then simply come by waving cash and cherrypick the best. Call me old fashioned, but I like the sound of that! Here’s a sneak peak at one of the niche market content plays Verge New Media is creating.

Click To Play

Another emerging trend in the niche market content space is the rise of the aggregators like Network2.TV and Next New Networks. The team at Next New Networks seems very happy with their recent tip of the hat from TechCrunch. Surprisingly TechCrunch made no mention of Jetset, which I’ve often praised here as very smart interntet community TV. Next New Networks describes their model this way:

Next New Networks had some simple goals in launching: be authentic voices of the communities we launch networks around; build networks around online emerging television with web features that allow others to share, contribute and distribute; and be dependable and reliable

I have to wonder though, what is the value (read deal) for the content creator/micro-media-mogul, of aligning with a Next New Network. Wallstrip is an example of going it alone and bootstrapping. Maybe there is merit in that strategy for the entrepreneurially inclined.

So who will be the next small TV acquistion headline? Maybe it will be the surreal, sexy, sci-fi stylings of Galaciticast, or the hip, twenty-something web comedy Something to Be Desired. I think niche market web content is a HUGE sandbox that is creating tremendous opportunity for micro media moguls. I suspect content that Verge New Media has in the pipeline will be part of that mix, creating value in niche market content.

Finally, Amanda Chapel, of Strumpette, was recently sighted on Twitter describing value like this:

value is based on standards; standards are vetted by hierarchy. A bank is a bank for reason and that’s where the money is
- Amanda Chapel via Twitter

Privately, she added this: (and agreed that I publish it)

branding, seduction, under promise and over deliver. Ya can’t go wrong.

Apparently value, and money, can also be found in niche market content created by savvy, agile new media startups. Look for more of that from me and form legions of other media makers. Who do you think are the new micro media moguls to watch this year?

How about just calling it MEDIA? Sure, labels are useful, but at the end of the day there will be media that people connect with, and the unwatched, unread remains. There seems to be a renewed slugfest between the “revolutionaries” storming the gates of traditional media, and the keepers of corporate status quo. As both sides trade barbs, it’s curious to this blogger why the loudest amongst both sides of this “debate” promote such zero-sum theocracy.

From bloggersblog today, a link to this rant against blogs from South Africa’s Sunday Times, calling blogs “the air guitars of journalism” And from my favorite contrarian Strumpette, some snarky satire on the introduction of MLB’s “Citizen Player Program”

Chris Brogan lends his typically keen insight and measured criticisms to discussions that took place at AlwaysOn, Hollywood. His concerns that “we” (people who create media independent of large corporate infrastructure) are living in a fishbowl. Brogan then takes the informations he’s gathered and builds a very smart roadmap for moving beyond amateur media. Chris “gets it”…big time.

In almost no time, “talking about nothing” shows are going to dry up. You have to deliver value. In video, audio, and even a blog, if you want to bring your message into a larger circle of people, you’re going to have to give value back for what you’re doing.

Most of this discussion seems to be framed in an either/or construct, which I believe to be a false pretext. Those who believe that Web 2.0, social media, and citizen content will completely evaporate are wrong, just as wrong as those who believe that the democratization of media spells the demise of large corporate media. What I see happening is that the “amateurs” are building relationships with their audience, and with corporate media. There, you’ll find the winners. Don’t believe me? Then why are guys like Jeff Jarvis having dinner with Rupert Murdoch and making deals with Washingtonpost.com?

For those of you who believe that bloggers don’t have juice, how do you reconcile CNN’s decision to release Presidential debate footage under a Creative Commons license? Clearly they were bowing to the outcrys of the “air guitar” players of the blogoshpere.

Much of what is taking place in social media space is all about buzz, and in-the-moment, viral types of content. This is the type of media that I believe will be the shortest-lived. They are also easy targets for critics as the sum-total of ALL new/social media. The below-the-radar people in this space are sometimes the most successful. At VON07 in San Jose, I met Nicholas Butterworth of Diversion Media. His firm has built two successful social media sites, Travelistic and Snowvision. Butterworth says that the key to social media success is community and relationship.

Coverage of VON07

Butterworth, and other micro media moguls like Zadi Diaz and Steve Woolf of Jetset are defining a new class of crossover talent. Media makers who understand the community nature of social media/Web 2.0 and have the business savvy to grasp the value of that community. The fact that they’ve partnered with Next New Networks demonstrates that savvy and sets them apart from the “air guitar” set. Amani Channel of My Urban Report is another example of new media being courted by old. The Atlanta Journal Constitution has expressed interest publishing content from his blog. Again, the gates aren’t being stormed so much as being opened by smarter old media firms.

The bottom line is that the marketplace will decide the winners and losers of traditional vs. social media. I’d keep an eye on the ones creating value for their communites and the ones who build tools for participation.

Earlier today I posted an entry about journalists and self promotion that spoke of the notion of promotion being part of journalists new duties. Old media companies, new media upstarts, journalists, in fact anyone looking to be successful in social media, promotion, conversation and engadgement, need to look at the accomplishments of Zadi Diaz and Steve Woolf. The genesis of this post, to be perfectly honest, is that I’m all-a-twitter that Jetset’s Zadi Diaz added me as a Twitter friend today!!

In the words of social media raconteur and Twitter friend Chris Abraham… “She is SO MONEY!”

JETSET, assembled readers, is a wildly popular and immensely cool internet TV show/community that their site describes like this:

Created by Zadi Diaz and Steve Woolf, JETSET is an Internet and pop culture show for young adults featuring cool, weird, fun, geeky, underground, true-to-life, curious, quirky things and people found online and off.

Jetset, recently announced a licensing and distribution deal with Next New Networks, detailed here in a New Tee Vee article by Liz Gannes.

What I struggle with as someone working in old media, is the difficulty people in that space have with the notion of linking, sharing, engaging, and promoting. There are powerpoints, conference calls, mandatory meetings all geared toward stumbling clumsily into something that mimics and apes social media. Sometimes they/we get it right, sometimes..not so much.

Zadi and Steve, and many others like them, get it. They are part of a new class of entrepreneur that I call the “micro media mogul”. Agile, savvy, passionate.. they are the future.