People change. Recently I made a video about how I’d like to change my approach to YouTube rather significantly. In hindsight, it’s one of the most egotistical videos I’ve ever made, and Kevin had no hesitation telling me this. He and Jacie Hood joined me to discuss and critique my latest endeavor, the changing nature of my ASL fame, and the YouTube community in general. Have a listen…
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Descrates?
Rude kids? Give ’em the Face!
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A Very Potter Musical, anthropology, Ashton Kutcher, ASL, Beyond Viral, Blue Moon, Community, Cory Williams, Cyber Bullying, DailyMotion, ethnography, Glee, Google, Halloween, Halo, Jacie, Jamie Lee Curtis, Jomama Jones, Kevin, Kevin Nalty, Kevin Smith, Master Pancake, Mike Wesch, Miller High Life, Neil Simon, nerdfighteria, performance, Philip DeFranco, Project for Awesome, Red State, Seinfeld, songsigning, Starkid, Stephen, Stephen King, theatre, True Lies, Tyler Perry, Vimeo, Vlog Brothers, YouTube
28/11/2011 at 11:56 pm Permalink
I probably missed large chunks while listening to the podcast while washing dishes, so forgive me if I’m generally repetitive. I’ve been watching the videos, I feel like I’ve missed the overall controversy itself. I don’t know. It’s youtube, there’s a point one has to chill out and not be overly invested in what a guy does with his own channel, blog or other internet property.
As your interviewer noted, the internet is so much about sectionalizing to the simplest variable that holy moley you mix things more multi-dimensional and people overreact.
I think the only thing I did note in your youtube response was you were talking about ASL unable to transcend its language functions into performance due to being intrinsically linked to Deaf culture, which seemed rather contradictory. Though you certainly have more vocabulary and such to digest (speaking as a hearing person who knows way less than you do, to cover my bases); I feel like that’s predominately what many ASL performers do is perform to communicate. Not necessarily a pragmatic message or anything that needs to be translated into words, but creating a collective conversation that alters and challenges people’s perceptions. Though art roots in self-expression, the definition of art in its effect of “beauty or emotional power” is the key at “power”. Power involves a dialogue internally and externally, sure there are works that are made for selfish and theraputic purposes, but artwork from any time period involves encapsulating ideas that are then displayed to a viewer in order to express an idea.
I’m just going to stop elaborating before I sound like I’m lecturing a high school art class on a 90s sitcom. But I will end on a high note saying I appreciate you being socially responsible, expressing where you come from and trying to maintain your position as someone who is learning and not a representation of the Deaf community. Do what you fucking feel like doing!