YouTube Ethnography Interview

Amelia has been interviewing YouTubers for her Ethnography class. I thought her questions were interesting, so I've posted them with my answers below. Please feel free to comment or make a blog post with your own answers. I'd love to hear what you think about YouTube!

1. What exactly do you do? (I know you make videos but what kind of videos? Ex. Video blogs, animations, art, etc.)
Mostly video blogs, a few songs.

2. Why do you do what you do/why do you film yourself doing what you do and post it on the internet?
In the beginning it was to reconnect with my sister. I’d spent four years away from her in college, and was moving across the country for grad school as she was heading off to her first year of college. We spent the summer before our departures together, realized how much we missed talking to each other frequently, and decided to start a video blog. Gradually we started talking outside of YouTube on a regular basis, but we kept the channel going to stay in touch with our subscribers.

3. Why YouTube over other video hosting sites like vimeo.com?
YouTube had a greater sense of community to me.

4. How long have you been posting videos on YouTube?
18 months

5. What motivated you to start posting videos on YouTube? Did someone influence you? If yes, who?
We saw how brothers John and Hank Green had reconnected using a collaborative YouTube channel, and basically just started a less witty, more girly version of their idea.

6. What do you hope to accomplish by posting videos on the internet?
I’ve already accomplished my first goal of maintaining better contact with my sister. My main goal now is to maintain the friendships I’ve made with my subscribers, and hopefully make them smile. :-)

7. How long does it usually take you to make a video? What processes do you go through and how long do those take? (Ex. Filming, editing, replying to comments, etc.)
Scripting usually takes 20-30 minutes. Filming a video can take anywhere from 8 minutes to a few hours, depending on whether it’s a straight vlog or if there are added elements. Editing, depending on the number of cuts, can take anywhere from 15-90 minutes. Replying to comments is the most fun part, so who cares how long that takes? I would say my average video takes three hours from the time I start writing to the time my viewers see it.

8. Do comments or views or number of subscribers have any influence on how often you make videos? If yes, how so?
The fewer comments I get, the less likely I am to make a video. They are very addictive...the more you get, the more you want!

9. Do you feel as though you have an influence over your subscribers? If yes, how much/in what way(s)?
I don’t think I have a huge influence on them, but sometimes if I recommend a book, a few people might buy or borrow it. People might watch a video if I direct them to it. I try to stay on safe topics, like books and videos. :-)

10. Do your subscribers influence and/or inspire you? If yes, how?
My friends and family are constantly hearing me say “Oh, my subscribers would love this! Hold on while I take a picture.” They’ve made me more appreciative of the little things.

11. Are you a YouTube partner? If yes, how does that work?
Yes. We were partnered after a video of ours was featured on the front page of YouTube. We’re contracted not to talk about actual numbers, but basically we can enable revenue sharing on our videos via Google AdSense. For every thousand views, we get a small compensation. Tiny compensation, even. We need way more viewers. :-)

12. Is video making a large part of your life or your daily routine? Do you consider it a hobby or an occupation or something else? If something else, what?
It used to be part of my daily routine, and hopefully will again. For me it is part hobby, part vital networking. I’ve gotten a few jobs from contacts I’ve made on YouTube, and this is one major reason why I’m continuing to make videos.

13. In your experience, what kind of videos get the most views/what kind of channels get the most subscribers? Why do you think this is?
Videos with celebrities or even “Internet celebrities” generate the most views, but they don’t typically get a lot of subscribers. People are interested in seeing their heroes, but not interested in the lives of the people who have met them.

14. You seem to have a substantial number of subscribers and I assume you get recognized from time to time (or perhaps often), is this pleasant or uncomfortable?
So far I’ve only been recognized at YouTube gatherings, although my sister has been recognized outside of gatherings. I like meeting viewers because it gives me a chance to get to know them a little bit, to put a face behind the username. There have been a few uncomfortable moments with people who are extremely shy, but I would say overall it’s great.

15. Do you consider yourself famous?
Absolutely not.

16. How are friendships/relationships formed via YouTube?
I read all of my comments. If I see a username appear on nearly every video, I go check out their channel, and if it seems cool I’ll subscribe. I have some friendships that have formed purely because of conversations in the comments section. More often, my friendships have been formed in blogTV shows starring YouTubers or at YouTube gatherings.

17. How have the friendships/relationships that started from YouTube translated in the “meet” world?
None of my “best” YouTube friends live near me, but in the last year I’ve traveled to nine cities in six different states in order to see them. Some cities, multiple trips. Interacting with my friends in person is a thousand times better than just chatting online. There’s no one that is a better online friend than an offline friend. In short, these relationships translate brilliantly.

18. Are you or have you been in a relationship that started from YouTube? How did that work?
Yes. It was fun while it lasted, but it was short lived due to extreme distance and lack of funds to visit frequently.

19. How do gatherings work? Who plans them and who goes to them?
Gatherings are usually planned by the attendee with the largest audience. Anyone is welcome to come, whether they’ve seen one video on that channel or all of them, whether they’ve made videos themselves or none at all. People who are new to gatherings usually bring friends for moral support, so there are a fair number of non-YouTubers there as well.

20. Do you use other websites that seem to be associated with YouTube like Dailybooth and Twitter? If yes, why?
I use Twitter primarily to distract myself from doing anything remotely productive, although it does come in handy when a favorite YouTuber decides to have a live blogTV show. Most of my followers are subscribed to me on YouTube, but I honestly don’t know why. My tweets are not that interesting.

21. Do those websites help you form better relationships with the people you’ve met through YouTube? If yes, how?
I enjoy seeing the updates of the people I’ve already become good friends with, but I don’t think Twitter had anything to do with forming the friendship.

22. What is your favorite aspect of YouTube? (Ex. The relationships you’ve created, your subscribers, the opportunity to display something you’ve created, etc.)
It’s done wonders for my self-esteem. Sure, there are haters out there, but it’s usually a really amazing community. I feel cool because other people, who I think are cool, think I am cool. Also, it blows my mind that I went from being a huge fan of certain YouTubers to being good friends with them and collaborating with them. That just doesn’t happen in the rest of the world. I really value those friendships.

23. I have heard people say that YouTube changed their life. Has it changed yours? If yes, how?
I have a lot more self confidence, which has made it easier to network, and I’m less frightened of public speaking. Hours and hours of editing footage of myself made me more comfortable with my voice and the way I look, which has improved my life all the way around. I’m still not the most eloquent person (or the prettiest) but it’s easier to laugh at myself and my mistakes because I know just what I look and sound like!