“After a decade of the Internet revolutionizing the way people communicate and spend their leisure time, a growing number of consumers are going further—creating entertainment and other media ‘content’ on their own,” The Wall Street Journal recently reported in its introduction to a series of articles exploring “Do It Yourself” media. “Cable networks, radio stations—even advertisers—are embracing such ‘user-generated content’ and serving it up, hoping to appeal to new and younger audiences that are impatient with standard media fare.”
The first story in this series explores Current TV, the new cable channel founded by Al Gore that features videos submitted by viewers as well as its staff.
Current’s aim, explained Mediaweek, which also recently featured the channel, is to create a network “through which young people could exchange and contribute views on current events and other issues they find important.”
“Our concept is ‘what’s going on for young adults,’ and what’s going on is as broad as our audience defines it,” explained Current’s president of programming to Mediaweek. “It’s their careers, their relationships, their spiritual lives [told] in their voice and from their point of view.”
It is not yet clear how advertisers will ultimately receive the station.