YouTube

During the past year we’ve seen multiple attempts by broadcast networks to integrate social media into television programming. You may recall ABC’s promotion of an app that provided broadcast viewers with synchronized interactive content for My Generation. Glee, which airs on Fox, also tried to extend the viewer experience from television to the Internet by integrating QR codes into commercials. Most recently, MTV and VH1 announced their partnership with Foursquare to bring in social gaming across television, online and mobile entertainment for a “heightened fan-experience.”

Double Feature

Looking at recent viewer usage statistics, it is clear that there’s good reason for this shift…

1. If you’re like most Americans, you spend on average 2.8 hours of television per day watching shows and consuming nearly 4.5 hours of video on YouTube as well as 3.1 hours of content on Hulu per month.

2. Odds are that you also own multiple devices that afford you access to video and can help to deepen your engagement with a particular show.

In fact, according to the Pew Internet & American Life Project, “Many devices have become popular across generations, with a majority of adults now owning cell phones, laptops and desktop computers. Younger adults are leading the way in increased mobility, preferring laptops to desktops and using their cell phones for a variety of functions, including internet, email, music, games and video.”

“We recognize that our audiences are no longer just sitting on the couch watching our programming,” said Kristin Frank, general manager and senior vice president of MTV and VH1 Digital, New York. “We know that they increasingly have a laptop and a mobile device with them while they watch and are consistently multitasking in their lives."

Time to Change the Channel?

I am left wondering where this shift will take us. After all, our society loves to not only consume content, but also to actively engage and participate in the creation of that content.

This wholesale change in how we not only consume, but also create media hit home for me when I attended a session called “Taking Videos Beyond YouTube” at the recent Nonprofit Technology Conference. There, Ben Moskowitz of the Mozilla Foundation cautioned, “You can’t be the only provider of your media” in today’s multi-media and multi-platform world. Likewise, as a consumer you cannot be expected to view all media from just one provider when so many choices exist and are readily accessible.

Pass the Popcorn

Taking the next step, Mozilla created an innovative new platform—Popcornjs.org, which takes integration of broadcast and social media to the next level. Designed to seamlessly integrate online content into videos, video creators can now enhance their creations with Wikipedia pages, Google earth maps, Flickr photo streams, Twitter feeds, etc. making for a much more integrated and active experience. While currently in beta format, the platform is vying to change overall engagement.

The possibilities are literally endless when it comes to the synchronization of video and web content in this virtual “Choose Your Own Adventure” for videos. The tool is not just for entertainment purposes either, when it comes to creating compelling content this medium will no doubt be an effective tool for social change advocates.

What do you think... how might you use a tool such as Popcorn? How do you think the increasing integration of online content into more traditional forms of media will change how we consume information?

Tomorrow is July 24, and with the exception of a few notable events -- the return of Apollo 11 to Earth; the day the Supreme Court ordered Nixon to surrender the Watergate Tapes; or the day Lance Armstrong "retired" after winning his 7th Tour de France in 2005-- it's an otherwise unremarkable day in the history books. However, July 24, 2010 marks what could amount to be a fascinating and unprecedented day in the land of user generated video content.

A new experiment hosted by YouTube, “Life in a Day,” will attempt to document one day, as seen through the eyes of the 6.7 billion people spread out across our globe, each of whom have a unique story and perspective to share.  From the mundane to the extraordinary, over the course of the next 24 hours professional film makers and amateurs alike will attempt to capture a snapshot of their lives from sunrise to sunset.

Kevin Macdonald, the Oscar-winning director of The Last King of Scotland, will then edit the most compelling footage into a feature documentary film, to be executive-produced by Ridley Scott, the director behind films like Gladiator, Black Hawk Down, and Thelma & Louise.  The film will premiere at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival and if your footage makes it into the final cut, you’ll be credited as a co-director and may be one of 20 contributors selected to attend the premiere.

Want to take part and learn more? Here’s what you need to do.

1. Visit the “Life in a Day” channel and learn more about the project. Be sure to read through the steps you need to take to participate and the guidelines for creating your video(s). Also check out some of the sample videos for inspirational ideas.

2. On July 24, capture your day on camera.

3. Upload your footage to the “Life in a Day” channel any time before July 31.

Regardless of whether your footage makes it into the final film, your video(s) will live on in the “Life in a Day” channel as a time capsule that will tell future generations what it was like to be alive on July 24, 2010.

If you participate, we’d love to see what you capture – please share a link to your video in the comments below.

Guest blogger Emily Garrett is a junior at Northwestern University and a summer intern with the Case Foundation.

• Add your John Hancock to an online petition. Go to The Petition Site or Petition Online and sign a petition or start your own. Gather the masses to make change! Add the link to your Twitter or Facebook page to raise your numbers awareness even further.
• Get out of the house (or office) and do some hands on volunteering. There are many web sites to help you find a cool project in your area. Check out the White House’s Summer of Service site, VolunteerMatch, or Idealist to find something that fits your interests and benefits your neighborhood.
• Treat yourself to a Flip video camera and start shooting videos. Find things that are politically or social interesting and post your video on YouTube to raise awareness. Or if you’re already a whiz at video storytelling? Help nonprofits out. Join Youtube’s Video Volunteers and put your skills to good use.
• You’ve donated online, but have you joined a mobile giving campaign? Consult the Mobile Giving Foundation or mGive for a list of current campaigns and how to get involved. There are tons of ongoing campaigns including Doctors Without Borders, Invisible Children, Chicago 2016, and Malaria No More. Choose your favorite, and text to give.
• Miss the days of summer reading? Grab a book to expand your social citizen knowledge. Britt Bravo has a great list of “do gooder books” to keep you busy. Social by Social is also a great book on social media and social impact, and my personal favorite, Leaving Microsoft to Change the World by John Wood should get you inspired to make some changes in your community.
• You’re clicking around on YouTube anyway, so check out this video lecture by college professor Michael Wesch: An Anthropological Introduction to YouTube.
• Have a summer birthday? Donate it to your favorite cause. Go to Causes on Facebook, and tell your friends to donate to the cause instead of giving you a birthday gift. What easier way to raise money for your favorite organization then having Facebook solicit the donations for you? And besides do you really need another sweater from your mom?
• If you’re mass emailing resumes this summer, you’re not alone. Worried about finding a job in this economy and paying off your student loans or credit card debt? Join the 80 Million Strong Coalition to discuss the problems and find solutions to get the Millennial Generation fully employed.
• Are you obsessed with Twitter? Put that obsession to good use by pitching in to plan, or at least attend a Twestival local event in September to meet other Tweeters in your area and to raise money and awareness.

With video recording and publishing readily accessible through smart phones, flip cams and even the “old-fashioned” digital camera -- nonprofits are finding new and low cost ways to create compelling stories of their good work.  

1. Go to "edit" your video: and fill out the fields in the section marked “Call to Action Overlay”
2. Click “save,” cross your fingers, and the overlay should appear on your video

• Last month the Chronicle of Philanthropy hosted a very rich online chat called Using Video to Spread Your Nonprofit's Message and Mission.
• Nancy Schwartz offers her picks of 6 Nonprofits Who are Putting Great Online Video to Work along with links to the videos.
• Michael Hoffman at See3 Communications offers readers his 11 Tips for Using Online Video to Raise Money
• Need a camera? Flip Cam is giving cameras to eligible nonprofits through their Flip Video Spotlight Program.

One of the hottest gifts out there right now is the Flip video camera.  And, not only are we giving you a chance to join the "Flip rage" and win one through our Social Citizens Makeover, but Flip Video wants to help you start documenting the great work of your nonprofits, and they are looking for partners now.

In fact, they're committed to getting one million Flip camcorders in the hands of nonprofit organizations by 2012. You can learn more about the program by checking out their YouTube page or apply here.

Just caught wind of the "2008 Project for Awesome" somehow I missed last year's debut - but here's the gist - for one day out of the year, the YouTube Community completely takes over. I know, I know - the power of YouTube is always in the hands of its loyal community.  But this time, instead of being funny or even a little stupid, the creative energy of YouTuber's will be channeled to promote the causes and charities that are most important to them. 

Whenever people ask me why I am so wildly enthusiastic about the Internet and all things social media, I point to content like the blog post from the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra on Friday about the GiveList. (True confession: I was an enthusiastic but awful french horn player in high school).

In essence, it says they saw the tweets about the GiveList and that got the blogger, Lacey Huszcza, thinking about ways that people can support the arts without writing a check. Here is the list of sixteen ways to give to arts organizations from Lacey:

Sure, the economy may have you down, and fundraising for anything these days may seem like a daunting task, but don't forget to have a little fun with it. Earlier this month, my husband's colleague, a self-proclaimed "Mo Bro" (a.k.a. Charlie), sent around an email to friends and family, asking for their support as he set off to grow a little facial hair.

Why you might ask?  Because the month formerly known as November has turned into...you guessed it, "Mo-vember" for thousands of men across the country and around the world.  But it's not all fun and games. So why the extreme behavior?

If a picture is worth 1000 words, then a YouTube video is worth conference fees and several hours of your life -- particularly when it's bringing you a fascinating panel from NCOC about Facebook's role in and impact on civic engagement.

That's right ... today's post is the as-promised third installment of our NCOC coverage, from our introduction, to Kristen's event notes, to the final video of Bill Galston, Sean Parker, and Joe Trippi (see below). So far, the comments and reactions here have been really thoughtful, even extending into posts/threads over at Beth's Blog and PhilanTopic.

So give this choice piece of cinema a look-see, and then check out the rest of Kristen's coverage after the fold!

Sit-ins and protests as generations before us knew them may be a thing of the past. But the injustice that drove these generations to protest in such profound ways is no less present today. As Millennials we are just putting a new spin on the way we mobilize and take action. And since we’ve already beaten to death the debate between on land and online activism on our site and elsewhere, I won’t belabor that anymore.

I do however, want to bring your attention to a new campaign that the National Campaign to Restore Civil Rights just announced. They are working with YouTube to create a platform that highlights the civil rights work of Millennials today — by asking Millennials to answer the question: What are you and your generation doing for civil rights today?

What a great way to highlight this generation’s stories and successes. Below is the announcement video for the Rollback Campaign for more information on how to join in this public debate on civil rights today.

And, just in case you haven’t had enough of the debate — check out Tanene Allison’s thoughtful post on Huffington Post earlier this week. (Incidentally, that’s where I learned about the Rollback Campaign.)