The Power of the "Real"

As stated in the readings, organizations have been discovering the power of the "real" in the form of amateur videos posted on sites like YouTube. Whether it is the DCI Group posting a spoof of Al Gore's "An Inconvenient Truth" or SavetheInternet.com creating low-budget videos addressing the dangers of an internet without net neutrality, groups have learned that disguising videos as amateur or "real" ones made by genuinely concerned Joe Schmos can make powerful statements. This is, however, if the videos become contagious media.

It seems the formula for promoting a product via contagious, amateur media (like Foster's Beer plans to do) is humor, preferably the "laugh out loud" humor that is usually sparked by what many call "stupid humor" or "randomness." It is a tactic used in many television commercials like one of Honda's newest commercials, which features a group of people cornered by a wild buffalo who are then picked up by a guy driving by in a spacious Honda Pilot. If political organizations are able to create a video with that caliber of randomness while still portraying a subtle undertone for their agendas, then they will have reached the pinnacle of propaganda on the internet.

Users also enjoy the "rawness" of amateur YouTube videos because they can relate more to the person who created it. They feel this connection because they see an everyday person like themselves on the other side instead of a corporation or political organization. Therefore, when corporations and political organizations can effectively portray their videos as amateur, their message has more potential to cut to the core of the viewers.

Although this is bound to have negative effects as it is essentially using propaganda tactics, I do see it as having many positive effects as well. The SavetheInternet.com campaign is one success story.