Video for Presentation

I didn't get a chance to hear it, but this is supposed to be the Reliant K remake to the Charles in Charge theme song. Duration: 44 seconds. Maybe use it in the slide show?


http://www.godtube.com/view_video.php?viewkey=af9d49c96a8251a31368&page=6&viewtype=&category=mr

I finally made it!

After a bunch of technological setbacks I was finally able to accept the invite. It feels good to be a part of the group!

The remaining two elements of research have to deal strictly with the community and their acceptance of Godtube by weighing them against societal values, and researching the history of public discourse in dealing with this new branch of religious outreach. I feel like the best way to find out what the public is thinking is to take a look at what they are saying, (though I did throw in a couple of online articles too.) Different blogspots such as these offer interesting insight to how the (worldwide) community feels about Godtube and its impact.

http://blog.wired.com/tableofmalcontents/2007/03/the_best_of_the.html
http://www.thinkchristian.net/index.php/2007/05/16/godtubecom-one-bloggers-opinion/
http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/viewArticle.asp?articleID=24988
http://www.godtube.com/view_video.php?viewkey=c5a412816d494b15ca9f

Very interesting to read people's opinions of one of Godetube's most popular videos, "Baby Got Book"
http://www.godtube.com/view_video.php?viewkey=97759aa27a0c99bff671

Research on Negotiation

“technology to connect Christians for the purpose of encouraging and advancing the Gospel worldwide.”

http://www.techcrunch.com/2007/04/05/well-now-we-have-godtube/

To the delight of Chris Wyatt, a former television producer who dreamt up GodTube while studying at the Dallas Theological Seminary, the new website is attracting up to 60,000 visitors a day and is well on its way to becoming the most visited Christian site on the internet.

It is also attracting plenty of heathens, drawn by an unexpected phenomenon: America’s evangelical Christians have the reputation of being a dour lot, but word is rapidly spreading on the internet that God can be funny, too.

many Christians appear delighted that there is now a corner of the internet where they can go for entertainment without risk of encountering mayhem or vice.

http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/article1626529.ece

'The New Face of Christianity'

Chris Wyatt, the CEO and co-founder of GodTube, told ABC News that "the Web site hasn't even launched" -- it's set to be born on May 1 -- "and we're already the number one Christian Web site in the world."

Wyatt, in his second semester at Dallas Theological Seminary and a former CBS News producer, said, "What you're looking at here is the new face of Christianity. Millions of Christians out there -- tens of millions of them that age anywhere from 20 to 40 -- that are out there already on the Internet, and GodTube really supplies a unique place where they can get together, where they can exchange ideas and spread the Gospel worldwide. And nothing like that exists right now."

The company censors contributions all the time, Wyatt said. "As you can imagine, we get a lot of people uploading objectionable material. We do have to sort through that, unlike a lot of the other video-sharing sites. Day by day, we have a bank of theologians, certainly, that's headed up by a doctor friend of mine who's a theologian himself, and we look at every clip."

"We didn't actually make the site for Christians," Wyatt said, but for nonbelievers, who he says he knows are watching. "We get e-mails every day. And that really is the whole point. It's to spread the gospel to those who have not heard it."

http://www.abcnews.go.com/Nightline/story?id=3023285&page=1

About 16,000 people are registered GodTube users, and the site garners video submissions in languages ranging from Japanese to Italian. Dr. Miller says that believers have criticized the site for promoting a place for Christians to huddle and ignore the world. “But the traffic is about 43 percent international,” Dr. Miller says, “and includes Christians and non-Christians alike.”

http://www.dts.edu/about/profiles/Chris_Wyatt/

“You know, [there are] 2.1 billion Christians out there in the world, but really we're talking not only [about] the Christians but also the 4 billion out there that are seeking faith," Wyatt told ABC’s Nightline last week.

"Now we're going to take on the world,” said Wyatt. “You know, all of a sudden it's GodTube U.S. Then you're going to see GodTube in Español and in multiple languages.”

The multi-lingual feature of the site will be more than just a marketing strategy.

According to GodTube’s mission statement, the site exists to “connect Christians for the purpose of encouraging and advancing the Gospel worldwide.”

http://www.christianpost.com/article/20071023/29795_GodTube.com_Reveals_Thriving_Online_Christian_Market.htm

This link is a wealth of INFO for everyone!

http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/newmedia/la-ca-webscout21oct21,0,660332.story?coll=la-home-entertainment

This is where I will be getting most of my information, although I will probably cite the LA Times and ABC News as they are most creditable. I have also been looking at opposing views of Godtube that may assist me in my discussion of negotiatio--providing another perspective on the site.

Meeting Recap

I think that it is a good idea for us to split up the tasks. Since all of us are pretty busy then we can do a lot of research on our own before we meet again as a group. I have been doing research on different articles that people have written about Godtube to try to get an idea of what most of the public thinks about Godtube. The next time we meet I will bring some of the articles to share. I think that most of you will find them interesting.

-Allyson

My Scoop

after our meeting today I did my first digging. my portion of research covers the history of GodTube and religion and the internet in general. this fits in well with my research paper too. the things I'm looking through give glances of the history of GodTube, so I can determine a historical trend for internet videos. the toughest issue will be finding responses from different groups to GodTube...most literature is produced by largely Protestant publications and websites with some secular sources as well. here's to more digging!

a few good places to read up on GodTube...

"Christians have all the best laughs on GodTube"
http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/article1626529.ece

The GodTube Blog
http://godtube.blogspot.com/

The ascension of GodTube
http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/09/20/the-ascension-of-godtube-what-took-this-long/

Project Assignments

John and I have decided that it would be in the best interest of the group to deligate jobs/research that deals specifically with Godtube.com. Not only will this fulfill requirements on the blog, but will also begin the process of compiling research for our presentation. The areas of research are as follows:

History of community discourse:
Identify dominant social values:
Highlight process of negotiation: Nathan
How tech supports/challenges historical trends: John

Each person should address one aspect, and focus on researching one of these concepts. I am not even sure how many people are in our group, but, as computer illiterate as I am, i think it would be the detriment of the group if I compiled the information into a PPT presentation, instead, if someone would like to step up and take on this challenge (the 5th person) then that would be their job--no research involved!

The assignments are NOT set in stone, just what john and I would prefer to do. If there is a problem please let the group know through the blog as this is the best means of communication to get in touch with all the members.

Some Interesting Links

A few links to Godtube.com in the media

Godtube.com sets record as #1 fastest growing website in US - CNN money
Wired Magazine bloggers are talking about Godtube.com
Godtube's mission statement and statement of faith

apparently there is an islamtube as well...interesting. Don't they believe in the same God?