Why Vlog?

I've been poking around with video blogging, aka "vlogging" lately--nothing ready to show to the world quite yet--and I've noticed that, as often happens with cool new technology, vlogging has attracted a group of evangelistic zealots.

These are the people who think that anyone who keeps a blog should be doing it in video. Not because video is the right medium for a given person or message, but simply because video is (in their view) superior to text and audio in all ways.

There's nothing wrong with evangelistic zealotry. I've been there. I still remember when my Amiga 1000 was the best computer for anyone's needs, no matter what those needs happened to be. It was a hammer that would also work as a screwdriver, socket wrench, drill, and cutting torch. Getting to know that tool is lots of fun, no matter how deluded you appear from the vantage of being 20 years older.

All this brings me to the blogging panel at the VON conference where, apparently, Dina Kaplan made some remarks to the effect that all bloggers (or at least the popular ones) should vlog. I wasn't there, so I can't attest to her exact remarks, but it lead Brad Templeton, a certified Net.Legend if there ever was one, to write a blog entry with the just-slightly-incendiary title "Please Don't Videoblog."

Brad's basic point, and it's a good one if a little overshadowed by his choice of title, is that video is not the ideal medium for everyone or everything.

And he's right.

As the old joke goes, when you meet people in the radio business, you very quickly discover why they're not in TV.

Aside from the obvious point about some people being more photogenic than others, some material and personalities simply work better in video than in text, and vice-versa. zeFrank, for example, would not be one tenth as compelling in text as he is in video. Most of his appeal is in the over-caffeinated editing and his scraggly mug, not the words he's saying.

Other people express themselves better in writing, a medium which is more suited for well-crafted reasoning and subtle logic. Writing is also better when you want to get something out quickly. It takes me hours to craft a three-minute video, and it is rare for me to find a block of time like that; but text is done as soon as it's in the computer.

So vlogging just for the sake of vlogging doesn't make sense. Yes, video is a great medium for certain things, and it is one I enjoy exploring, but like everything else, it has its place and time.