Current TV

After reading the Bruns  article* I became curious about Current TV. I had heard about it over the years, having voted for Gore and loved a lot of his work it is funny I never was curious about his attempts at transforming media. I wondered how it was an interactive exercise in democracratic new and not just another cable news network. I also wondered why it failed, as I heard it was sold to Al Jazeera.

I read about it on wikipedia and it was interesting to see the facts of where it started and eventually ended. I never watched it so tried to find info about what made it interactive. Apparently the audience was invited to create short video segments that were used in broadcasts along with professional produced pieces.

Interesting concept. This could allow a way to have produsage materials vetted by professional journalists, with ethical guidelines and fact checking. I can see how viewers in the current news environment, would want something less commercial. I can also see the need for a non-biased news source in our country. I am not sure if this is 100% possible, and I think PBS and NPR are about as close as we get. But I do see how this concept could be interesting and add another dimension to world events.

I have a few Turkish friends who have been tweeting and facebooking the events they are seeing outside their doors this June. It was VERY different from what CNN and the evening news was reporting. Rogue journalism definitely has its merits and place in the evolving news world.

Wonder if someone else will take the Current TV attempt and improve it to be successful in the long term?



*Axel Bruns. "Towards Produsage: Futures for User-Led Content Production." In Proceedings: Cultural Attitudes towards Communication and Technology 2006, eds. Fay Sudweeks, Herbert Hrachovec, and Charles Ess. Perth: Murdoch University, 2006. 275-84.