Y2K, CONVERGENCE, NEW millennium, dot com, e-commerce, portal, broadband… Have I uttered enough buzzwords to grab your attention? Of course all of these terms, as well as the countless new ones that are coined every day, represent the changes to our personal and business lives as a result of new technological advancements. The question is, what exactly are these changes? How will advertising, filmed entertainment, music programming and information reporting be affected and/or altered by tomorrow’s technologies?
I certainly don’t profess to know the specific answers to that question, but I will say there is a readiness factor that I believe is required of all individuals and companies.
That factor is to know what you do and how to best do it.
I have had the benefit for most of my career to work for diverse production companies, companies designed to create material for several different media. My point of view has always spanned the different disciplines of film and video production. Change was something we instigated rather than something for which we waited. As a necessity of self-preservation, we had to know what we did and how to do it best in order not to be spread too thin or stray off on a tangent that tapped the resources of the company beyond its means (or current business plan). It is always interesting to ask people what their company does. Short, concise answers usually reflect a core understanding of their business. Well, lots of buzzwords are just that…
I think some of the new technologies that are becoming part of our industry (film, advertising, and music) promise great opportunity for creators of filmed content. New distribution methods will unlock the binds of financial viability to allow a vast array of specialized programming to be made available, if only to an interested few. That’s where the advertisers’ ears perk up. They always want to speak to the interested few.
Gun Control
In the past, the only way to do this was through extended "reach," shotgun style, relying on the quality of the message to blanket a large group in hopes that it will filter down to the interested few. But that put pressures on creative content. The message had to be suitable for mass consumption. This oftentimes led to compromises that defeated the effectiveness and therefore the purpose of the advertisement in the first place. When results didn’t materialize from a commercial, the plan of action was to up the caliber of the shotgun shell. Make it prettier, faster, sexier, funnier.
"Great spot, what was it that they were advertising?"
What were we trying to do, and why did we stray from what we do best? Maybe the medium is not the message after all.
Creators of filmed content and managers of production are the essence of every new entertainment technology/distribution medium. Audiences soon grow weary of the flash of the new. Just as we no longer gather to watch films run backwards or marvel at a test pattern on a television screen, we will also grow weary of pointing and clicking for entertainment. After all, the "interactive" world of today is not truly interactive. It’s inter-reactive. Programmed. Finite. Ideas, emotions, inspirations, are interactive experiences. Infinite. The stuff of narrative storytelling.
I am most excited about what lies ahead for technology because I believe it represents a new opportunity for makers of creative media to express themselves, and for managers of production to support that process. Specifically regarding advertising in this new technological environment, it’s funny how cyclical life can be, as we re-experience marketing becoming programming and programming becoming marketing. And all of it becoming entertainment.
So now here I am, Y2K-ready… I know what I do and, maybe not how to do it the best, but certainly how to do it the best way I know how!
Microsoft Report Says Efforts By Russia, Iran and China To Sway U.S. Voters May Escalate
Foreign adversaries have shown continued determination to influence the U.S. election –- and there are signs their activity will intensify as Election Day nears, Microsoft said in a report Wednesday.
Russian operatives are doubling down on fake videos to smear Vice President Kamala Harris' campaign, while Chinese-linked social media campaigns are maligning down-ballot Republicans who are critical of China, the company's threat intelligence arm said Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Iranian actors who allegedly sent emails aimed at intimidating U.S. voters in 2020 have been surveying election-related websites and major media outlets, raising concerns they could be preparing for another scheme this year, the tech giant said.
The report serves as a warning – building on others from U.S. intelligence officials – that as the nation enters this critical final stretch and begins counting ballots, the worst influence efforts may be yet to come. U.S. officials say they remain confident that election infrastructure is secure enough to withstand any attacks from American adversaries. Still, in a tight election, foreign efforts to influence voters are raising concern.
Microsoft noted that some of the disinformation campaigns it tracks received little authentic engagement from U.S. audiences, but others have been amplified by unwitting Americans, exposing thousands to foreign propaganda in the final weeks of voting.
Russia, China and Iran have all rejected claims that they are seeking to meddle with the U.S. election.
"The presidential elections are the United States' domestic affairs. China has no intention and will not interfere in the US election," the Chinese Embassy said in a statement.
"Having already unequivocally and... Read More