Little Richardjohn: August 2006

As many are beginning to appreciate, the age of 'Push' broadcasting is fading fast. We are no longer passive consumers, hypnotised by the miracle of moving pictures on a screen. We no longer look behind the TV to see who's there. We want to produce as well as consume.
Hence the latest digital success story. Geriatric1927. A seventy something online phenomenon. In his first week 'on air', his account at YouTube has generated hundreds of thousands of hits in its first week. Enough on a standalone blog to generate thousands of pounds of income.
But more importantly, he represents the point where the technology of broadcasting becomes available to practically everyone. The implications are obvious.
Not only are people of his generation offered an entirely new role in society, but anyone or any organisation can distribute and promote itself or its productions anywhere in the world. The role of the commissioning editor will be radically altered, and scheduling will be a thing of the past. Our days of being mere consumers, tethered to rigid schedules and the vagiaries of the production industry, will largely disappear.
The implications both for society and mainstream broadcasters are stupendous. It is at least as significant as the transition from Steam travel to the internal combustion engine. It is "The fastest generation of technological change since fire." as Alan McCulloch of Saatchi & Saatchi once described it. Richard Eyre called it a 'communicopia'. And now it's here. Everyone is a TV channel now.