YouTube’s do-it-yourself brigade is taking on Netflix and Disney
Legions of self-taught film-makers are coming for the television industry
When Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, wanted some publicity for Blue Origin, his rocket firm, he did not turn to a television channel or a newspaper, as he might have done a decade ago. Instead he offered Tim Dodd, who runs a YouTube channel called “The Everyday Astronaut”, an exclusive factory tour. The resulting video, in which the two men spend an hour admiring hydrogen tanks and discussing the finer points of rocket-engine turbopumps, may not strike everyone as compelling TV. It has 1.6m views nonetheless.
This article appeared in the Leaders section of the print edition under the headline “It’s time to adjust your set”
Leaders September 28th 2024
- The war is going badly. Ukraine and its allies must change course
- An Israel-Hizbullah war would be a disaster for both
- If you must raise taxes, raise VAT
- How worried should Sri Lanka be about its ex-Marxist president?
- The sinking feeling caused by Labour’s clumsy start
- YouTube’s do-it-yourself brigade is taking on Netflix and Disney
From the September 28th 2024 edition
Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents
Explore the editionMore from Leaders
How to improve clinical trials
Involving more participants can lead to new medical insights
Houthi Inc: the pirates who weaponised globalisation
Their Red Sea protection racket is a disturbing glimpse into an anarchic world
Donald Trump will upend 80 years of American foreign policy
A superpower’s approach to the world is about to be turned on its head
Rising bond yields should spur governments to go for growth
The bond sell-off may partly reflect America’s productivity boom
Much of the damage from the LA fires could have been averted
The lesson of the tragedy is that better incentives will keep people safe
Health warnings about alcohol give only half the story
Enjoyment matters as well as risk