It’s hard to believe that YouTube isn’t yet a decade old. The video platform has become ubiquitous in only nine years of existence. Though many of us look at YouTube as a place to watch cute kittens and twerk fails, there are valuable lessons to be gleaned from the site’s rise to Internet domination. We have watched online video evolve from a Wild West of user-generated content to a sophisticated platform for everything from corporate messaging to humanitarian movements. Not only has YouTube taught us a lot about how Internet video can work, but through our engagement with YouTube, we have learned things about ourselves. Now that every vlog, every prank, every offbeat music cover has the potential to be seen by untold number of eyes, we are adapting to a world where anyone can go viral at any time. Surely, we are just beginning to see what Internet video will turn into, but we’ve already learned so much in the short life of YouTube.
Genuinely Useful Things YouTube Has Taught Us
Surely, we are just beginning to see what Internet video will turn into, but we've already learned so much in the short life of YouTube.
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