YouTube Le Mars: Broadcast Yourself

YouTube, the Internet video posting website, enables Le Mars area residents to share clips with family and friends who live in different states and even countries as is the case with Dan Smith of Merrill who posted a clip of a former LCHS exchange student so she could watch her performance in Germany where she currently lives. [Click to enlarge]

More than 660 people have watched a video clip from Kristi Hartford's wedding reception in Le Mars, and she doesn't even know who they are.

Reality television has spawned a new trend on the Web as everyday people, some seeking their five minutes of fame, have latched onto the online video posting website YouTube. YouTube allows registered users, from average joes to amateur video producers to professionals, to post video clips of basically anything for the masses to see.

Le Mars also boasts a small presence on YouTube: clips of wedding receptions, garage bands, motocross, vocal performances, and even everyday video clips captured while kids play video games. So what motivates these everyday people to post their lives on the Web for everyone to see?

For some it's the publicity factor, others just want to share memories. Still others, like Kristi Hartford, don't even know their lives are being broadcast on YouTube.

Kristi, the daughter of Tom and Donna Rohe of Le Mars, married Ryan Hartford in Le Mars in October 2005. The couple then danced the night away at their wedding reception held in the upper level of the Le Mars Convention Center while Ryan's cousin filmed the reception festivities. Ryan's cousin then posted multiple clips from the Hartford's wedding reception on YouTube a few months ago...only the bride and groom seem to be the last to know.

"I didn't even know the videos were there," said Kristi, who searched for the clips after her mom informed her that the newspaper had asked about them, "I had no clue! My husband's cousin put (the reception clips) up there."

The most viewed clip, a video of guests dancing to 'Fishing in the Dark' by The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, has been played more than 660 times since Ryan's cousin posted it on YouTube September 29, 2006.

So how does Kristi feel about having her wedding reception broadcast to the world via YouTube without her knowledge? She's not harboring any resentment.

"It was kind of nice to look back on the wedding reception and remember everything that happened there," said Kristi.

And the cousin doesn't seem to be slowing down when it comes to posting content on YouTube.

"The same cousin already posted things from my husband's brother's wedding which was just two weeks ago," laughed Kristi.

When asked why her cousin-in-law has such a penchant for posting clips on YouTube, Kristi simply replied, "I think he just enjoys doing that kind of thing," a comment that resonates clearly with Dan Smith.

Dan began posting content as a means of sharing a video clip with a former LCHS exchange student, Tsega Tebege, who lived with the Smith family. In 2000, Tsega sang the song 'Get on Board' with the Le Mars high school choir. Since Tsega is now studying performance arts in Germany, Dan wanted to use YouTube as a means for sharing the footage of her high school performance with her, even though she's an ocean away.

"The Internet is really the easiest way to share pictures, video and other things," said Dan, "and on YouTube you can download up to ten minutes of video so I figured, 'what the heck.'"

After seeing her performance on YouTube, Tsega sent Dan an e-mail with her reaction.

"She was a little disappointed in how her singing sounded and how shy she was," laughs Dan who thinks her performance was certainly above par for a high school student.

But when Dan asked if she wanted him to take it off YouTube, Tsega gave Dan permission to leave it there.

Since Dan launched the video on May 5, 2007, Tsega's clip has been viewed more than 130 times.

"There have been a lot of hits," commented Dan. "A surprising number of people have looked at it."

"I had a conversation with a student from Le Mars who was trying to figure out when (the video) was taken, which was in 2000," said Dan. "(The student) was a fourth grader at the time so he didn't remember Tsega, but the clip provided a chance to talk."

YouTube truly has become a place for people to engage in new ways through video by sharing, commenting on, and viewing videos.

The student Dan 'conversed' with by using written comments on YouTube was Ethan Price, who has also posted his own little collection of video snippets on YouTube. Ethan's clips, which appear grainy and slightly delayed as if they were taken using a web cam, feature the LCHS junior singing songs from popular Broadway musicals as well as making some prank phone calls to his friends.

Since posting the clip of Tsega, Dan has also added a few more clips that he wanted his friends and family to be able to see including one of some kittens playing on his porch and a clip of some kids he spends time with playing video games.

"I posted the kittens for my niece and nephew to see, and I was just taping a couple of kids I goof around with while they played Wii because it's so hilarious to watch them play video games," said Dan.

"While I was taping, one of the boys just happened to hit the other with the controller while they were playing tennis."

The blooper moment Dan caught on film has also been fodder for conversation between Dan's son Pete, who is a youth leader, and a boy that he works with who enjoys watching footage on YouTube.

"Pete told me the kid liked the clip of the boys playing video games, but he didn't like Tsega's singing because he's more into screaming," comments Dan. "But, he did like the kittens," a admission that surprised Dan, who enjoys not only posting videos but also viewing hard-to-find content on YouTube occasionally.

"I go on there maybe once every ten days," said Dan. "It's not a huge thing for me."

But when he does visit the site, Dan searches for Monte Python clips and music videos from Christian groups like Mute Math who haven't produced many music videos.

Dan acknowledges that many people are still apprehensive about visiting YouTube because they worry about the content they may find.

"I think it's well founded," says Dan. "You can find bad things on the Internet, especially if you're looking for it."

To the fearful YouTube viewers Dan offers this advice, "Yes, it's not all fun, but you just have be careful and stick with what you intended to watch."

According to information listed on the site, YouTube's user base ranges in age from 18 to 55 and spans all geographies, so finding something to watch isn't a challenge. YouTube truly does offer something for everyone. Maybe you'll be the next Le Mars' resident to 'broadcast yourself,' and even if you don't want to be a star on YouTube, you may just find your neighbor or friend popping up on the Web.