- His desires for Quality Content
- His realisatin of the role that Quality Collaboration brought to quality content development
- His quest for Equitable Quality Content Distribution mechanism
Quality Content
Though Grierson's focus was to bring content to the homes of people as opposed to ordinary media delivery mechanism which, in his day, used theaters and public arenas, he felt a responsibility towards his viewers. A responsibility to produce quality materials that would be enlightening, informative and of educational value. Grierson used his role in media to advance the courses of positive propaganda. While he sees the TV (medium) as “an instrument of domestic ease,” he would still use the same medium to distribute content to his viewers. The difference – the quality of the content that he produces. TV should not be about entertainment only, as it was the order of his day, but one in which real life situations and realities could be brought into the homes of people. It is as if to say that while this could be an instrument of domestic ease, why dont we make the most use of it? Grierson recognised the need, the desires of viewers for quality content, information and not just entertainment, better than what they were used to. This is visible from the focus of his documentaries, everyday people – miners, soldiers, female soldiers; from the angle of his camera shots, the close ups of axe-picking, gold-digging miners; from the voices of his narrators – which spelled reality in visible and vivid terms. These were brought into the rooms of his audiences. Grierson sees art as, “not a minor but a hammer.” His reference here reminds me of affordances – the use of the right tool for the right job. It was as if to say that it is only when you have a better understanding of the tool and its process of use that you can better deliver results with its application. The quest for quality content production led Grierson to a better understanding of documentary production and its process. This same quest for quality content will take Grierson to India to understand the principles of birth control; or the life interview format which brought commentaries by everyday people, from their living rooms, out to the homes of others. Grierson's perception of quality content was the ability to use TV as an instrument of “making peace as exciting as war.” An instrument to advance the quality of life of the viewers which he ever so brilliantly targeted.
Quality Collaboration
Grierson saw collaboration, not as a limitation of his abilities but as an extension of his skills towards quality content production. Grierson did not know animation but recognized the power animation brought to quality content. He would utilize the skills of Norman McLaren to bring alive the positive values of war propaganda; or Lorne Green's baritone “voice of doom” to give weight to his narratives. Grierson explored and pushed voice, video and animation to the limits. He would be intrigued now to see how this same principles have affected film production today. The Avatar (the movie), Pixar studios, Disney are a reflection of some of the possible outcomes of quality collaborations.
Quality Distribution
The distribution of content could make or mar any production. Grierson recognizes this and ensures that his content reaches both the elite and and the people on the street. He will distribute his content, not only on TV but would utilise the train station, streets to challenge traditional forms of distribution. By doing this, Grierson cut out the middle man in the content distribution process and strove to reach the most audience. His production would be most effective if he could bring it home to more people beyond the means and ways in which content was distributed in his day. Such realization would lead to a new level of quality content distribution besides the traditional studio-home broadcast model. It was as if he challenged the distribution model of his day, to say that, though it [TV distribution] achieved the objectives of meeting certain target audiences, it fell way short of the larger audience for which such TV production would be most effective. Similar to the way peer-to-peer (p2p) distribution mechanisms have challenged today's media industry. With the advent of viral videos and open media distribution platforms such as youtube, Grierson will be pleased that content can reach anyone but will be displeased at the quality of the content that is actually being distributed. The sweet and sour forms of content distribution today may be charting new courses in ways by which content could be more pervasive and most effectively distributed. This has remained true for most ground breaking technology deployment which would commence with fanfare, chaos and completely unregulated vigor but would eventually lead to innovation. P2P has challenged distribution mechanisms but have led to innovation in terms which are common to us now such as video on demand. For that Grierson will be happy.
The right tool for the right job. A profound statement. That is even talked about in the imagery of the bible. And so goes technology applied in education. What I think is key to education though, is to try to predict the effect of the tool. Planning out is essential. What is the intended use? What are the resulting effects? You echo this, Ben, when you say Grierson was suggesting that "it is only when you have a better understanding of the tool and its process of use that you can better deliver results with its application." I agree.
ReplyDeleteYou say a lot in this post, Ben. As Gary points out, understanding the tool can lead to better results, and new ways of using that tool. This is what Grierson did, he had a vision to tailor the tool, film, to a new, innovative use. You also state: "This has remained true for most ground breaking technology deployment which would commence with fanfare, chaos and completely unregulated vigor but would eventually lead to innovation." So true, a new technology is introduced and the early adopters take it, explore it and find new uses for it. Out of this 'chaos', often comes something useful. YouTube, as you mention, has been used, misused and abused, yet there is a lot of good that has come out of it as well. Another example is Twitter, meant as a social tool for keeping tabs on what others are up to, has been adopted by many educators as a tool for sharing resources and learning.
ReplyDeleteVery thoughtful analysis Ben. For me the art as "not a mirror but a hammer" quote made me think of the importance of propaganda in war time. The short animated film that we saw by Norman McLaren entitled V for Victory was a good example of how Government used such media. With today's M2 generation anyone can deliver any message that they want. It is up to us as educators to sort the "sweet and sour forms of content" and use what's out there in a productive and efficient manner. Media that delivers a message is most important.
ReplyDeleteIn Grierson’s pursuit of quality, he truly created the unique. For that, he is a genius and a revolutionary. But, what would he think of today’s distributed networking technologies and the quality of the information propagated by its users and abusers? Let’s expand on his idea of Quality Content. With the proliferation of so much information through the various electronic mediums, how is one to differentiate between what is quality and what is not quality? Who decides? Grierson would, no doubt, have to rethink what constitutes quality content if he existed in today’s world. Or, perhaps the challenge in today’s ‘information overload’ society is to be more discerning and critical in what we accept as quality. Was this Grierson’s real desire? For that, he is a visionary. Or, maybe the entire concept of quality has lost its essence because there is, simply, just too much information to filter. Somewhat of an ‘undoing’ I would surmise.
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