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Remixing News Video On The Fly

Posted by timothy on from the when-the-going-gets-absurd dept.

slashdotbs writes "The New York Times writes that 'A handful of Web users are programming their own virtual TV newscasts and eclectic collections of video clips using a free media-sharing tool called Webjay. The site makes it easy to build, share and watch playlists of audio and video links culled from around the Internet.' Although the site was originally intended to be used for audio playlist creation, it turns out that it can also be used effectively for video. In addition, you can create "video mashups", where you blend audio and video together to present a new message. By using simple smil commands in a URL, a CBS news report can become a short clip of George Bush saying "I can't do my job" (the third track on this playlist)."

39 of 190 comments (clear)

  1. I don't believe the news anymore these days by Real+Troll+Talk · · Score: 5, Interesting

    How can we TRUST the big bully corporations to tell us the truth?

    After F9/11, I just don't trust anyone with $ any more.

    --

    If you liked my post,
    1. Re:I don't believe the news anymore these days by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

      After F9/11, I just don't trust anyone with $ any more.

      Do you trust Michael Moore?

    2. Re:I don't believe the news anymore these days by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful
      And by the same logic, if anybody can 'fabricate' a news program, why would you necessarily believe a small local shop?

      At least the big news companies can be sued for libel/slander if caught outright lying. Small indy shops can get away with fabricating things outright.

      Note I mean lying, not just major bias, like foxnews.

    3. Re:I don't believe the news anymore these days by Holi · · Score: 5, Insightful

      No, I agree with the parent. No one in a position of power tells the entire truth. They use the facts that support their position and ignore the rest.

      --
      Sorry, teleporters just kill you and then make a copy. A perfect, soul-less copy.
    4. Re:I don't believe the news anymore these days by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

      *laugh* Michael Moore has benefited monetarily a huge amount, not only with the profits from this film, but for his future works as well.

      Not to mention the amount of money the film generated for any anti-Bush group as well as those voting *because of* the film, as they will be voting that which benefits them the most--a good part of that equation will include money.

      Fact of the matter is, the US is a rich country and a lot of people have money, even people you do not suspect. Pointedly selecting a few idiots and then making a sweeping comment that all with money are untrustworthy is as idiotic as saying all black men will mug you if they have the chance. If there are viable alternatives, the US *people* will likly find them; maybe not as fast as you like, but we tend to right the ship. Frankly, if people will money wanted power, they wouldn't be still in the US.

      Learn to judge your own prejudices.

    5. Re:I don't believe the news anymore these days by demachina · · Score: 2, Insightful

      "What ever happened to the good old tech talk? I want the old Slashdot back, Liberal free"

      I imagine you can thank people like George W., Rush and Bill O'Reilly for this. They've done something truly amazing. They took a nation that hasn't really cared about politics in 30 years and ignited passion about it in nearly every dusty corner including the geek denizens of Slashdot. Any place there is the remotest angle for political sparring people are taking it, lighting incendiary devices and running with them.

      If George W. had lived up to his campaign rhetoric as a "Uniter, not a divider" and a "Compassionate Conservative" America's new right wing, if they'd played it cool, could have led a sleep walking America in to an eternity dominated by their twisted new conservativism, underpinned by the intolerance of America's ultra religious right. George, Rush and Bill were crafty successful in initially igniting the passions of only the new conservative extremists. If they'd managed to keep it that way the would have won a lasting victory with their little brown shirted army. But no they went just a little to far and one day the rest of the world woke up and realized what was happening.

      George W. did his nation a great service. He woke up every radical leftist, weak kneed liberal, indifferent independent and true conservative in to forming an increasingly unified front who are waiting with unprecedented anxiety to seem if he will go down in flames in November. It warms my heart to see true conservatives hating him as much as liberals, thanks to the damage he's done to the reputation of conservatism, remember when it used to be about balanced budgets, no foreign adventuring, small government and civil liberties?

      So today you have people more energized against an American President than even Richard Nixon. The end result, even here on Slashdot you can't escape massive outbreaks of vicious, polarized mud slinging.

      Some may bemoan it as you just did, others like me think its fascinating and not something anyone would have imagined possible after seeing America head down a road of political indifference for 30 years as they were mesmerized by the tube.

      The Democrats could have made November a slam dunk against Little George but no, just to make it a nail biting cliff hanger all the way through they nominated a candidate so bad no one wants to vote for him even when he's up against the most dangerous president the U.S. has probably had in its history. Throw in electronic voting machines, terrorist threats (real, imagined and fabricated), the Patriot act, and Jeb Bush aiming for a sequel in Florida and you have a political spectacle better than any novelist could have imagined.

      --
      @de_machina
    6. Re:I don't believe the news anymore these days by ticklemeozmo · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Until lions have their own historians tales of the hunt will always glorify the hunter.

      --
      When modding "Informative", please make sure it both has a source and IS actually informative.
    7. Re:I don't believe the news anymore these days by Holi · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Exactly, He twists the truth to his own needs as much as the next man, but at least he admits to it.

      --
      Sorry, teleporters just kill you and then make a copy. A perfect, soul-less copy.
  2. Already Common in Music by dancingmad · · Score: 4, Interesting

    This has already been done a lot in music. A lot of /.'ers might remember the DJ Dangermouse "Grey Album", which mashed Jay-Z's Black Album with The Beatles White Album.

    I remember getting the impression that after the press the Grey Album got mashups would become more popular in the music biz or either they are harder to make than it seems (Dangermouse is a talented guy - check out his Ghetto Pop Life CD for proof) or people are scared of getting sued.

    What's the legality of A/V mashups? Could people get in the same hot water Dangermouse did?

    --
    "There is no time, sir, at which ties do not matter," Jeeves, (Jeeves and the Impending Doom)
  3. Playlist by stevemm81 · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I don't know how indicative that playlist is of the kinds of things produced in general, but I can't say it left me feeling overly impressed. A 5 second clip of Bush saying "I Can't Do My Job" doesn't seem very revolutionary...

    1. Re:Playlist by Takara · · Score: 2, Funny

      A 5 second clip of Bush saying "I Can't Do My Job" doesn't seem very revolutionary... It was actually 1.5 seconds worth of bush. Enough for anyone surely.

    2. Re:Playlist by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny

      Repeat the steps after me!

      1. Make fun of President
      2. ???
      3. Profit!!!!

    3. Re:Playlist by DruidBob · · Score: 3, Funny

      The revolutionary thing about it is this time he didn't actaully say it.

    4. Re:Playlist by Saeed+al-Sahaf · · Score: 4, Insightful
      A 5 second clip of Bush saying "I Can't Do My Job" doesn't seem very revolutionary... It was actually 1.5 seconds worth of bush.

      What's funny is the /. editors essentially ASK for posts like this by posting a story that says "By using simple smil commands in a URL, a CBS news report can become a short clip of George Bush saying "I can't do my job" (the third track on this playlist)".

      Then they mod everyone who points out the (obvious) funny "flamebait". More or less a trap that allows The Mods to feel superior.

      --
      "Who are in control, they are not in control of anything - they don't even control themselves!" - Glen Beck
  4. Better watch out by nfras · · Score: 4, Interesting

    The article says that Gonze thinks his site is legal because it transmits urls rather than files. A news feed is copyright, audio and visual and altering a copyrighted work is grounds for legal action (and TV companies tend to be litigious). IANAL but this seems like very shaky ground.

    --
    You call me a pedant? I prefer the term "correct"
  5. Comment removed by account_deleted · · Score: 4, Funny

    Comment removed based on user account deletion

  6. Buffering issue by toetagger1 · · Score: 3, Informative

    I'm trying to watch some of those video playlists. Unfortunately, there is always this buffer time between videos. It would be a lot more enjoyable if it started buffering the next video while it showes the current one. Also, every time the clip changes, the player popos into the forgound, which is also annoying. Nontheless, a very neat way to epxress some ideas!

    --
    who | grep -i blond | date cd ~; unzip; touch; strip; finger; mount; gasp; yes; uptime; umount; sleep
  7. cnn/realone won't me happy by tisme · · Score: 4, Insightful

    I think I can smell a new DRM version from Real coming out. The last time people started ripping "protected" content (the cnn footage is supposed to be subscription only) Real started suing and came out with new software. With Microsoft's Digital Rights Management quickly becoming popular amongst content publishers, I have a feeling Real corporate will want some heads to roll if this gets out of control.

    1. Re:cnn/realone won't me happy by LostCluster · · Score: 2, Informative

      CNN footage is protected, however CBS News video clips are in non-subscription streams that are left available for many months after being posted.

      One just has to post the meta-info referancing the clips without ripping them, and any user can have their computer recreate the actual content by downloading the same blocks out of the still-available streams. No need to actually rip anything...

  8. RTFA by SuperBanana · · Score: 4, Informative
    This has already been done a lot in music. A lot of /.'ers might remember the DJ Dangermouse "Grey Album", which mashed Jay-Z's Black Album with The Beatles White Album.

    RTFA. The site doesn't have the clips, it has metainfo files which contain references to audio and video segments.

    If Dangermouse had simply provided a script for an audio mixing program, he wouldn't have gotten in the least bit of trouble. Furthermore, Dangermouse's Grey album became the online equivalent of a best-seller, skyrocketing in popularity when people found out the music companies were dead against it and trying to remove it.

    --
    Please help metamoderate.
    1. Re:RTFA by billcopc · · Score: 2, Insightful

      The music companies were against it because it was a clandestine hit that didn't need the "Record Industry" to flourish. I'm no fan of rap "music", but there is something tangibly sexy about the Grey Album's fusion of sound and speech, something that is sadly missing from modern music because the latter is made with a cookie-cutter approach: "Hire an icon, make him look 'street', steal 20-year-old loop, add boobies and ADVERTISE!". The Grey Album, on the other hand, was produced by someone who knows and appreciates music very intimately.

      I'm a music freak too, and I find myself questioning the producer's work on recent pop singles. Today's music sounds like they didn't give a fark about the released product. It's unfinished, unpolished, but it sells like hotcakes thanks to the media and these ever-more-retarded teens.

      --
      -Billco, Fnarg.com
  9. Rating of the message clip... by Maljin+Jolt · · Score: 5, Funny

    George Bush saying "I can't do my job"

    +-0 Redundant

    --
    There you are, staring at me again.
  10. mod parent down to hell by Bold+Marauder · · Score: 3, Informative

    apparently google news no longer provides courtesy links.

    Off to -1 land for me again. :(

  11. Been done before by LeahofRivendell · · Score: 5, Informative

    By using simple smil commands in a URL, a CBS news report can become a short clip of George Bush saying "I can't do my job" (the third track on this playlist)
    There's a funnier version of this at http://www.ebaumsworld.com/presaddress2.shtml
    Unfair editing is a concept as old as speaking.

    --
    I are winner
  12. Call "The Onions" lawyers... by ranger5 · · Score: 4, Interesting

    How long until some small news agency in some small country reports one of these as an actual video clip or news snippet? I guess it could even be just a down on his luck, non-scoop having newspaper writer who doesn't do his research...

  13. Finally, Douglas Engelbart's vision by michaelmalak · · Score: 4, Informative
    Douglas Engelbart, who prototyped the web hardware (including mouse) in 1966, started bootstrap.org in 1988 to pursue his vision of deep contextual hyperlinks:
    The [Open Hyperdocument System]'s initial design specifications are a result of 50 years of innovation and experimentation by Doug Engelbart and his team of researchers among a variety of user communities, including aerospace and software development. These requirements include fine-grained addressability of all types of documents and support for multiple ways of viewing and manipulating them. Some of these features have found their way into existing tools, such as the World Wide Web, while others are currently being explored. The purpose of the OHS is to serve as a standard framework for these features, so that different applications may interoperate with the DKR and with each other.
    As with the mouse, it seems someone else is going to popularize fine-grained hyperlinks.
  14. what happens in a world where... by brandannnnnn · · Score: 3, Funny

    politicians may unknowingly tell the truth?!

  15. Can we rate articles? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    By using simple smil commands in a URL, a CBS news report can become a short clip of George Bush saying "I can't do my job"

    I'd like to rate this one -1, Flamebait.

    1. Re:Can we rate articles? by Karma+Star · · Score: 2, Interesting

      And I'd like to mod you -1, Flamebait, but I don't because some of us believe in freedom of expression sans the persecution. *Sorry* if the author of the clip has a different opinion of GW than you...

      --
      Me email iz skyewalkerluke at microsoft's free email service.
  16. Future Pirate Broadcasts: Terrorism? by TheTXLibra · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Well, you can pirate broadcast frequencies over radio stations with IPods, you can now easily mash video streams together, remixing audio is already old-hat. Voice modulation software is now becoming available on the net. Give it another five-to-ten years, there will be an easy way to pirate broadcast into TV networks.

    Imagine the havoc one could create by doing a real professional looking and sounding Audio-Video mix to, say the 5 O'Clock News in your local area, then pirate the station it broadcasts on right at the time the program normally begins. So what happens if they decide it would be a real funny joke to have a video-hack of the President announcing nuclear war, followed by the newscastors reacting in turn? What kind of damage from panic would result? Something tells me this isn't too far off, and frankly, I'm a bit concerned.

    --
    -The Libra
    "Please be patient--The future will begin momentarily."
  17. Audio Snip Remixing: Limbaugh being an example. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Posted anonymously to avoid karma whoring.

    The clip of video over near-single-frame video was pretty underwhelming... there's another form of remixing that has been done, and done well, before.

    Some of the folks over at the pop radio station in Atlanta managed to reassamble clips of words and phonetically created phrases of Rush Limbaugh singing "I'm a Nazi". It's pretty damn funny and well done.

    I only have a 64k mp3 of the song. Anyone actually have a higher quality copy of the track? Many 128k or 112k versions I've found online don't sound any better at all.

    http://66.113.208.149/misc/rushnazi.mp3

    The lyrics for those who don't want to download the mp3. (Keep in mind that every word Rush "sings" really is his voice.)

    (Lameness filter screwed up the formatting. Sorry.)

    Announcer: Ladies and gentleman... Rush Limbaugh!

    They say that I'm sleaze, An elitist, if you please
    Everybody disagrees with my rap (with his rap)
    I'm horrendous, I'm appalling, My ratings now are falling
    'Cause I'm so full of bull, so full of crap (full of crap)
    With condescending cries, Making money selling lies,
    You might say everybody hates my guts (hates his guts)
    I'm offensive, I'm a bigot, I'm a fraud - Can you dig it?
    I'm a sexist, racist, homophobic, fat, pathetic putz

    I'm a nazi (he's a nazi), That's right, I really am,
    'Cause I'm a nazi (he's a nazi), That's right, you're being scammed
    I'm a nazi (he's a nazi). I don't care about the middle class
    'Cause I'm a fat conservative butthead, With the face of a horse's ass
    (He's a fat conservative butthead) Hey!, (With the face of a horse's ass)

    I have a sub-human figure, a huge rear end, My brain? That's another story (it's quite another story)
    I have a face the size of a wash tub, And my ass is as big as Missouri - Yes!
    (This bastard is sick, he's a fat, pompous pig, and his ass is as big as Missouri) Yessiree, Bob!

    Manipulating statements, exaggerate the truth, I can't believe the hate my show inspires (the hate his show inspires)
    It's not just because I'm stupid (oh no), It's not just because I'm scum (uh huh)
    It's just because Republicans are liars (those dirty, filthy liars)
    I am heartless, I am vain, insensitive, insane, They say that I'm a national disgrace (disgrace)
    I am nasty (yes!), insulting (no!), basically revolting (uh huh), I'm a concentrated pile of human waste (he's human waste)

    I'm a nazi (he's a nazi), (Sieg heil!) I really am
    'Cause I'm a nazi (he's a nazi), That's right, you're being scammed
    I'm a nazi (he's a nazi), I don't care about the middle class
    'Cause I'm a sick Republican sleaze ball, With the face of a horse's ass
    (He's a sick Republican sleaze ball) Ho!, (With the face of a horse's ass)

    They say that this is not about my vanity, They doubt my sanity
    They think I'm nuts (so nuts), I am a cyst on the ass of humanity (eww!)
    New Republican slogan: "Read My Putz", (read his putz)
    From the bowels of Adolf Hitler, Comes the voice of Rush Limbaugh, heh heh

    In closing, let me say: that each and every day
    I'm an evil, rotten, egotistical snob (evil, rotten)
    I'm the cop of the cop of Joe McCarthy-like gestapo
    The right wing, foam-at-the-mouth, jackbooted slob
    The Democratic-trashing, years of liberal bashing
    With the equivalent compassion of a grommet (a grommet)
    With the I.Q. of a fig; I'm a fat, obnoxious pig
    And the truth of the matter is... I'm vomit (he's vomit)

    'Cause I'm a nazi (he's a nazi)
    (Sieg heil!) I really am
    'Cause I'm a nazi (he's a nazi)
    (Sieg heil!) You're being scammed
    I'm a nazi (he's a nazi)
    I don't care about the middle class
    'Cause I'm a fear mongering scum bag
    With the face of a horse's ass
    (He's a fat conservative butthead) Hey!
    (Sick Republican sleaze ball) Ha ha!
    (Fear mongering scum bag) Ho!
    (Egotistical ass wipe) Yes!
    (Mean-spirited, hog wallowing, fat, conservative putz)
    (With the face... of a horse's ass)

    Mega-dildos, Rush!

  18. I don't believe the news anymore these days by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

    I don't believe slashdot anymore, especially with a cheapshot being thrown in every chance possible, or liberal bias flowing out of the ears. What ever happened to the good old tech talk? I want the old Slashdot back, Liberal free

  19. Re:RTSP? new to me by dosius · · Score: 2, Informative

    MPlayer groks rtsp, for you Linux geeks out there...

    Moll.

    --
    What you hear in the ear, preach from the rooftop Matthew 10.27b
  20. Old News - Babylon 5 "Illusion of Truth" by rm3friskerFTN · · Score: 4, Interesting
    By using simple smil commands in a URL, a CBS news report can become a short clip of George Bush saying "I can't do my job"
    The concept of "selective editing" (a la Mike Moore ;-) was demonstrated very well in the Babylon 5 episode "Illusion of Truth".

    The B5 ISN news reporter Dan Randall edited the footage in an unethically truthful way just like Mike Moore

    From "Illusion of Truth" plot summary (spoiler warning)

    From a second "Illusion of Truth" plot summary (spoiler warning)

    From a third "Illusion of Truth" plot summary (spoiler warning)

    And finally a fourth "Illusion of Truth" plot summary (minor spoiler warning)

    BTW, this Babylon 5 espisode is available on DVD
    --

    I believe Juanita

  21. a better example of news remixing by lucas_gonze · · Score: 4, Informative

    Speaking as the author of webjay here:

    On a technical level, what's original is that the remixing all happens on the client side. It's a *client side remix*, which is a new thing.

    Check out this playlist for a fancier set of techniques, including clipping, multiple audio and video sources at the same time, and a good playlist in general. When you watch that the thing to realize is that the soundtrack is coming from one place, the picture from another, the video from another, and all of that is getting mashed together on *your* machine.

  22. you can sue, but you won't win by iriles · · Score: 3, Interesting

    At least the big news companies can be sued for libel/slander if caught outright lying.

    Technically you wouldn't be able to sue over libel/slander unless they "fabricated" a news story about you. But regardless you're going to have a really hard time beating any major corporation in a law suit.

    These two reporters (http://www.foxbghsuit.com ) tried to sue Fox News over a falsified news story. They had a good case too, but Fox won in the end. How? The appeals court decided that "lying" in a news story, technically isn't against the law.

  23. Has he ? by AftanGustur · · Score: 2, Informative


    Exactly, He twists the truth to his own needs as much as the next man, but at least he admits to it.

    "Twists the truth" ??

    That's a new one. Moore has been accused of selectively presenting the truth, but nobody has accused him of actually twisting or distorting it.

    He can easily be accused of manufacturing "propaganda". But if you know of any truths he has been mishandling then please speak up.

    "Fahrenheit 9/11" wasn't a revelation to me, I had seen it most before (with the exception of what the Afghan Prime Minister used to work with before) but I only wish I had seen this in the mainstream media instead.

    --
    echo '[q]sa[ln0=aln80~Psnlbx]16isb572CCB9AE9DB03273snlbxq' |dc
  24. good use by XO · · Score: 2, Funny

    One thing this is excellent for is testing your media players and plugins and such for Linux. I spent about 4 hours playing with my settings in Opera and Mplayer/Xine/Realplayer after hanging out on this site..

    of course, I still can't get more than 50% or so of the media to play without the associated program crashing and burning on it, but that's sort of what I expected from the crappy state of Linux media players...

    --
    "Champagne for my real friends - and real pain for my sham friends!" http://ericblade.postalboard.com/
  25. Re:Already Common in Music (See Negativland) by jackrd · · Score: 2, Informative

    What's the legality of A/V mashups? Could people get in the same hot water Dangermouse did?

    Yes. Negativland is a great example of this. They had a run-in with the RIAA over not clearing some samples in their 1998 release "OVER THE EDGE Volume 3 - The Weatherman's Dumb Stupid Come-Out Line". They only do mash-ups/collage as far as I know. They've also recently released (on BT as well as others) "The Mashin' of the Christ" which I don't think they've gotten in trouble for yet. They're a really cool band and do lots of activism with IP issues. Not only are they absolutely hilarious, they're really informative as well.