I wanted to start doing a weekly Web show, so I put out a call for a co-host in Cleveland and got Jeremy Borger to show up. Below is the live on tape (recording) of the show we did earlier today. We talk about Twitter, and the Superbowl trends and other geeky related things on the Internets.

The reason I’m showing you this is to inspire you. It’s literally this easy to do. No script, no fancy lights, no fancy equipment. I took my Mac laptop and put it on a stool. Started Ustream.tv, clicked “start broadcast” and that’s it. Live to the Internet, and it records too.

You can be doing this. You SHOULD be doing this. Do something, anything! If you know a lot about Tikis, well, then get your tiki collection out and talk about them on camera. Then put that video recording on your tiki blog, and then send a message out to your Twitter friends you have a new video about antique tikis. Then announce it on Facebook, etc…

I could go on and on. The point is. If you don’t try it… your competitor will. Just try it. When you do, send me your video so I can check it out.

I use Tubemogul to upload videos all of the web. My friend Steve coined this term on our online video podcast as promiscuous posting. Pretty clever, eh?

So is this spam? Does Google consider this spam? And should you continue to do this? Should I? What’s the long and short term strategy for me and you? I talk about it in this video. I’m very interesting in your opinions and thoughts.

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In part one of my self-imposed goal to learn how to play the ukulele, I showed you how clueless I was, and how out of tune I was. In today’s video, I show you how I figured out how to tune it, and how I learned a few chords.

This is a fun little instrument and I cannot wait to get better and begin writing some songs that I can perform on camera. Give me some time though. Have you ever tried to learn how to play an instrument from scratch? It’s hard. Any tips… send them over!

In this world, you have to give to get back. So when I started getting about 10 emails a day asking me how I make my web videos, I had two options.

1. Create a guide about how I do it and sell it for profit. Or…
2. Create a guide about how I do it and just give the darn thing away, for free.

I choose the free route. Introducing, OnlineVideoToolkit.com. A free video guide that shows you everything I know about making web videos using inexpensive equipment. I produced about 10 videos showing you all my secrets about lighting, set design, cameras to buy, clothing tips, sound, etc… It’s all there, with more to come.

I even have a contest for the launch. Want to win my Flip camera? Watch the video below. Note: The dates have been extended on this video, you have plenty of time to enter, don’t worry about it.

I hope you enjoy it!

In part one of this series, we got five amazing tips on how to promote your videos from video expert Jake Ludington of JakeLudington.com. Part two, below, is the final five tips to promoting your videos on YouTube and beyond.

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Jake Ludington helps over 500,000 people answer their video and audio questions every month. From detailed tutorials on complicated video editing scenarios to finding useful tools for isolated problems, Jake provides ongoing research on the best methods for making Internet delivered video.

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This is a neat story. The Flip video camera, you know, the one I keep pimping out which you can buy at BuytheFlip.com.

They’re going to donate cameras to charity. One million of them to be exact.

Pure Digital Technologies Launches Five Year, One Million Flip Video Camcorder Giveaway To Benefit Non-Profit Organizations Worldwide

Hat tip to NewTeeVee.com.

Perhaps the best summary of the entire Loren Feldman vs. Podtech and angry mob following him to Blip.tv is in blockquote below, from a comment in the Blip.tv blog.

Loren is a racist in the same as Colbert is a right-wing, fundamentalist-christian, Bush suporter.

My take? He tried to do satirical comedy and it worked for 50% got it, and the other 50% didn’t. Such is comedy.

FYI, we’ll be talking about this on the Video Ninjas online video radio show today at 4pm est on WebmasterRadio.fm. Tune in to hear Steve and my take on the topic.

Bottom line? He’s an entertainer trying to get attention. And it’s working. Go ahead, keep trying to kick him off the Internets, it’s giving him more attention.

FYI, here is the original video in question that caused the big uproar. And below, that, Loren’s response to people wanting to kick him off the Internet.

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YouTube is once again helping change the face of politics as we know it. Thank God!

In this piece at the NYTimes…

The presidential debates are about to enter the world of YouTube, the anything-goes home-video-sharing Web site that puts the power in the hands of the camera holder. YouTube, which is owned by Google, and CNN are co-sponsoring a debate among the eight Democratic presidential candidates on July 23 in South Carolina, an event that could define the next phase of what has already been called the YouTube election, a visual realm beyond Web sites and blogs.

The candidates are to assemble on a stage in Charleston, S.C., at the Citadel (yes, the Citadel, the military school criticized by some Democrats a decade ago before it began admitting women). The questions will come via video submitted by ordinary people through YouTube. Moderating between the viewer and the candidates will be Anderson Cooper, the CNN anchor.

The video format opens the door for originality and spontaneity — elements usually foreign to the controlled environment of presidential image-making. Because visual images can be more powerful than words, the videos have the potential to elicit emotional responses from the candidates and frame the election in new ways.

Right on. Change in this system is not just good, it’s GREAT.

“It’s one of the biggest innovations we’ve seen in politics,” said Mike Gehrke, director of research for the Democratic National Committee, which has sanctioned the YouTube/CNN event as the first of six official Democratic debates this year (which means the party has coordinated them).

User-generated video, he said, is changing the balance in campaigns. “It used to be a one-way street,” he said. “It would cost a lot of money for a campaign to put together a good TV ad, then you had to buy time, put it on the air and later on Web sites. Now it goes the other way too, and you have people talking to each other and to the campaigns.”

Another GREAT sign. The balance is shifting back to the people in control of the information. I’m really looking forward to politics in the USA in the future.

I’m not so sure the old-school politicians are though.

Oh yeah, here’s the best part about all of this.

The footage will be available on the Web for anyone to mash up and create new videos.

Think about that? Users, regular people, will be able to take this footage and do with it what they want. Mashing up new videos and ideas and memes, etc… Powerful.

Personally, I’m afraid that this will backfire and a politician will get burned and then they’ll all refuse to participate in this type of thing. But we’ll see.