As we move into the brave new world of digital media, someone is going to have to come up with new jargon. For example, MediaScrum will be at NAB next week - that is, the show sponsored by the National Association of Broadcasters. Who are the members, you ask, of the NAB: why, radio and television stations. Those media upstarts - cable and satellite companies, other media organizations, international broadcasters, equipment manufacturers, and their ilk - are welcome to become Associate Members, otherwise known as the children's table at Thanksgiving.
NAB2006 bills itself as the World's Largest Electronic Media Show. I'm not yet quibbling with that description - I'll let you know what I think of it after spending next week with the Broadcasters and their Associate Members. "Electronic Media," however, encompasses more than just Broadcasters. Interestingly, last year, Electronic Media magazine went in the other direction - it changed its name to TV Week.
In any case, we'll have to come up with a new term for our new medium. "Broadcasting"? It implies an FCC license, Heaven forbid. Also, I thought the essence of the new medium was narrowcasting. "TV"? Too limiting. "Video"? No, sounds like my neighbor's Super-8 vacation film. Any suggestions out there?
