YouTube has gone mainstream. Need some evidence? Pope Benedict XVI launched his own channel on YouTube.
Supposedly this was done so the Catholic Church could connect with a younger audience. The church recognizes that the future rests on the shoulders of the younger generation. Church elders have been painfully aware of a disconnect with their younger members of the flock. Candidly, this move seems brilliant.
“With the YouTube platform, we now have the capacity to give young people direct access to the thinking, to the thoughts, to the words and deeds of the pope,” said Monsignor Paul Tighe, secretary of the Pontifical Council. “That allows them to share with their friends.”
I love the use of the term friends since it sounds so MySpace like. Very smart. The Vatican plans to use it mainly as a Catholic news channel featuring the pope’s daily activities and speeches, and it will provide links to other Catholic TV sites around the world, he said.
Thus, the Pope understands the value proposition of YouTube. How about you?
John Bradley Jackson
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P.S. Be sure to check out http://www.youtube.com/vatican