Creating a video in the era of the internet and digital age: How innovations change the technical dynamic between the professional, the amateur, and copyright

The proliferation of digital devices is affecting many aspects of media in this era of the internet and digital devices (Kawamoto, 2003). One area of particular interest is amateur video creation. Through a video creation case study and participant observation, the researcher addresses the issue of the decreasing technical disparity between the amateur and the professional. A review of pertinent literature and interpretation of the case study allow for a uniquely situated discussion on how this decreasing technical disparity is manifesting in terms of the advantages that digital innovations provide for the amateur such as equipment cost, integrated digital devices, and the ubiquity of the personal computer. This thesis argues that innovative and integrated digital devices offer a more complete technical experience for the amateur when it comes to participating in the production process and the growing phenomenon of digital video creation.