TED is “is a nonprofit devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading.” TED conferences “bring together the world’s most fascinating thinkers and doers, who are challenged to give the talk of their lives (in 18 minutes or less).”
Writing for Mashable, Sarah Kessler shares the story of how recordings of these talks have now been viewed 500 million times:
When Director of TED Media June Cohen shopped around the idea for a television show featuring lectures from the organization’s famously elite conference, she was told the talks didn’t have mainstream appeal. “When the BBC told me that TED talks were too intellectual for them, I thought it was time to change strategies,” she says. Instead of television, TED ended up putting the TED talks online.
. . . TED’s video website, which broadcasts lectures online for free, celebrates its five-year anniversary on Monday. Since posting its first video, the site has collected about 500 million total video views, 1 million Facebook followers, and 1 million iPad app downloads.
So What?
I visit the TED site on a regular basis and am curious to see how they continue to evolve. As they celebrate their anniversary, TED has announced that they will be launching their first talks in a language other than English.
- What talk or talks have influenced you the most? Why?
- Are you surprised by the high demand for intelligent internet video? Why or why not?
- What are the implications of high demand for intelligent internet video with regard to content your congregation produces?