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Me at the zoo

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For the unrelated 2012 documentary, see Me at the Zoo (2012 film).

"Me at the zoo"
The video's thumbnail
Produced byJawed Karim
StarringJawed Karim
CinematographyYakov Lapitsky
Release date
April 23, 2005; 19 years ago (April 23, 2005)
Running time
19 seconds
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

"Me at the zoo" is a YouTube video uploaded on April 23, 2005. It was the first video to be uploaded to the platform. The 19-second video features YouTube's co-founder, Jawed Karim, who was 25 years old at the time, in front of two elephants at the San Diego Zoo in California, noting their long trunks. It was recorded on Karim's camera by his high school friend, Yakov Lapitsky.

Journalists have considered "Me at the zoo" to be an example of YouTube's amateur content. Several publications have listed it as the most important video in the website's history.

On several occasions, Karim has edited the video description to criticize YouTube's business actions.

Background[edit]

Further information: YouTube § Founding and initial growth (2005–2006)

YouTube was founded in 2005 by three former employees at PayPal: Chad Hurley, Steve Chen, and Jawed Karim. Hurley studied design at the Indiana University of Pennsylvania, while Karim and Chen studied computer science at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.[1] Karim stated that inspiration for the platform came from the Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show controversy and the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami.[2][3] He was unable to find video clips of the events online, giving him the idea to start a video sharing website.[4]

"Me at the zoo" was uploaded on April 23, 2005.[5][6] It shows Karim at the San Diego Zoo in California, with two elephants behind him. In the 19-second video, he notes the length of their trunks.[7][8] The video was recorded by his high school friend, Yakov Lapitsky.[9][10] In it, Karim states:

Alright, so here we are in front of the elephants, and the cool thing about these guys is that they have really, really, really long, um, trunks. And that's, that's cool. And that's pretty much all there is to say.[5]

— Jawed Karim, "Me at the zoo"

Reception[edit]

Multiple publications agreed that the video embodied YouTube as a whole. Business Insider ranked it the most important YouTube video of all time, stating that it is symbolic of YouTube as a whole: "[...] it doesn't need to be this fancy production; it can be approachable. The first YouTube video is something anyone could create on their own."[11] The New York Observer also ranked it as the most important video in YouTube history, stating that it was "practically a historical artifact".[12] BuzzFeed News listed it among the 20 most important online videos of all time.[13] Being the first video on YouTube, it has also been described as the first YouTube vlog.[14]

Reviewers thought that "Me at the zoo" was monumental to YouTube's history. Aaron Duplantier, in his book Authenticity and How We Fake It: Belief and Subjectivity in Reality TV, Facebook and YouTube, stated that the ordinary "everydayness" and "dry aesthetics" of "Me at the zoo" set the tone for the type of original amateur content that would become typical of YouTube, especially among YouTubers and vloggers.[15] The Los Angeles Times explained in 2009 that "Me at the zoo" "played a pivotal role" in how media was consumed, establishing "a golden era" of short videos.[16] Digital Trends called it a "nondescript affair" and "tongue-in-cheek" video that set a standard for future videos on YouTube.[17] The Guardian featured the video on their top ten list of films in the 2000s.[18]

Legacy[edit]

Updated description of the video detailing Karim's criticisms of the dislike count removal

Greg Jarboe, in his book YouTube and Video Marketing: An Hour a Day, describes the video's representation of an "ordinary moment" to be "extraordinary" for its time, demonstrating YouTube co-founder Jawed Karim's vision of what YouTube would become. According to Jarboe, "Me at the zoo" showed that YouTube was not simply about trying to "capture special moments on video" but rather trying to empower YouTube users to become the "broadcasters of tomorrow". This led YouTube to become the world's most popular online video-sharing community.[19]

On multiple occasions, Karim has used the video's description to criticize YouTube's business actions. In response to Google requiring YouTube users to use Google+ accounts to comment on videos, he updated the description in November 2013 to say "I can't comment here anymore, since I don't want a Google+ account."[20] The video's description was changed in November 2021 in response to YouTube's decision to remove video dislikes from public view, reading, "When every YouTuber agrees that removing dislikes is a stupid idea, it probably is. Try again, YouTube."[21][22][23] A few days later, the description was changed again to a longer condemnation of YouTube's decision.[22] On December 16, 2023, the video thumbnail was changed to a MrBeast-style image of Karim with fiery eyes pointing at a background image of elephants. It was reverted to the original thumbnail two weeks later.[24]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "YouTube founders now superstars". The Sydney Morning Herald. October 11, 2006. Archived from the original on April 13, 2021. Retrieved March 18, 2021.
  2. ^ Leskin, Paige (May 30, 2020). "YouTube is 15 years old. Here's a timeline of how YouTube was founded, its rise to video behemoth, and its biggest controversies along way". Business Insider. Retrieved May 10, 2024.
  3. ^ Hopkins, Jim (October 11, 2006). "Surprise! There's a third YouTube co-founder". USA Today. Retrieved May 5, 2024.
  4. ^ McAlone, Nathan (October 2, 2015). "Here's how Janet Jackson's infamous 'nipplegate' inspired the creation of YouTube". Business Insider. Retrieved April 13, 2024.
  5. ^ a b Bravo, Christina (April 23, 2023). "18 Years Ago, an 18-Second Video Recorded at the San Diego Zoo Launched YouTube". NBC 7. Retrieved April 13, 2024.
  6. ^ Asmelash, Leah (April 23, 2020). "The first ever YouTube video was uploaded 15 years ago today. Here it is". CNN. Archived from the original on April 23, 2020. Retrieved February 12, 2021.
  7. ^ Hoby, Hermione; Lamont, Tom (April 11, 2011). "How YouTube made superstars out of everyday people". The Guardian. London. ISSN 0029-7712. Archived from the original on October 23, 2013. Retrieved May 1, 2011.
  8. ^ Heffernan, Virginia (September 6, 2009). "Uploading the Avant-Garde". The New York Times. Archived from the original on June 15, 2018. Retrieved April 4, 2011.
  9. ^ Waxman, Olivia B. (April 23, 2014). "The First YouTube Video Was Uploaded 9 Years Ago Today". Time. Retrieved May 5, 2024.
  10. ^ Waxman, Olivia B. (April 23, 2015). "The First YouTube Video Was Uploaded 10 Years Ago". Time. Retrieved April 13, 2024.
  11. ^ Baer, Drake (February 20, 2015). "The 10 most important Youtube videos of all time". Business Insider. Archived from the original on August 26, 2019. Retrieved August 26, 2019.
  12. ^ Taylor, Jordyn (February 13, 2015). "The 10 Most Important Videos in YouTube History". The New York Observer. Archived from the original on August 26, 2019. Retrieved August 26, 2019.
  13. ^ Burton, Summer Anne (September 27, 2012). "The 20 Most Important Online Videos Of All Time". BuzzFeed News. BuzzFeed. Archived from the original on August 29, 2019. Retrieved August 29, 2019.
  14. ^ Alexander, Julia (April 23, 2018). "YouTube created a FOMO viewing culture over the past 13 years". Polygon. Archived from the original on April 15, 2022. Retrieved August 30, 2019.
  15. ^ Duplantier 2016, p. 122.
  16. ^ Pham, Alex (April 10, 2010). "YouTube turns 5, can't wait to grow up". Los Angeles Times. ISSN 0458-3035. Archived from the original on August 20, 2010. Retrieved April 20, 2011. Born as a clearinghouse for quick, quirky homemade videos, the site now seeks to add more professional and profitable content.
  17. ^ Mogg, Trevor (April 23, 2012). "'Elephants have really long trunks' – YouTube's first ever video upload turns seven years old today". Digital Trends. Archived from the original on August 26, 2019. Retrieved August 26, 2019.
  18. ^ "Top 10 key films of the noughties". The Guardian. December 7, 2009. Retrieved May 5, 2024.
  19. ^ Jarboe 2009, p. xxi.
  20. ^ Cheredar, Tom (November 8, 2013). "YouTube cofounder's first public comment in 8 years: why the f*** do i need a Google+ account to comment on a video?". VentureBeat. Archived from the original on September 9, 2017. Retrieved November 11, 2013.
  21. ^ "YouTube's first video, changes description, calls the decision to stop dislike counter 'stupid'". The Indian Express. November 15, 2021. Archived from the original on November 15, 2021. Retrieved April 13, 2024.
  22. ^ a b Vincent, James (November 17, 2021). "YouTube co-founder predicts 'decline' of the platform following removal of dislikes". The Verge. Archived from the original on November 17, 2021. Retrieved November 18, 2021.
  23. ^ Mok, Aaron (April 7, 2023). "The first video uploaded to YouTube, 18 years ago, featured cofounder Jawed Karim at the zoo. Watch it here". Business Insider. Retrieved May 5, 2024.
  24. ^ Gutelle, Sam (December 17, 2023). "YouTube's first video recently received a MrBeast-style thumbnail update". Tubefilter. Archived from the original on January 17, 2024. Retrieved January 11, 2024.

Bibliography[edit]

External links[edit]

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