From a Scrappy Collective of Academics to a Media Giant Worth Millions
The famous educational lectures known as TED Talks are far from a passing fad. Videos of their many conferences have gone viral time and time again, proving that the TED Talk format is far from a passing fad. Perhaps you have seen TED Talks being shared on social media, often with prudent, inspirational, and/or thought-provoking messages alongside them. Today, TED - acronym for Technology, Entertainment, and Design - is a media giant worth millions of dollars as far as educational media outlets go.
But TED?s status as a media behemoth with hundreds of conferences per year around the world and a flashy streaming platform is a relatively new one. It hasn?t always been this way for the scrappy media outlet bent on bringing positive change and proactive dialogue to the world. In fact, it is rare for a company with a mission as lofty and intellectual as Ted?s to ever see the light of day, let alone surge in popularity in the age of social media. But time and time again, TED has proven itself as a scrappy media company with a vision - one that knows how to grow and adapt with the shifting times.
TED was founded in 1984 and is based in New York. It started out as a small, low-budget series of lectures and has since grown into a company worth over $65 million.
TED has curated a massive global media network of podcasts, books, videos, and an impressive video streaming website that features inspiring talks from academics and public speakers. Additionally, TED offers grants, fellowships, and scholarships that make it possible for unknown speakers to become icons of their industries overnight. All it takes is a shot at the TED Talk stage.
Second, the talk must be ? POWERFUL.? This means that it should provoke strong emotions in its audience and be able to teach valuable lessons. Lastly, the talk must be interesting.
The people who decide whether or not a TED Talk is worthy of the platform pass a three-pronged test. The first prong is whether or not the talk gives people a fresh way of seeing the world. The idea has to be original, or a new take on a more familiar idea. The second prong is whether or not the talk is POWERFUL. This means that it should provoke strong emotions in its audience and be able to teach valuable lessons. Finally, the talk has to be interesting.
Talks that fall into either of the two categories typically do well with the TED community, but all submissions are considered.
The second question we ask of TED Talk submissions is whether the talk offers a clever solution to a problem or the promise of a better future for audiences? If you have seen a TED Talk before, then you are already familiar with the format. The speaker often presents a unique issue, offers up data, examples, or sound logic in order to back it up, then offers a solution - preferably one that instills hope or inspires action in the audience. Talks that fall into either of the two categories typically do well with the TED community, but all submissions are considered.
This leads us to the final category that TED looks for in the talks that it accepts: inspiration. To further speak to this idea, Ted?s director, Chris Anderson told Business Insider, ?We have this tool for bridging that allows any two humans to see the world a bit differently. Call the tool what you want: reason, discussion, sharing of ideas. It?s actually an amazing thing that it can happen at all.? In order for a TED Talk to be accepted, it must inspire its audience to act in some way - be it by positively changing their behaviors, treating people differently (better), or devoting their time or money to a cause.
Overall, it is both rare and hopeful to see a $10 billion company making this their central focus. This is just one of the many positive aspects about TED, which makes it an important part of the media landscape.
TED?s Very Own Streaming Platform
Previously, up until just a few years ago, if you wanted to watch a TED Talk, you had to find one on YouTube. TED's own YouTube channel was available, of course, but it still was a more difficult and time-consuming process than many TED fans had hoped for. This led the people at TED to begin working on their very own streaming platform.
This made TED able to create more exclusive and platform-specific content, without the restrictions and monetization of YouTube.
And today, we are going to be taking a look at the streaming site found at ted.com. We have already established the fact that TED is a media company unlike any other, and their streaming site has been lauded as one of the best around. Regardless of how well-intended and revolutionary an idea may be, if it isn't presented in an effective and well-designed way, nobody is going to hear it. So, without further ado, let us delve in and see for ourselves whether the Ted streaming site is worth your time.
Design is Excellent, as You?d Expect
Upon landing on the home page of TED.com, I was struck by how expertly it had been designed. The fact that the ?D? in TED stands for Design should not come as a huge surprise given the site's focus on this area, and yet their home page lives up to expectations perfectly. It is easy to navigate and lacks clutter, making it both easy to use and visually appealing.
One thing I appreciate about TED's website design is the fact that upon logging in, you are given a series of multiple choice questions about the kind of content you enjoy. They ask what topics interest you and, from a list of tags, you choose the ones that resonate with you. It's essentially asking for your customized version of their three-pronged test.
This is how TED selects and features content specifically for you, based on your individual viewing preferences. In addition, note that all of this content is integrated seamlessly into the home page, appearing as if it has always been there. You won't even notice the change until the site reloads itself, and then you'll be filled with personalized content tailored just for you.
The website offers a customized world of ideas, inspiration, and fascination where you can browse through recommended videos just for you. The site also learns your interests better, the more you watch. Then, you will find a section of the newest talks; followed by trending, editor's picks, TED-Ed animations, a collection of playlists and finally talks separated by specific categories. The website is flawless and more intuitive than most.
But it's not just videos that TED has on its website. If you scroll back up to the top of the page, you'll find a site menu bar that allows you to quickly browse all types of media. Hovering your cursor over the Discover tab will produce a dropdown menu--from here, you can explore TED's blogs, podcasts, books, and newsletters. You can also get involved in the TED community here.
Search for TED events in the Attend tab on the site. Then nominate a speaker or organize a TED event in the Participate section. TED is one of those rare sites that transcends the digital realm and allows you to get involved in issues that matter to you in the real world.
Suggestions for TED Moving Forward?
Are there any ways in which the TED site could be improved? Of course, as is the case with any site. The site's design and user-experience are top-notch, but the video streaming quality is seldom nearly as high-resolution as it should be. Some of the videos are borderline unwatchable, it is so bad. For a site that functions primarily as a video streaming platform, this is a huge oversight. I implore TED to take care of this issue ASAP.
However, at the end of the day, TED is free to use. There is no subscription fee, no tiered memberships to worry about. Simply sign up and have full access to the site. This does mean that there are ads, though, but they are not too invasive as to severely hinder the experience of the site. If you love ideas, want to get inspired, and learn something new - TED is the site for you!
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