Black Public Media

Back in January we featured a post on the National Black Programming Consortium Web Initiative.  They have added a new product to their online line-up:

BlackPublicMedia.org is an online destination for free video streaming and distribution of new media related to the global black experience.  Here you can watch free full-length streams of select documentaries, purchase to own engaging downloads, DVDs, and more, even subscribe to a variety of blogs, vodcasts, and podcasts.

Haven’t heard of it?  Now you have.  This endeavor is part of the National Black Programming Consortium (NBPC)  And it’s exciting.  The content they have is great.

Black Public Media has a nice blend of both free short length and longer content for purchase throughout 11 channels .  My three favorite channels so far are:

• Afropop
• NBPC New Media Institute
• In Short

When you think of the emergence of film markets over the past decade such as Nollywood,  or the ease of producing good films that are more affordable and accessible technology, or the digitization of film coupled with the consumption of that digital product; does it not seem perfect that there is a site that can bring these features to the masses? Even better, it is a black site!

In addition to the main focus, the video content, they also have various blogs and podcasts featured on their site.   Some of the features on the site are also available for purchase on DVD.

Now, the nitpicky things.  I love the site.  However, I personally think that it could be laid out a little bit more efficiently, especially since they don’t have to worry about ad space. While PayPal is a fine system for accepting payments, I still like to see sites have their own shopping/pay system (maybe that will happen as their DVD catalogue gets bigger). The final thing is, none of the content is embeddable.  Regardless, I was very happy to discover this site, and am just as happy to share it.  I can’t wait to see how their catalogue grows and if sharing features are incorporated.