Showing posts with label Roots Television. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Roots Television. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
What is the current status of Roots TV?
I have confirmed with Dick Eastman that Roots TV is off the air for good. Roots TV RIP>
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
RootsTelevision.com - It is going to stay on the air
Just got an update from Megan and it is great news!
Dear RootsTelevision.com Viewer,
OK, you convinced me! After getting inundated with emails, tweets, and Facebook postings and messages about the closing of RootsTelevision.com (RTV), I've decided to keep it going. I honestly had no clue how valued it was by the genealogical community, and I agree with the many of you who pointed out that it serves a somewhat different purpose than the prime time programming that's on TV at present (much as I've been enjoying that!). At the same time, I think many had not realized that RTV is a one-person company, but one that's not inexpensive to provide.
Thanks very much to all you who reached out to share your thoughts and experiences. Although I haven't been able to respond to all of you, I hope you realize that your comments made all the difference in the world. Thanks also to the more than 20 individuals, organizations and companies that contacted me to explore the notion of adopting RTV. It's refreshing to know how many were willing to step in and help. I also need to thank Brightcove, the video platform used by RTV, for working with me to find viable solutions.
I should probably clarify one point of confusion. Many were under the impression that even if RootsTelevision.com closed down, the video archive would remain. Quite a few also wrote asking me to send DVDs of the videos, but with more than 700 videos on the site, popping them on a DVD is not an alternative. Hosting and streaming this wide array of videos is one of the most costly aspects, and there are rights issues involved as well, so if RTV had gone, so would have all the videos.
That's why I surveyed genealogists on Twitter and Facebook, asking whether you would be willing to tolerate commercials if it would help preserve RootsTelevision.com. I was beyond relieved how lopsided the response was! So please be aware that I will be adding commercials to help pay the bills. Unfortunately, I don't have the resources to customize them, but I'll experiment with ways to make them as painless as possible. I'd also greatly appreciate it if you let me know of any people, companies or organizations that would be interested in running banners ads on RTV. Boston University and Family Tree DNA have both helped support RTV in the past by sponsoring ads, and more of the same would help ensure that the doors of RTV stay open in the future!
Og and I are going to do a little tinkering under the hood at RTV, so you'll see fewer new videos for a while, but please use that time to explore the hundreds of videos that are already there. Please also consider uploading your own videos (podcasters welcome!) through RootsTube (http://rootstelevision.com/submit_rootstube.php) and let us know of any great genealogical videos you come across in your online travels. If we see something we like, we'll do our best to secure permission to share the video on RootsTelevision.com, so you can have the widest, high quality viewing selection possible all in one place.
And finally, I would ask that you spread the word to your friends, relatives, libraries, and genealogical societies that the lights are still on at RootsTelevision.com! The more viewers, the better – so watch often!
Thanks again,
Megan
P.S. Be sure to follow us online for new videos, announcements and special events:
Megan on Twitter - http://twitter.com/megansmolenyak
Megan on Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/megansmolenyak
RTV on Twitter - http://twitter.com/rootstelevision
RTV on Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/rootstv
Dear RootsTelevision.com Viewer,
OK, you convinced me! After getting inundated with emails, tweets, and Facebook postings and messages about the closing of RootsTelevision.com (RTV), I've decided to keep it going. I honestly had no clue how valued it was by the genealogical community, and I agree with the many of you who pointed out that it serves a somewhat different purpose than the prime time programming that's on TV at present (much as I've been enjoying that!). At the same time, I think many had not realized that RTV is a one-person company, but one that's not inexpensive to provide.
Thanks very much to all you who reached out to share your thoughts and experiences. Although I haven't been able to respond to all of you, I hope you realize that your comments made all the difference in the world. Thanks also to the more than 20 individuals, organizations and companies that contacted me to explore the notion of adopting RTV. It's refreshing to know how many were willing to step in and help. I also need to thank Brightcove, the video platform used by RTV, for working with me to find viable solutions.
I should probably clarify one point of confusion. Many were under the impression that even if RootsTelevision.com closed down, the video archive would remain. Quite a few also wrote asking me to send DVDs of the videos, but with more than 700 videos on the site, popping them on a DVD is not an alternative. Hosting and streaming this wide array of videos is one of the most costly aspects, and there are rights issues involved as well, so if RTV had gone, so would have all the videos.
That's why I surveyed genealogists on Twitter and Facebook, asking whether you would be willing to tolerate commercials if it would help preserve RootsTelevision.com. I was beyond relieved how lopsided the response was! So please be aware that I will be adding commercials to help pay the bills. Unfortunately, I don't have the resources to customize them, but I'll experiment with ways to make them as painless as possible. I'd also greatly appreciate it if you let me know of any people, companies or organizations that would be interested in running banners ads on RTV. Boston University and Family Tree DNA have both helped support RTV in the past by sponsoring ads, and more of the same would help ensure that the doors of RTV stay open in the future!
Og and I are going to do a little tinkering under the hood at RTV, so you'll see fewer new videos for a while, but please use that time to explore the hundreds of videos that are already there. Please also consider uploading your own videos (podcasters welcome!) through RootsTube (http://rootstelevision.com/submit_rootstube.php) and let us know of any great genealogical videos you come across in your online travels. If we see something we like, we'll do our best to secure permission to share the video on RootsTelevision.com, so you can have the widest, high quality viewing selection possible all in one place.
And finally, I would ask that you spread the word to your friends, relatives, libraries, and genealogical societies that the lights are still on at RootsTelevision.com! The more viewers, the better – so watch often!
Thanks again,
Megan
P.S. Be sure to follow us online for new videos, announcements and special events:
Megan on Twitter - http://twitter.com/megansmolenyak
Megan on Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/megansmolenyak
RTV on Twitter - http://twitter.com/rootstelevision
RTV on Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/rootstv
Sunday, February 28, 2010
A Fond Farewell from Roots TV
Got this in the morning email. Let's hope that someone can pick up this valuable genealogical resource.
Dear RootsTelevision.com Viewer,
It's with mixed feelings that I'm sharing the news that I will be closing RootsTelevision.com (RTV) as of March 10th. Back in 2006, RTV was launched to fill a void. As I wrote at the time:
"We've been perplexed for a long time. These days, there's a horse channel, a wine channel, a sailing channel, a poker channel, a guitar channel, and even a shipwreck channel. So why, we wondered, isn't there a channel servicing the millions of people interested in genealogy and family history?"
The good news is that this yawning gap is now being filled. Genealogy is finally going mainstream. Some of you are probably already watching Faces of America on PBS and The Generations Project on BYU. And many, I'm sure, have heard of the imminent launch on NBC of Who Do You Think You Are? (a series I'm proud to be affiliated with, and for which, I wrote the companion book). The non-genealogical world is finally waking up to the long overlooked potential of what we roots-sleuths do on a daily basis, as you can read in this article:
Roots TV Becomes New Branch of Reality TV
I'm honored to have had the opportunity to fill this void for more than three years. I hope that you have enjoyed the hundreds of high quality videos that RootsTelevision.com has produced or selected. From the viewing numbers and kind comments, I know that many of you have. It's been a privilege to give the genealogical community this resource, but this seems the appropriate time to move on.
We'll be featuring some of RTV's most popular videos during our final days, so please come on over and enjoy them. Thank you for your viewership and friendship. Og and I will miss you!
Warmly,
Megan Smolenyak
HonoringOurAncestors
P.S. If any genealogical entities would be interested in "adopting" RootsTelevision.com, I would be open to that possibility, but would need to hear from you immediately (megan at honoringourancestors.com).
Dear RootsTelevision.com Viewer,
It's with mixed feelings that I'm sharing the news that I will be closing RootsTelevision.com (RTV) as of March 10th. Back in 2006, RTV was launched to fill a void. As I wrote at the time:
"We've been perplexed for a long time. These days, there's a horse channel, a wine channel, a sailing channel, a poker channel, a guitar channel, and even a shipwreck channel. So why, we wondered, isn't there a channel servicing the millions of people interested in genealogy and family history?"
The good news is that this yawning gap is now being filled. Genealogy is finally going mainstream. Some of you are probably already watching Faces of America on PBS and The Generations Project on BYU. And many, I'm sure, have heard of the imminent launch on NBC of Who Do You Think You Are? (a series I'm proud to be affiliated with, and for which, I wrote the companion book). The non-genealogical world is finally waking up to the long overlooked potential of what we roots-sleuths do on a daily basis, as you can read in this article:
Roots TV Becomes New Branch of Reality TV
I'm honored to have had the opportunity to fill this void for more than three years. I hope that you have enjoyed the hundreds of high quality videos that RootsTelevision.com has produced or selected. From the viewing numbers and kind comments, I know that many of you have. It's been a privilege to give the genealogical community this resource, but this seems the appropriate time to move on.
We'll be featuring some of RTV's most popular videos during our final days, so please come on over and enjoy them. Thank you for your viewership and friendship. Og and I will miss you!
Warmly,
Megan Smolenyak
HonoringOurAncestors
P.S. If any genealogical entities would be interested in "adopting" RootsTelevision.com, I would be open to that possibility, but would need to hear from you immediately (megan at honoringourancestors.com).
Monday, February 11, 2008
PBS Ancestors TV Series Links Available Here
For the benefit of my genealogy class students and others who visit this site, I have added links to each of the PBS Ancestors episodes from Season 1 and 2 to the resource portion of this blog (see the bottom of this blog). These are courtesy of the Roots Television website. Just click on the link and it will open up the webpage and media player so you can view that episode. These are excellent training videos and is the same material that I use in my Beginner / Intermediate classes at Tri-County Community College in Peachtree, North Carolina.
So if you miss a class, you can at least get the jest of what I covered by reviewing the associated video for that class at the links to the left. If you are new to genealogy, or a reader of my syndicated newspaper column - Finding Your Roots, you can learn more about how to do genealogy by viewing all of these videos in both series.
Hope you enjoy the service and be sure to visit the Roots Television website for additional material that can aid you in your family research (link in our "Genealogy Related Links We Recommend" section of this blog).
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