Issue7

The video camera provide such an accurate and convincing record of contemporary life that it has become a more important form of documentation than written records."

When the world is engaged in the enthusiasm of the World Cup hosted in South Africa in this summer, football fans of both England and Italian might be annoyed by the referee's injudicious judgment, especially when they saw the video records of the game. Then it comes to the argument whether video camera should be introduced to help the referee's judgment. Admittedly, video camera provides an accurate and objective record of events in our contemporary life and brings plenty of convenience to recall what has happened. However, the speaker’s claim that video camera record is more important than written record overstates the video camera, as a form of documentation, out weights written records in some other less vivid-demanding areas.

Video camera, as a new form of documentation, provides an accurate and convincing record of contemporary life. Video camera, like our eyes, helps individuals to appreciate the live scenery and provides relatively true senses as people who present the locale. Take the World Cup for example, most football fans do not have the opportunity to go to South Africa to experience the enthusiasm of football match, but fortunately, video camera can offset the regret by providing clear and vivid live reports of every game. It is imaginable how boring and unsatisfied a football fan feels if one can only get paper-based information about the football match. The same situation happens when it comes to entertainment industry. Jackerson’s concerts, for instance, if documented by written records, will lose its vividness and appeals because most of his performance is beyond description by any decorated words. Indeed, whenever moving images are central to an event the video camera is superior to the written word.

However, limited by time and space, video documentation provides very...