I have failed as a mother. M is learning the song "Thriller" with her high school marching band, and she was the only one in the room who had never heard the song or seen the video. Now, I have a strong dislike for Michael Jackson that predates his recent legal troubles. However, as a person who places an importance on cultural literacy, I should have at least exposed her to some of his videos.
Enter YouTube. It only took a couple minutes for M to find the full 8-minute version of the Thriller video. I know that it is wrong to post copyrighted material, but if YouTube didn't have it then M wouldn't have been able to see it. MTV rarely shows videos any more. Even if they did, the chances of catching a 20-year-old video just when I need to see it would be slim. I say it again and again: the best-kept secret of YouTube is that it is helping to keep video ephemera alive.
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