Vlog


A vlog, also known as a video blog or video log, is a form of blog for which the medium is video. Vlog entries often combine embedded video with supporting text, images, and other metadata. Entries can be recorded in one take or cut into multiple parts.
Like traditional blogging, video blogging focuses on personal topics centering on the creator. For example, makeup routines, book recommendations, and recipe videos.
There are two main styles of vlog: a "talking-head" video, in which the camera stays steady while the vlogger talks about a subject, or a "follow me around" vlog, in which the vlogger takes a camera with them and films clips as they go about their day or week.
Video logs also often take advantage of web syndication to allow for distribution of the video over the Internet, using either the RSS or Atom syndication formats, for automatic aggregation and playback on mobile devices and personal computers. The vlog category is popular on the video-sharing platform YouTube.

History

In the 1980s, New York artist Nelson Sullivan documented his experiences travelling around New York City and South Carolina by recording videos in a distinctive vlog-like style.
On January 2, 2000, Adam Kontras posted a video alongside a blog entry aimed at informing his friends and family of his cross-country move to Los Angeles in pursuit of show business, marking the first post on what would later become the longest-running video blog in history. In November of that year, Adrian Miles posted a video of changing text on a still image, coining the term vog to refer to his video blog. Filmmaker and musician Luuk Bouwman started in 2002 the now-defunct Tropisms.org site as a video diary of his post-college travels, one of the first sites to be called a vlog or videolog. In 2004, Steve Garfield launched his own video blog and declared that year "the year of the video blog".

YouTube

Vlogging saw a strong increase in popularity beginning in 2005. The most popular video sharing site, YouTube, was founded in February 2005. The site's co-founder Jawed Karim uploaded the first YouTube vlog clip Me at the zoo on his channel "jawed" in April 2005. The ordinary "everydayness" and "dry aesthetics" of Me at the zoo set the tone for the type of amateur vlogging content that would become typical of YouTube, especially among YouTubers. By July 2006, YouTube had become the fifth most popular web destination, with 100million videos viewed daily and 65,000 new uploads per day. The Yahoo! Videoblogging Group also saw its membership increase dramatically by August 2005.
Many open source content management systems have enabled the inclusion of video content, allowing bloggers to host and administer their own video blogging sites. In addition, the convergence of mobile phones with digital cameras allows publishing of video content to the Web almost as it is recorded.
Vloggers on YouTube have formed social communities by sharing personal experiences and fostering emotional connections with viewers. The effect of this emotional exchange between strangers has been documented, for example, in the popularity of bereavement vlogs, in which grieving individuals reassure each other through friendly comments.

Miscellaneous events

In May 2019, Charles Trippy was awarded the Guinness World Record for the "Most Consecutive Daily Personal Video Blogs Posted On YouTube", having recorded 3653 consecutive videos to his Charles and Allie YouTube channel over the previous ten years.

International Development of Vlog

South America

South American countries like Brazil have a unique development path of vlog. Until January 2025, data shows that Brazil 144 million social media users as home to 144 million social media users which makes up 67.8% of the total population. The existence of vlog in Brazil was a companion of the localization of YouTube, with more YouTube channels and creators focusing on Brazilian culture. For example, Felipe Neto created his channel in 2006 as a vlog, following typical modes of address and aesthetics that are part of this content type.
The emergence of vlog was a rebellion against the traditional Brazilian media, as the newspapers and TV Globo defined "who Brazilians are" by telling stories about white, heterosexual, high-income people. YouTube vlogs enabled individuals, especially those marginalized, to share their lives and speak up for themselves. It is noteworthy that many of the popular videos on Brazilian YouTube are at least partially targeted to the young CDE classes' audience.
The popularity of vlogs on YouTube is not only a result of providing a platform for the marginalized to speak up, but also spreading out hidden messages related to social justice. Porta dos Fundos is a professional independent audio-visual media producer who became famous on YouTube for producing sketch comedies that have a distinct type of humour than the traditional shows on Brazilian television. The channel addresses taboo topics in Brazil, like racism and misogyny, and challenges the monopoly of main stream TV Globo.

Europe

There are fewer academic articles about the European development of vlogs. The European Union enabled several strict internet regulations. For instance, the Digital Services Act mandates greater transparency and accountability to platforms in order to protect users' privacy. Similarly, the General Data Protection Regulation requires platforms to ask for users' consent before enabling algorithm and collecting data. In addition, Europe's linguistic diversity makes the social media landscape more fragmented compared to larger markets like the U.S. and China. Content must be tailored not only to language but also to cultural contexts. Commentators suggest that formal and direct communication is favored by the German audience but Spanish viewers prefer conversational tone.
Despite the strict regulations on social media and a diverse audience, there are influential vloggers who brought this new way of narrative into the European market. SQUEEZIE, a French vlogger, has over 18 million followers on YouTube. He was known for his interactive travel vlogs. For another example, Kwebbelkop is a Dutch YouTuber who has 15 million followers. His vlogs include games, chanllenges, and comedic skits.

Asia

China

China has a different social media landscape than the United States. While the US audience use YouTube, Instagram, TikTok as the main short video platforms, Chinese audience immerse with Douyin, Bilibili, Xiaohongshu, WeChat channel, etc.
Later than the U.S., vlogging culture has experienced rapid growth in China since 2018. And unlike the US whose vlogs form of narratives were developed from bottom-to-up, Chinese video-sharing and social media platforms launched a series of campaigns and favourable policies to promote vlogging. For example, Bilibili has launched a campaign called "Everybody can be a vlogger" with a slogan: "A vlog is more than just a record of life, it is an expression of the extraordinary in ordinary life! Become a vlogger, now! We have created the following courses tailored to the student/worker/couple vlogger status, so start your vlogging journey!" To encourage users to participate, the platform offers participants with rewards that are rarely received, one of the most important promises is visibility.
The popularity of vlogs also invited the engagement of traditional media. Well-known anchors from official news outlets start their own channels or accounts. For example, Kang Hui, a news anchor at CCTV, started his own channel named "Kang Hui vlog". Through his channel, audiences are allowed to watch Kang Hui telling news stories by taking his audience to his workplace and the news sites. The program offer a sense of reality, interactivity, and personalized explanations, bringing hosts closer to viewers and making the format popular.
The landscape of vlogs in China has a diverse range of contents: travelling, studying aboard, lifestyle sharing, etc. Some content creators play a role of communicating Chinese culture to the world through individual narratives. Li Ziqi, a Chinese vlogger who was known internationally for creating Chinese traditional food and handicraft production. Her videos shows the rest of the world about "Chineseness", including the rural customs, aesthetics, and cultural and scenic places. Beyond simply showcasing "Chineseness" to global audiences, the food making and rural lifestyle, as Liang said, also embodies a contemporary "structure of feeling" in China: urban residents' desire for a simple and authentic lifestyle in countryside. With the popularity of Li's videos, she also converted the success to e-commerce ventures, bring new economic energy into rural regions, which aligned with Chinese policy of Rural Revitalization.

Japan

Japanese vloggers are called "J-vloggers". The rise in J-vlogging is part of the rise of YouTube in Japan around 2016. Marc Lefkowitz, YouTube's head of creator and artist development for Asia-Pacificis, said that the content uploaded from YouTube channels in Japan has more than doubled between 2016 and 2017.
Rachel and Jun, an American/Japanese married couple, make a living by creating travelling vlogs for their 1.8 million followers on YouTube. Lefkowitz said "Tourism numbers are rising at lightning speed – 250% between 2012 and 2017. This is particularly interesting to me as it correlates with the rise of J-vlogging....People want to virtually travel here, learn more about the food, customs and culture."