If you’ve ever struggled to understand a subject, you might’ve seen his face while looking up academic videos on YouTube. Maybe you’ve always wanted to go to Vid-con, the YouTube convention that allows online creators to directly interact with their fans. Or maybe you’re familiar with his association to his brother John Green, the famous author of hokey young-adult novels. Regardless, Hank Green has greatly shaped how creators can optimize their positive influence on their subscribers and the potential of online video.
Hank and John Green have been making weekly YouTube videos on their Vlogbrothers channel since 2007. Initially, they used their platform as a means of communication, alternating making videos addressed to each other. But as their channel began to grow, they shifted their focus to engaging with their growing community and using their influence to benefit humanity. They occasionally offered challenges to their viewers like video scavenger hunts and a book tower building contest. They engage in philanthropy, donating proceeds from their merchandise sales to Partners in Health Sierra Leone and creating The Project for Awesome, an online fundraising event where participants create videos pitching charities that they believe deserve a benefit from the proceeds. The themes of engagement and giving back established in the Vlogbrothers channel has continued throughout Hank Green’s work as he continues to explore the realm of online content creation.
Hank Green on Vlogbrothers
Hank has been the frontrunner of many different online projects throughout his career, but few have been as influential as the Crash Course channel. Crash Course is a public, educational YouTube channel that features informational videos covering a variety of subjects. After creating multiple informational videos on the Vlogbrothers channel, Hank wanted to create a YouTube channel dedicated to educational video. Hank intended Crash Course to be a resource for individuals studying specific subjects and anyone who has a genuine interest in learning. Crash Course was never intended to be overly serious, as Hank believes that information is best retained when you enjoy learning it. After becoming financially supported by a Google grant, John and Hank began hosting videos on topics like biology, history, and chemistry. The channel gradually began featuring guest teachers and expanding to more specific topics like economics, literature, and government. Crash Course created a paradigm shift in the domain of online educational video, presenting knowledge in a highly intellectual yet easy to understand manner that is as entertaining as it is informational. Hank identified the problem of inaccessible educational online video. Crash Course is widely successful and is used by students and teachers alike as study reinforcement or to teach course material.
Hank Green on Crash Course
If you have spent any significant amount of time idolizing Youtubers in the 2010s, you may have fantasized attending Vidcon. Vidcon, another one of Hank’s highly successful creations, is a convention held in California where YouTube creators can hold meet-up events, speak on panels, and interact with fans. During the early days of YouTube, noticing that conventions existed for every other interest in his life, Hank addressed the problem of a lack of a YouTube convention. Hank wanted Vidcon to be a space where creators and viewers could discuss and learn more about their common interest in online video. The first Vidcon hosted 1,400 attendants and continued to grow with every annual event and expanding to Europe and Asia. Online video was incredibly isolating, as creators could maintain their careers without ever interacting with their fans (not having events like concerts or shows for musicians). Hank brought humanity to both content creators and fans, showing them that they exist beyond pixels on a screen
Hank, in all of his creations and entrepreneurial endeavors, is intrinsically motivated by providing opportunities. The intention for Crash Course was to provide educational opportunities for all. Hank’s educational content is available to everyone without requiring high tuition fees or legacy. Vidcon provided the opportunity for creators and fans to interact in a physical space. DFTBA.com, a merchandising website created by Hank, provides a space where small and established content creators can sell their products. Hank is committed to increasing access for those who use and view internet platforms. He is motivated by using his influence to benefit humanity.
I believe that Hank Green is a big-C creative. Him and John are pioneers of online video, establishing platforms that have reached so many internet users around the globe. YouTube and the way that we use it would not be the same without his influence on how to properly use our platforms to increase the common good.
This is so cool! I had no idea that Hank created Vidcon, or that his start to YouTube began with alternating videos addressed to John. My high school biology teacher played these videos all the time so I am very familiar with that area of Crash Course. I also remember them being so helpful the night before an exam or a lab, and can still hear the opening jingle in my head to this day. His ability to present comprehensive information with helpful graphics is unmatched. YouTube is often marketed solely as entertainment, but your post really captures how it has a vastly important educational facet. I agree that he will likely be a big-C creative as time passes, or at least that he should be! Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteI always turned to Crash Course when I didn't understand the material I was taught in class. I always got the sense that Hank was an intrinsically motivated creative. He seems very down to earth and goofy and takes the time to go through every bit of information he thinks will be important for a student's success. Like other creatives we have studied, Hank expanded beyond his realm of focus and created Vidcon. Each of his grand feats entail people connecting and and growing, and I really appreciate him for that. The fact that he has provided such high quality learning for free has set a precedent for other online course programs, making Hank a good example of a Big-C creative.
ReplyDeleteCrash Course has always been such an enjoyable way to become familiar with a topic or even review for a class! I have even found myself learning new things not touched on in classes through the Green brothers' Crash Courses. I personally had no idea that Hank created Vidcon and I think that is such a creative way to increase conversation between content creators and consumers past the comment section. I also love seeing Hank Green answer questions on his Tiktok account. His little explanations always manage to make my day while being so informative.
ReplyDeleteI can vividly remember all the times my middle school and high school teachers would play a Crash Course video as a fun way to summarize a lesson they had taught. I would also posit that both Hank and John Green should be considered big-C creatives, and can draw many similarities between the rise of their channel as well as another channel that has likely come to the aid of struggling students: Khan Academy! Both Crash Course and Khan Academy have profoundly changed the perspective behind online education ever since their inception in the mid-2000's. I feel as if we are just starting to understand just how much they have changed the game in this time where e-learning is really the only option many students have to truly gain educational knowledge about a subject.
ReplyDeleteThis post made me very nostalgic, and then I remembered that I literally just watched a Hank Green video the other day for fun. I completely agree that there was an intrinsic motivation, considering that what he was doing was so new and unknown, especially since there was no monetary gain initially. He truly has impacted many students and made topics that would otherwise be viewed as too difficult or uninteresting as fun and engaging. While he has benefited students, let us not forget about his impact on teachers. I remember having teachers in high school that could not effectively communicate scientific concepts, so they turned to Hank Green videos to do the teaching for them. Dare I say, Hank might have been a better teacher than most of my science teachers in high school. I did not know that he was the driving force for Vidcon. Through that, he was able to create a space for Youtubers, and the like, to creatively come together and interact with their subscribers. He truly is such an amazing creator and a very skilled fast talker. I will leave this comment with a great Hank Green quote: "Why is being a nerd bad? Saying 'I noticed you're a nerd,' is like saying 'hey, I noticed you'd rather be intelligent than stupid, that you'd rather be thoughtful than be vapid, that you believe that there are things that matter more than the arrest record of Lindsay Lohan. Why is that?'"
ReplyDeleteThis was such an interesting read! My teachers would play Crash Course videos all the time in my high school classes and I always found them so enjoyable. I think that since the videos are engaging and deliver topics in a way that isn't dry, they have helped a lot of people see learning as something that can be fun. I definitely agree that both Hank and John are Big-C creatives. Without them, I don't think that educational online videos, or possibly even YouTube, would be where they are today. I had no idea that Hank Green was the one who started Vidcon, so that was a super interesting fun fact!
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed your post. I remember watching these videos in middle school and high school. At that time, youtube did not have many resources or channels to assist in education. I think what makes the Green brothers especially unique is that they did not create content simply to teach, but their goal was to help kids understand and retain information. Their engaging techniques and infographics make them unique and still successful today among the thousands of educational videos on youtube today.
ReplyDeleteI love this. Crash Course definitely helped me out in high school when I was studying for all my AP exams. I always loved how the videos were entertaining and available for everyone. I had no idea though how much Hank Green did for the YouTube community as a whole--that's incredible. I have recently been enjoying watching Hank on TikTok and it's been a lot of fun. Thanks for writing this post!
ReplyDeleteI always thought that Hank Green was so underestimated compared to his brother. His and John's videos got me through AP history classes and made it fun and entertaining! I have also been watching Hank's recent TikToks and even the method with which they interact with their audience is creative. Their audience is typically gen z and millenials, and this is exactly how to further their growth to reach their target audience. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteI love seeing a Hank Green article! I have been admiring his creativity and philanthropy for years, and completely agree that he should be considered a big-C creative. Nothing warms my heart like someone using all of their creativity and ability to do things solely out of the good of their heart. From Crash Course, to DFTBA, and even the community creation of VidCon, Hank Green has outshone many for his generosity.
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