I have produced my second video story for the Visalia Times-Delta! This video covered the story of people waiting in line for the release of PlayStation 3 for over 24 hours. It was difficult to make the story very interesting, but I tried my best, and I think it came out alright.
CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE VIDEO
… oh, and in case you didn’t know, I’m the budding multimedia reporter for the paper, at least when the copy desk gives me some time to do it. I think it’s a pretty neat thing to do, and it’s what I’d like to continue to do in the future. I’m thinking of going to graduate school in the next year to pursue just such an opportunity. In case you’d like to see the first video story I did for the paper, you can view that here. I think it’s much better than my second one.
On another note, the hysteria of the PlayStation 3 reminds me of when I walked confidently into numerous retailers with wads of cash looking for my coveted Nintendo 64. Sadly, I didn’t get my prize until after Christmas, but I understand the feeling of asking sales clerk after sales clerk, “Do you have Nintendo 64?”
Luckily, I didn’t experience anything like this:
Violence Mars PlayStation 3 Launch
The Associated Press
HARTFORD — Two armed thugs tried to rob a line of people waiting for the new PlayStation 3 game system to go on sale early Friday and shot one man who refused to give up his money, authorities said.
In Sullivan, Ind., a man was in critical condition after emergency surgery for a stab wound after he and a friend tried to rob two men of consoles they waited 36 hours in line to buy, police said.
Nationwide, short supplies of the PS3 and strong demand led to long lines of buyers, some waiting for days outside stores. Once the doors opened Friday, they pushed and shoved their way to the shelves in several cities to get at the limited supply. Two people were arrested in Fresno, Calif., after a crowd trampled people in a parking lot.
It was about 3 a.m. when the two gunmen in Putnam, a town of about 9,000 residents in northeast Connecticut, confronted 15 to 20 people standing outside a Wal-Mart store and demanded money, said State Police Lt. J. Paul Vance.
”One of the patrons resisted. That patron was shot,” Vance said.
Vance said the gunmen fled after shooting Michael Penkala, 21, of Webster, Mass., in the chest and shoulder. Penkala was in stable condition at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center in Worcester, Mass., with injuries not believed to be life-threatening, Vance said.
I have to admit, it’s kind of clever. Robbing a line full of pimply teenagers with their sweaty wads of cash waiting to buy a game console that is not worth the money. I feel real bad for the kid who got shot. I can just see the tears in his eyes as he refused to surrender his cash or his dream of owning a PlayStation 3 so he could play virtual football instead of taking a deep breath of fresh air outside and throwing a real football around.
No, seriously, it’s sad he got shot, but I just think if these kids were more patient and actually thought about the circumstances — giving up the money or having the thieves pry the PlayStation 3 from your cold, dead hands — they might realize there’s somethings more important than flashy game consoles.
OK, that’s enough for now.