Twitter subtitling
Encyclopedia
Twitter subtitling is the process of using live or recorded tweets
from the backchannel
to create subtitles
for video content. The use of 'twitter subtitling' has mainly been used to enhance the video archive of live events (e.g. television broadcasts, conferences etc).
BadMovieClub in which at 9pm exactly on the 13th February 2009, over 2,000 Twitter users simultaneously pressed 'Play' on the film 'The Happening
' and continued to 'tweet' whilst watching, creating a collective viewing experience.
Smith, in response, proposed that media such as DVDs and YouTube videos could be enhanced by overlaying asynchronous status updates from other Twitter users who had watched the same media .
Separately, in March 2009 Tony Hirst
(Open University
), in consultation with Liam Green-Hughes (Open University
), presented a practical solution for creating SubRip (*.srt)
subtitle files from the Twitter Search API using Yahoo Pipes. The resulting file was then uploaded to a YouTube
video allowing users to replay in realtime audio/video with an overlay of status updates from Twitter. Hirst subsequently revisited his original solution creating the simplified Twitter Subtitle web interface for the original Yahoo Pipe
The concept was revisited on the 16th February 2010 by Martin Hawksey (JISC RSC Scotland North & East) in response to a notification by Hirst made via Twitter during a broadcast of the BBC
/OU's
The Virtual Revolution
series in which Hirst requested information on replaying the #bbcrevolution hashtag in real-time.
Hawksey presented a solution, using Hirst's example from 2009, that created a subtitle file from tweets in W3C Timed Text Markup Language (TTML) which could be used with the BBC iPlayer. Hawksey, following support from Hirst, subsequently extended the Twitter Subtitles Generator tool to include: SubRip (*.srt)
creation; and SMIL 3.0 smilText creation and real-time playback.
Development of the Twitter Subtitle Generator has continued with support to directly play embeddable YouTube
and Vimeo
HTML5 videos and following a suggestion from Hirst the ability to use the Twitter subtitles to navigate within the video timeline.
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
from the backchannel
Backchannel
Backchannel is the practice of using networked computers to maintain a real-time online conversation alongside live spoken remarks. The term was coined in the field of Linguistics to describe listeners' behaviours during verbal communication, Victor Yngve 1970.The term "backchannel" generally...
to create subtitles
Subtitle (captioning)
Subtitles are textual versions of the dialog in films and television programs, usually displayed at the bottom of the screen. They can either be a form of written translation of a dialog in a foreign language, or a written rendering of the dialog in the same language, with or without added...
for video content. The use of 'twitter subtitling' has mainly been used to enhance the video archive of live events (e.g. television broadcasts, conferences etc).
Development History
The concept of combining video and twitter feeds for recorded events was first proposed Tom Smith in February 2009 after experiencing Graham Linehan'sGraham Linehan
Graham Linehan is an Irish television writer, actor, comedian and director who, often in partnership with Arthur Mathews, has written or co-written a number of popular television comedies...
BadMovieClub in which at 9pm exactly on the 13th February 2009, over 2,000 Twitter users simultaneously pressed 'Play' on the film 'The Happening
The Happening (2008 film)
The Happening is a 2008 science fiction thriller film written, co-produced and directed by M. Night Shyamalan that follows a woman, her husband, the husband's best friend, and the friend's daughter as they try to escape from an inexplicable natural disaster. The plot revolves around a mysterious...
' and continued to 'tweet' whilst watching, creating a collective viewing experience.
Smith, in response, proposed that media such as DVDs and YouTube videos could be enhanced by overlaying asynchronous status updates from other Twitter users who had watched the same media .
Separately, in March 2009 Tony Hirst
Tony Hirst (blogger)
Tony Hirst is an academic in the Department of Communication and Systems at the Open University, but better known for the OUseful Blog on practical applications of Open Data.- Notable Achievements :...
(Open University
Open University
The Open University is a distance learning and research university founded by Royal Charter in the United Kingdom...
), in consultation with Liam Green-Hughes (Open University
Open University
The Open University is a distance learning and research university founded by Royal Charter in the United Kingdom...
), presented a practical solution for creating SubRip (*.srt)
SubRip
SubRip is a software program for Windows which "rips" subtitles and their timings from video. It is free software, released under the GNU GPL...
subtitle files from the Twitter Search API using Yahoo Pipes. The resulting file was then uploaded to a YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
video allowing users to replay in realtime audio/video with an overlay of status updates from Twitter. Hirst subsequently revisited his original solution creating the simplified Twitter Subtitle web interface for the original Yahoo Pipe
The concept was revisited on the 16th February 2010 by Martin Hawksey (JISC RSC Scotland North & East) in response to a notification by Hirst made via Twitter during a broadcast of the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
/OU's
Open University
The Open University is a distance learning and research university founded by Royal Charter in the United Kingdom...
The Virtual Revolution
The Virtual Revolution
The Virtual Revolution is a British television documentary series presented by Aleks Krotoski, which began airing on BBC Two on 30 January 2010. A co-production between the BBC and the Open University, the series looks at the impact the World Wide Web has had since its inception 20 years ago...
series in which Hirst requested information on replaying the #bbcrevolution hashtag in real-time.
Hawksey presented a solution, using Hirst's example from 2009, that created a subtitle file from tweets in W3C Timed Text Markup Language (TTML) which could be used with the BBC iPlayer. Hawksey, following support from Hirst, subsequently extended the Twitter Subtitles Generator tool to include: SubRip (*.srt)
SubRip
SubRip is a software program for Windows which "rips" subtitles and their timings from video. It is free software, released under the GNU GPL...
creation; and SMIL 3.0 smilText creation and real-time playback.
Development of the Twitter Subtitle Generator has continued with support to directly play embeddable YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
and Vimeo
Vimeo
Vimeo is a video-sharing website on which users can upload, share, and view videos. It was founded by Zach Klein and Jake Lodwick in November 2004...
HTML5 videos and following a suggestion from Hirst the ability to use the Twitter subtitles to navigate within the video timeline.
Examples of Use
- Delivering Digital Britain: Lord Carter. Recorded February 24, 2009
- BBC/OU The Virtual Revolution Episodes 3&4. Originally broadcasted on February 13, 2010 and February 20, 2010
- Gordon Brown (PM) Building Britain’s Digital Future announcement with twitter subtitles. Recorded March 23, 2010
- JISC10 Conference Keynotes with Twitter Subtitles. Recorded April 13, 2010
- Leaders debate on BBC iPlayer with twitter subtitles from parliamentary candidates. Recorded May 02, 2010
- Google I/O 2010 – Keynote Day 2 Android Demo with Twitter Subtitles. Recorded May 11, 2010
- Institutional Web Management Workshop (IWMW)IWMWInstitutional Web Management Workshop is a series of workshop events organised by UKOLN to provide professional development for web managers, policy makers, developers, designers and information professionals related to the UK's higher and further education communities.The workshops aim to...
2010 - Plenary session recordings. Recorded July 12-14, 2010 - Association for Learning TechnologyAssociation for Learning TechnologyThe Association for Learning Technology is a United Kingdom professional body and scholarly association. ALT brings together people and organizations with an interest in the use of learning technology...
ALT-C 2010 - Keynotes by Donald Clark and Sugata MitraSugata MitraProf. Sugata Mitra is Professor of Educational Technology at the School of Education, Communication and Language Sciences at Newcastle University, UK. He is best known for his Hole in the Wall experiment, and widely cited in works on literacy and education...
. Recorded September 07/08, 2010