When discussing the ways in which hypermedia and hypertext writing has extended beyond the confines of purely writing text we can begin by looking at the writing of Ted Nelson, the man who coined both terms. In his discussion of Project Xandu system (an alternative to the World Wide Web) Nelson discusses the freedom the consumer has to navigate between documents and pieces of text to gain a greater understanding. Although his ideas a discussed in relation to his system which rivals that of the internet we interact with today, many of the ideas are transferable. Existing within a networked exists are collection of information is no longer a linear reading of a particular text. We know assimilate smaller pieces of information from a variety of sources of a variety of formats that coexist with video, images and music. Instead of gleaning our understanding from a single document before moving our attention to another we are more likely to shift between ‘series of text chunks connected by links which offer the reader different pathways (Nelson, 1992),’ ensuring our knowledge encapsulates countless viewpoints.

In this discussion it is important to note that although information is now presented in smaller packages of information linking to other packages which explore similar information, these packages exists within a stream of information. In relating ideas of hypertext to the YouTube platform it is clear that the accumulation of information is essential in it’s design and use. Within the platform of YouTube every video in itself is a packet of information, conversely each user is themselves another source of information. This information is then embedded in the stream of information that is YouTube. Like the ideas explored within Nelson’s writing the viewer is empowered and free to follow their interest whilst the producers themselves are also free to present their content in a way which ‘better reflect the structure of what [they} are writing about; and readers, choosing a pathway, may follow their interests or current line of thought in a way heretofore considered impossible (Nelson, 1992).’ The consumer is able to navigate content by following the suggested videos, consume videos within a predetermined playlists or by accessing the work of a particular user. Here they are able to tailor their experience to their needs typically consuming videos and content within a stream that is constructed both by the platform’s interface but also their own discretion. For the producer, they are able to shape their work by dividing content into an episodic nature, released periodically revealing the information over time. Alternatively the information presented within a YouTube video could be introductory with the body of work existing on an external platform. The networked nature of YouTube places both the consumer and producer in a heightened position of importance, the viewer has in themselves become an editor of their own narrative of information where they dictate the way in which they traverse this stream. The creator then also has a freedom in the ways in which they present the work within this stream, finding the ideal way in which content should presented as a reflection of the content that it contains.