The inland sea: An experiment in online video journalism

Submission note: A thesis submitted to the fulfilment of the requirements of the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (by creative work and exegesis) to the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, School of Journalism and Strategic Communication, La Trobe University, Bundoora.The Inland Sea: An Australian Odyssey is a bilingual (English, Norwegian) documentary web series chronicling a ten-week road trip in Australia. It is the main component of this creative PhD thesis and accompanied by a written exegesis. The aim of The Inland Sea was to respond to the challenges of rapid changes in the industry, and to demonstrate experiential learning, through experimenting with digital storytelling, bilingual narratives and online distribution. Between November 2008 and February 2009, I and a team of three, drove 16,000 kms from Melbourne to Adelaide, Darwin, Perth and back almost the same distance as from Melbourne to Oslo. The impetus for the project was to look for alternative communities in remote, rural and suburban Australia, and to experience the outback for the first time. The Inland Sea is a small adventure, and an experiment in digital journalism by a reporter with an exclusively print based background. The Inland Sea consists of 15 short episodes, in which our team visit ecovillages, spot wildlife, search for UFOs, enjoy a sit-down with royalty, and more. The episodes are accompanied by a website (www.theinlandsea.com.au) offering a range of additional material in the form of blogs, image galleries and interstitial videos and extended interviews, in addition to social media profiles on Twitter and Facebook. The series is available on a number of online networks and platforms, including Perpetual Explorer, KoldCast TV, iTunes, VBCtv, Web Series Channel, Mingle Media, YouTube, Blip and Vimeo. It has been featured on Norwegian newspaper Laagendalsposten’s website, and at the time of writing, the series is being subbed in Spanish for a young Latino audience, through Creala TV