60second Recap is an educational video project launched in September 2009 to provide 60-second video summaries and analysis of classic literature. The site provides one-minute video commentaries on plot, themes, characters, symbols, motifs, and other aspects of books commonly studied in secondary schools in North America.
A year after its launch, 60second Recap's website offered over 400 videos covering 35 classic literary works and 60 contemporary titles. It had also received more than 4.5 million website visits.[1] During its second year, 60second Recap continued to add to its content library, with new 60second Recap video "albums" of 10-15 individual videos covering various aspects of a work such as Beowulf or Hamlet. The website currently presents approximately 800 videos encompassing 42 classic literary works, and over 250 reviews of contemporary books of potential interest to teenagers.[2]
History
60second Recap was created by Peter Osterlund, a former journalist who, while working as a Hollywood screenwriter, began exploring media formats suitable for smartphones and other handheld devices. He said he decided to structure his concept around a 60-second video format upon noting that viewer's attention to "small-screen" video tended to lapse after about one minute.[3] Media interest in 60second Recap's subsequent launch focused on two novel aspects of its design.[4] First, 60second Recap offered a new variation on an old form by presenting its study aid material in a video-only format based on Osterlund's 60-second concept. Second, all editorial content was researched and written by a single individual, Jenny Sawyer, a book critic for The Christian Science Monitor who also served as 60second Recap's host.[3] Sawyer said this approach was intended to help students see 60second Recap not as a "cheat-sheet authority" but as a "conversation-starter" on a given work.[5]
Video format controversy
Some online critics took exception to 60second Recap's video-centric approach. They argued that 60second Recap's format trivialized Elie Wiesel's Holocaust memoir Night by summarizing its plot and themes in a series of twelve 60-second videos.[6] One journalist contended that 60second Recap-style study videos might encourage students to avoid reading altogether.[7]
Classroom acceptance
60second Recap won acceptance in schools, however,[1] and teachers said they found it effective in sparking classroom discussions.[8] 60second Recap was also cited by special education teachers as a pedagogical tool for students who have learning disabilities that interfere with their ability to comprehend written material.[9]
Industry response
In 2011, CliffsNotes announced a joint venture with AOL and reality TV show producer Mark Burnett to introduce its own series of 60-second video study guide surveys of classic literary works.[10]
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