# What's your opinion on video only stories on news websites? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 1, 2013, 12:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-opinion-on-video-only-stories-on-news-websites/657193 "2013-05-01T12:41:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Jman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jman/32/4416_2.png) [@Jman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jman)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2013, 12:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-opinion-on-video-only-stories-on-news-websites/657193/1 "2013-05-01T12:41:17Z")
They drive me up a wall. There’s an interesting story I want to read while browsing CNN or something, and I click, and it’s video only. I didn’t come to watch video streams of the TV show, I came to read a story. I am perfectly fine if there’s the video segment of a story, as long as there’s at least a short summary of the news accompanying it. I read news at lunch and in the mornings…often in places where it isn’t feasible to crank up the volume on my phone or tablet and listen and watch a video clip. Frustrating. ---
**Author:** ![NBYodo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a9a28c/32.png) [@NBYodo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NBYodo)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2013, 12:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-opinion-on-video-only-stories-on-news-websites/657193/2 "2013-05-01T12:42:30Z")
Totally agree. ---
**Author:** ![Saraya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b3f665/32.png) [@Saraya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saraya)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2013, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-opinion-on-video-only-stories-on-news-websites/657193/3 "2013-05-01T12:45:21Z")
> [@Jman](#): > > They drive me up a wall. There’s an interesting story I want to read while browsing CNN or something, and I click, and it’s video only. I didn’t come to watch video streams of the TV show, I came to read a story. I am perfectly fine if there’s the video segment of a story, as long as there’s at least a short summary of the news accompanying it. I read news at lunch and in the mornings…often in places where it isn’t feasible to crank up the volume on my phone or tablet and listen and watch a video clip. Frustrating. Sign of the times ; we’re just too lazy to read - even if it’s something that interests us. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2013, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-opinion-on-video-only-stories-on-news-websites/657193/4 "2013-05-01T12:55:32Z")
Hate, hate, hate. Makes me reach for the little X in the corner. > [@Saraya](#): > > Sign of the times ; we’re just too lazy to read - even if it’s something that interests us. No, I’m too lazy (if that’s the right word for it) for video stories. Show me a written article and I can get the point of it in 5 seconds (especially if it has an appropriate headline) and decide how much more time I want to spend learning the details. ---
**Author:** ![yellowjacketcoder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/4bbf92/32.png) [@yellowjacketcoder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yellowjacketcoder)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2013, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-opinion-on-video-only-stories-on-news-websites/657193/5 "2013-05-01T13:29:36Z")
I hate these too. If I wanted to watch the news, I’d turn on a TV. Too much of video news is pointless filler anyway. I can read faster than the reporter can talk, and I don’t need to dig out headphones to read a transcript. Just strikes me as lazy on the news’ part. ---
**Author:** ![Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/prof.pepperwinkle/32/13627_2.png) [@Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Prof.Pepperwinkle)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2013, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-opinion-on-video-only-stories-on-news-websites/657193/6 "2013-05-01T13:32:48Z")
Agreed, just let me read the story. I can be finished with the article by the time the Happy Idiot News Talk is through introducing it. ---
**Author:** ![Mithras](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f04885/32.png) [@Mithras](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mithras)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2013, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-opinion-on-video-only-stories-on-news-websites/657193/7 "2013-05-01T13:33:51Z")
There are very few news stories that are interesting enough that I’m willing to take it in at whatever pace a video dictates. And if I am that interested in it, I’m more likely to turn to Google to find an actual article. I suspect that CNN uses videos so they can put the story together once and use it for the website and on air. But there are online only news sites that do this as well. I am not a fan of them. Even worse is when I’m looking up how to do something programming related and I get nothing but video links of people talking about/typing out their explanations. When is that ever more helpful? ---
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2013, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-opinion-on-video-only-stories-on-news-websites/657193/8 "2013-05-01T13:36:20Z")
They take too long and rarely tell you anything that you can’t get in text form. If the video’s relevant, fine, but often it’s essentially someone reading a story out to you. They’re also not always watchable on my phone, which is how I mostly browse these days. ---
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2013, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-opinion-on-video-only-stories-on-news-websites/657193/9 "2013-05-01T13:36:47Z")
Hate them. Will immediately click out of them. It’s a ploy to get me to watch an advertisement. ---
**Author:** ![iftheresaway](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/ecae2f/32.png) [@iftheresaway](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iftheresaway)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2013, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-opinion-on-video-only-stories-on-news-websites/657193/10 "2013-05-01T13:47:18Z")
Completely agree with the trend here: hate them, and will almost always click away immediately. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2013, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-opinion-on-video-only-stories-on-news-websites/657193/11 "2013-05-01T13:48:57Z")
Hate 'em, and feel like I’ve been tricked when I click on a headline in my feed reader and get directed to a video. Too many of those and I unsubscribe from the site altogether. ---
**Author:** ![Student\_Driver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3da27b/32.png) [@Student\_Driver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Student_Driver)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2013, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-opinion-on-video-only-stories-on-news-websites/657193/12 "2013-05-01T14:11:32Z")
Hate 'em. Video stories take too long to give too little information. CNN and BBC both haphazardly give notification that a given link is video; usually there’s a little camera icon or something, but not always. And I’ve noticed that if a transcript is provided of a video, it’s really obvious how little they’re actually saying. A handful of one-line “paragraphs” at most. I’ve noticed that my local TV news sites always provide a text story, and never auto-play any video that may be included. Nice way to catch up on local stuff without having to watch TV. ---
**Author:** ![RandMcnally](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b782af/32.png) [@RandMcnally](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RandMcnally)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2013, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-opinion-on-video-only-stories-on-news-websites/657193/13 "2013-05-01T14:17:58Z")
The only time I’ll actually watch the video is if it’s the Onion. Other than that I immediately close out of it and find a written article. ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2013, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-opinion-on-video-only-stories-on-news-websites/657193/14 "2013-05-01T14:20:28Z")
Hate, pit, loathe, despise. Especially when the video is padded with provider graphics or useless babble, or has shitty editing like an abrupt ending. If they can’t write a 50-word summary to go with it, I almost never bother to watch. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2013, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-opinion-on-video-only-stories-on-news-websites/657193/15 "2013-05-01T14:23:17Z")
Auto play video is the worst. I’ve started keeping my pc sound muted because of that nasty feature. It’s so much faster to scan a printed article. ---
**Author:** ![Kiros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/439d5e/32.png) [@Kiros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kiros)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2013, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-opinion-on-video-only-stories-on-news-websites/657193/16 "2013-05-01T14:33:41Z")
Absolutely refuse to watch. My time is valuable and I can read through articles an order of magnitude more quickly. I can even google the story, find a quality text article, read through it, and still come out well ahead of watching the video from the page I was already on. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2013, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-opinion-on-video-only-stories-on-news-websites/657193/17 "2013-05-01T14:34:27Z")
I’m with the majority here–hate those things. Hate them even more when I have to wait through an ad to see them. I just “x” out these days and google the story for a print source. ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2013, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-opinion-on-video-only-stories-on-news-websites/657193/18 "2013-05-01T14:34:57Z")
Like pagination and slideshows, it means I skip it. ---
**Author:** ![sandra\_nz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eada6e/32.png) [@sandra\_nz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sandra_nz)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2013, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-opinion-on-video-only-stories-on-news-websites/657193/19 "2013-05-01T14:36:56Z")
Another hater. I want to skim read a written article and if it interests me enough I’ll properly read it. I don’t have the patience to listen to someone prattle on. ---
**Author:** ![delphica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e9a140/32.png) [@delphica](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/delphica)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2013, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-opinion-on-video-only-stories-on-news-websites/657193/20 "2013-05-01T14:53:12Z")
Hate, hate, hate. I will click out of them on principle, even if the headline was “White House in Flames After Surprise Attack.” That is how much I hate them. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-opinion-on-video-only-stories-on-news-websites/657193.md?page=2)