We are tremendously excited to share that Michael Wesch is giving a keynote address at Open Video Conference 2010.

Dubbed “the explainer” by Wired magazine, Michael Wesch is a cultural anthropologist exploring the effects of new media on society and culture. After two years studying the implications of writing on a remote indigenous culture in the rain forest of Papua New Guinea, he has turned his attention to the effects of social media and digital technology on global society.

Dr. Wesch is not only a fascinating speaker, with deep insights into the budding online video culture—he’s also a talented videographer. His videos on culture, technology, education, and information have been viewed by millions, translated in over 15 languages, and are frequently featured at international film festivals and major academic conferences. If you haven’t already seen The Machine is Us/ing Us, we strongly recommend you spend the next few minutes watching and be amazed. Or visit his YouTube channel to watch his illuminating talks (especially An Anthropological Introduction to YouTube, presented at the Library of Congress in 2008).

Wesch has won several major awards for his work, including a Wired Magazine Rave Award, the John Culkin Award for Outstanding Praxis in Media Ecology, and he was recently named an Emerging Explorer by National Geographic. He has also won several teaching awards, including the 2008 CASE/Carnegie U.S. Professor of the Year for Doctoral and Research Universities.

We can’t wait to hear what Dr. Wesch has to share at this year’s OVC. For updates on the Open Video Conference, including agenda and speaker announcements, please visit http://openvideoconference.org.

Have a great idea for OVC? Want to give a talk? Visit http://openvideoconference.org/proposals.