Taking the "Crazies" Seriously!

There's a news story making international headlines right now about a supposed time traveler who pops up in film footage of the 1928 premiere of Charlie Chaplin's film, The Circus. An Irish filmmaker is getting major media attention for an odd discovery he has made.

In a YouTube video that has drawn 2.8-million views and counting, George Clarke, points out a woman who walks by the camera and appears to be talking on a cell phone. While the scene of someone walking by with her palm to her face and talking is not uncommon in 2010, it's rather unusual in 1928.

Clarke draws the most obvious of conclusions: the mystery woman is a time traveler talking on a cell phone that requires no cell tower signal.

"What?! That's an outrageous claim!" is the reaction people generally have when seeing the story. But thanks to YouTube, so-called "crazies" making these claims are gaining credibility and getting into the news.

To be fair, Clarke doesn't seem all that crazy. Okay...his time travelling theory is a bit loony. Still, he seems like a normal guy otherwise, and is a legit independent filmmaker. But prior to YouTube, I don't think he would ever have gotten the attention of traditional media outlets because he would have been labeled as a nut.

In the olden days, he would have to call or write people like me and pitch his idea. That exchange would have went something like this:

Clarke: "Hi, I have a news story idea. I found a woman in a Charlie Chaplin film who looks like she's talking on a cell phone. I think she's a time traveler. Can you put this in the news?"

News Editor: "Uh...okaaay...thanks for getting in touch with me, but um...yeah...we don't do those kinds of stories. No offense, I actually think you're kind of crazy. Bye."

Nowadays, Clarke just has to make a video, upload it to YouTube and hope a million people will watch it. Once that happens, it's not him who's calling the media - it's the media calling him. The world is then treated to an intriguing story with ample water cooler buzz. Isn't it funny how a million YouTube views can give you instant credibility?

For the record, I don't think the woman in the clip is a time traveller. She's likely a woman shielding her face while talking to herself because she's...well...probably a little crazy.