Moms, love ‘em or leave ‘em, are overall a class of human beings worth celebrating at least once a year (maybe twice, if your family is generous about birthdays). But how to do it? It depends on what kind of resources you have at your disposal. Kids make things out of macaroni and construction paper. This is because kids don’t have much money. Guess who else doesn’t have a lot of money? Members of the online video community! So it’s little surprise to see a number of videos celebrating mom-dom circulating at this time of year.

Mittymoo’s short video odes to motherhood have been cracking me up since Christmas 2006, when Christmas Tree redefined the act of tree-trimming forever. And for Mother’s Day 2008, he’s topped himself:

Read more of this story

Speed Racer is the big movie this weekend (though it will supposedly be stomped by an Iron foot). And if you’re a Speed freak there’s a spoof over on AtomFilms (where I used to work) that is a dead-on parody called Race Speedster.

It runs a little long, and the subject matter is a over the top (crystal meth anyone?), but the voice acting and stiff animation are brilliant.

And if that gets you in the mood for the real thing, Hulu is running the classic animated series right now (video after the jump).

Read more of this story

If you’ve got a YouTube account, a camera, and a deep-seated yearning to get behind the wheel of a plug-in hybrid, Google wants to hear about it. Google.org’s RechargeIT program is hosting a contest soliciting videos from wannabe plug-in drivers, as well as testimonials from proud plug-in owners, on YouTube. The winning videos will be featured on RechargeIT’s web site and win yet-to-be announced prizes. Earth2Tech has the full story.

While online video has done much to connect the world by allowing us to share our stories with one another, we often enjoy the tales in front of our computer screens, alone. What if the connective and collective experience of enjoying a film could unite people across the world and the web? That is documentary filmmaker Jehane Noujaim’s goal with this Saturday’s Pangea Day, an event in which 24 different films from all over the world can be viewed in person, online, on TV and on your mobile phone.

Noujaim first presented her idea to Al Gore at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival; in 2006, she was awarded a TED Prize to fulfill her wish of bringing the world together for one day a year through the power of film. It’ll be like a multicultural celebration of the human spirit, akin to Al Gore’s decadent Live Earth concert series, but with fewer self-absorbed rock stars.

Now Nokia and Gore’s own Current have come on board to help collect and disseminate stories. Noujaim spoke to NewTeeVee in New York this week amid last-minute preparations. Read more of this story

Nerve’s new list of comedy classics, The 50 Greatest Commercial Parodies of All Time, is in some respects a pale imitation of its 50 Greatest Sketches of All Time list from last month. But I tried to find for you, dear reader, the five hidden gems of this list that you may not have seen.

And it was easier this time. First, I eliminated the SNL entries about vaginas. Then, I eliminated the other ones about vaginas. Then I eliminated the other SNL entries. This reduced the list from 50 to eight. And of the eight remaining sketches, there are definitely a few you might not have see — or may just really want to see again…

MADtv: “Levitrol” (2006)

This is totally sold by Keegan-Michael Key’s performance as a man who asked his doctor if Levitol was right for him…and didn’t get quite the answer he was expecting.
Read more of this story

Super Bowl Ads to Cost $3M; and that’s just the entry-level spot. (The Wall Street Journal)

NCTA President: “Broadband providers do not block access to content”; Kyle McSlarrow testifies on Capital Hill that there is “no market failure” warranting Net Neutrality law. (Broadcasting and Cable)

Javier Bardem to do Web PSA; Academy Award-winning actor to appear in Spanish-language commercial to raise awareness about Saharan refugees. (Variety)

ABCNews.com Continues Record Growth; news site pulled in 221.7 million page views, 22 million unique viewers; video views up 50 percent over same time last year. (Lost Remote)

This Old House Crew Enters Blog Cabin; fans of the shows can vote online on the final design for a fire pit to be built by the collaboration. (Multichannel News)

It’s Jerry Time Creator Launching Online Animation Festival; Webjam will debut this month in Brookline, Mass., featuring web classics like JibJab and Happy Tree Friends. (WebJam)

The Mena Show is a period piece, set in 1994, starring 30-year-old Six Apart co-founder/president Mena Trott as the 17-year-old version of herself. It’s “what my vlog would have looked like if I had the web tools available now … in 1994,” Trott says via the clip’s YouTube description, but technically, there’s little evidence that it was made and distributed via modern technology. There’s a knowingness with which Trott address the camera that seems a bit too assured and normalized for the era, but other than that, The Mena Show could be plausibly played off as an actual antique, a 14-year-old VHS tape updated to YouTube on a lark.

In segments stitched together with title cards accurately recalling the stop-start MTV aesthetic of the time, a beret-clad Mena addresses the camera with a series of complaints and celebrations. She’s mainly concerned with credibility –– she calls out a friend for being a Rocky Horror Picture Show poseur, she complains about jocks dancing to Green Day even though they haven’t “earned” it. This (mostly imagined) fight for street cred was the fundamental culture war of the mid-90s, and the war was mostly fought by Doc Marten-wearing teens and 20-somethings wandering suburban and college-town streets. Mena’s earnest obsession with the stratified authenticity of cool is pitch-perfect.

Read more of this story

Media Execs Expect Big Revenue Growth for Short-Form Video; 38 percent of respondents to Accenture’s latest media survey say short videos will generate biggest growth. (release)

Quincy Smith on YouTube Users; during a keynote, CBS Interactive president notes that clips often do better when posted by someone other than the network and that there is a “…need to be more comfortable with users as editors.” (Online Video Watch)

Family Guy Guy Gets a Huge Deal; Seth MacFarlane inks pact with FOX worth $100 million, deal encompasses new media projects related to his TV properties. (release)

ABC to Add More Video Content; network upping short-form content like celeb interview series Starcrossed as well as Dance Studio to accommodate advertiser demand. (TVWeek)

FOX Says OldTeeVee Still Rules; as upfronts approach, network commissions study that says TV is the best format for advertising. (MediaWeek)

Legally Blonde Moves Online; MTV.com to host cast info, audition reels, and full episodes of the reality show searching for the next Elle Woods. (Multichannel News)

Do Not Panic, This is Only a Test; Vegas TV station shuts down feed — while on air — to demonstrate what will happen to analog TV during digital switch next year. (Video Business)