talkmagic.co.uk

I've actually asked quite a few lay people about this and all I've asked, although are curious about how magic works haven't actually spent the time looking on the internet for exposure sites.
Obviously as people into magic we are therefore more likely to come across these sorts of things.
Your average joe is curious but cannot be arsed to go out of their way to find these sorts of things. I am not including proper internet nerds here but they never go out anyway so are not really a threat to anyone.
I also think that putting the art of magic down to purely the sleights and Gimmicks we use is really underplaying what it is all about. I personally believe that it is the performance itself that is what attracts people. Even as a magician I have watched other people perform knowing how it is done yet I am still amazed and for me it is both the performance and the skill that I am amazed and entertained at.
So is this the end of magic?? Of course not. It may float in and out of mainstream entertainment but will always amaze and entertain the people we perform for.

aren't we all forgetting something??
I have heard people who say..."ive seen blaine's street magic vid loads a times", so i then i perform a trick from it, and they still enjoy it.

The fact is that most people have never seen a magician perform close-up before (if they have, not too often), so instantly we have them on-side.

Im sure if you perform to a kid who has previously seen how invis deck works, it could still be ok , say you do it at the end of a routine where u have switched the deck in the process, and thrown a bit of coin or sponge work in there as well... i doubt very much, that the explanation will enter his mind when you perform it.

It's one thing knowing but it's totally different being able to do.

It's ONLY geeks and anoraks that browse YouTube looking for exposure, not true magicians. There will still be a genuine need and desire for magicians by those who want to experience it as it's intended to be experienced and enjoyed.

I can just see a group of people lining up in front of a PC at a wedding reception, birthday party etc. to watch magic on YouTube, clicking video after video and taking a sip of champagne as they upload.

What will impact is the frequency of the 'I know how you did that' morons and how we deal with them - but as I started, knowing and doing are two different things.