THE LATE LATE SHOW
The great UGC (User Generated Content) debate continues. Well, it does here.
Thanks to Andy (again) for forwarding this link from the Guardian
media.guardian.co.uk/site/story/0,,1949139,00.html
It’s a two-edged thing. If I had something 'particularly editorially important or unique’ on my mobile, say (apart from compromising snaps of my mates) then I’d be looking for the highest bidder, not haggling with some assistant at BBC News and Current Affairs over a measly 100 quid use fee. And not when they’re shedding jobs at the rate they are in the so-called regions.
Then again, you can’t blame broadcasters, not when they’re being bombarded with zillions of emails and images every day, unsolicited or not. They’re hardly likely to cough up when people are throwing free content their way, are they? Besides, telly’s already having to compete with self-styled media moguls on the internet, where pretty much everybody has their own website, or at least a page on MySpace. Or a podcast. Or a blog…
Where it’s going to end, I wonder? Surely it can’t be long before your status in society will be judged not by your class, income or education, but by your web presence, not by who you are but by who you say you are – or what other people say you are. Not by what you achieve, but by the number of hits you get. There’s digital democracy for you.
In the Guardian piece, I like the way the BBC guidelines advise -
"Audiences should not be encouraged to think that payment is the norm, or in any way encouraged to take risks, put themselves in danger or break any laws in order to secure what they perceive to be material of high monetary value."
Changed days at the BBC then. Not so long ago Noel Edmonds fronted a show where the audience was encouraged to do exactly that – until somebody died – in the name of light entertainment. And funny to think how Johnny Knoxville and his crew have made their fortune with dumb ass stunts you’d need to be off your face to take part in.
I guess the Beeb’s message here is, don’t ask us to carry the can for the punter daft or desperate enough to put their neck on the line for a bit of rare footage. Tell that to all the freelance cameramen working in war zones for less than a hundred quid a day.
posted by Leanne Smith at 1:26 PM
2 Comments:
"Tell that to all the freelance cameramen working in war zones for less than a hundred quid a day"
...hmm.. care to back up that last bit ? Because if you can't, then you have just become that which you seem to lambast.. trash media.
I’d say thanks for the above comment but the writer doesn’t deserve it. The only reason I’ve published it is because I want my readers to see the abuse I get for doing nothing more than writing a blog that this month so far has attracted around 5000 visitors.
Don’t they get it? It’s a blog. I don’t work under anybody’s guidelines or standards. Nobody’s paying me. If it’s facts you’re after, there’s plenty of information elsewhere.
About freelancers working in dangerous conditions – and the body count -
http://www.newssafety.com/casualties/mediastaff06.htm
Or go to http://www.franksmyth.com and read his essay on the abuse of stringers
Or read about the Rory Peck Trust
http://www.rorypecktrust.org/awards05/review05.pdf
They support the families of dead freelance cameramen, who often don’t have enough money to pay for a funeral. You might want to ask why – or why they can’t afford insurance or accommodation or food.
I was making a serious point here. Shame on you and your snide comments.
Leanne
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