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New York, 4:18 PM
Sat Nov 28
12 posts in the last 24 hours
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10/12/09
06/22/09
I am now picturing the future of internet re-bloggers/news aggregators/gossip sites as a whole lot of puppies spinning around, chasing their own tails, briefly interrupted by the odd publicist wielding a rolled up media release to be used as copy by the dizzy puppies.
06/22/09
06/22/09
06/22/09
06/22/09
06/22/09
06/22/09
06/21/09
06/22/09
I think when we label writing and journalism (even sad 'party journalism') as useless and not labor intensive, well, that's exactly the kind of product we are eventually going to get.
You always need to pay for quality work. I don't go to a doctor who does it just for the "exposure" or the "experience" of being a physician, and I don't want to read publications staffed by people there for the free food or the guest list.
06/22/09
Dave,
I agree completely, I think honest work deserves honest pay. My point is about accuracy. Gawker doesn't pay their video interns and they're explicated told not to have editorial aspirations. So Gawker, like GofaG has a staff that is "largely unpaid." as well. Are they both running businesses based upon slave labor? It would be difficult for Gawker to exist without the help of unpaid or underpaid workers.
Gawker pays their writers, but how much, and is it enough to not be considered slave labor?
The devil is all in the details. The details, which when left out can allow you to spin a story in any direction you wish.
06/22/09
06/22/09
My original post in this thread was meant to be sarcastic. I actually think the video interns do important and difficult work. Having to sort through tons of video to find things worth posting is as valuable as actually curating posts for Gawker, in fact it is almost the same thing. Granted you don't need to have the writing skills to write a narrative around it but it is still valuable work that is, as I understand it, unpaid.
06/22/09
06/21/09
Foster, did you actually bother to interview Rachelle? I'm sure she's not very hard to reach.
06/21/09
#boomroasted
I kid, I kid.
I can confirm independently that GofaG is both largely built on free labor AND does arrange paid freelance gigs for some of their contributors on particular occasions.
Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go line up for some free bread before it's all gone.
06/21/09
Either way, though, good post!
06/21/09
...?
06/22/09
06/22/09
06/22/09
Because you're making assumptions about how and why Rachelle runs her business rather than asking her yourself. Also, because you've got questions for her, which you could easily ask. Like why can't she pay her people, and if she can, why won't she?
As for getting paid, I hope they are paying you and paying you well. I enjoy your posts here, even if I wished you had contacted the subjects for a quote.
06/22/09
06/21/09
But an entrepreneur should be embarrassed to have to beg around for free work. It's like bouncing paychecks.
And a worker should be embarrassed to accept an ongoing arrangement, un-negotiated, where their work has zero value. Even more embarrassing if you're someone who's parents built a fortune, and you repay the kindness of their financing your education by continuing to live off their teat while you are a professional unpaid scenester.
But then again, we are all embarrassing!
06/21/09