I haven't found anything on any Czech gaming news web sites. I have found screens from the TES MMO though and now I need bleach.
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Totally Not Corrupt Professional Objective Gaming Journalism DRAMA
- Thread starter fizzelopeguss
- Start date
almondblight
Arcane
- Joined
- Aug 10, 2004
- Messages
- 2,633
The guy (Rab Florence) is a pretty bad writer, but I suppose it's nice he brought up explicit bribery in gaming journalism. The thing is, he left out this:
On Potato too, see no evil hear no evil. But now I know that Skyrim won some award for best game of the year
.
There was a time they prided themselves of not making any deals, even telling stories about going to publisher paid trips to nice hotels in foreign countries and then writing only half page previews because they didnt really see much of the actual game.. and the pr people being angry and calling them because they wanted atleast two pages..
These days it's pretty much "Yeah, we have to do it or otherwise our competitors/internet will take our readers."
I really dont know what to think about the newest issue and the Dishonored review. Three pages of text, 94 points and at the end of the review: "This text is based on a three day review event held by Bethesda in London."
- Joined
- Oct 30, 2009
- Messages
- 6,711
Yeah, they ousted that shit occasionally up until 1,5 - 2 years ago I think, maybe even a year ago but not so much anymore. Quality of Pelit-magazine has gone very much to the utter gutter, at least Tapio "I FUCKING LOVE BIOWARE!" Salminen is gone due layoffs by publishing company.
I wrote lenghtier posts about Pelit in here and here.
waywardOne
Arcane
- Joined
- Aug 28, 2010
- Messages
- 2,318
Opinions aren't automatically valid despite what the Whole Foods contingent likes to preach, and having to vet them through some personality or background test is absurd. The point is that these people are decidedly unqualified to do their job, and whether I agree or disagree with their conclusions is purely coincidental.
sea
inXile Entertainment
- Joined
- May 3, 2011
- Messages
- 5,698
What standard are you using to determine whether they are qualified or not?
grotsnik
Arcane
- Joined
- Jul 11, 2010
- Messages
- 1,671
Has this been posted yet? It's a simple breakdown but pretty unanswerable.
I covered the video game industry from 2008 to 2011, doing things like volunteer blogging at 1UP, freelancing for mainstream sites and launching my own dot com (CriticalPixels.com, no longer up) dedicated to video game criticism. In that short time I witnessed one of the most insular, nepotistic and ethically obtuse communities I’ve come across.
In the past few days, the conversation I always wanted PR, game journalists and readers to have is finally starting to come to the surface. For those in the know, I’m referring to the floodgates opened by Robert Florence’s Eurogamer editorial entitled, "Lost Humanity 18: A Table of Doritos," where he used an image of Geoff Keighley, surrounded by a Doritos, Mountain Dew and a Halo 4 cardboard cutout as a springboard to comment on the state of the video game journalism.
For a summary of some of the events that followed Florence’s editorial, read "The Wainwright Profile" over at Wings Over Sealand and check out thisexcellent thread on the video game forum, NeoGAF.
Journalist? Writer? Blogger? Critic? Gaming enthusiast?
A critical problem with the consumer press side of the video game industry is that one word: journalist. Those in the field -- like Geoff Keighley -- seem to have no problem referring to themselves as journalists, yet their behavior mirrors that of a blatant marketing personality and this causes understandable friction between themselves and their readers and viewers.
I come from a traditional journalism background. I have a bachelors injournalism, completed graduate-level program work at Georgetown’s Institute for Political Journalism and worked at several print newspapers, to name a few CV-related criteria. The majority of what you see on video game websites and in magazines would never pass for journalism.
Why? There's two components to this. One is that most game "journalists" either don’t have a journalism degree or any kind of journalism experience prior to being hired at a website or magazine. The industry is so flooded (and has been for a while) with those of aspirations of covering video games, that the cheapest and most ethically-malleable labor wins out.
Now, I'm not saying you should have to have a journalism degree to cover the industry, but some experience has to be required as a baseline. For example, knowing Associated Press style, how to attribute sources, the difference between a background and an anonymous source -- knowledge of these things indicate a potentially decent journalist.
However, as I alluded to in the previous paragraph, that’s not the way the industry functions. Cheap labor wins. Magazines and websites want high profit margins and many would rather cycle through hires on a regular basis than have an established staff of real journalists.
Ethics? I’ve got my "own" or : cognitive dissonance
Don’t worry: I didn't forget about the second component. Sure, a big problem is that most video game journalists aren’t actual journalists, but the greater problem is that of ethics.
In nearly every undergraduate journalism program, students are taught about ethics codes, such as the Society of Professional Journalists Code of Ethics, which under its "Act Independently" section says journalists should:
Here are some examples of how I saw ethics routinely violated during my time covering the industry:
For example, do you really need to fly to an exotic locale and have everything paid for (transportation, food, drinks, etc.), to play a game and share your thoughts? No. Public relations and marketing will do everything they can to influence you in every way they can. That’s their job. Your job as a journalist is to say, "No."
Anyone who argues things are fine the way they are and have been is engaging in cognitive dissonance. Saying, "Yeah, I got an advance copy of the game but it won’t influence me," is lying to the inherent wiring of your brain. Sure, it sounds OK, but it’s an excuse.
It’s in our nature to practice self deceit, as this blog post entitled, "How and Why We Lie to Ourselves: Cognitive Dissonance," referencing Morton Hunt’s "The Story of Psychology" explains, "People quickly adjust their values to fit their behavior, even when it is clearly immoral. Those stealing from their employer will claim that 'Everyone does it' so they would be losing out if they didn't, or alternatively, 'I’m underpaid, so I deserve a little extra on the side.'"
From one side of the aisle to the other
Not only do we have the problem of ethics and Internet personalities masquerading as journalists, but the common-know, but rarely-acknowledged fact that many video game journalists ultimately see their job as a stepping stone to a position at a game company.
It’s a common sight to see a journalist spend sometimes as little as a year or two at a video game website or magazine and then get hired at a video game company for a position in marketing or PR like a community manager.
This hardly ever looks good to readers as coverage that journalist provided of that particular company and its products gets looked back over with a healthy dose of skepticism and cynicism.
I witnessed plenty of "journalists" using events like press junkets as just glorified networking opportunities and joking that they’ll do a sloppy job covering the event (often turning in their copy late), as the real goal is to exchange business cards, make friends and get those LinkedIn connections flowing.
(Almost) No one is clean, but we can be transparent
When I worked on my own, volunteer blogging at places like 1UP and for my own dot com, I stuck to my own standard, journalistic ethics. I never accepted a single product or favor as I was my own boss.
Confession time: When I was freelancing, I followed the policies of my editors and the higher ups. That is, I engaged in cognitive dissonance. Yes, I accepted airfare paid for by game companies. Yes, I accepted advance copies of games. I was told, "That's business as usual. It’s how everyone operates and we can’t afford to do it any other way. You want to write for us, you play by those rules."
Did it compromise how I covered things? Absolutely. Anyone that says it doesn't is lying to themselves. Sure, I can claim it didn't, but just the mere perception from readers that anything was accepted in exchange for coverage, can never look good, no matter how you frame it.
Anyone that’s covered this industry, going back for years, has accepted some form of freebie. Whether it was paid airfare, special advance copies of games or networking opportunities that turned into jobs.
Looking ahead
Like I mentioned in the introduction to this editorial, this is a conversation that’s been a long time coming. I'm glad it's happening.
While there are a lot of people trying to re-frame the argue by saying things like, “Why so serious about video games?” or, “It’s all conspiracy theories,” the readers and fans can see past that.
The boat has been rocked. A lot of people are nervous that business won’t continue as usual. It shouldn’t. I applaud those like Robert Florence that did some actual journalism and frankly, upset a lot of folks sitting in cushy positions that were never questioned.
To say any or all aspects of the industry are beyond criticism is individuals covering for one another. Any industry with integrity can stand introspection and should welcome it.
Trust is a fragile concept. It's one that's always assumed between readers and publications like websites and magazines. However, that trust has always been just that, an assumption. It’s something that needs to be earned from your readers, proven by your actions and defended as your most precious attribute.
In the past few days, the conversation I always wanted PR, game journalists and readers to have is finally starting to come to the surface. For those in the know, I’m referring to the floodgates opened by Robert Florence’s Eurogamer editorial entitled, "Lost Humanity 18: A Table of Doritos," where he used an image of Geoff Keighley, surrounded by a Doritos, Mountain Dew and a Halo 4 cardboard cutout as a springboard to comment on the state of the video game journalism.
For a summary of some of the events that followed Florence’s editorial, read "The Wainwright Profile" over at Wings Over Sealand and check out thisexcellent thread on the video game forum, NeoGAF.
Journalist? Writer? Blogger? Critic? Gaming enthusiast?
A critical problem with the consumer press side of the video game industry is that one word: journalist. Those in the field -- like Geoff Keighley -- seem to have no problem referring to themselves as journalists, yet their behavior mirrors that of a blatant marketing personality and this causes understandable friction between themselves and their readers and viewers.
I come from a traditional journalism background. I have a bachelors injournalism, completed graduate-level program work at Georgetown’s Institute for Political Journalism and worked at several print newspapers, to name a few CV-related criteria. The majority of what you see on video game websites and in magazines would never pass for journalism.
Why? There's two components to this. One is that most game "journalists" either don’t have a journalism degree or any kind of journalism experience prior to being hired at a website or magazine. The industry is so flooded (and has been for a while) with those of aspirations of covering video games, that the cheapest and most ethically-malleable labor wins out.
Now, I'm not saying you should have to have a journalism degree to cover the industry, but some experience has to be required as a baseline. For example, knowing Associated Press style, how to attribute sources, the difference between a background and an anonymous source -- knowledge of these things indicate a potentially decent journalist.
However, as I alluded to in the previous paragraph, that’s not the way the industry functions. Cheap labor wins. Magazines and websites want high profit margins and many would rather cycle through hires on a regular basis than have an established staff of real journalists.
Ethics? I’ve got my "own" or : cognitive dissonance
Don’t worry: I didn't forget about the second component. Sure, a big problem is that most video game journalists aren’t actual journalists, but the greater problem is that of ethics.
In nearly every undergraduate journalism program, students are taught about ethics codes, such as the Society of Professional Journalists Code of Ethics, which under its "Act Independently" section says journalists should:
- Avoid conflicts of interest, real or perceived.
- Remain free of associations and activities that may compromise integrity or damage credibility.
- Refuse gifts, favors, fees, free travel and special treatment … if they compromise journalistic integrity.
- Deny favored treatment to advertisers and special interests and resist the pressure to influence news coverage.
Here are some examples of how I saw ethics routinely violated during my time covering the industry:
- Journalists accepting free airfare, free cab fare, free hotel rooms, free meals and drinks.
- Editors telling journalists to rate a game a certain score so the publication or website doesn’t get blacklisted and punished by having its ties to a game company severed.
- Journalists selling review copies of games.
- Journalists using events like press junkets to network for potential jobs at game companies instead of doing the job they're paid for, i.e., reporting on the event, gathering info on a game, etc.
For example, do you really need to fly to an exotic locale and have everything paid for (transportation, food, drinks, etc.), to play a game and share your thoughts? No. Public relations and marketing will do everything they can to influence you in every way they can. That’s their job. Your job as a journalist is to say, "No."
Anyone who argues things are fine the way they are and have been is engaging in cognitive dissonance. Saying, "Yeah, I got an advance copy of the game but it won’t influence me," is lying to the inherent wiring of your brain. Sure, it sounds OK, but it’s an excuse.
It’s in our nature to practice self deceit, as this blog post entitled, "How and Why We Lie to Ourselves: Cognitive Dissonance," referencing Morton Hunt’s "The Story of Psychology" explains, "People quickly adjust their values to fit their behavior, even when it is clearly immoral. Those stealing from their employer will claim that 'Everyone does it' so they would be losing out if they didn't, or alternatively, 'I’m underpaid, so I deserve a little extra on the side.'"
From one side of the aisle to the other
Not only do we have the problem of ethics and Internet personalities masquerading as journalists, but the common-know, but rarely-acknowledged fact that many video game journalists ultimately see their job as a stepping stone to a position at a game company.
It’s a common sight to see a journalist spend sometimes as little as a year or two at a video game website or magazine and then get hired at a video game company for a position in marketing or PR like a community manager.
This hardly ever looks good to readers as coverage that journalist provided of that particular company and its products gets looked back over with a healthy dose of skepticism and cynicism.
I witnessed plenty of "journalists" using events like press junkets as just glorified networking opportunities and joking that they’ll do a sloppy job covering the event (often turning in their copy late), as the real goal is to exchange business cards, make friends and get those LinkedIn connections flowing.
(Almost) No one is clean, but we can be transparent
When I worked on my own, volunteer blogging at places like 1UP and for my own dot com, I stuck to my own standard, journalistic ethics. I never accepted a single product or favor as I was my own boss.
Confession time: When I was freelancing, I followed the policies of my editors and the higher ups. That is, I engaged in cognitive dissonance. Yes, I accepted airfare paid for by game companies. Yes, I accepted advance copies of games. I was told, "That's business as usual. It’s how everyone operates and we can’t afford to do it any other way. You want to write for us, you play by those rules."
Did it compromise how I covered things? Absolutely. Anyone that says it doesn't is lying to themselves. Sure, I can claim it didn't, but just the mere perception from readers that anything was accepted in exchange for coverage, can never look good, no matter how you frame it.
Anyone that’s covered this industry, going back for years, has accepted some form of freebie. Whether it was paid airfare, special advance copies of games or networking opportunities that turned into jobs.
Looking ahead
Like I mentioned in the introduction to this editorial, this is a conversation that’s been a long time coming. I'm glad it's happening.
While there are a lot of people trying to re-frame the argue by saying things like, “Why so serious about video games?” or, “It’s all conspiracy theories,” the readers and fans can see past that.
The boat has been rocked. A lot of people are nervous that business won’t continue as usual. It shouldn’t. I applaud those like Robert Florence that did some actual journalism and frankly, upset a lot of folks sitting in cushy positions that were never questioned.
To say any or all aspects of the industry are beyond criticism is individuals covering for one another. Any industry with integrity can stand introspection and should welcome it.
Trust is a fragile concept. It's one that's always assumed between readers and publications like websites and magazines. However, that trust has always been just that, an assumption. It’s something that needs to be earned from your readers, proven by your actions and defended as your most precious attribute.
Awor Szurkrarz
Arcane
- Joined
- Dec 11, 2009
- Messages
- 21,899
Cool.
Machocruz
Arcane
It's almost July 4. Time to fire up the grill, invite some friends over and celebrate our nation's birth.
But this July 4 all of us at Ubisoft will have another reason to celebrate. And that's the phenomenal success of our Assassin's Creed brand which couldn't have happened without your incredible support and partnerships. So I'm writing to say, quite simply, 'Thank you.'
Thank you for helping make Assassin's Creed one of the best selling franchises of all time.
Thank you for igniting unprecedented consumer interest in Assassin's Creed 3 which is sure to break plenty of sales records this holiday.
Thank you for helping Assassin's Creed 3 achieve stellar exposure long before launch. Plus a stunning array of honors at E3 that exceeded our wildest expectations. We scored over 40 nominations and took home a bounty of awards including Xplay's Best of Show, Game Informers's Game of Show, and Gamespot's Editor Choice.
So this Independence Day, no matter your nationality, we hope you'll fly this colonial style flag as we celebrate our critical success. And this holiday season, all of us will ignite yet another revolution.
Thanks again,
Tony Key
Sr. VP. Sales and Marketing
Ubisoft Entertainment
But this July 4 all of us at Ubisoft will have another reason to celebrate. And that's the phenomenal success of our Assassin's Creed brand which couldn't have happened without your incredible support and partnerships. So I'm writing to say, quite simply, 'Thank you.'
Thank you for helping make Assassin's Creed one of the best selling franchises of all time.
Thank you for igniting unprecedented consumer interest in Assassin's Creed 3 which is sure to break plenty of sales records this holiday.
Thank you for helping Assassin's Creed 3 achieve stellar exposure long before launch. Plus a stunning array of honors at E3 that exceeded our wildest expectations. We scored over 40 nominations and took home a bounty of awards including Xplay's Best of Show, Game Informers's Game of Show, and Gamespot's Editor Choice.
So this Independence Day, no matter your nationality, we hope you'll fly this colonial style flag as we celebrate our critical success. And this holiday season, all of us will ignite yet another revolution.
Thanks again,
Tony Key
Sr. VP. Sales and Marketing
Ubisoft Entertainment
Dexter
Arcane
- Joined
- Mar 31, 2011
- Messages
- 15,655
Some context would've been good with that, it's apparently from another Press Kit: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Assassins-C...Kit-Fully-Licensed-Ubisoft-Ezio-/330805265358
sea
inXile Entertainment
- Joined
- May 3, 2011
- Messages
- 5,698
Right. And people who have been professional game reviewers for a decade or more are bad writers and know nothing about games? I don't follow. I understand the claim that some reviewers don't have much in the way of critical capacity, which is true, but I haven't really seen that exhibited by the Giant Bomb staff. Disagreeing with someone's opinion is hardly evidence that that person is an idiot and unfit for their profession.
Average Manatee
Arcane
- Joined
- Jan 7, 2012
- Messages
- 15,271
The fact that someone may have done a job for a decade has no bearing on how good they are at said job. If anything I would say it means the opposite, ala the Peter Principle. Anyone who is competent would quickly be promoted or find work at something that isn't a low paying seedy pretend-journalism job. The market is full of shills because only shills will accept such a horrible environment.
I've never visited Giant Bomb though, so I have no idea about these specific people.
I've never visited Giant Bomb though, so I have no idea about these specific people.
Machocruz
Arcane
Giant Bomb is entertaining enough. I don't believe they are the bastion of integrity and monocled taste that some people commenting on this debacle are positiioning them as. Jeff Gertsmenn is a pretty funny dude. I think the pretense is is that they are not qualified to give informed reviews of the kind of games the Codex approves of. Maybe you'd listen to what they have to say about the latest fighting game or what the best PSN game of the year is, but you wouldn't look to them if you wanted to know if a new RPG had character creation as robust as Daggerfall or how many PnP influences it has compared to RoA.
waywardOne
Arcane
- Joined
- Aug 28, 2010
- Messages
- 2,318
There are thousands of "professionals" who suck at their particular jobs who have held those jobs for decades. Entry into and longevity in a job is never solely a matter of merit. Making "reviewer" and "critic" two separate jobs is not a fruitful venture. If they've got shit for critical capacity, then they're not reviewers or critics: they're fucking fans, especially if all they do is suck off the publishers who lavish them with bribes.
I don't know GB staff, but yeah, that can be true and often is. Thing is : for writing good review, you need to think about games, not just the one you play at the moment, but all the games you have played during the last ten years, it's the way you build up an intellectual system from which good analysis come from, it's the way you grow up as a critic and become a good one. But to do that, you need time, time for every game you play, and most games journalists doesn't have that time : there the pressure to publish the review before the others, you have to play tons of very different games every month and write stuff for all of them... You can't think about what you do in that kind of condition, and there isn't any intellectual work without that.
sea
inXile Entertainment
- Joined
- May 3, 2011
- Messages
- 5,698
You still haven't answered my question: what criteria are you using to judge whether they are good at their jobs? What evidence do you have of this?
Giantbomb is a handful of dudes who like playing games talking about them, that's all they claim to be. And they're entertaining on that basis. They did hire Klepeck to bring some "journalism" in, but he's mostly harmless and doesn't do the shit outlined above as far as we know.
Castanova
Prophet
Obviously there's no good objective system for determining if a game journalist is "qualified" or not. However, all it takes is to read a review written by one of these people and you'll get your answer. It's a combination of how the review is written, what topics they cover in it, what they reveal about themselves via their description of their experience with the game, what kind of things they point out as flaws, whether they say things that are blatantly false. I'd say the majority case is a review that is not well written, covers topics mainly involving the graphics and how generically awesome the experience was, revealing about themselves that they are surprisingly terrible at video games, highlights flaws encompassing only superficial things like graphics/bugs/sound/save point locations/story, and makes grandiose and false statements ("best stealth title in the past 15 years!" or "the first game ever to do XYZ" when another game did it 10 years ago).
And the absence of these problems means the reviewer simply has potential. It doesn't even mean they're actually good at what they do.
sea
inXile Entertainment
- Joined
- May 3, 2011
- Messages
- 5,698
Yeah, I get that.
Now provide concrete examples from a significant portion of Giant Bomb reviews. This issue isn't even about Giant Bomb specifically, I just want to know that you and others actually have actual evidence. I haven't seen a single person justify their opinion with specific examples and details, so far - that's what I've been trying to highlight.
If you have good reasons to dislike something, by all means, do so, but so far all I've seen are a bunch of general and vague statements which could apply to any site, person or thing that you happen to disagree with. For all we go on and on about critical capacity, I'm not seeing a lot here (zing etc.).
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