G4 TV - TheFeed - Other People's Misfortune

Clowns Line Up For Video Game

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 09:12:00 -0800

The clowns you see above were apparently lined-up this morning at the Best Buy in New York City in order to buy a new video game. No, not Modern Clownfare 2. Instead, they were interested in Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, a new DS and Wii game that came out today.

I assumed the nightmarish harlequin tong was hired by the Ringling Bros. to garner a little cheap publicity, but my wife, who attended Ringling Brothers Clown College (for reals) isn't so sure.

"I don't think those are 'real' Ringling Clowns," Mrs. Johnson told me. "The makeup is right, but the costumes and attitude are not, especially for a public event. I'm guessing those are Clown Enthusiasts. If Ringling had paid people to wait in line for a video game, you would bet they would have done it right. There would be an elephant and jugglers and CIRCUS."

I still think Ringling's PR department is trying to garner a little publicity by sending paid clowns to wait in line, and I, for one, am not going to give them the satisfaction of posting their picture and talking about the circus game on this blog... oh, crap. Too late for that. Anyway, enjoy your nightmares.. .there are more terrifying pics at the source link below!

Source: Kotaku

Should Uwe Boll Stick To Movies About Video Games?

Thu, 5 Nov 2009 11:08:00 -0800

Hey, gamer-person: Have you heard about Uwe Boll's next feature? No? That's probably because it's not based on a beloved video game. Instead, Darfur is about, well, Darfur. Specifically, a group of journalists who visit the strife torn country of Sudan and must decide whether to help victims of the war/genocide there or leave in order to report on their plight.

Check out the trailer below.

I've only seen some on-set pics and the trailer, so I really have no way of knowing whether it's any good or not, but judging from Boll's treatments of various second-tier video game franchises (BloodRayne, Dungeon Siege, Etc.), it's safe to assume the plight of the victims of Sudanese genocide won't be handled by the most sensitive, skilled artist in the world-- perhaps tellingly, the word "existence" is misspelled in the film's official trailer. But, good or bad, Boll can make films about whatever he wants. And the trailer looks low-budget and generic, but not bad necessarily.

While I don't imagine too many people in the Sudan care about Boll making a movie about the conflict there -- they have bigger things on their mind than the output of a questionable movie director -- it is interesting that if Boll were creating a movie version of God of War the entire gaming community would be freaking the hell out before they saw frame-one. But the Darfur Genocide? meh.

I'm not going to tell you you should care about what's happening in some foreign country (I mean, you should, but I'll bet you already know that) but I do think the game community should be aware of how they express their passion for the games they play. Basically, if you don't dig a game/system/website/personality, that's cool. Don't buy/read/watch it. But it's a little ridiculous to try to make other people feel bad because they happen to feel differently from you. Why chafe another guy's feelings when there is actual injustice and suffering in the real world?

While gamers were busy bashing Boll from the safety of message boards because he had the temerity to make a movie based on Postal, Uwe was at least trying to make something worthwhile. As long as Darfur isn't patently insulting to the seriousness of the situation there (and it definitely could be), I say the score is Boll: 1, Boll-haters 0.

What do you think: Should Uwe Boll make movies about sensitive political events or video games?

Feel free to follow me on twitter or send me an email.

Jimmy Buffett Trademarks "Margaritaville" For Use in Gaming

Wed, 4 Nov 2009 15:53:00 -0800

Ancient singer Jimmy Buffet's Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville Enterprises has filed a trademark registration for the word "Margaritaville," and thus reserved the right to make a game called Margaritaville or use that word in "Interactive game software, computer game software, electronic game programs, downloadable interactive, computer, video and electronic game programs, computer application software for mobile phones; electronic game software for wireless devices."

In my opinion, any game from Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville Enterprises has a huge chance of being crappy, but to give Buffett a fair shake, I found the biggest Jimmy Buffett fan I know, G4's Mike D'Alonzo, and asked him about the implications of this news. This is an exact transcript of our conversation.

Steve: What do you think a Margaritaville game would be like?

Mike: I really don't have time to do this. But something like: The player is a beachcomber who walks the shore looking for people who are dumb enough to go to a Jimmy Buffett Concert.

Steve: Who would it appeal to?

Mike: Mainly balding old jerks and college kids.

Steve: I thought you were a huge Jimmy Buffett fan.

Mike: I'm not. I hate Jimmy Buffett.

Steve: But you once told me you wanted to buy a PT Cruiser. I just assumed you liked Jimmy Buffett.

Mike: Look, **shole, I already told you I don't have time to do this.

Steve: Do you ever pick "Margaritaville" when playing Rock Band?

Mike: No. Jesus.

Steve: Thanks for the interview!

Mike: Whatever.

Regardless of Jimmy Buffett, here's a picture of Mike sitting on a marshmallow in a huge cup of hot cocoa!

Konami Expects Profits To Fall 82%

Wed, 4 Nov 2009 09:41:00 -0800

Bad news: In a financial forecast released by Konami for the six months ending September 30, the company predicts its profits will have dropped 82%. Ow.

Konami is expecting to collect around 1.26 billion US in revenue, down 22.5 per cent on the same period in 2008, while net income is expected to come in at 24.3 million, down from 132 million.

Konami feels the loss in profits is mainly due to the fact that the company released Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots last year, and this year, it did not release Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots. If you pirated any Konami products over the last six months, you are part of the problem, and I demand you turn yourself in to the proper authorities at once.

Source

Dog Buys Microsoft Points

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 13:36:00 -0700

According to a broadcast on reliable, non-biased news channel Fox News, a dog owned by a Virgina couple purchased $62 worth of Microsoft Points. According to the pair, the dog got its paws on an Xbox controller and managed to purchase 5,000 points while the couple slept.

Personal experience: When he was about a year old, my child purchased an episode of Lost I had already seen. He just hit the green button and was able to select and confirm the purchase. I think this is done on purpose by Microsoft because they figure this will happen occasionally... but I'm a conspiracy theorist.

As for a dog buying points, I'm a little dubious. It seems like the series of button-presses needed to turn on an Xbox and buy points couldn't be accomplished by anything but a super-intelligent wonder dog, like Lassie or Beverly Hills Chihuahua. But one thing is clear, If this story is true, it proves that dogs like the Xbox where cats like the PS3. I think this is fairly accurate. As for who which pets like The Wii, it's clearly hamsters.

Huge Judgment In Wii-Based Radio Stunt Gone Wrong

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 08:14:00 -0700

Remember a couple years ago, when a radio station in Sacramento held a contest called "Hold your wee for a Wii." in which participants had to drink as much water as possible in a short time? Remember how Jennifer Strange, one of the players, died from drinking too much water? Well the Justice System ruled in the lawsuit resulting from the death yesterday. The Strange family was awarded $16.5 million from Entercom Communications Corp., the company that owned the radio station.

I say: Good. If there's anyone who deserves to lose millions of dollars it's people in the entertainment industry who put civilian's lives at risk. It's not like water intoxication (the cause of Strange's death) is some obscure thing. Even a little bit of research would have revealed that drinking too much water can kill a person. Also, listeners were calling the radio station while the contest was happening, saying, "This is very dangerous. Someone could die." and the DJs made jokes about it. In fact, I think the award should have been higher.

I also think you'd have to be crazy to do any kind of radio or TV endurance contest for such a small prize. Seriously, if people need a Wii so bad, they could get a second job for a month or sell their plasma or something.

Source

Nintendo Reports Declining Profits

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 09:49:00 -0700

A just-released Nintendo financial statement reveals that the company's profits fell more than 50% for the last six months. Nintendo reported a profit of 69.5 billion yen ($767.8 million) for the six-months that ended September 30, compared with 144.83 billion yen for the same period last year. That's gotta hurt.

Sales were down as well, falling 34 percent in the same period. Nintendo said it sold 5.75 million consoles during the first half of its fiscal 2009, down from the 10 million units that consumers purchased for the same period last year.

The reasons for the drop in profits are many: Nintendo blames weak sales of the Wii, as well as a lower profit margin caused by the recent Wii price cut, and those ever-bedeviling fluctuations in world currency. Another possible reason: A dip in Nintendo DS sales caused, presumably, by the everyone-has-to-have iPhone, and Apple's positioning of the device as a game console as well as a telephone and GPS system. Could the announcement of a new version of the DS be an attempt to combat Apple eating into Nintendo's sales?

Nintendo sees a brighter future ahead, of course, predicting strong holiday sales based on its lineup of first-party games.

Back in September, Adam Sessler sat down with Nintendo head Reggie Fils-Aime to discuss the Wii price cut, and tried to get a little info on Nintendo's financial health. Check it out below: It's really interesting to watch Reggie answer some pretty hard-hitting questions -- he's officially confident, but he must have known what was happening at that point:

Watch Larger Version of this Video

Man Assaulted In Iowa For Being A "Zombie"

Mon, 26 Oct 2009 12:56:00 -0700

Are there Zombies in Iowa?! On Sunday, a patron of Panchero's Restaurant in Iowa City apparently thought as much when he saw another patron. He was so sure about it, that he felt the need to take matters into his own hands and physically assault the individual right in the middle of restaurant, while yelling "zombie." (Yes, this is a REAL story.)

The impromptu vigilante, described as a "dark-complected white male with short brown hair, about 20 years old, between 6-feet and 6-feet-2 and weighing between 200 and 230 pounds" decided to stand up for the rights of the living, when the accused "zombie" had the audacity to walk into the restaurant, sit down, and order food! The vigilante then proceeded to punch the victim in the eye. After the accused undead patron attempted to call the police (or possibly the "Zombie Police?,") the vigilante proceeded to hit him again, this time breaking his nose. The vigilante (can we call him "The Zombie Whacker?" ) immediately slipped out of a back door and (as of now) is still at large.

The "zombie" was then taken to a local hospital (a "Zombie Hospital," I assume) for treatment and is fine. But really, what difference does it make? A zombie is already dead, so breaking his nose, if anything, would be doing him a favor.

I don't know about any of you, but it's about time somebody stood up to these zombies! Would you feel any sympathy for these flesh-eating bastards if it was your son or daughter who got bitten? We never should have bailed out the Umbrella Corporation! It did NOTHING for the Racoon City economy. (Which is failing due to minor things like complete and total obliteration.)

Source

Postal Worker Steals Over 2000 GameFly Games

Fri, 16 Oct 2009 08:21:00 -0700

If you live near Philadelphia, and you wonder why you never got that game you requested from GameFly, it could have been Reginald Johnson's fault. The postal clerk pleaded guilty of stealing 2,200 games sent from GameFly.

Criminal mastermind Johnson would swipe the games as he unloaded mail from tractor trailers, then he would turn the games in for store credit from GameStop. Overall, the stolen games amounted to $86,000. Not bad for a postal clerk!

When you steal that volume of games, someone is going to notice, and they did notice. Federal authorities sent some test mailings through Johnson's station, and gathered enough evidence to arrest him. When arrested, Johnson was carrying a duffel bag with 81 GameFly games in it, and he had 79 more games in his SUV, along with three Wii Fits, a Playstation console, game controllers and a GameStop receipt. Ouch! Caught red-handed!

Johnson faces 12 to 18 months in Federal Pound-Me prison. U.S. District Judge Berle M. Schiller set sentencing for Jan. 13.

Source

New "Game" To Encourage Spying On Neighbors

Fri, 9 Oct 2009 14:13:00 -0700

The United Kingdom is about to launch the largest ARG in history! In this case, "ARG" doesn't' stand for "Alternative Reality Game," though. Here it means "Actual Reality Game." You see, Web users in the U.K will soon have to ability to monitor the nation's network of four million or so video cameras streaming video of public spaces to the internet. If you see anyone committing a crime on-cam, report him or her to the coppers and collect points (one point for seeing a suspected crime and three points for a confirmed crime.) Winning players will get their usernames on the internet in connection with the criminals they helped nab as well as cash prizes up to 1,000 Euros.

Apparently, the phrase "snitches get stitches" hasn't made it across the Atlantic.

The game will initially use CCTV cameras in shops and businesses in Stratford-upon-Avon but will be rolled out across Britain by December before going worldwide next year. As you'd expect, civil libertarians are quite upset at the idea of turning an entire nation into finks, but the police, as you'd expect, see no problem with the scheme at all.

As a fan of message-heavy, high-concept science fiction films, I am very happy to hear that the movie is finally starting. I can only assume an organized underground network of freedom fighters will attempt to disable all the cameras with laser beams. Also: A volcano will be involved somehow.

What do you think about this "game?" Would you play it if it was here in the States?

Source

NASA To Blow Up Moon Tomorrow

Thu, 8 Oct 2009 10:40:00 -0700

Our long national nightmare is finally ending. In retaliation for the Mooninites' vicious invasion of the city of Boston a few years ago, NASA will explode the moon tomorrow night, and thus usher in a bright, new, moon-free future.

NASA's cover story for the moon-splosion is that they are seeking confirmation that there is water on the lunar surface, and they plan to send a rocket down to the crater Cabeus, then fly a spaceship through the dust kicked up in order to analyze the dust cloud for the presence of water. They say the explosion won't actually harm the moon in any way. Yeah. Right. The old "we're looking for water!" excuse.

"We will finally show that damned moon who is the boss: The U.S.A," a NASA scientist did not say. "America can, should, must and will blow up the moon." He did not add.

The fireworks start tomorrow morning at 4:30AM PST. Do not miss it.

We at TheFeed applaud NASA's courageous actions, as we have long hated the moon, mainly because of the man on the moon -- I'll bet a rocket will wipe that smirk off his face. We also hate the nefarious influence the moon has on our tides. Centuries worth of floods have been caused by the moon's tyrannical gravitational pull, and we are simply sick of it.

As yet, the National Foundation for the Advancement of Werewolves has not commented, but experts expect them to say something like, "Oooo-wooooooo!" Here's Mr. Show's take on the developments.

Source

Smoking Gun In Viacom Vs. YouTube Case?

Tue, 6 Oct 2009 11:05:00 -0700

Has Viacom found what amounts to a "smoking gun" in its lawsuit against Google's YouTube? The billio-dollar suit was filed in 2007 because Viacom believes YouTube hosted many Viacom-owned video clips without permission

While Viacom accuses YouTube of "massive intentional copyright infringement" in the case, YouTube maintains that it "has respected the legal rights of copyright holders." YouTube says, basically, it responds promptly to rights holders requesting that videos be removed from the site. Viacom disagrees, and reportedly has copies of emails that prove YouTube employees knew about questionable content on the site, allowed it to stay, and even posted material from other copyright holders.

Court documents show that on August 25 Viacom agreed to turn over records that shed light on "Viacom's decisions to upload or authorize the uploading of videos to YouTube" and on the company's policies "for allowing videos to remain on YouTube for marketing promotional or other business reasons," which suggests that Viacom uploaded clips to the site itself.

"The facts you described could very well be the smoking gun that puts a hole through Google's case," Roger Goff, an entertainment attorney not involved in the case, told CNET News. "(If the facts are accurate), Google will have a very difficult time claiming that (its staff members) don't undermine its protection."

The Digital Millennium Copyright Act contains a provision allowing protection for companies that inadvertently post copyrighted material, as long as:

(A)(i) The services don't have actual knowledge that the material, or an activity using the material on the system or network, is infringing.
(ii) in the absence of such actual knowledge, is not aware of facts or circumstances from which infringing activity is apparent; or
(iii) upon obtaining such knowledge or awareness, acts expeditiously to remove, or disable access to, the material.

Should this case go to trial (and I'll bet you a hundred dollars it will settle long before that), I gotta imagine it will essentially hinge on the the word "expeditiously." How fast is fast enough, when asked to pull certain videos from the site? YouTube has also pointed out that Viacom itself uses YouTube to promote programming,

Source

Darth Vader's Car Breaks Down, R2-D2 To Blame?

Mon, 5 Oct 2009 13:15:00 -0700

In a rather amusing story, the BBC recently spoke with Darth Vader actor, David Prowse, who discusses an incident in which he was recently left stranded on the UK's M1 highway in Northamptonshire. Who does he have to blame? Why, poetically enough, it may have been none other than R2-D2 himself! (Or at least the actor who played him.)

The East Midlands Regional Control Centre at Watford Gap had to dispatch a rescue vehicle for the Star Wars star, whose car had broken down on the notoriously dangerous highway. As Prowse recounts, the vehicle in question had been previously owned by the dwarfish actor who inhabited the R2-D2 can/costume, Kenny Baker:

"The car was previously owned by my good friend Kenny Baker who was R2D2," said Dave. He used to keep a little ladder inside the boot so he could climb up and put his suitcases inside. When he had finished, he'd put the ladder back and used a cord to shut the boot. I decided to leave the cord there as a reminder of the car's previous owner."

Sabotage, I say -- SABOTAGE!!!

Prowse, who was on his way to rehearsals and filming, was that weekend, to attend a meeting of the the UK garrison of the 501st, an organization of Star Wars cosplayers who primarily dress as Stormtroopers and march in parades. Ironically enough, the charity-driven group shares the number designation of Darth Vader's personal regiment of Clone Troopers from the films who carried out the purge of the Jedi Order. (A homage to the group of fans.) Vader's connection to the group's identity has designated Prowse their worldwide Commander in Chief. Prowse was left awkwardly stranded on the highway with a car full of Star Wars memorabilia that he was to bring to the meeting.

Despite the ordeal, Prowse did in fact, make it to that meeting, not disappointing his fans. However -- Note to self: Never buy a car from actors best known for playing iconic blue Astromech Droids in Star Wars films.

Source

FTC To Require Blogger Gift Disclosure

Mon, 5 Oct 2009 08:21:00 -0700

In a ruling that could send shock waves through the video game blogging world, the Federal Trade Commission has ruled that bloggers will have to disclose gifts or money they receive from companies in exchange for reviewing their products.

Beginning December 1st, bloggers will be covered under existing FTC guidelines regarding journalistic disclosure of cash or gifts in exchange for reviews of products. Failure to follow the guidelines could result in fines up to $11,000 per violation. So that means there may be a lot of disclosing going on, people.

I'm not sure how the guidelines work yet, but I imagine, honestly, that the majority of video game company gifts sent to reviewers won't fall under the guidelines -- there's likely a monetary minimum amount for gifts, and promotional t-shirts, desktop figurines and other branded-clutter would likely fall under that threshold. Besides, many online reviewers, in my experience, review games for the love of games themselves!

Source

Links Of TheFeed: The Rookie's Polanski Nightmares

Thu, 1 Oct 2009 18:02:00 -0700

If you haven't checked the mainstream news in the past few days, there's this legendary director named Roman Polanski who just got arrested in Switzerland for a decades old charge of raping a drugged up 13 year old. He spent the last 30 years hiding out in France where they're evidentally ok with that stuff. Regardless of where you fall on the issue there's a group of Hollywood elites including Woody Allen who signed a petition demanding Polanski's release, and our friends at FilmDrunk are here to let you know why they're being jackasses.

So check that out along with the rest of the weekly links:

FilmDrunk also brings us a follow-up on the legal proceedings from the Polanski case and why the case might be thrown out.

The debate over whether games should be art rages on, as Crispy Gamer argues that they aren't, and that they really don't need to be.

Uncoached brings us the only thing worse than bad rap music, which is toolbags impersonating rappers, and doing it poorly. But it still might be entertaining.

Manofest presents Black An_us and 19 other great neon sign fails.

Remember that old movie, Rookie of the Year, with the kid who grew up to be in American Pie? College Humor presents something kinda like that.

Will the Nightmare On Elm Street remake with Jackie Earle Haley be any good? Who knows, but for now you can check out the trailer at Crave Online.

Jack Thompson Sues Facebook For 40 Million

Thu, 1 Oct 2009 14:02:00 -0700

It's been awhile since we've heard from game-hating attorney(?) Jack Thompson, but don't worry: Jack Thompson is safe and sound and filing lawsuits in Florida courts. The latest litigant: Facebook. Thompson has reportedly sued Facebook for $40 million, claiming the site harmed him by not removing insulting postings made by Facebook users.

There are several facebook groups devoted to people who don't like Jack Thompson, groups like I Hate Jack Thompson, Disbar Jack Thompson, Stop Jack Thompson, and Jack Thompson should be smacked across the face with an Atari 2600. Thompson says that some of the posts have caused him "great harm and distress" because they involved threats of violence against him, including a since-removed post that apparently read: "I will pay $50 to anyone who punches Jack Thompson in the face. If someone can get a video clip of themselves punching Jack Thompson in the face I'll PayPal them $50."

I'm no lawyer, so I don't know how much responsibility Facebook has for things posted on their site, but no matter how the case comes out, I think Jack Thompson has a point (although it pains me to say it.) Threatening bodily harm to people, even on the internet, is not cool, people. I'll be very surprised if Thompson is awarded anything in this case, but still, don't threaten violence, everyone. It makes all gamers look bad.

Source

Gaming Addiction: Fact Or Fiction?

Thu, 1 Oct 2009 10:41:00 -0700

Web site Green Pixels took an interesting look at "Gaming Addiction," that currently popular media bogeyman that rears its ugly head when a murderer happens to play games or an MMO player keels over dead with a heart attack. The big question: Is gaming addiction a real thing, or is it a myth?

The accepted medical definition of "addiction" is: "A chronic neurobiologic disorder that has genetic, psychosocial, and environmental dimensions and is characterized by one of the following: the continued use of a substance despite its detrimental effects, impaired control over the use of a drug (compulsive behavior), and preoccupation with a drug's use for non-therapeutic purposes (i.e. craving the drug)."

But, as Entertainment Consumers Association President Hal Halpin put it, "The problem with that argument is that it’s dependent on a faulty hypothesis: games, like music and movies, aren’t literally consumed or ingested the way that alcohol, tobacco, or narcotics are.”

So gaming isn't a drug, so it seems to me that "overuse" of gaming falls more into a gray area of compulsive behaviors than a true drug addiction, a distinction that the mainstream media often seems happy to ignore. If you go with a looser definition for "addiction," something like "an activity done excessively or compulsively to the point that it interferes with daily life," then I think you have to admit that gaming addiction is as real a thing as gambling addiction or shopping addiction.

But how big of a problem is it? And is video gaming a "worse" addiction than, say, watching too much TV? Some think so:

"In comparison to other forms of media, video games have a great capacity for interactivity that can make them more personalized and engaging and by extension, potentially more addictive," said Dr. Jack Juo, director of psychiatric services at Promises Treatment Centers. "The video games with the greatest potential for addiction are massively multiplayer online role-playing games, such as World of Warcraft."

And game addiction can be deadly:

"To be blunt, Internet addictions make people unsociable, and TV makes viewers fat, unmotivated, and depressed, but people are actually dying from video game addictions," said Chris Rowan, a pediatric occupational therapist who is consulting with Microsoft on their Natal platform. "Sustained high cortisol states and poor circulation of gamers have proven fatal in 10 documented cases in Taiwan."

I'm not sold either way, honestly. I do think there is something different about gaming than watching TV. I can't quite define the difference, but it's there... What about you? What do you think of gaming addiction? Real or fake?

Source

Tokyo Game Show Attendance Down

Tue, 29 Sep 2009 08:37:00 -0700

Attendance at the Tokyo Game Show last week was solid, but overall the number of attendees was down over last year.

Total attendance at TGS 2009 was 185,030. This breaks down to 27,435 and 24,605 on the first two days of the show (business-people only) and 61,138 and 71,852 on the two public days. Last year, 194,288 folks came out. The breakdown then was 27,305, 24,178, 71,639 and 71,166. in 2007, 193,040 people showed.

Here's another look at the numbers:

Day 1 - 27,435 Visitors (2008: 27,305 Visitors)
Day 2 - 24,605 Visitors (2008: 24,178 Visitors)
Day 3 - 61,138 Visitors (2008: 71,639 Visitors)
Day 4 - 71,852 Visitors (2008: 71,166 Visitors)

Total: 185,030 Visitors (2008: 194,288 Visitors)

Overall, about the same number of "professionals" showed up this year, but the public attendance was down. Is this indicative of the weak economy? Or is it more about the slate of games that were shown off? Fear of Swine Flu? Maybe the time of year the convention was held, relative to the other big game shows (E3 and GamesCom) Or is it some kind of combination thereof?

Personally, I don't think a drop of 5 percent is indicative of major problems in the Eastern gaming markets. I expected attendance to be even lower than that, given how weak the worldwide economy is.

Nugget From The Net: History Channel's Misleading Comedies

Thu, 24 Sep 2009 09:00:00 -0700

Internet comedy repository College Humor has taken the History Channel's line-up and mashed it up with sit-coms to create a better, imaginary, TV lineup for the cable channel. Experience the lulz.

Justine Bateman Angry At The Internet

Wed, 23 Sep 2009 15:44:00 -0700

You know who Justine Bateman is? She was a popular actress in the 1980s. She starred in Family Ties and a bunch of other stuff. She was actually pretty hot. But it's not the 1980s any more, and Bateman is on the Twitter.

This morning, the high-strung actress apparently got angry when people she didn't even know started showing up on her Twitter Feed. She posted the following to a total stranger:

I don’t know what kind of deal you cut with TwitterBerry or how much it cost you, but suddenly you’re on my Twitter feed and I NEVER OPTEN TO FOLLOW YOU nor do I wan to.

I’m set to flame this incident all over the Internet. I suggest for the sake of your reputation on-line, YOU GET YOUR TWITTER ACCOUNT TOGETHER, and stop attempting to shove your posts into other people’s feeds.

The problem is, her new online nemesis didn't cut a deal with TwitterBerry or anyone else -- he was an innocent man. It was just the first time Bateman ran across a new twitter feature that builds "re-tweets" into twitter streams.

The feature works like this: When you re-tweet something, it will show up in your friend's twitter feed associated with the author of the original tweet. For example, if I tweet something soulful and hilarious (and I do, all the time) and you re-tweet it, my face will show up on your friend's feed, even if I don't know them.

Bateman's reaction was pretty over-the-top, but unlike some members of the blogospere, I'm totally on her side. When unwanted messages show up in our inbox, on MySpace, on IM, on our phones, they are usually from advertisers or nere'-do-wells. It's understandable that Bateman would jump to that conclusion.

While Bateman threatening someone over the internet is rude and arrogant, the reaction of the "blogosphere" is just as bad. Here's part of Techcrunch's post on the matter:

"It's mildly hilarious that Bateman thinks that somehow users are to blame for this, and that she thinks her lame Internet threats will put an end to all of this,

And...

"Clearly, she doesn’t frequent TechCrunch or a number of other tech blogs who have been covering this upcoming change extensively, because if she did, she would know that..."

Yeah, clearly Justine Bateman, rich and semi-famous movie actress, would have a much better life if only she kept up on the minutia of tech blogging! Keep in mind, this feature isn't even widely available on twitter. Techcrunch: Most people with lives, families, jobs and hobbies have neither the time nor the interest to keep up with tech blogs. Just letting you know.

Of course, it could be that techcrunch is parodying Bateman's self-importance by pretending to be even more self-important than she is...but I doubt it.

Anyway, I feel you, Justine Bateman -- I don't like anyone either.

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