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[Branduil]

There is no advertorial here since we weren't paid to put the piece up.

You said this to me in the comments you have since deleted, and I still don't get it. Is it not prostitution if you do it for free?

 

[grimshawish]

Guys, there's no controversy here. We decided to run a post, via EGM, that Pizza Hut was offering a prize to UK customers. Readers like to know when they can win free stuff, so we ran a post. There is no advertorial here since we weren't paid to put the piece up. Perhaps you didn't think the piece was newsworthy – well, that's fine. I encourage you to let us know at feedback@polygon.com and we'll use that feedback to influence our editorial direction.

What we won't allow is to have a bunch of people invade the comments and accuse us of wrongdoing. It's off-topic, and it's not helpful. If you want to believe there's a controversy behind everything, that's fine. We have a public ethics statement and we stick by it. If that's not enough for you to believe, then I'm sorry.

In short, we welcome your feedback, but in an appropriate venue. The comments thread of an article isn't that venue.

So:
- You admit to copying and pasting from other news sources; making your own site redundant and LAZY.
- On-topic is saying that Polygon is amazing
- You will be posting more deals and offers on other games. I'll be watching for this one.

 

[chalkitdown1]

Guys, there's no controversy here. We decided to run a post, via EGM, that Pizza Hut was offering a prize to UK customers. Readers like to know when they can win free stuff, so we ran a post. There is no advertorial here since we weren't paid to put the piece up. Perhaps you didn't think the piece was newsworthy – well, that's fine. I encourage you to let us know at feedback@polygon.com and we'll use that feedback to influence our editorial direction.

What we won't allow is to have a bunch of people invade the comments and accuse us of wrongdoing. It's off-topic, and it's not helpful. If you want to believe there's a controversy behind everything, that's fine. We have a public ethics statement and we stick by it. If that's not enough for you to believe, then I'm sorry.

In short, we welcome your feedback, but in an appropriate venue. The comments thread of an article isn't that venue.

Whether it was paid for or not is surely irrelevant, it doesn't look good, especially given the sites history with Microsoft. In light of recent events how could anyone on your team think it was a good idea to run it? It all goes back to Rab Florence's original comments about Lauren Wainwright on Twitter. She might not have been corrupt, but what she posted looked dodgy as all fuck. As does this, regardless of whether it's innocent or not.

 

[RedNumberFive]

Make them a banned site already and be done with it.

I'll never understand why they weren't preemptively banned.

 

[JABEE]

I'd like to know the answer to this.

It looked too much like an ad. The picture they used is reminiscent of a still you'd use in a banner ad.

 

[DaBuddaDa]

Sup guys.

This where we talk about the future of games journalism?

Polygon

RockstarGames.com

CTRL-C, CTRL-V, edit... aaand done.

Now, compare that "article" to what Giant Bomb wrote:

http://www.giantbomb.com/news/grand-theft-auto-v-scheduled-for-spring-2013/4431/

 

[excaliburps]

Wait, are people complaining of a news site publishing a press release? If so, you might just hate every news site there is. I mean, a press release is made exactly for that -- as news. Of course, it's up to the writer how to deliver that news and whatnot, but I don't see anything wrong with posting it as such.

Or am I missing something here?

I do understand why some might be agitated by them deleting user comments, but "re-wording" press releases? It's either that or posting it completely the same word-for-word, which I'm sure is a worse fit than re-wording it and putting in your own idea into it.

Just my two cents, by the way. =)

 

[R1CHO]

That was fast.

 

[Zeliard]

Guys, there's no controversy here. We decided to run a post, via EGM, that Pizza Hut was offering a prize to UK customers. Readers like to know when they can win free stuff, so we ran a post. There is no advertorial here since we weren't paid to put the piece up. Perhaps you didn't think the piece was newsworthy – well, that's fine. I encourage you to let us know at feedback@polygon.com and we'll use that feedback to influence our editorial direction.

What we won't allow is to have a bunch of people invade the comments and accuse us of wrongdoing. It's off-topic, and it's not helpful. If you want to believe there's a controversy behind everything, that's fine. We have a public ethics statement and we stick by it. If that's not enough for you to believe, then I'm sorry.

In short, we welcome your feedback, but in an appropriate venue. The comments thread of an article isn't that venue.

Do you not see a problem with essentially re-wording a press release and simply putting it up with no actual content from your writers? You are doing Pizza Hut's and Microsoft's work for them by giving them nothing less than free publicity.

If you aren't receiving payment or some other direct incentive for it, it simply means you are doing all of the work with none of the reward. Free advertisement. Their marketing firms must be thrilled.

 

[Foxtastical]

Jesus christ, no one thought this would be a bad idea to publish this during the Wainwright fiasco? Do any of you actually understand what is going on or are most game journalists/writers/critics/whatever-the-hell-they-want-to-be-called-now still playing the victim card?

 

[bigdaddygamebot]

It seems some are too keen to get the flaming torches and pitchforks out now because of recent events. Chill out a little.

Timing is everything.

Considering the "fucking" that has been going on..."games journalism" shouldn't even be looking at our breasts, let alone grabbing at them.

 

[Empty]

the gta v piece is real news. i don't care about that.

this isn't news that's useful at all, there's millions of stories out there to spent your time or web space on, you are only covering this because microsoft want you to by sending that release and that's really problematic in games press in general. microsoft has their channels, let them tell people using major nelson or an ad on their dashboard or an ad at a pizza hut or their twitter account; as though you seem desperate to prove otherwise, you don't work for them.

 

[Darklord]

especially given the sites history with Microsoft.

Well considering they gave Fable and and even Forza shitty scores I can't say they're doing a good job if they're being paid off.

 

[ultron87]

I demand that all news sites embed spies within each company they cover so that we get news only through leaks. We can't trust companies and their "official sources".

Showing the press release would be fine though.

 

[newjeruse]

Stop saying advertorial.

 

[Neuromancer]

You said this to me in the comments you have since deleted, and I still don't get it. Is it not prostitution if you do it for free?

Actually it's not. It's just sex at that point.

 

[JABEE]

It's not even like she tried that hard to not use PR speak. She used "joined forces to launch a Halo 4 Legendary Prizes competition"

 

[Delusibeta]

Wouldn't an automated stream of press releases without pretense be so much better?

I wouldn't mind if it was clearly labelled as "press releases", considering Gamasutra has a section (labelled "press releases") which does exactly that. Hell, so does Crunchyroll.

 

[WickedLaharl]

Man I can't wait to get halo 4 and chow down on some pizza from pizza hut with doritos and wash it all down with some Mtn Dew game fuel!!

 

[Nirolak]

Why do you label copypasted press releases as news?

Why did you change from the image the PR people supplied you with?

Why aren't we allowed to see critical comments on a news story?

Does posting this as news not violate your own ethics guidelines?

This is why I prefer Joystiq's approach where, when they reword press releases, they have a button you can press that says "Show Press Release" (that displays the press release) so you know it was basically a reworded press release.

 

[Dennis]

From Pizza Huts and Microsofts standpoint there is just no way that Polygon posting this could be seen as anything but free advertising.

Can I get free advertising on Polygon too?

Or do I have to donate to a documentary first?

 

[Htown]

Guys, there's no controversy here.

So here's the thing about controversy.

You can't decide when there isn't one.

You can decide how you respond to it, or whether it merits a change in behavior, but that's about it.

 

[Trevelyon]

what are people meant to comment?

"man i love pizza hut and halo" "great deal".

You're going off-topic. your post will be gone like a bag of doritos burn during a Halo 4 party.

 

[Margalis]

Guys, there's no controversy here.

Clearly!

There is no advertorial here since we weren't paid to put the piece up.

What's the name for when you put up advertising as news without being paid?

In short, we welcome your feedback, but in an appropriate venue. The comments thread of an article isn't that venue.

The idea that the comments thread on a piece is the wrong place for feedback on that piece is a bit inane. Kind of makes you wonder what comments threads are for. "I like Ice Cream!"

 

[chalkitdown1]

Polygon

Our policies do not permit placements of advertorial on Polygon. We will endeavor to clearly mark any advertisement or "infomercial" (videos, Flash animations, etc.) shown on Polygon as an advertisement.

 

[Hydrogen Bluebird]

Stop saying advertorial.

Didn't know that was a word until now.

 

[Divvy]

Sorry for being "that guy" but if someone's giving away a free avatar don't you think it's a good thing to let people who might be interested in it know about it?

I know saying "lol journalism" is the in thing right now and these articles maybe take things a little too far but part of the story here is "there's a free Halo 4 avatar available if you enter this contest". Personally, I'm happy to be told that because it means they've helped me get something for free when I otherwise wouldn't have known.

It seems some are too keen to get the flaming torches and pitchforks out now because of recent events. Chill out a little.

If you're going to start claiming that reporting on a press release isn't news then maybe you shouldn't read any newspaper ever because that's sort of how some stories have to work. They're called press releases because they're made to be reported in the press.

I don't know. I think it's the advertiser's job to make sure gamers can see their promotion. Not the gaming press's. If they want gamers to know about this promotion, they should purchase ad space on the site instead of just feeding a press release for gaming sites to post.

 

[Nert]

Wait, are people complaining of a news site publishing a press release? If so, you might just hate every news site there is. I mean, a press release is made exactly for that -- as news. Of course, it's up to the writer how to deliver that news and whatnot, but I don't see anything wrong with posting it as such.

Or am I missing something here?

I do understand why some might be agitated by them deleting user comments, but "re-wording" press releases? It's either that or posting it completely the same word-for-word, which I'm sure is a worse fit than re-wording it and putting in your own idea into it.

Just my two cents, by the way. =)

In addition to the horrible timing (check out the games journalism thread here if you haven't already), they have gone down this weird cover up route by deleting critical comments and changing the original photo used in the story. The vapid nature of just pushing out a press release almost completely unchanged also reflects poorly on the site's standards.

 

[winstano]

Guys, there's no controversy here. We decided to run a post, via EGM, that Pizza Hut was offering a prize to UK customers. Readers like to know when they can win free stuff, so we ran a post. There is no advertorial here since we weren't paid to put the piece up. Perhaps you didn't think the piece was newsworthy – well, that's fine. I encourage you to let us know at feedback@polygon.com and we'll use that feedback to influence our editorial direction.

What we won't allow is to have a bunch of people invade the comments and accuse us of wrongdoing. It's off-topic, and it's not helpful. If you want to believe there's a controversy behind everything, that's fine. We have a public ethics statement and we stick by it. If that's not enough for you to believe, then I'm sorry.

In short, we welcome your feedback, but in an appropriate venue. The comments thread of an article isn't that venue.

I think the issue a LOT of people are having has shown itself in the time it's taken to post 2 news articles. It's not even the fact that it's a press release that's angered people, it's the complete and utter inanity of the post. I've not seen any other posts like this on other sites for other games (buy X get X!), so why start now, after the sheer volume of criticism thrown at the industry in the last few days?

Basically:

1) Press release - Buy pizza, possibly win some stuff for Halo 4, but only if you're in the UK and over 16
2) Press release - GTA V has a release date.

Which is more relevant/newsworthy to your audience?

Edit: deletion of comments isn't really helping your cause.

 

[chrisgrant]

Why'd you change the picture?

Mostly because it wasn't the appropriate resolution for the site and looked blurry.

Look, do I think it was the best, most useful post we've ever run? No, I don't. Do I see any malice in running it? Nope!

This smells like a witch hunt to me — all we're doing is keeping the comments thread clear and on-topic. Since that was going to require a lot of maintenance, we just turned comments off.

We've spent a lot of money creating great gaming content that I think goes beyond what many of our peers have. I hope you look to that when you decide to dismiss the entire site based on one contest post. Here's a story from today!

 

[JABEE]

Now, compare that "article" to what Giant Bomb wrote:

http://www.giantbomb.com/news/grand-theft-auto-v-scheduled-for-spring-2013/4431/

Wow. You mean he wrote the article like he was a human being and not a PR director spitting out automated messages.

 

[Flavius]

Then maybe you should have written your own article instead of copy and pasting from the press release, lol

This and the change in pic are the interesting bits to me.

And while I agree that there probably wasn't going to be much of value generated by allowing endless streams of repetitive negative comments, I would refrain as an editor and representative of the site from referring to those comments as 'off topic.'

We all know that they, quite clearly, are completely on topic. Rather, they were not in line with what you all were expecting.

 

[Htown]

This is why I prefer Joystiq's approach where, when they reword press releases, they have a button you can press that says "Show Press Release" (that displays the press release) so you know it was basically a reworded press release.

Or just do what Gamasutra does and put up a page where you can just look at all of the press releases.

 

[Goldenroad]

This is worth getting worked up over.

 

[Darklord]

Polygon

Advertising means getting paid. This is just smart PR that tricks lazy news writers into an easy promo for free.

 

[bigdaddygamebot]

This is worth getting worked up over.

There's no "cool dudes" in this thread. Move along.

 

[R1CHO]

Games journalism never fails to amuse me.

I think "we" should stop using the J-world so much.

Lets just say... media i guess.

 

[TheSeks]

Now, compare that "article" to what Giant Bomb wrote:

http://www.giantbomb.com/news/grand-theft-auto-v-scheduled-for-spring-2013/4431/

Where's that black dude clapping .gif, at least GiantBomb posted some snark while informing. Kudos to them, maybe they are more honest than thought to believed.

 

[EatinOlives]

Guys, there's no controversy here. We decided to run a post, via EGM, that Pizza Hut was offering a prize to UK customers. Readers like to know when they can win free stuff, so we ran a post. There is no advertorial here since we weren't paid to put the piece up. Perhaps you didn't think the piece was newsworthy – well, that's fine. I encourage you to let us know at feedback@polygon.com and we'll use that feedback to influence our editorial direction.

What we won't allow is to have a bunch of people invade the comments and accuse us of wrongdoing. It's off-topic, and it's not helpful. If you want to believe there's a controversy behind everything, that's fine. We have a public ethics statement and we stick by it. If that's not enough for you to believe, then I'm sorry.

In short, we welcome your feedback, but in an appropriate venue. The comments thread of an article isn't that venue.

 

[Bumhead]

Just so we are clear, all this pre-launch spiel about offering something different was complete bollocks, right?

Dissapointing.

 

[Speevy]

I haven't commented on any of these issues because it doesn't bother me all that much, but it certainly seems to a casual observer like game journalists have no standards, and arbitrarily set standards for themselves whenever it's convenient. It seems like these companies will do absolutely anything to increase their revenue, up to and including riling up message board users who then visit their site.

It's all so silly to me. Do people ever suffer in the aftermath of these "scandals"?

 

[GatorFan]

Gonna love watching the site burn to the ground

 

[PaulLFC]

Guys, there's no controversy here. We decided to run a post, via EGM, that Pizza Hut was offering a prize to UK customers. Readers like to know when they can win free stuff, so we ran a post. There is no advertorial here since we weren't paid to put the piece up. Perhaps you didn't think the piece was newsworthy – well, that's fine. I encourage you to let us know at feedback@polygon.com and we'll use that feedback to influence our editorial direction.

What we won't allow is to have a bunch of people invade the comments and accuse us of wrongdoing. It's off-topic, and it's not helpful. If you want to believe there's a controversy behind everything, that's fine. We have a public ethics statement and we stick by it. If that's not enough for you to believe, then I'm sorry.

In short, we welcome your feedback, but in an appropriate venue. The comments thread of an article isn't that venue.

Laughable. Evidently only positive comments are allowed on your site's articles. Negative ones, even if they have perfectly valid points like those your site deleted, should be sent to an email address out of the sight of everyone else. Censorship, basically.

 

[Dennis]

Perfect

 

[GarthVaderUK]

Or just do what Gamasutra does and put up a page where you can just look at all of the press releases.

That's how I'd like to see more sites do it.

 

[Risette]

I think "we" should stop using the J-world so much.

Lets just say... media i guess.

I'm fond of "games journlolism"

 

[Cat Party]

The mob mentality in this thread is quite stunning. This is a complete non-issue. But someone makes a thread with SCREENSHOTS and all of the sudden its a full on controversy.

 

[Wuthering_Heights]

Looks like Microsoft's investment is already paying off.

What a joke of a site.

 

[Dennis]

The mob mentality in this thread is quite stunning. This is a complete non-issue. But someone makes a thread with SCREENSHOTS and all of the sudden its a full on controversy.

I think that to a lot of people it is an issue.

 

[Hot Coldman]

Wow. You mean he wrote the article like he was a human being and not a PR director spitting out automated messages.

How fucking hard is that, anyway? Hell, Joystiq's trademark for me was writing every news bit like it had to go in a stand-up routine, PR regurgitation never makes any fucking sense.

It's like screaming "WE DON'T WANT TO ENGAGE WITH OUR AUDIENCE".