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Jim Sterlings PS4 Top Ten(MS PR wont talk to him?)

Excuse me?

Actively cutting communication is more of a waste of effort to try to deal with a measly troublemaker than just treating him like all the others journalists.
Or at LEAST directly telling me I am out of the loop from now on, and leaving it at that. The half-committed responses, followed by silence, followed by my peers telling me they're hoping to get a leash on me smacks of far more wasted effort and thought than just dealing with me directly in one way or another.
 

Amir0x

Banned
Man how fucking unprofessional are they that they need to go behind your back to tell your colleagues this sort of thing? Fucking losers @ MS PR, seriously.
 

p3tran

Banned
Here are my grievances:

That nobody had the nerve to directly tell me what was up.

That the sentiment seems to be a hope that the Escapist will actually impose some sort of control over my opinion.

The idea of being blacklisted doesn't worry me. I've been blacklisted before. I find blacklists petty and impotent things. It's the inability to come to me directly, by people I've spoken to for years and have never been unreasonable with, coupled with that desire to see a writer toned down against his wishes. That's the bit that I find just a little bit unsettling.

This isn't even about them not "having time" to deal with me. Certainly enough time was had to try and get assurances I could be controlled.
Hey Jim! :)

what do you mean blacklisted? like blacklisted out of your review stuff, or like from their ad stuff?
btw, how's ryse? :)
 

Faustek

Member
Here are my grievances:

That nobody had the nerve to directly tell me what was up.

That the sentiment seems to be a hope that the Escapist will actually impose some sort of control over my opinion.

The idea of being blacklisted doesn't worry me. I've been blacklisted before. I find blacklists petty and impotent things. It's the inability to come to me directly, by people I've spoken to for years and have never been unreasonable with, coupled with that desire to see a writer toned down against his wishes. That's the bit that I find just a little bit unsettling.

This isn't even about them not "having time" to deal with me. Certainly enough time was had to try and get assurances I could be controlled.

Kooooooonaaaaamiiiiiii!!!

Seriously Jim, if you ever go and become impotent, leashed by some sort of dominatrix puffy cuffs and can't break free just say so. IMO you are one of the few I feel I can trust to be straight, stay that way no matter how many handy jays you're offered.
 
Appreciate the response Jim, I certainly see where you're coming from. I would just suggest to try and handle situations like this delicately. I do believe it's possible to be critical and still get subjects such as Microsoft PR to play ball but it requires quite a bit of tact.

I certainly don't agree with everything you say or do but it's nice to see when issues affecting us consumers genuinely concern you. Keep at it, but make sure to do it tactfully and intelligently as situations like this are like minefields, however ones that are still very possible to navigate while sticking to your convictions if done with care.
 

UberTag

Member
You know even if BOTH Sony and Microsoft blacklisted Jim, I'd be giving him kudos for leading by example and refusing to be a PR puppet whose message can be bought, controlled and manipulated.

Frankly, we need more Jim Sterlings in this industry. Corruption in gaming media should not be rewarded the way it has been up until now.
 

APF

Member
I would just suggest to try and handle situations like this delicately. I do believe it's possible to be critical and still get subjects such as Microsoft PR to play ball but it requires quite a bit of tact.
Golly one would almost think that might be the responsibility of PR.
 

Kingbrave

Member
Kooooooonaaaaamiiiiiii!!!

Seriously Jim, if you ever go and become impotent, leashed by some sort of dominatrix puffy cuffs and can't break free just say so. IMO you are one of the few I feel I can trust to be straight, stay that way no matter how many handy jays you're offered.

I would kinda like to see the bolded happen. Not mess with his review but to see him in dominatrix puffy cuffs.
 

Fistwell

Member
I would just suggest to try and handle situations like this delicately. I do believe it's possible to be critical and still get subjects such as Microsoft PR to play ball but it requires quite a bit of tact.
It's PR's job to try to get people to play nice with whoever they represent. Jim is not in PR, he has no responsability, need (nor probably any capacity whatsoever, but that's another story ;D) to handle anything delicately. He's a reviewer, video games commentater, whathaveyou. His job is to talk about games, not to please companies or be delicate or whatever. Actually, if his jobs calls for truthfull, honest criticism, you could argue it is part of his job to not be delicate and not avoid pissing off giant companies.
 

unbias

Member
Appreciate the response Jim, I certainly see where you're coming from. I would just suggest to try and handle situations like this delicately. I do believe it's possible to be critical and still get subjects such as Microsoft PR to play ball but it requires quite a bit of tact.

I certainly don't agree with everything you say or do but it's nice to see when issues affecting us consumers genuinely concern you. Keep at it, but make sure to do it tactfully and intelligently as situations like this are like minefields, however ones that are still very possible to navigate while sticking to your convictions if done with care.

Well now that you counseled him on how to work in the industry... Also dealing with PR delicately doesnt sound like something he needs to do if it is just MS PR. If there is only one group doing this he wont be the one to look bad, so I'm not sure why he must be the one to be "delicate".
 

Baleoce

Member
They killed a fan-made Rare documentary because they felt it wouldn't be "on message". The site that was going to do it, MundoRare, shut down their site in response.

wow, they can do that? how does that not fall under fair use? was there too many long segments of assets being used in the footage or something?
 

Demon Ice

Banned
Games journalism has now apparently devolved to airing out your high-school-level he said she said drama bullshit over Twitter.

What professionalism. Not slamming Jim Sterling specifically, just this whole recent climate of all this shit being passive aggressively posted on Twitter is so ridiculous to me.

Not surprised MS was trying to "leash" him or whatever, given what a terrible quality game DR3 is shaping up to be and rumors of how un-fun Ryse is.
 

FyreWulff

Member
wow, they can do that? how does that not fall under fair use? was there too many long segments of assets being used in the footage or something?

MundoRare was (on their own dime) going to go to the studio and film interviews and such.

They were just so disheartened by that response, they felt they couldn't support Rare anymore and decided to discontinue updating the site.

But don't take my paraphrasing for it:

http://mundorare.com/news/2010/07/mundorare-closes/

One of the reasons Microsoft gave for not wanting to do the project was MundoRare's negative review of Kinect Sports. Which was the only negative review MundoRare ever gave.
 

Azriell

Member
This just further cements that Microsoft is a company I don't want to give my business to. I'm sure Sony (and all other major corporations) do douchy all the time, but this is a personal attack on someone I have great respect for, just because they can't control him. Jim might be brutal or harsh or whatever, but it's not just for the hell of it. Microsoft should be listening to feedback and criticism instead of just trying to silence critics and create spin.
 

unbias

Member
Games journalism has now apparently devolved to airing out your high-school-level he said she said drama bullshit over Twitter.

What professionalism.

Not surprised MS was trying to "leash" him or whatever, given what a terrible quality game DR3 is shaping up to be and rumors of how un-fun Ryse is.

Sports journalism is the same way. Besides there was no real drama on twitter, I posted what I thought was a legit issue ignoring of a media personality, and then added some twitter posts that seemed to confirm that his joke in his video was actually a valid complaint. People talked about it today and now it is what it is. There really wasn't much on twitter that we saw.
 
Games journalism has now apparently devolved to airing out your high-school-level he said she said drama bullshit over Twitter.

What professionalism. Not slamming Jim Sterling specifically, just this whole recent climate of all this shit being passive aggressively posted on Twitter is so ridiculous to me.

I don't see a problem with it as long as you're actually willing to say what you're upset about. That's why many took issue with Sessler. Not only would he not specifically say why he was upset, but he wouldn't even mention which company he was upset at. By comparison, Jim is telling you the issue and naming the company. He's doing exactly what many of us have been asking those in the media to do.
 
Or at LEAST directly telling me I am out of the loop from now on, and leaving it at that. The half-committed responses, followed by silence, followed by my peers telling me they're hoping to get a leash on me smacks of far more wasted effort and thought than just dealing with me directly in one way or another.

Stay true Jim I like your stuff. As I think this generatiom we are going to see a back lash from consumers over bought journalism.

If more people like you stand up against PR departments the better the industry will become as there is clear agenda to screw over consumers by publishes and console manufacturers with sub par products.
 

unbias

Member
MundoRare was (on their own dime) going to go to the studio and film interviews and such.

They were just so disheartened by that response, they felt they couldn't support Rare anymore and decided to discontinue updating the site.

But don't take my paraphrasing for it:

http://mundorare.com/news/2010/07/mundorare-closes/

One of the reasons Microsoft gave for not wanting to do the project was MundoRare's negative review of Kinect Sports. Which was the only negative review MundoRare ever gave.

Eww, not cool

FTA:

During the last nine years, we have never criticized Rare without a good reason. Still, ever since Microsoft’s buyout, they have been receiving negative backlash in almost a constant basis. People turned their backs at Rare because they never really managed to deliver a hit like the ones of their Nintendo years. Still, their games were good enough and deserved more attention. The first and only time we wrote an openly negative review of one of their products was last month with Kinect Sports, which ironically was used as an argument to oppose our documentary idea at a time when negotiations where already going bad. Kinect Sports may have been Rare’s biggest artistic disappointment in years, but it’s far from being their only misstep.
 

Demon Ice

Banned
Sports journalism is the same way. Besides there was no real drama on twitter, I posted what I thought was a legite ignoring of a media personality, and then added some twitter posts that seemed to confirm that his joke in his video was actually a valid complaint. People talked about it today and now it is what it is. There really wasn't much on twitter that we saw.

Yeah I really didn't mean that to come off as me specifically complaining about Jim Sterling, I realize that's how I sounded so I edited my original post for clarity.

There has been sooooo much dirty laundry aired over Twitter that it just makes the games industry as a whole look so cheap and immature. I'm reminded of Sessler's public little meltdown (which apparently was about not getting a free PS4?) with all the other "insiders" being intentionally and publicly vague and I just have to shake my head.

Edit:
I don't see a problem with it as long as you're actually willing to say what you're upset about. That's why many took issue with Sessler. Not only would he not specifically say why he was upset, but he wouldn't even mention which company he was upset at. By comparison, Jim is telling you the issue and naming the company. He's doing exactly what many of us have been asking those in the media to do.


Yup, what Sessler did was miles worse than this, no argument there.
 

rrs

Member
Man, what the fuck happened to Microsoft between Xbox 360 and now...Did the suits take over the entertainment division?

Microsoft was desperate and threw a lot of money to make something that had quite the appeal. Around the time the Kinect happened, the Xbox was hijacked into some media box it wasn't supposed to be and made/designed the Xbox One as cheaply as possible to not only make money off the box, but to try to shove it into everything right off the bat.
 

Doc Evils

Member
Clarification:

Sony's reaction to the Escapist hiring me was to congratulate the site.

MS' PR department's reaction was to hope the Escapist puts a leash on me.

DI0nuTq.gif
 

Amir0x

Banned
Eww, not cool

FTA:

holy fuck. welp, adding this to my growing list of 'journalistic/critic/enthusiast press' controversies that I am supposed to pretend never happen often enough to not lose trust. At least MundoRARE has some self-respect and dignity.
 
Man how fucking unprofessional are they that they need to go behind your back to tell your colleagues this sort of thing? Fucking losers @ MS PR, seriously.

My guess is that has more to do with intimidating other journalist than dealing with Jim. They are spreading the word about what happens when you get on MS's bad side.
 

Baleoce

Member
Sounds to me like they had asked Rare to participate in interviews and such, and were denied. I guess there may also have been legal issues

http://mundorare.com/news/2010/07/mundorare-closes/

MundoRare was (on their own dime) going to go to the studio and film interviews and such.

They were just so disheartened by that response, they felt they couldn't support Rare anymore and decided to discontinue updating the site.

But don't take my paraphrasing for it:

http://mundorare.com/news/2010/07/mundorare-closes/

One of the reasons Microsoft gave for not wanting to do the project was MundoRare's negative review of Kinect Sports. Which was the only negative review MundoRare ever gave.

oh wow.. this really makes you lose faith xD feel sorry for that community because they stuck with them when everyone else had long gone, and still got shat on, even more so.
 

DeviantBoi

Member
Wait for Major Nelson to tweet about looking into what's happening.

In a couple of days, they'll fly Jim over to the XBone launch event and say it was all a misunderstanding.
 

Amir0x

Banned
Wait for Major Nelson to tweet about looking into what's happening.

In a couple of days, they'll fly Jim over to the XBone launch event and say it was all a misunderstanding.

All kidding around aside, I guarantee that Microsoft PR will soon be contacting Jim Sterling and issuing some form of apology or invite of some sort, because now that it's becoming a controversy they won't want to keep looking like shit.
 

PJV3

Member
It sounds like the Xbox group need a couple of shitty years like Sony, a bit of humility and a realisation that gamers and the media are equally important as they are.

Hopefully it's just a few idiots, but the whiff of ego has been strong recently.
 

Gator86

Member
Can't spread FUD with a wild dog running around. Journalists who refuse to get in line and tow the PR line are Ms's nightmare right now. Good thing for them only a few of those guys exist.
 
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