Blogger launches reality TV consultancy

Finding a successful market niche nowadays is not that easy. Emma Ashton, author of the blog 'Reality Ravings', has proven that there is possibilities. I found this news article 'Blogger launches reality TV consultancy for producers and contestants' on Mumbrella. The heading immediately attracted me as reality TV is such a big hype at the moment. The article itself though has one big lack. If you want to sell your business successfully I guess the least you could expect from a phone-to-phone service provider is to make some sort of contact details available at the bottom of the story. Nevertheless, the comments section underneath is quite interesting and well-structured. The article also provides linkages to other related websites about Emma Ashton like Reality Ravings and Punch. A range of social media features on the bottom of the story are included to spread the word. 

The news article describes how Emma Ashton, a successful blogger and television guest speaker has started a new business for reality TV consultancy. She realised that a lot of ordinary people with no experience in the field of television would like to pursue a position in a reality show. But as we all know the television business is tough and competition is already waiting for you. So how will someone with no skills and know-how be able to make it into the preselection of a show? This is where Emma Ashton with her consultation service comes in giving helpful advise via phone for the application look and the actual interview.

But is this service really a credible and trustworthy source to consider contacting? Hayes, Singer and Ceppos argue that being a blogger does not necessarily define someone as a 'journalist'. The propensity to put personal spin on information dissemination raises doubts in most media consumers. Nevertheless, contemporary journalism practice requires a usage of different communication tools, for example blogs and social media platforms. Besides her blog Emma Ashton also uses Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/pages/Reality-Ravings/201977069825001) and Twitter (http://twitter.com/#!/realityraver) to spread the word about her new business. She definitely already has a reputation in the media landscape, since she is not only writing a blog about Reality Ravings. Instead she uses a mixture of commentary and reporting.  

There is also evidence that an increasing number of reporters have also joined the blogosphere already. Hayes, Singer and Ceppos state that "new media forms inherently foster trust among users - that they are credible by nature". In other words, a free accessible publishing platform like a blog encourages people/journalists to communicate more open and free, thus it enhances the transparency. Although this works well in theory, practice shows different responses. So far, controversial comments have been made on Emma Ashton's reality TV consultancy business:

It seems like the majority is disappointed about her approach with her new business. Instead of charging contestants for the service, she might have suggested a free trial first. Thus, satisfied customers would be able to share the positive experience with others. Being a blogger and opening a new business with such an image is probably not the easiest way to get the business running. In order to gain credibility and authenticity it has to be "someone who gives them information they can trust".

Online news article and references:
http://mumbrella.com.au/blogger-launches-reality-tv-consultancy-for-producers-and-contestants-61231

Hayes, A.S., Singer, J.B. & Ceppos, J. (2007). Shifting roles, enduring values: The credible journalist in the digital age. Journal of mass media ethics, vol.22, no.4, pp. 262-279.

Hollywood hacker mystery finally solved

I am always amazed by our high society in Hollywood. It is really fascinating how these people get chased after by paparazzi or other people just to get a story for a gossip paper. In this case the invasion into privacy went way too far. The article 'Hollywood hacker apologises for spying on stars' reveals all the rumours that have been going around the news and web for weeks now. The 26 year-old-actress Scarlett Johansson was one of the victims who has had private nude photos leaked online. The 35 year-old-computer hacker, Christopher Chaney deeply apologised for his behaviour but he could face up to 121 years of jail.

The story as such is a 'follow-up' on old coverage so some parts of the article are sort of redundant. Nevertheless, there is a section on the right side of the article with 'related coverage' to give the reader more background information which can be quite helpful if the reader doesn't know anything about the story yet. I really liked that there is actual quotes of the accused man Chaney throughout the story. It definitely adds value onto the article. The only thing downside is the image. Although the image shows the victim it doesn't really relate to the story. Instead they could maybe have used an image of the computer hacker. Also clicking on the picture would link to the same picture again just bigger. Since the story has a really newsworthy angle it is quite nice how ABC news layed it out - short and simple.     

Because the World Wide Web today is so fast-paced and in constant development people manage to figure out ways to outsmart the computer systems. We all know that security settings in our social media accounts for example, are there for a reason. And ones put on the internet your entered data like pictures, emails, and comments etc. will be in the electronic world forever - like a Tattoo. Electronical hijacking is probably quite easy if you are a tech-savvy and maybe extremely curious person but it does not give anyone the right to invade someones privacy. And it doesn't matter if this person is a celebrity or just a common person.

So how can this possibly still happen over and over again? I guess it all comes from the media landscape's big shift from traditional media to new media. Today's electronical world is all about iPhones, iPads, Mac Books, or any other portable device that can do several tasks at the same time via the internet. According to that journalistic practices can pretty much be carried out by ordinary people, also referred to as 'citizen journalism'. But where are the boundaries? How far is too far when gathering news?

When Chaney was infiltrating the email accounts of Hollywood stars he probably felt a little bit like one of the really famous renegade cyber-journalist, Matt Drudge who ones said: "anyone can report anything" and "The people have a right to know, not the editors who think they know better. You should let people know as much as you know when you know". The emphasis here clearly lies on 'WHEN you know'. Chaney obviously used illegal methods to get to his information. In contrast, Matt Drudge just overheard rumours while working in a CBS  television station.

Citizen journalism also takes credibility and accountability, just like a normal news agency. With new technology tools in hand the temptation of becoming a citizen journalist is quite big ... but also risky, as we saw it in this case.                  

Online news article and references:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-10-14/hollywood-hacker-apologises/3571094?section=entertainment

Allan, S. (2009). Histories of citizen journalism, in Stuart, A. & Thorsen, E. (eds). Citizen journalism: Global perspectives. New York: Peter Lang, pp. 17-32.