Post by Ace on Oct 29, 2003 15:57:34 GMT -5
Great article in Film Stew about how the IMDB is ruining it's reputation with it's partnership with WENN and it uses the Jackman as Bond article as exhibit #1.
Film Stew: Licensed to Thrill
Wednesday, October 29, 2003
Licensed to Thrill
The Internet Movie Database's content partnership with London-based entertainment wire service WENN continues to ruffle feathers.
By Richard Horgan
In both real estate and online entertainment journalism, it all comes down to location, location and location. If you're lucky enough to be associated with a web site that counts its unique monthly visitors in the millions rather than the thousands, you are essentially sitting on the Internet's equivalent of beachfront property.
With over 12 million unique monthly visitors, the Internet Movie Database is one of the most popular entertainment destinations on the web. However, its stellar reputation among consumers as well as film and TV industry professionals appears in danger of being sullied once again through its association with "Celebrity News," a weekday column put out by the London-based wire service World Entertainment News Network (WENN).
Earlier this month, New York-based entertainment columnist Roger Friedman, under the sub-headline "Thievery," accused WENN of lifting his October 14th interview with Robert Downey Jr. word for word and failing to give FoxNews.com any credit for the actor's comments about being dropped from Woody Allen's new film. Friedman went on to write, "I am asking all subscribers to WENN to stop using this service until it starts crediting the actual sources for their stories. This includes the much-beloved Internet Movie Database and Showbizdata.com."
More recently, on Monday, October 27th, WENN's second lead item of the day suggested that Australian heartthrob Hugh Jackman was the new favorite to take over the role of James Bond from actor Pierce Brosnan. However, when contacted by Hollywood Spin, Jackman publicist John Palermo stated, "There is no truth to this rumor. We have no idea where it came from."
One can learn a lot about WENN's recipe for tabloid journalism success by deconstructing the Jackman item as it appeared on IMDB, now an Amazon.com subsidiary. On the top right hand side of IMDB's home page, the first three items of the day's "Celebrity News" column are listed within a box titled "Movie and TV News." At the very least, this guarantees that hundreds of thousands of people are going to glance at the day's trio of headlines.
WENN's formula likes to tease readers with somewhat misleading headlines. In the case of Monday's Jackman item, the hyperlink blared, "Hugh Jackman Tipped For Bond Role." But after reading the report, it becomes clear that it is framed around nothing more than a loose wish list of actors compiled by one or more producers of the Bond film franchise.
Another favorite tactic of WENN is to pin its items on unnamed sources, but attach them to a reputable entity. In other words, counterbalance anonymity with legitimacy. Thus, the Jackman report was credited to "a source at 007 movie maker Eon." But because there is no hard casting news in the report, the follow-on quote from Bond director Lewis Gilbert is, rather cleverly, nothing more than hearsay layered upon hearsay.
Casting rumors are definitely a bread and butter category for WENN's "Celebrity News." For example, in June of 2002, it reported through an unnamed source that Harrison Ford was insisting that his girlfriend Calista Flockhart be given a role on the fourth Indiana Jones installment. More recently, in March of 2003, WENN circulated an uncorroborated rumor that Hayden Christensen was going to be the next Superman, buffeting the information with content apparently re-purposed from Page Six about Justin Timberlake being up for the role of cub reporter Jimmy Olsen. All of this is probably news to Warner Brothers, producer Jon Peters, director McG and anyone else attached to the studio's planned 2005 summer release about the Man Of Steel.
Amazon.com and IMDB seemed to realize what they were getting themselves into when they partnered with WENN. They, along with other sites that license the "Celebrity News" column, pretty much wash their hands of any responsibility with a disclaimer at the bottom of each day's offering of a dozen or so tidbits.
The disclaimer reads: "The Internet Movie Database takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the articles above. The Celebrity News column is licensed from WENN and published for the entertainment of our users only. This column does not represent IMDB's opinions nor can we guarantee that WENN's reporting is completely factual."
But this begs the question, can a site like IMDB have it both ways? By selecting WENN's service and giving it one of the most prominent shingles on the World Wide Web, the Seattle-based giant is essentially legitimizing the information, even though its stated goal is to trade on questionable ethics for the Internet's prized commodity known as "eyeballs." It says so right there in the disclaimer - the column is published for the entertainment of our users only.
Or is IMDB simply catering to the masses with a consumer site front page that echoes the tabloidization of entertainment journalism as a whole. It could be argued that carrying WENN's daily dispatch is no worse than People Magazine digitally altering cover photos of celebrities such as David and Courtney Cox-Arquette without their permission, as the Time Warner publication fessed up to just this week.
Indeed, last fall, IMDB announced a content partnership for the business side of its enterprise, www.imdbpro.com, with the Hollywood Reporter. As it continues to try and get industry professionals such as producers and casting directors to use this side of the service, IMDB almost seems to be acknow-ledging that different rules apply depending on who the core audience is.
And that ultimately, it should not be blamed for giving the public what it apparently wants - rumor, innuendo and juicy gossip first, fully attributed factual items second.
Ultimately, though, many in Hollywood must be secretly pleased at the additional attention all this misinformation brings to their projects. By virtue of its popularity, IMDB guarantees that any juicy item about a film will be picked up by countless other online entertainment news and fan sites, who will then of course seek out a comment from one or more of the movie's principals.
For example, citing an "anonymous actor on set," WENN reported last summer that things got so bad on the Prague set of The League of Extraordinary Gentleman that director Stephen Norrington finally walked up to star Sean Connery and shouted, "'I'm sick of it. Come on, I want you to punch me in the face!" Connery was said to have declined and simply walked away to wait until Norrington calmed down.
Like clockwork, the entertainment news site IGN Film Force tracked down one of the film's producers, Don Murphy, who flat-out denied WENN's report, labeling it "more nonsense from the web." He went on to attack the very integrity of the London-based service, suggesting that "the way to confirm that [WENN] have bad sources is that after the flood we went to Malta. We didn't stay in Prague and fight."
But wait a minute … Is Murphy denying that the fight took place at all, or simply and somewhat slyly suggesting it didn't take part in Czechlosovakia? Since the film known in short form as LXG proved later on to need all the help it could get, could that "anonymous actor on set" possibly be in cahoots with the producers, stoking the he-man profile of Connery's latest with a healthy, he-man sized rumor? Your publicist's guess is as good as my publicist's guess.
Still, there's enough of this tomfoolery going on without IMDB fanning the flames. The rest of its service is so incredibly spectacular that it's hard to understand why it feels the need to boost its Nielsen Net-Ratings standing with spiked entertainment reportage. Initial attempts by Hollywood Spin to reach WENN directly and via IMDB were unsuccessful.
The ramification of this years-long partnership runs a little deeper, however, than just the front page. For each person or project listed within IMDB's database, the system generates a hyperlink on the left hand side of the page that reads, "News Articles." When clicked, the link responds with a chronological list of cross-referenced items from a single source … That's right, WENN.
Ultimately, Hollywood Spin has to side in this case with Fox News columnist Roger Friedman, who is consistently detailing how his columns are lifted not just by WENN but by various other sources as well. He even went so far when relaying a recent scoop about the Ethan Hawke-Uma Thurman meltdown to conclude the item with an explicit warning to one and all not to steal the item, since it was an exclusive.
With its evolving stature in the marketplace and lofty plans for IMDB Pro, it's time for IMDB UK founder Col Needham and the rest of the current gang to drop the WENN in favor of the "Who, What, Where, When and How" principles of reputable entertainment journalism. The Hollywood Reporter, Reuters, AP and any number of other would-be suitors are right there, just waiting in the wings.
Film Stew: Licensed to Thrill
Wednesday, October 29, 2003
Licensed to Thrill
The Internet Movie Database's content partnership with London-based entertainment wire service WENN continues to ruffle feathers.
By Richard Horgan
In both real estate and online entertainment journalism, it all comes down to location, location and location. If you're lucky enough to be associated with a web site that counts its unique monthly visitors in the millions rather than the thousands, you are essentially sitting on the Internet's equivalent of beachfront property.
With over 12 million unique monthly visitors, the Internet Movie Database is one of the most popular entertainment destinations on the web. However, its stellar reputation among consumers as well as film and TV industry professionals appears in danger of being sullied once again through its association with "Celebrity News," a weekday column put out by the London-based wire service World Entertainment News Network (WENN).
Earlier this month, New York-based entertainment columnist Roger Friedman, under the sub-headline "Thievery," accused WENN of lifting his October 14th interview with Robert Downey Jr. word for word and failing to give FoxNews.com any credit for the actor's comments about being dropped from Woody Allen's new film. Friedman went on to write, "I am asking all subscribers to WENN to stop using this service until it starts crediting the actual sources for their stories. This includes the much-beloved Internet Movie Database and Showbizdata.com."
More recently, on Monday, October 27th, WENN's second lead item of the day suggested that Australian heartthrob Hugh Jackman was the new favorite to take over the role of James Bond from actor Pierce Brosnan. However, when contacted by Hollywood Spin, Jackman publicist John Palermo stated, "There is no truth to this rumor. We have no idea where it came from."
One can learn a lot about WENN's recipe for tabloid journalism success by deconstructing the Jackman item as it appeared on IMDB, now an Amazon.com subsidiary. On the top right hand side of IMDB's home page, the first three items of the day's "Celebrity News" column are listed within a box titled "Movie and TV News." At the very least, this guarantees that hundreds of thousands of people are going to glance at the day's trio of headlines.
WENN's formula likes to tease readers with somewhat misleading headlines. In the case of Monday's Jackman item, the hyperlink blared, "Hugh Jackman Tipped For Bond Role." But after reading the report, it becomes clear that it is framed around nothing more than a loose wish list of actors compiled by one or more producers of the Bond film franchise.
Another favorite tactic of WENN is to pin its items on unnamed sources, but attach them to a reputable entity. In other words, counterbalance anonymity with legitimacy. Thus, the Jackman report was credited to "a source at 007 movie maker Eon." But because there is no hard casting news in the report, the follow-on quote from Bond director Lewis Gilbert is, rather cleverly, nothing more than hearsay layered upon hearsay.
Casting rumors are definitely a bread and butter category for WENN's "Celebrity News." For example, in June of 2002, it reported through an unnamed source that Harrison Ford was insisting that his girlfriend Calista Flockhart be given a role on the fourth Indiana Jones installment. More recently, in March of 2003, WENN circulated an uncorroborated rumor that Hayden Christensen was going to be the next Superman, buffeting the information with content apparently re-purposed from Page Six about Justin Timberlake being up for the role of cub reporter Jimmy Olsen. All of this is probably news to Warner Brothers, producer Jon Peters, director McG and anyone else attached to the studio's planned 2005 summer release about the Man Of Steel.
Amazon.com and IMDB seemed to realize what they were getting themselves into when they partnered with WENN. They, along with other sites that license the "Celebrity News" column, pretty much wash their hands of any responsibility with a disclaimer at the bottom of each day's offering of a dozen or so tidbits.
The disclaimer reads: "The Internet Movie Database takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the articles above. The Celebrity News column is licensed from WENN and published for the entertainment of our users only. This column does not represent IMDB's opinions nor can we guarantee that WENN's reporting is completely factual."
But this begs the question, can a site like IMDB have it both ways? By selecting WENN's service and giving it one of the most prominent shingles on the World Wide Web, the Seattle-based giant is essentially legitimizing the information, even though its stated goal is to trade on questionable ethics for the Internet's prized commodity known as "eyeballs." It says so right there in the disclaimer - the column is published for the entertainment of our users only.
Or is IMDB simply catering to the masses with a consumer site front page that echoes the tabloidization of entertainment journalism as a whole. It could be argued that carrying WENN's daily dispatch is no worse than People Magazine digitally altering cover photos of celebrities such as David and Courtney Cox-Arquette without their permission, as the Time Warner publication fessed up to just this week.
Indeed, last fall, IMDB announced a content partnership for the business side of its enterprise, www.imdbpro.com, with the Hollywood Reporter. As it continues to try and get industry professionals such as producers and casting directors to use this side of the service, IMDB almost seems to be acknow-ledging that different rules apply depending on who the core audience is.
And that ultimately, it should not be blamed for giving the public what it apparently wants - rumor, innuendo and juicy gossip first, fully attributed factual items second.
Ultimately, though, many in Hollywood must be secretly pleased at the additional attention all this misinformation brings to their projects. By virtue of its popularity, IMDB guarantees that any juicy item about a film will be picked up by countless other online entertainment news and fan sites, who will then of course seek out a comment from one or more of the movie's principals.
For example, citing an "anonymous actor on set," WENN reported last summer that things got so bad on the Prague set of The League of Extraordinary Gentleman that director Stephen Norrington finally walked up to star Sean Connery and shouted, "'I'm sick of it. Come on, I want you to punch me in the face!" Connery was said to have declined and simply walked away to wait until Norrington calmed down.
Like clockwork, the entertainment news site IGN Film Force tracked down one of the film's producers, Don Murphy, who flat-out denied WENN's report, labeling it "more nonsense from the web." He went on to attack the very integrity of the London-based service, suggesting that "the way to confirm that [WENN] have bad sources is that after the flood we went to Malta. We didn't stay in Prague and fight."
But wait a minute … Is Murphy denying that the fight took place at all, or simply and somewhat slyly suggesting it didn't take part in Czechlosovakia? Since the film known in short form as LXG proved later on to need all the help it could get, could that "anonymous actor on set" possibly be in cahoots with the producers, stoking the he-man profile of Connery's latest with a healthy, he-man sized rumor? Your publicist's guess is as good as my publicist's guess.
Still, there's enough of this tomfoolery going on without IMDB fanning the flames. The rest of its service is so incredibly spectacular that it's hard to understand why it feels the need to boost its Nielsen Net-Ratings standing with spiked entertainment reportage. Initial attempts by Hollywood Spin to reach WENN directly and via IMDB were unsuccessful.
The ramification of this years-long partnership runs a little deeper, however, than just the front page. For each person or project listed within IMDB's database, the system generates a hyperlink on the left hand side of the page that reads, "News Articles." When clicked, the link responds with a chronological list of cross-referenced items from a single source … That's right, WENN.
Ultimately, Hollywood Spin has to side in this case with Fox News columnist Roger Friedman, who is consistently detailing how his columns are lifted not just by WENN but by various other sources as well. He even went so far when relaying a recent scoop about the Ethan Hawke-Uma Thurman meltdown to conclude the item with an explicit warning to one and all not to steal the item, since it was an exclusive.
With its evolving stature in the marketplace and lofty plans for IMDB Pro, it's time for IMDB UK founder Col Needham and the rest of the current gang to drop the WENN in favor of the "Who, What, Where, When and How" principles of reputable entertainment journalism. The Hollywood Reporter, Reuters, AP and any number of other would-be suitors are right there, just waiting in the wings.