Comments on: Thompson fires mad letter back at EA about Take-Two litigation

By: patlike

patlike — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 11:11:58 +0000

When I start a porn news website?

By: DizkoSkatinSuperstar

DizkoSkatinSuperstar — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 10:30:34 +0000

You’ve just repeated what I said, in essence. But if you’re implying that journalists shouldn’t have any kind of content filter, then that’s just bonkers. And it’s not the blogs I’m talking about.

So when are you going to start posting porn?

By: patlike

patlike — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 10:19:46 +0000

It’s up to journalists to report what’s happening. If a man appears on TV and says things about games, the games press will report it. Games journalism is entertainment press reporting on games-related issues. Of course Thompson’s exploiting the fact blogs will post everything he says, and of course blogs will continue to do so. If anyone else appears in the public space and says anything similar they get reported too. That’s how it should be. I don’t see how that’s got anything to do with professionalism. If people keeping reading it, sites will keep posting it. It’s the same reason the Sun puts tits on page 3.

By: DizkoSkatinSuperstar

DizkoSkatinSuperstar — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 10:11:03 +0000

It’s nothing to do with sticking your head in the sand. It’s about prioritising and setting a news agenda as professional journalists, rather than being dictated to and played like a fiddle by a clown. Fox gets exactly what it wants out of Jack Thompson - it’s the other way around with the games press. But then, as you say, it’s mostly made up of dribbling idiots anyway.

Anyway, Thompson mouthing off on Fox is quite different from Thompson spamming ‘journalists’ with rants, every one of which is published under the delusion that the outlet is somehow fulfilling its function. Jack knows it’s the easiest way for him to get a reaction out of games publishers, which is all he wants as it creates the illusion of an ongoing dialogue with the upper echelons of the industry and justifies his existence.

By: patlike

patlike — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 09:01:55 +0000

Well, as we both know, the games press is about as professional as a pub football team, so there’s not really a gigantic amount to say on that. Regarding Thompson, though, rightly or wrongly he is seen by mainstream news organisations as an “expert” on videogames violence. When he appears on Fox News he is seen by many millions of people. Just because we don’t agree with him doesn’t mean what he says isn’t news. You can’t stick your head in the sand and pretend he doesn’t exist. He is a story, and a running one. Why are you surprised that “lawyer says insane things about games” is reported by the games press?

By: DizkoSkatinSuperstar

DizkoSkatinSuperstar — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 08:42:35 +0000

Any fucking idiot can become a qualified lawyer, pretty much. It’s the level that matters, not the piece of paper. He’s neither respected for nor even vaguely successful at what he does. He just makes a lot of noise about it.

Do you think it’s okay that this fairground sideshow of a lawyer is able to bend the news agenda to his whim simply by shouting the loudest? What does that say about the games press?

By: patlike

patlike — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 07:57:10 +0000

Yeah. There definitely is an element of that to it. It’s quite hard to ignore a lawyer that says such incredibly stupid things, though. It’s ready-made news.

By: DizkoSkatinSuperstar

DizkoSkatinSuperstar — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 00:48:12 +0000

He only keeps going because the games press will dutifully and blindly report every mad piece of shit he comes out with. No-one in the mainstream press gives him the time of day precisely because he’s a pointless joke. He has employed the specialist press as his PR agency for free. And then they call HIM stupid. Like, duh.

By: Chinster

Chinster — Thu, 06 Mar 2008 23:15:13 +0000

He’s digging in the right area but hasn’t hit the spot yet. If he just concentrated on WoW he’d be on a winner. I’ve lost 3 wives through that game, and the 4th is starting to get pissed off. I hit her with a frostbolt earlier and YELLED STFU but she didn’t listen.

Jack, please help me!

By: patlike

patlike — Thu, 06 Mar 2008 19:52:00 +0000

I “get it”, definitely, but there’s no sense to it. It’s just a mad crusade against something that isn’t what he thinks it is.

By: Shatner

Shatner — Thu, 06 Mar 2008 19:49:58 +0000

Poor Jack. He doesn’t handle rejection very well.

You know, in many respect I like the guy. In fact, much of what he says - or rather the principles behind it - are ones that gamers would sympathise with. Yes, let’s get the sensationalist ‘violent games made me kill’ stuff sorted out. We’d all be happier.

I just feel that Jack’s animated style of delivery does his message no good at all.

Perhaps he just needs a hug.