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MayB
My opinion is that unfortunately the audience dictates the content. And, in that way, writing for tabloid magazines is similar to cleaning bathrooms. Furthermore, you pay somebody enough, they will do either task.
posted by
Joe_Love
on November 13, 2005 at 8:24 PM
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MayB, Focusing on the miseries of others--eeewwww. What a miserable way to live. What on earth would they have to be proud of as their writing careers progress?
posted by
TAPS.
on November 10, 2005 at 1:25 PM
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People do so enjoy the misery of others.
posted by
Original_Influence
on November 8, 2005 at 12:30 PM
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..it takes a while to get through a salt shaker
posted by
Azur
on November 8, 2005 at 4:42 AM
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Marshallengraved, I read everything with a grain of salt. Sometimes mistakes happen just because of the processes involved in getting stuff into print - I know this because I have seen errors introduced into my stories by those pesky creatures known as humans. There are some people who try to get it right but there are some who don't care
posted by
Azur
on November 8, 2005 at 4:15 AM
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There is always one main rule...
to follow when you read the press, particularly the tabloids and celebrity gossips: "don't believe evth you read"...
posted by
Marshallengraved
on November 8, 2005 at 4:09 AM
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Ca88andra, someone is always finding "a new angle" - ie a new way to exploit the story
posted by
Azur
on November 8, 2005 at 3:29 AM
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Writersjourney, don't worry I spotted the comment that was there and then gone and then there again. Thanks
posted by
Azur
on November 8, 2005 at 3:28 AM
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thanks avant-garde and jacenta, it doesn't seem to me to be what people need to know
posted by
Azur
on November 8, 2005 at 3:27 AM
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tigerprincess, that is pretty low I agree
posted by
Azur
on November 8, 2005 at 3:25 AM
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Cunningham07, I don't so much refuse as just have not much interest
posted by
Azur
on November 8, 2005 at 3:24 AM
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Renigade3, thanks for fessing up. I can't get worked up about britney spears at all and I am not going to fess up. The one time I read those mags is when I'm in hospital and people bring them
posted by
Azur
on November 8, 2005 at 3:24 AM
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Curator, it helps someone make some money
posted by
Azur
on November 8, 2005 at 3:21 AM
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malcolm, I don't know why not. I mostly can
posted by
Azur
on November 8, 2005 at 3:20 AM
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Dave Cryer I confess...
that I was fascinated by that story and how it would play out
posted by
Azur
on November 8, 2005 at 3:18 AM
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Cunninglinguist, the whole process of
building up celebrities and then watching them crash and burn is more fascinating than the people involved. It's amazing how much people will allow themselves to be ridiculed just for exposure. Fascinating and amazing.
posted by
Azur
on November 8, 2005 at 3:17 AM
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Masky, people complain about the stuff in those publications but
they still buy 'em
posted by
Azur
on November 8, 2005 at 3:14 AM
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Personally, I cannot believe that the Princess Diana story still hits the headlines now and again!
posted by
Ca88andra
on November 8, 2005 at 1:49 AM
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I Think We Cross-Posted
MayB, while I was writing a reply to another blogger about feeling guilty for not writing -- erasing the initial reply because what I wrote did not reflect what I meant -- you posted your comment and so it appears as though I am replying to (maybe lecturing) you. Just so it's not taken the wrong way, it was the effect of simultaneous posting. Always glad to read your posts and comments.
posted by
writersjourney
on November 8, 2005 at 12:51 AM
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MayB...
I would not want to write anything to hurt others either. We are all human and none of us are perfect in every way!
posted by
jacentaOld
on November 7, 2005 at 7:19 PM
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MayB
I've often stared at these mags in line at Wal-Mart and wondered if they have too much time on their hands.
posted by
avant-garde
on November 7, 2005 at 7:12 PM
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Tabloids have their place
Unfortunatley they jumped ship and are where they shouldn't. It's really sad that tabloids have gone to such extremes as you see today. I think the sickest line I ever saw was a few years ago when Elizabeth Smart was missing, and the Enquirer came out accusing her dad of being involved in a gay sex ring which was totally untrue, What a way to kick'em when they're down.
posted by
tigerprincess
on November 7, 2005 at 5:56 PM
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Mikebrown, it can be kind of fun writing the headlines
but I have this pesky thing called a conscience about writing crap about people. For a short time I had the perfect job (for you). I wrote bikini girl headlines and captions
posted by
Azur
on November 7, 2005 at 5:21 PM
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Mayb,
It seems like the more absurd the so-called "real world" gets, the greater the fascination with trivia. The Republicans trot it out with glee: Another strike in Bahrain, trot out Terri Schiavo. GW's numbers are down to abysmal levels after his no-show at Hurricane Katrina, let's start another round of Supreme Court justice nominees. And, by all means, I have got to know who Paris Hilton is zooming this week. I have to know..I can't sleep until I find out. Bad Paris, bad, bad, bad.
posted by
Blanche.
on November 7, 2005 at 4:08 PM
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I hate the tabloids
I mean, I can never get away from them, and the headlines are awful...like this one: "Superstar Blogit Author of the Hilarious "Adventures of Mike" Is Caught With a Trunk Full of Dead Cambodian Hookers!"
I mean, just because it's true doesn't mean you should be able to print it.
posted by
mikebrown
on November 7, 2005 at 4:03 PM
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I agree
all that stuff is just nasty! I refuse to read it
posted by
Cunningham_Smith07
on November 7, 2005 at 1:59 PM
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I agree...But I must admit that today, when I saw the cover of some
rag at Wal-Mart stating that Britney Spears and her slimeball hubby are having problems, I did get just a TAD excited... Pathetic, huh? I'll admit it...
posted by
Renigade
on November 7, 2005 at 12:26 PM
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I read about The Sun
editor and the spouse-battering and the delicious irony it presented. But I've long considerd that tabloid press columns are just greasy poles, populated by the chip fat they're designed for.
Why can't we just harness the positive and let the negative go?
posted by
malcolm
on November 7, 2005 at 10:51 AM
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I agree. Ew, bad karma. It helps no one.
posted by
curator
on November 7, 2005 at 10:21 AM
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Here's irony: the editor of The Sun who has raked a lot of muck since her appointment, including exposees on spouse-battering, hit the headlines the other day - for battering her spouse. The other tabloids camped outside her door, as they do, as her journalists do. I watched it with a wry grin on the BBC news. I did not buy any of the papers that covered the story. But I did watch the news on it. I watched the news about the hypocrisy of news reporting on the news-makers. Was that news worthy of news coverage? It's hard to completely avoid getting mired in it all these days. Or has it always been like that and maybe I'm just getting older and more cynical? Probably the latter.
posted by
_dave_says_ack_
on November 7, 2005 at 9:57 AM
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This is getting scary
10 years ago I thought people had kind of a mild curiosity about celebrities' personal lives, but now it's blossomed into a cultural phenomenon. Celebrity is the new religion. I feel like a drama queen when I say that, but it freaks me out the way people are obsessed with these Pedestal People. We push them up higher and higher and then we want to push them down and savor their humiliation. And the process of becoming a celebrity has accelerated, thanks to the reality TV demand. The "Average Joe" is an overnight sensation and then we despise 'em because they no talent hack didn't deserve the spotlight in the first place. Not only do we enjoy train wrecks, we take pleasure in the process of making them happen. It's a fascinating psychological study.
posted by
CunningLinguist
on November 7, 2005 at 9:33 AM
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Mayb
I could never make it writing for a magazine or tabloid that caters to the belittling and mocking of other people's shortcomings. It also makes me sick when I go to the grocery store and all them National Enquirer and Star types sell like hotcakes. Don't read em'. Wouldn't write for em'. Bad, bad stuff!
posted by
Masky
on November 7, 2005 at 9:00 AM
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