Yellow Journalism as defined by the Encyclopedia Britannica:
the use of lurid features and sensationalized news in newspaper publishing to attract readers and increase circulation
Or a blog post on the Houston Press. I saw this first tweeted by Strippertweets then posted in more detail on titsandsass.com about somebody outing the AngryStripper. Periodically I hear things and see things that make me cringe. This story is really pathetic.
The author’s complete lack of concern about a person’s safety is horrid. He puts her full name in the headline. After that he post’s her LinkedIn page. Then he does something that really is pathetic. He post’s that there is only one person in the state of Texas with her name. That’s all but giving out her home address. Exactly how much information does he have to give out to make his point?
What I find really offensive is the article try's make the her look like a villain. Her co-worker's were furious at her for flaunting expensive clothes at the office. Flaunting wealth is obnoxious, but infuriating? He makes it sound like she's flogging peasants in the parking lot with a Louis Vuitton bag. I can imagine the conversation her co-workers are having "if she wear's another pair of Christian Louboutin shoes in today, I'm so going to HR and complaining". Seriously, how petty are folks at the Houston Chronicle? How does the way she dress change the way she writes? I'm curious if the guys in her office were so furious at her they quit hitting on her. I really doubt it.
He also tries to play up the double life style. Somehow she was slipping up mentioning that her injured hand was making it hard to write. She actually mentions in quite a few of her posts that she works as a journalist. He probably just read a few posts then scan them till they found the a couple of images. The fact she wanted a make a book deal somehow is a corrupt thing. A journalist wanting to make a book deal? That's just crazy talk.
Of course those clothes we're purchased with "stripper" money. Because you only pay rent and buy food with honest money. Stripper money is only for frivolous things like clothes and cosmetics. They also fail to mention that she does volunteer work at a hospital. Its a lot easier to hate somebody if they are totally self absorbed. If they aren't just forget to mention the good things so they look like they are.
The really sad part is that if she made money selling paintings she did at night instead of stripping, nobody would even look twice. Typically if you met a twenty something who was successfully self-employed and able to afford nice things you'd be impressed with them. They would somebody most people would look up to. Mention that she is a stripper and suddenly it all changes? I was driving a prehistoric Plymouth and struggling to just survive at that age. Despite the fact by any standards she is very successful she will probably be considered at "former stripper" for the rest of her life. She could win an Oscar like Diablo Cody and still not shake the label.
I couldn't agree more with what you said. Paid writers everywhere (aka journalists) are bemoaning the death of journalism as if it's a consequence of the rise blogging. BUZZZ ... wrong. Journalists are going out of business because of journalists. Even the most skilled wordsmith can't cover up shitty behavior and bad/slanted content ... which is exactly what the piece by the houston press is.
ReplyDeleteI'm a blogger with a pretty decent reach (around 40k pv/month) and I was recently outed by the person who writes on the same topic as I do but for our city's major newspaper (it's a rather large city and not an insignificant paper). Most everyone in the industry knows this guy outed me simply for his own personal agenda and not because it enhanced the quality of his writing. (That said – many of them are glad as they are uncomfortable with someone who isn’t compromised). All this is despite the fact that my framework for behavior is far more upstanding than anything he (or any of the major "journalists" in my city who writes on said topic) actually sticks to. He's just upset because my arbitrary rules don't line up with his arbitrary rules.
My case isn't such a big deal to people for a multitude of reasons (eg what I write about is far less tantalizing than what the Angry Stripper writes about), and for that reason ... it's been swept under the rug. However, I cannot imagine that if the circumstances around my outing were considered against the standards of "journalistic integrity", that the gentleman who wrote the piece about me would still be employed. I suspect the same could be said for Mr. Connelly. While I have had to all but abandon my blog, I'm glad that the salaciousness of the Angry Stripper story gives her a vehicle to continue.
But make no mistake, as this type of hypocrisy is perpetrated by journalists on the very people they should be championing, people will like me will have to be ready for the day when their lives change and they are unable to live in their own communities without fear of confrontation. True story – b/c I have been disturbed multiple times in multiple public places now that my identity is out.