Stephen Totilo asks: Why Kotaku?

[schild]

http://kotaku.com/5240968/why-kotaku

What kind of person leaves a nice games-reporting job at MTV News, gives up running their own blog to work under the iron fist of one Brian Crecente?

<snip>

An idiot?

I told people who asked that I came to Kotaku because I respect the strong journalistic core of Kotaku. That's the part some people don't see because they're distracted by some of Kotaku's other colorful qualities.

wat 

[JWIV]

journalistic core?  God damn he needs to cut back on his meds.

[rattran]

If they have a strong journalistic core, they certainly don't let it effect their 'reporting'

[NiX]

Or MTV let him go. I'm going to go with MTV let him go.

[Ard]

Or MTV let him go. I'm going to go with MTV let him go.

Yeah, that was my vote also, because absolutely no other situation makes sense.  Unless he's just that stupid, which I didn't think he was.

[Velorath]

Or MTV let him go. I'm going to go with MTV let him go.

I wouldn't be surprised since Totilo's departure from MTV came only a couple months after Patrick Klepek left (who recently announced that he has been hired by G4).

[stray]

People suck dick in China just to work for MTV (granted, I don't know if that's the case for HK's video game section though haha). But yeah, an idiot.

[Hoax]

People suck dick in China just to work for MTV (granted, I don't know if that's the case for HK's video game section though haha). But yeah, an idiot.

link?

[stray]

She deleted her blog, sorry. 

[Sky]

Why are you fixated on kotaku?

[Krakrok]

MTV, gaming, and news. None of those three things should ever go together.

[schild]

Why are you fixated on kotaku?

People only link me to it when there's something shockingly stupid on it. This absolutely qualifies.

[stray]

MTV, gaming, and news. None of those three things should ever go together.

I think it's good for games get that exposure. Especially in the offchance of lesser known games and developers getting a spot or two on such networks.

Not to rip into you too much, but thinking it's not cool is the kind of thinking that was probably what was in this dude's head - like he didn't have cred or something or he wasn't doing real "games journalism". Except he chose Kotaku. Which isn't journalism either.

In fact, there is no such thing as games journalism nor is there any dignity or cred associated with "gaming" by default. They are just products like any other. And at best, gaming journalism is merely fair assessment of said products. Something which CAN be done on MTV or whatever is supposedly not cool. And as far as fair assessment goes, Kotaku is not it. They do not give fair assessments. It's just one dumb website among many.

[stray]

just to add, i think the only things that matter to "games journalism" is good presentation, good exposure, and less shilling as possible. that's it. it's not some noble lifestyle - lifestyle, i think, is the kind of bullshit that sites like kotaku try to espouse - but to me, the important things are broken. their site looks shit and they are corrupt. half of the time they don't even have any original news. if they're not just copying and pasting, they're copying and pasting and adding some kind of smartass fud or fanboying to something.

[Margalis]

Exactly. Kotaku is the kind of place that will find a three page original interview, pick out one sentence and run a headline insulting the developer or trying to start some controvery based on that single out-of-context remark. I find it hard to hold anyone associated with Kotaku in anything but the lowest regard.

[apocrypha]

Kotaku is the kind of place that will find a three page original interview, pick out one sentence and run a headline insulting the developer or trying to start some controvery based on that single out-of-context remark.

Sad truth is that "journalism" like that generates interest and traffic, and these days that IS what is considered a "strong journalistic core". Journalism is a dead profession, having been replaced with simply another form of advertising.

[Big Gulp]

just to add, i think the only things that matter to "games journalism" is good presentation, good exposure, and less shilling as possible. that's it. it's not some noble lifestyle - lifestyle, i think, is the kind of bullshit that sites like kotaku try to espouse - but to me, the important things are broken.

There is no such thing as games "journalism".  I'm fine with them calling themselves critics when it's appropriate, but "journalists"?  Not by a long-fucking-shot.  I know people like to give themselves grossly inflated titles to justify how much their parents spent for college, and/or their massive student debts, but just calling a job something doesn't make it that thing.

[HaemishM]

Games "journalism" IS advertising, plain and simple. It's payola for gamers. There's very little actual journalism to be done - maybe what, 1, 2 stories a year that aren't about upcoming products, released product reviews or editorials? It's one organ in the hype machine, that's all.

[stray]

Consumer Reports, with some personality. And sometimes boobs. Nothing wrong with that, but yeah, not really journalism.

[UnSub]

I'd say that reviews are a form of journalism, but the reality is that 97% of the time game reviewers are examining titles with all the depth of a high-CGI summer blockbuster movie. There is no point critically evaluating anything because mostly it boils down to "good graphics, fun to play, 8/10".

Plus gaming journalism is on the internet, where if something isn't fully written up in a paragraph and doesn't contains something lolworthy, it's TL;DR.

[schild]

Consumer Reports, with some personality.

Not even a little.

[IainC]

Press releases, with some personality. And sometimes boobs. Nothing wrong with that, but yeah, not really journalism.

FIFY

[stray]

Consumer Reports, with some personality.

Not even a little.

I mean ideally. Err.. to me. A fair review spoken by an entertaining person, with or without boobs, is all I care for.

[schild]

I mean ideally. Err.. to me. A fair review spoken by an entertaining person, with or without boobs, is all I care for.

That's not what Consumer Reports is and it's most certainly not what you get in gaming journalism.

[stray]

Actually, i just find the best reviews from user driven sites, so I shouldn't even care about journalism anyways. There's enough of a personal voice there. Sites either like this one, or just people making lists of games and offering their two cents. Usually genre specific sites. When I say consumer reports, I'm just trying to focus the attention that these are products that need to be rated soberly, no different than like, umm, which ramen or coffee maker to buy. I don't give a flying fuck about gaming culture and who's got "clout" with it or what have you. I don't give a shit about who speaks with more memes. Among other things. I just want to go to a store and have a better chance of knowing that I'm not wasting my money on some game. That's the only purpose of a review or a "gaming journalist" to me. To steer me in the right direction.

[Draegan]

Their site design alone is something that pains me whenever I just see a link to that place.

[ashrik]

What's with the "iron fist" comment?

[schild]

What's with the "iron fist" comment?

What do you mean what's with the iron fist comment? He's implying Crecente has an iron fist. I suppose he's implying that only the highest quality journalism hits the frontpage of Kotaku, but everyone who knows how to read knows that's a crock of shit.

[Draegan]

Seems to me their entire site content is on their front page.