Lyndahere And Yes Russell Crowe There Are Bootleggers At The Movies (apology)....

Apology to Russell Crowe...The bootlegged song being promoted on his Twitter site is called My Hand My Heart. The legal song on the South Sydney Media Youtube site is called Lover's Hands. My comments stand with an apology for the mistake. I believe as a consumer of videos we should be given a choice of what we consume. Perhaps I am old fashioned but I like legal quality videos where any profits made go to the artists. I am a fan of the Crowe/Doyle songbook.

On your @russellcrowe Twitter site you have retweeted and provided a link to a live recorded concert by Lynda Elstad or @lyndahere. @lyndahere is a full time bootlegger and music pirate known to you and your friends. She operates without a licence to record live concerts or permission to reproduce copyrighted videos.

@russellcrowe Merry Christmas My Hand, My Heart, Russell Crowe and Scott Grimes Crowe Doyle NYC Indoor Garden Party 23 December 2012

@lyndahere MT @proguesofficial @russellcrowe will NOT be performing this song at The Progues’ show tomorrow night at the London 02. 19 December 2012

@russellcrowe @russellcrowe @youtube 26 December 2012

Firstly, I am wondering why you have chosen to provide a link to a bootlegged copy when you have made a legal copy of the same song available on the South Sydney Media site.

Secondly, I am wondering why you think you and your friends need publicity gained through illegal means. I mean aren’t the legal ways and the activities of the paparazzi enough? Surely with the release of the film Les Miserables and the presence of superstars like Sting and Hugh Jackman at your concerts I am wondering why you think you need this illegal type of promotion?

Thirdly, I am wondering why you are promoting someone who doesn’t seem to have any understanding of the concept of a ticket. @lyndahere has this idea that she the consumer deserves more than what your offering for the price of the ticket to a concert or movie. On Twitter @lyndahere wrote “Les Mis time. Slipped into prior showing to catch the film’s end –sniffles and applause. Bodes well” @russellcrowe @alanthomasdoyle 26 December 2012. She always wants more than what you and your friends are offering for the price of a ticket whether it be live recordings of concerts or the screening of a movie.

Fourthly, I am wondering why you are promoting and encouraging illegal activities on your Twitter site. I hope you seriously don’t believe that members of the public believe bootlegging and piracy are victimless crimes. On Twitter @lyndahere wrote to @BevyJean72 “You’re very welcome Beverly, you and anyone who’s enjoyed the videos. I love sharing great shows and great music 21 December 2012. It is illegal under US and Canadian law to record and distribute live recordings of concerts without permission.

Live concerts are not the only activities bootlegged. Movies are also bootlegged as they are screened in a theatre. Research shows bootlegged movies were a phenomenal problem in New York city. That is a problem distinct from being pirated movies. “About half of all the bootlegged films recorded live in a theatre, duplicated thousands of times and sent around the globe originated in New York city according to the MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America)” (as sited in ‘Cracking Down on Bootlegged Movies’ by David Caurso in 2009).

In an episode of the American comedy Seinfeld one of the characters Kramer becomes involved in video recording movies in theatres and distributing them on the street. He takes it upon himself to change the original presentation of the movie and in the process becomes a celebrity artist in his own right in that industry. A bootlegged video or cam movie is a video recording of a movie made by a moviegoer while sitting in the theatre. Bootleggers do it for a number of reasons to make copies, distribute it and make money, to make copies so that people who can’t see it can or don’t want to pay the price to see it.

In an article in the New York Times in 1997 titled ‘Bootlegged Videos Piracy with a Camcorder’ journalist Linda Lee investigates the activity of bootlegging movies in theatres, their distribution in New York city and their negative impact on the entertainment industry. The journalist investigated how video recorders were being smuggled into screenings of movies, copies made and released. “Using a $500 videocamera and a tripod and occasionally making use of theatre’s audio jacks a bootlegger can go to the movies and make a $1000 or more…he makes copies and sells them…and that’s tax free” said Bill Shannon, the head of Motion Picture Association of America’s New York anti-piracy office. These activities were thriving in America and in particular New York city. Some of the copies made and released were done by industry employees as well as members of the public however, regardless of who is bootlegging there remains a problem…“The growing sophistication of technology and the cachet of seeing something first are combining to intensify a persistent problem”. Not only seeing something first but missing out on seeing something altogether.

So I gather it would be alright then in your view if someone went into the Les Miserables movie premier, recorded it and put it up on Internet? People could then download and watch it for free. Universal Pictures and its shareholders who finance your creative endeavours do have something to say about these types of activities as they and other movie studios lose millions of dollars per year to piracy of all kinds. Or perhaps you don’t really care as you have your money and quite a lot of it. More money than you and your children will ever need in their live times.

Some people may ask with all the technology around for movie pirating is bootlegging movies in theatres still being done. In a 2009 article ‘Cracking Down on Bootlegged Movies’ the journalist discusses new laws being introduced in New York city to outlaw bootlegging in theatres. In New York it is illegal to film in a movie theatre and offenders can face a fine of $250. New York has been identified as the worst city for bootlegging and has some of the worst penalties for offenders. The Motion Picture Association of America and others have been pushing for tougher penalties. While there is debate on the Internet about bootlegged movies and whether they are still being made there is still an audience for them in particular for people wanting to watch rare or unusual movies will resort to obtaining a bootlegged movie.

While there may be not a consequence for people bootlegging, the person selling or watching it, with little chance of being traced, caught and prosecuted Linda Lee’s ‘Bootlegging Movies with a Camcorder’ finds there are huge threats to the entertainment industry who fund these projects for example financial loses. It is difficult to know how much bootlegging costs the movie industry but it is estimated at hundreds of millions of dollars every year. The article states “One problem is that blasé New Yorker’s tend to see bootlegging, like counterfeiting Rolex watches as, a victimless crime” which of course it is not. From my experience of social media I don’t think that attitude is exclusive to New York but in America in general. @lyndahere is definitely blasé about the impact of bootlegging and music piracy and has no conscience about what she does. Michael Murray in his article ‘Why Pay for Anything?Movie Bootlegging and the Evolution of Media’ writes about the evolution of the media industry. He regularly purchases bootlegged (as distinct from pirated copies) of DVDs “I have to admit to feeling some excitement if the DVD I brought is going to be a dud or not…maybe you are going to beat the system or the system is going to beat you”.

I am wondering if you have thought about what you are saying to your followers by providing links to and retweeting @lyndahere’s videos on Twitter. It is of course up to you what you tweet and retweet but what are you saying to others in particular to children and teenagers about the laws created to protect creative artists and their work. Children and teenagers read your Twitter page. Your children and their friends read your Twitter page. Most people only make a small number of recordings at concerts for personal use and that is okay. However, @lyndahere records everything she attends with no regard for the quantity or quality and puts it on Youtube. And you and your friends are encouraging it. You are trivialising copyright, music piracy and bootlegging laws that protect creative endeavours of individuals and corporations.

What are you saying about the quality of goods people are listening too and peoples creative work being presented? In a tweet to @alanthomasdoyle @lyndahere writes “I thought the nose looked rather familiar. Distinctively Doyle – it’s why I didn’t crop it out of the frame” 20 December 2012. It seems okay to her to make adjustments to others creative work and present them to the public in the way she sees fit. Like live recordings of concerts, live recordings of movies capture a range of activities in the immediate environment for example people talking, eating popcorn and candy interfere with the quality of the sound. Like live recordings of concerts those skilled in editing can alter the original copy of the movie. Michael Murray in his article ‘Why Pay for Anything?Movie Bootlegging and the Evolution of Media’ who purchases bootlegged DVDs as against pirated DVDs writes about the editing of bootlegged movies “The Craziesin which a theatre goer’s shoulder was visible at the bottom of the screen and the copy of Alice in Wonderland I brought curiously devoid of what I would call colour. (Personally I kind of like interpretations of the filmic experience, seeing them as a kind of mash-up or a piece of found if degraded, art’)…

@lyndahere is being encouraged and rewarded for committing illegal activities like bootlegging and music piracy. She is engaged in music piracy and illegally copying DVDs and making them available on her YouTube sites. It is difficult to know how much illegal activity she is involved in. She demonstrates little constraint when bootlegging then why would she show constraint when engaging in music or other types of piracy. Some of those people whose work is being pirated are friends of yours. I am wondering why you are promoting illegal activities on your sites when you have blocked people whose only “crime” is to say something you don’t agree with. They have remained blocked. Yet here is a person who breaks the laws and commits crimes like bootlegging and music piracy whose activities you and your friend @scottgrimes promote and reward.

“Regardless, the experience of attending a movie and seeing it in a theatre cannot be duplicated. To have everything dissolve around you and fade to black, and to see a world-so much larger than life-unfold before you just as the artists intended is unique. And without even knowing it, the mood and expectations of the rest of the crowd, like weather blowing in, passes through you and then a rare but unforgettable moment of shared transcendence might emerge, and for that, well for that we will always return” (Michael Murray in his article ‘Why Pay for Anything?Movie Bootlegging and the Evolution of Media’). And that is why I enjoy paying for goods brought legally whether it be a concert, movie, CD or DVD. I enjoy the experiences offered to me as the artist intended.

References

Caruso, D. B 2009 ‘Cracking Down on Bootlegged Movies’ viewed 23 December 2012 at www.cbsnews.com

eHow Contributor ‘How to Bootleg a Movie’ viewed 23 December 2012 at www.ehow.com

Lee, L 1997 ‘Bootlegged Videos Piracy with a Camcorder’ viewed 23 December 2012 at www.nytimes.com

Murray, M ‘Why Pay for Anything?Movie Bootlegging and the Evolution of Media’ viewed on 27 December 2012 www.pajiba,com/think_pieces/why-pay

Lyndahere, The Paparazzi And The Right To Privacy...My interpretation.

“I truly don’t understand it. It just feels like this kind of gluttonous, horrific sport. It’s like sport. It’s like hunting or something” (Johnny Depp on the Larry King Live October 16, 2011). “We’ve always had our run-ins with the paparazzi. That hasn’t changed. They are very ambitious. They’re looking for God knows what” (Johnny Depp talks about the paparazzi in 2004 on DeppImpact.com)

People like Lynda Elstad @lyndahere and the paparazzi feed the interest in celebrity. @lyndahere and paparazzi stalk celebrities relentlessly around the world to get pictures and stories. There is a slight difference between @lyndahere and other members of the paparazzi. @lyndahere is an amateur photographer and writer and the paparazzi are paid professionals earning large sums of money for that exclusive story and photograph. Like the paparazzi who stalk celebrities @lyndahere stalks Alan Doyle and Great Big Sea. @lyndahere has stalked Alan Doyle around the world including to the film premier in Cannes of the movie Robin Hood and to the Spanish steps to take videos of the merry men performing Beautiful Girl. She has photographs and videos on her webpage Between the Rock and a Hard Place and YouTube site Between the Rock and A Passionate Kisses. So yes I would call her the paparazzi even though she is mostly an amateur.

The paparazzi have been a problem for celebrities for many years. In a Time magazine article “The Shooting Begins. How it all started” outlines the history of the freelance photographers chasing celebrities. The origin of the word paparazzi is disputed but is similar to the Sicilian word paparazzo meaning “buzzing insect” or oversized mosquito. The film “La Dolce Vita” has been credited with term paparazzo borrowed from the character Paparazzo the photographer’s assistant who follow celebrities around Rome. It has now been adopted throughout the world to mean freelance photographers who chase celebrities. In an article by writers Valdes and Conger titled “How Paparazzi Work” they describe their aim “is to remove the distance between the famous target and the viewer, exploiting everything from the stars’ emotional breakdowns to their bad hair days.”… “As always however, the group of photographers and shot callers spoon-feeding the contemporary tabloid culture remains exclusive, aggressive and money-hungry.”

Celebrities want publicity and to make money in their professional working lives. They also want their privacy like the rest of us when they are not working. But there is a demand for information on private lives of celebrities. The paparazzi and those that consumer it cause celebrities major stress and anxiety, embarrassment and personal tragedy including death. The list of celebrities who have had run ins with paparazzi is extensive and include Arnold Schwarzenegger, Britney Spears, Angelina Jolie, Leonardo DiCaprio, Ben Affleck, Justin Timberlake, Nicole Kidman, Michael J. Fox and the English royal family. In 1997 the paparazzi came to the attention of the world after the death of Princess Diana in Paris. The paparazzi were originally blamed after it was found they were chasing her on motorcycles. Within minutes of the crash they were all the wrecked car taking photographs. The photographers were taken into custody by the French police and there was an investigation as to whether they contributed to the crash. After the investigation it was found that other factors were involved in crash that killed her.

“CNN Presents Chasing Angelina: Paparazzi and Celebrity Obsession” is a documentary about the paparazzi and celebrity obsession. The reporter examines the motives behind the paparazzi as they follow them while they work. “I’m in the middle of a pack of paparazzi in pursuit of the red hot actress and my adrenaline is pumping. I have started to realise what drives these guys. It’s the thrill of the chase. Not to mention the huge bounty they can bag with an exclusive photo of a start”(Bud Bultman CNN May 15 2006). The thrill of the chase and a certain amount of fame involved in taking bootlegged videos that are circulated and watched by thousands of people around the world certainly would motivate @lyndahere. Some of the videos she has taken for example, Russell Crowe’s Indoor Garden Party with Sting have had in excess of 50 000 hits on YouTube and the link was tweeted around the world.

Some argue we are all now part of the paparazzi culture. “Creepshots and revenge: how the paparazzi culture affects women” is an interesting article about a subculture of photographing women and men unaware and then posting them on the Internet and then commenting emerging. The article talks about the paparazzi culture we are all living. It is the culture of taking people’s photographs in particular women and using them in a way they wouldn’t authorise. “The throb of surveillance plays out in different ways. On the more benign side are the mild nerves many people feel when an Email pops up to tell them they have been tagged in a Facebook photo or Twitter Pic an image that could be from any moment in their life – recent or historical – now public and open for comments… There is only two pictures of @lyndahere on the Internet one attached to her Twitter page. @lyndahere sends some absolutely dreadful photos she has taken of Alan Doyle and Great Big Sea and circulates them using social media. There is the attitude that celebrities are fair game to be claimed, admired and mocked. While they might not make a negative comment on a website they may do it private. And @lyndahere encourages it by circulating such photos.

The paparazzi have become such a problem that the US has introduced laws that protect celebrities privacy. In October 1998 the California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a bill to fine members of the paparazzi who invade celebrities privacy and media outlets that purchase them and became effective on 1 January 1999. “Under this bill the socalled stalkerazzi will be deterred from driving their human prey to distraction or even death. The law defines “invasion of privacy as trespassing with the intent to capture audio or video images of celebrity of crime victim engaging in a personal or family activity in circumstances where they had a reasonable expectation of privacy” (CNN News 1998). Laws have also been recently introduced in England. Celebrities sick of being harassed by the paparazzi have been started to take legal action (for harassment and invasion of privacy laws) and taking out restraining orders out against the photographers.

So what can we do to change this? We can avoid media outlets that employ paparazzi to harass celebrities. In @lyndahere’s case we shouldn’t watch her videos, visit her webpage or follow her on social media sites. If the market and attention isn’t there then they may change their way of doing things. “Getting a clear, exclusive shot of an A-list celebrity is nearly impossible when dozens of competing paparazzi and bystanders with camera phones are blocking the way” (Valdes and Conger). The more people who take videos and photographs in public the less value the paparazzi photographs and videos becomes. In fact @lyndahere's oversupply of photographs and videos of concerts undermines their worth.

To be continued…privacy laws and photography

References

Cable Network News articles. Turner Broadcasting System, Inc 2012 viewed on 15 December 2012.

Cochrane, K. 2012 Creepshots and revenge: how the paparazzi culture affects women. Www.guardian.co.uk. 22 September 2012 as viewed on 15 December 2012

Valdes, R and Conger, C How Paparazzi Work in Entertainment, How Stuff Works, viewed on 15 December 2012.

The Lady Gaga song ‘Paparazzi’

We are the crowd

We’re co-coming out

Got my flash on, it’s true

Need that picture of you

It’s so magical

We’d be so fantastical

Leather and jeans

Garage glamorous

Not sure what it means

But this photo of us

It don’t have a price

Ready for those flashing lights

‘Cause you know that baby, I

I’m your biggest fan

I’ll follow you until you love me

Papa-paparazzi

Baby, there’s no other superstar

You know that I’ll be papa-paparazzi

Promise I’ll be kind

But I won’t stop

Until that boy is mine

Baby, you’ll be famous

Chase you down until you love me

Papa-paparazzi

Lyndahere And The Battle Of The Bootleggers...Bring it on.

Lynda Elstad or @lyndahere wrote on Twitter yesterday… “Boner stories? That’s the best you have to give? Did you confuse me with someone else?” 9 December 2012

Not quite sure who @lyndahere is writing about but I’ll take it she means me! They are typical comments. Insults, using reverse psychology on people and pretending not to understand what they are writing about in particular on Twitter who don’t agree with her. People who disagree are obsessed, confused, ignorant, stupid or dumb and even ugly so it’s nothing new.

All is fair in love, war and bootlegging it seems. @lyndahere was pipped at the post yesterday by another bootlegger (sorano916) who got their videos up earlier than she did of the Hugh Jackman and Russell Crowe Les Mis performance at the Indoor Garden Party in New York on 8 December 2012. @lyndahere bootlegged yet a fifth concert and she has been loading them up and circulating them on Twitter since Sunday morning. Along with Russell Crowe’s official videos at his South Sydney Media YouTube site that makes six copies of many of the songs with a few extras available on Youtube without all the other bootleggers. Over supply by @lyndahere. I think so.

At previous Indoor Garden events she has been the star of the bootlegging show in particular her video of Sting and the gang. That video was beamed around the world not long after it took place and had tens of thousands of hits. It also made television shows like Entertainment Tonight. At the two other concerts in St John’s she had the monopoly over bootlegged material until Russell Crowe put up his own official versions. At the latest show on 8 December 2012 there seems to be a fair amount of competition from other bootleggers who also got their videos up quickly, some of them well known Great Big Sea fans.

There must have been more bootleggers in that section of the venue than anywhere else. Both videos (from her and sorano916) were taken from pretty much the same angle, had pretty much the same quality of sound and similar shots. Different or same person perhaps one with a phone as well as a camera using a different name. One video starting at a different place and one adjusted, one not. It is difficult to tell as I am not familiar with @lyndahere’s bootlegging style. Then there was news footage as well, also taken from the same area as well. If you work it out please let me know.

As @lyndahere and her loyal band of followers keep telling those of us not particularly fond of her work and activities “if you don’t like it don’t watch it”. I would say the same to her of my blog. I am not really interested in explaining it to her as it my story of discovery. But just remember I have not been a full time music fan or social media expert for over ten years as she has. And I don’t usually watch her videos but was curious about the work of the bootlegger who pipped her at the post.

As celebrity gossip emerged about Russell Crowe yesterday @lyndahere expressed her opinion of wilful liars to @russellcrowe on Twitter @lyndahere “A goddamn shame there’s little recourse against wilful liars, isn’t it? And “just ignore it” doesn’t silence a cruel lie”. 12 December 2012. Like the cruel lie she is spreading that it is a postive activity to record, distribute and watch bootlegged and pirated music free of consequences and as long as your heart is in the right place.  

Lyndahere And Blogging...An unromantic look.

Lynda Elstad or @lyndahere writes a blog titled Between a Rock and a Hard Place documenting her stalking of Great Big Sea. The members of Great Big Sea write blogs that are published on their official Great Big Sea and Alan Doyle sites to keep their fans updated as do other musicians. Fans write about their life and music as a way of sharing their knowledge and connecting with others who share a similar interest. There is an extensive network of music bloggers writing about music happenings in their favourite genres, own local areas and around the world. “Most folks, including those inside the music industry, know that music blogs are now an established layer of the underground music discovery scene, so people genuinely care for whom the blogs are tipping”. ("The Recommender.net” music blog December 2012).

Some groups of bloggers have become very successful (for example mommy bloggers) in the US as like-minded people tune to read an alternative form of media from real people who are not professional journalists. Blogs have become so successful television shows are being made about them examining why they are very popular, the ethics of sponsoring posts and bloggers verses trained journalists as a source of information. Conferences and marketing seminars are being conducted and books and internet pages on bloggers and blogs written to provide people with advice. People write blogs to share their experiences at whatever interests them for example, being a mum and raising children, food, sports or music.

Most of the time writing blogs are positive experiences. Many bloggers write to share their knowledge and experiences doing it because they enjoy it while creating an extensive virtual support community of friends and acquaintances. Then there are those bloggers who write to make money or to get as many free products as possible. Marketing professionals clearly recognise the potential of blogging and the blogger’s ability to tap into their audience whoever they may be. Some blogs have attracted so many readers that products are now choosing to pay for advertising space. There is big money in the US and some bloggers are making well in excess of a million dollars with advertising and sponsorship. They are referred to as superstar bloggers, celebrities in their own right. However, many bloggers distinguish between advertising and a review of a product and many readers do not respond well to this. @lyndahere’s blog Between A Rock and A Hard Place has attracted some advertising.

There is an extensive music network of bloggers around the world. But where do I start gaining knowledge of music blogs throughout the world and in particular in Canada. What makes a great blog and how does the music blog community operate? After a brief Google search I found the results of a poll for the best music blogs of 2012 voted for by 180 bloggers on the music blog page “The Recommender” and took it from there. There was a good interview with the one of the best blog pages about writing successful music blogs. They offered some great advice about blogging in the music world.

One of the best music blogs for 2012 is called Disco Naiviete. The blog page The Recommender.net writes “Disco Naivete is a self-declared buzz blog. There is a fair bit of negative press towards buzz blogs – a style of blog ‘churnalism’, that rattles through a number of updates each day, often racing to be first to the news and chasing hits, with little or no editorial opinions – so the question is, why does Disco Naivete rise above the challenging moniker? Well, we believe it’s because they do it better than anyone else on the planet” December 2012.

On how often does he updates his blog…”This depends on a lot of things: do I have time, do I feel like listening to new music and/or blogging, and so on. Some weeks there’s only like five new posts on the blog, others about 3 per day. Less stuff during the weekend, but then there’s often ‘Introducing’ posts showcasing brand new artists because there’s less industry-pushed news coming through during the weekends. I’m constantly sharing new music via Twitter and Facebook though, so there’s at least one new musical find or share every day of the week”. @lyndahere also regularly updates Alan Doyle and Great Big Sea fans with information she finds on the Internet through Twitter. She has in the past made many announcements before they have.

What’s the best thing about being a music blogger? It’s a combination of things. Most importantly: the music. As a blogger you hear a lot of music, a lot more than most other people do, often some time in advance as well. You have the privilege of having a certain amount of people that rely on you for new musical treats – I sometimes feel a certain responsibility towards readers of DN for keeping them informed and up to date (one I happily carry, though). Besides that, you get the chance of meeting a group of people that also love music, some of which write for other websites or blogs and some that actually work in the music industry. And they’re all amazing, lovely people.

While there are many positive things in reading blogs, bloggers in a certain way contribute to fan’s laziness. They prevent fans from finding things out for themselves. All fans have to do is to click onto a social media site and there is all the information for them. All the latest updates, music and links to the information they want. For Great Big Sea and Alan Doyle fans a lot of the information is located for us by @lyndahere. The information she wants to share is posted on her Twitter and Facebook site and distributed with the attached links. Fans do become too dependent on blogs and social media for information. Bloggers like @lyndahere gain a certain amount of power over people to influence fans in what they read and know. This was evident when Great Big Sea appeared at a Blue Rodeo concert and she never told anyone on her social media accounts. Often fans lack the skills to be critical of what they read which raises the issue that is discussed in the above comments what responsibility do bloggers have towards their readers.

The Recommender asked Disco Naiviete “Do you have any useful blogging tips?” Blog for yourself, not for anyone else. It’s your blog, write about what you want and what you think you should write about it. Don’t write about a singer or band because everyone else thinks they are amazing while you’re not too sure of that: focus on the things you really like instead of trying to gather a crowd of readers by recommending things you don’t really like yourself, be truly honest with yourself. Communicate with your readers (this is something I do as much as possible with DN) and try to build a bit of a “community” around your blog. Don’t underestimate a devoted readership: I’d rather have a small group of people that truly trust on DN than a bunch of people that visit the blog every now and then to grab a free song or something December 2012.

Music bloggers like other bloggers put a lot of time into their spaces and spend a lot time social networking with other bloggers. Some bloggers write two to three posts a day or a week reviewing several albums or music events in their location a week. They are often full time students and employees with careers holding down a job. Like many bloggers that share their views on a range of subjects they are interested in I write about being a fan of a music group and exploring the issues that affect us and the musicians we love and admire but I am not part of a music blogging network. I don’t actively seek members or readers. I tend to focus on the negative experiences rather that the positive. I don’t want to be romantic about music and social networking because it is not.

The Recommender provided a list of music blogs that were highly recommended in 2011 and 2012. After a brief look at who writes these highly recommended blogs I found many of them were written by students, graduates and academics at universities in America and other countries. So what does this say about the view of music being researched, written and presented to the music community, those who consume it and the willingness of these blogs to be inclusive. Drunken Werewolf a music blog writes on their history of contact with readers (although mostly positive). "We’ve had a few nasty emails from people who take our writing too seriously, people who don’t take it seriously enough and industry dickheads (or arrogant fans) who seem to think their opinion is objective. Some of them have a point, but not very often" (6 December 2012).

Bloggers talk about an extensive network music blogging community, their love of music, and even helping people to get signed to record labels. But what happens when someone writes something someone doesn’t like. Wherever there are blogs and social media experiences with large amounts of followers there are potential dangers which people think they could never experience. It can begin by just asking the wrong question or not liking something. There is competition, bitchiness and ambition just as there is in any other activities that involve human beings. Associations with people online bring trolls or groups of people who can be relentless in their attacks on people for whatever reasons from both genders. They can frighten people as I have been and force people shut down their accounts. Blogger’s webpages can be hacked and destroyed and it can take a long time to recover. While there is a written and unspoken form of blogger etiquette and tips that advise people on how to behave and protect themselves people can be extremely liberal in their interpretation. Once attacks have happened it can be too late and quite devastating both personally and professionally.

Lyndahere And Yes You Are Here!...A response to recent Twitter posts.

I wasn’t going to publish this post I wrote but after reading a couple of Lynda Elstad or @lyndahere’s tweets I decided to. Today she wrote on her Twitter page 

“So if I see someone whose been a nasty shithead to me being deceived by a nastier shithead I’ve got no moral obligation to tell them, right?”4 December 2012

@carbonbhoy “No moral obligation, just having a thought about it is more effort than you should put into it…I may try getting a 4.30pm tix”. 4 December 2012

@carbonbhoy ”Thanks for the conscience absolution. I wouldn’t be believed, anyway. I hope you get the tickets! Use 2 phones if you can” 4 December 2012

Having @lyndahere spy on IP addresses of fans and fans who don’t agree with her, spreading nasty rumours behind some fan’s backs who disagree with her, turning fans against each other and calling people names are all part of the music social media experiences. In one tweet today she is writing about moral obligations and then in the other hand she is telling another fan how to beat the system that is in place for tickets to Russell Crowe’s Indoor Garden Party in New York on December 8 2012 with Alan Doyle, Samantha Barks, and Scott Grimes. Russell Crowe tweeted about fair ticket access and tried very hard to make it fair for fans. And here @lyndahere is giving advice about how to beat the system undermining Russell Crowe and all his effort. Moral obligation it seems in @lyndahere’s case is irrelevant. When gaining access to Great Big Sea and Alan Doyle concerts and events moral obligation goes out the window.

@lyndahere "I’m here, right Here. I’m not going away, no matter what – no matter what not. That’s settled. All else is up for debate, all else except leaving." 30 November 2012

Yes @lyndahere you are here as long as you continue to buy a ticket to a concert. You are here as long as you continue to be willing to pay for travel and accommodation. You are here as long as you pay to be here. @lyndahere you are here because US and Canadian customs don’t arrest you when you enter their country with the intent of committing criminal acts like stalking and bootlegging and return to America with contraband (bootlegged material). You are here because you do not declare illegal goods to customs. @lyndahere you are here because you fail to recognise and show respect for the laws of the US, Canada and Newfoundland and the laws of these countries don’t protect the people the way they are suppose to. You are here because there have been no complaints to the Newfoundland police and the appropriate authorities about your activities. You are here because you do not operate within the laws of acceptable fan behaviour and because of people’s ability to ignore you. Your social media accounts on Twitter and Facebook operate because there have been no complaints about you distributing contraband (live recordings) and stalking. You are here because you continue to communicate with Great Big Sea whether they want it or not. You are here because you cannot read their non-verbal communication in the photographs and videos you take or choose to ignore it.

Yes @lyndahere you are here because of your own needs and fail to recognise the abilities and needs of others to do their jobs with considerable success. @lyndahere your here because you are under the false impression they need you. @lyndahere you are here because you do not accept others rights to say no to you. You are here because you are unable to recognise your lack of creativity and skill after years of practice distributing photographs and bootlegged live recordings. You are here because of your own ignorance and other people’s (unconscious) ignorance. @lyndahere you are here because of a desire for power and control over people. @lyndahere you are here because you believe that if someone wont give you what you want then you will take it regardless. You’re here because you have threatened and frightened others. They have decided their priority is not you or your videos. Yes @lyndahere you’re here. It’s not the quantity of here that counts but the quality of here that counts. You are here because you have nowhere else to go and nothing else to do.