An open letter to Kotaku intern Jen Schiller
8 July 2011 | 5 comments
Dear Jen,
First of all, congratulations landing an internship at Kotaku! That was one of the trickiest internships I ever managed to obtain, so that tells me right away that you’re a savvy young female writer.
You know, being Kotaku interns isn’t the only thing the two of us have in common. We’re both writers, gamers, women and oh yeah — we both majorly screwed up. You can read all about my screwup right here, complete with all the embarrassing details.
Our mistakes aren’t exactly the same. For example, you actually did an interview and research while I just waxed philosophic about a meme. (Lesson of the day: that kind of thing is what kills a meme.) That should cheer you up!
I see what you were trying to do with your article. The sassy, flippant style you used is standard in mainstream news. Traditional media treats stories about our geeky interests lightly, categorizing it as “News of the Weird.” Even though we’re geeks, we’re also journalists, and the temptation to write like our more famous, well-paid brethren is tempting. You weren’t trying to alienate your audience at all. You were doing the best you knew how. You couldn’t have known just how seriously the Kotaku audience takes games until you tested it.
Even though you didn’t mean to, the mistake is out there. You’re embarrassed, I feel you. I’ve been there. So here’s what to do now:
- Block 4chan from your computer, especially /v/. In fact, avoid the Kotaku comments on your article as well. These people are strangers who don’t have the first idea about who you are, nor do they deserve to. Don’t feed the trolls.
- Avoid vanity Googling for a few days until people find something else to talk about. (Though I have to admit, I just Googled you and the coast is almost clear.)
- Enjoy the mountain of hits this is bringing to Kotaku. My article was one of the most-read intern articles of the summer. Kotaku needs hits to be successful and it doesn’t matter where they come from or why.
- Remember that it’s better to royally screw up one time than make a ton of little mistakes over and over. I’ve never forgotten about making that public mistake, and perhaps you won’t either. This memory will make you a better journalist. It will always remind you how far you’ve come.
For the rest of the Internet, this will go away quickly. My mistake would have been long forgotten if I didn’t keep dredging it up. And the net is limitless, full of space for your future accomplishments to follow in the wake of this temporary mess.
If you take one thing from my letter, here it is: this is not the end of your game journalism career. It’s only the beginning.
Your friend and fellow geek,
Lauren
Although I detest inspiration quotes, one that I’ve always used to guide my actions is Oscar Wilde’s pithy rejoinder on the topic of gossip- the only thing worse than being talked about is not being talked about.
That said, I do agree with your note on her tone in the interview. It’s a good piece, but it’s something I think an editor should have kicked back to her with a few notes. I a similar experience on SEMO where I took a gamble and used a very loose voice in a major review. After the reviewer stopped just short of saying I was a waste of money we both took a breather, stepped away from our inboxes, and I rewrote the article. I thought it was the end of my tenure at SEMO but shortly thereafter I was named one of the three site leaders. Every crisis caused by controversy in writing and journalism can be turned into a major opportunity as you proved with Kotaku.
Let’s hope Jen Schiller is able to do the same!
@Matt, I like that quote, too. And just about everything Wilde ever said.
In a perfect world, an editor would have proofread every word of her article, but things are incredibly fast paced over at Kotaku. It’s amazing that they get things published without typos most of the time. Plus, the editors tend to let interns pitch their own ideas and experiment. I definitely learned a valuable lesson!
Obviously my opinion on this article is very biased, so I don’t feel I should comment on that. But I’d like to point out that Ms. Schiller did not do an interview, but rather quoted and referenced someone else’s interview. And the source (the gamer she quoted) did not feel fairly represented by her piece.
I try to say this without judgement, but I would say that should Ms. Schiller ever read this, it would be good in the future to be aware of how your piece reflects on the source, because it changes how a future source may or may not choose to speak to you.
I have found that as a filmmaker, one if my greatest asserts is that I can say with confidence that I will represent my sources fairly (not alway positively, but fairly) and my history shows that.
@Mary, that’s a great point. A journalist needs to present the source as accurately as she can. I’ve read a lot of recent interviews (especially with celebrities) where the journalist either flatters the subject needlessly or vililanizes them without reason. It makes for some interesting reading, but it does make you question 1) if it’s accurate and 2) if that journalist will ever get another interview with the source.
I’m sure Ms. Schiller has already dealt with the consequences of the piece on several other sites, so thanks for keeping your comment kind and civil, no matter what you thought of the article.
[...] a mistake and misjudged her audience, just like I did last year. You can read all about both of us here. My advice to her was to learn from her mistake and to ignore troll comments. And the best way to [...]