'Lost', found, and stolen
All signs point to this week's episode, entitled "Some Like It Hoth," to be the "Tricia Tanaka is Dead" of "Lost"'s fifth season. For one thing, look at that title! That's possibly the best title of any episode of any show ever. It's like the anti-"Eggtown" that way. Second, it's heavy on the Miles/Hurley interaction, which usually means good times. But for today, I want to talk about a different type of funny business. This isn't the "ha ha" type of funny here.
First up, DocArzt helped uncover quite the little conspiracy. I suggest you read the whole thing, but essentially, a video blogger named Seanie B. stole material from many other "Lost" analysts and used that stolen material to shoot his way up the online ladder into some money-making deals. One of the people he stole from? Erika Olson, one of my favorite writers and owner of the fantastically named blog Long Live Locke.
Now, I'm hosting a live chat with Erika here on the blog shortly, but that's not why I'm calling attention to this now. I'm calling attention to it because like Doc, I'm pretty steamed at this revelation. I've never met Erika in person, never talked to her on the phone, but I do feel like we're part of a large group of online writers that kill themselves on a weekly basis to provide unique insight on whatever topic stokes their passion. So having this happen to a member of that group strikes a chord for the others.
The issue isn't multiple people coming up with similar theories. Otherwise, you'd have blog-on-blog crime with everyone calling dibs on theorizing that Miles is Pierre's child. That's not what's at stake here. As you'll see on Doc's blog, Seanie B. lifts her work almost verbatim and passes it off as his own. Not cool. Luckily, it's easy for me to tell when others are ripping me off: they post entries with an overabundance of 80's references and ask people to join the Zap2it's Guide to Lost Facebook group at the end.
I don't generally link a lot of other "Lost" blogs on here because, truth be told, I don't read a lot of other ones. Part of it is a fear of spoilers: I'm generally terrified of seeing something that will give away a future plotline in some capacity. So when I say I don't often visit DocArtz's site, it's not a slam on the quality of the site or its content. It's not you, Doc, it's me. It's me not wanting to know that Alex would appear in the Temple after Ben's judgment in "Dead is Dead." I even abstain from Jeff Jensen's preview articles, because they have gotten too spoiler-ific for my tastes. Neither Doc nor Jeff run spoiler sites; I just generally close my eyes, clasp my hands over my ears, and scream "LA LA LA LA" if I even get a sense I'm about to read something that might ruin future viewing.
Jeff's recaps, however, are still must-read for me, as are Erika's recaps. I also make sure to check out Jo's thoughts as well. But that's pretty much it. Is it snobbery? Nah. Part of it's a lack of time on my part (the writing tends to eat up my free time, generally speaking), but part of it stems from not wanting to commit a less obvious Seanie B. ripoff. When it comes to recaps, my process is simple: watch the episode once for me, then recap while watching it a second time, add mythology notes, then post. I don't scan online for any immediate reaction, I don't ask anyone else what they thought, and what's produced is a messy, imperfect, but immediate reaction to the episode at hand.
But after that? I still don't read much, except the comments on this blog. If people make good comments, I try my best to remember where said idea came from and mention it within subsequent posts, but it's insanely hard to keep an accurate bibliography of source material when it comes to casually perusing hundreds of comments, never mind a multitude of blogs. As such, I pretty much cocoon myself from outside analysis. I'm not a complete hermit about it, but I try to make every word come as much from only my head as possible. It might hamper my ability to see a certain aspect of the show in a new light, but I'm also not vain enough to think anyone should make this their one and only "Lost" blog to read.
So as someone who spends a good chunk of time trying to come up with compelling and insightful and entertaining content each week, you can imagine my anger about learning that someone else decided to piggyback off another writer's hard work in order to advance their own profile. To me, the fame aspect is less galling than the intellectual theft. Being "popular" and being "good" are two totally different things, especially online.
Being at Zap2It offers me a platform for bigger readership than I previously had, but that platform didn't magically raise the quality of my writing. You can thank the steroids for that. But more about those another time. Seanie B's ripoff of Erika's work isn't any worse for allowing him monetary gain; it's already appalling enough without a dime being made. His fame might give you a second reason to loathe him, but shouldn't give any more weight to his initial crime.
Put another way: say someone starts reposting my entries (with super minor changes) on a site where only eight people read it. That act, in and of itself, is as bad as what Seanie B appears to have done. One is not intrinsically worse or better than the other. Seanie B was simply stupid enough to think he could get away with it in broad daylight. And he might have, had DocArzt not stood up for Erika and raised the red flag. Hell, I hadn't even heard of this guy until Doc pointed it out. And if I had, I wouldn't have watched more than 4 seconds of any of his video recaps, as the word "douchey" popped to mind the second I saw his smug self on my MacBook screen.
Now, I'm not suggesting in ANY WAY some form of lynch mob to go after this guy. I don't advocate harassing emails, flooding his website, or any of those things. I'm guessing the flashlight shone on his operation has done enough damage already. Plus, those on Erika's side are on the right side in terms of this argument and don't have to resort to such techniques. Plagiarism is plagiarism, plain and simple, and if this happened to me, I'd hope that other "Lost" sites would stand up and announce it the way I'm doing it now for Erika.
After all, I'd like to think Erika, Doc, Jo, and myself are part of a much larger group of people that includes not only those providing content, but those that come to read and comment upon them using unique and original perspectives as well. None of us look at the show in the same way, but altogether form a pretty comprehensive mosaic of ways to analyze the show. The common thread is our passion for the show, and the long hours and hard work put into composing those thoughts for the world to see. I'd rather be entertaining than illuminating, but above all else I want to help my readers to think about the show in ways they might not have had they not read my site.
But people who plagiarize? Well, they're not really thinking at all, are they?
Ryan also posts every 108 minutes over at Boob Tube Dude. He invites you to join the hundreds already in Zap2It's Guide to Lost Facebook group. He also encourages you to subscribe to the Zap2It's Guide to Lost Twitter feed.
Nicely put, Ryan. I'm glad ya'll are sticking up for each other. You, Erika, Vozzek69, and Jensen are the main people I read, and you all bring something different to the table. You make me laugh more than the others, but your insights are also somewhat deep. Erika seeks to tie seemingly divergent plot threads into a neat bow...or as neat of a bow as Lost allows. Jeff....well, sometimes Jeff just goes off into whacko-ville, but he's funny....I'll give him that.
Anyway, props to you, bro, for this article.
So Say We All.
Now when Seanie B. starts screaming WAAAAAAAAAAAALT before asking his readers/listeners questions, we'll have an even bigger problem.
Thank you for including me in this, Ryan. I feel exactly the same way you do, and also avoid reading almost all other Lost sites before and even after each episode airs. I have the utmost respect for my fellow Lost bloggers & recappers, and appreciate the time and energy it takes to provide original content.
Thank you (and Doc and Erika) for bringing this issue to light. It is infuriating, and I hope that it is resolved soon. He needs to be dismissed by TVguide, issue an apology to Erika & others he stole content from, and remove his videos. At the very least.
aka, "The Wet Blanket."
First off, props for sending the word out about a scuz taking work from others and giving himself credit for it. Unfortunately, it happens a lot on the web (it's certainly happened to me, which is why I no longer blog full-time), and since we're still in the wild west out here in the binary frontier, it's not likely to change. It's too easy, for one thing, and it's not exactly illegal, for another. The internet has made already-lazy people lazier, and if they can make a name for themselves by swiping the ideas and conceptual presentations of others, so much the better for them. In other media, one can be sued for doing such things (as in Timex Social Club being forced to change their name to Club Nouveau for ****ing off a certain timepiece company). On the web, proving originality can be notoriously difficult, particularly for people who don't use their real names. I've got a couple dozen personae with which I post on Zap2It and other sites, which makes it difficult for me to try and claim credit for anything original when I can't really prove that, say, Dark Disciple's words were actually mine.
As for people who have the audacity to actually use their real name whilst swiping things, again, this is not exactly illegal, since there are few laws covering it (nor are there a lot of enforcement agencies willing to take the time to prosecute). We can do little more than shake our digital fingers at them for being such unholy schmucks, tell people not to visit their sites and try to make a pariah out of them. The flip side of this particular double-edged sword is that the notoriety actually gives the bastard more press than he or she deserves. Long careers have been started from such things (why the hell else would Britney Spears and Paris Hilton still be mentioned for more than a few seconds a year?).
The wise thing would be for the lot of us to ignore the s*** and let him float away in obscurity. However, it's already too late for that. I suppose a protest would be in order, but again, more attention is exactly what the guy wants.
And now the wet blanket part: I'd love to say that this site is the most original, but it isn't. I'd love to say that this particular blog is the most well-written and insightful, and it's close, but not quite. I'd like to say that the regulars here don't take themselves as seriously as some of the jerks on other blogs devoted to Lost, but that would be a lie.
So why do I come here, even if I get tired of only a few people talking amongst themselves while many, many other decent responses get ignored? Because at the end of the day, this blog is generally fun, funny and worth reading. Is it the be-all, end-all of my day (or anybody else's, for that matter)? One would hope not. But it is worth a visit a couple times a week.
When it's all said and done, though, everybody needs to take a step back and remember this: Lost is just a TV show; this is just a mostly-decent blog; and the web is filled with people who would best serve the world as a whole by jumping in front of the next express train that rolls through their town. Getting all worked up by what some schmuck does is the expected thing to do, of course, but it doesn't need to be. Karma always comes back to bite losers like the thief in the ***.
Rather than getting all hot and bothered, just sit back, enjoy your popcorn, and wait for the jaws to snap shut...
I was somewhat amazed to read the comments of some readers on Doc's blog saying "Give Shawn a break" or "He didn't profit from it" as if because he didn't make any money from this (and we're ***uming he doesn't)it's ok to steal ideas and broadcast them as your own. If Shawn did not make any moment, he still get time in the spotlight that may lead to money someday. Media jobs are based on building a profile and using someone else's ideas to build that profile is wrong.
I'm only somewhat shocked because we do live in a time where all means are justified by the ends and as long it gets you ahead.
Hmm, I saw the post about this on DocArzt's site, but I hadn't even heard of that Seanie B. character and couldn't really care less what he was doing. Plagiarism, though, is a pretty de****able thing to do --- on par with any deceit Ben Linus has ever concocted --- and I'm glad he's getting his just desserts. So kudos to those who exposed him. I say we turn him over to Smokey and see what happens.
Thanks Ryan. I never heard of the guy but you all work so hard, it is important to get the word out on the imposter!
In addition to the websites named above, Ryan and Jen's "the transmission" is an excellent blog with no spoilers and lots of excellent theories from regular people who pretty much think for themselves.
An excellent analysis of the situation!
I never heard of any of these other bloggers, Ryan you are my constant, but not in THAT way.
People who plagiarize shouldn't be given the time of day unless the mucaca's been nominated for Vice President.
I have to admit as a teacher, plagiarism is my pet peeve. Nothing makes me as mad as students who are too lazy to do their own work, so they take someone else's hard work and p*** it off as their own. (And trust me people, I can tell the difference between inept paraphrasing/improper citation and flat out stealing someone else's words.)So, I fall into the "horse-whipping is too good for them" school of thought on this. I must admit that I'm a little disappointed that I can't put my tar and feathers to good use on this. Can we call out Smokey instead?