Hey, That’s My Cape! – DC Social Media Needs Some Help
So, why am I talking about social networking in a comic book column? I read an excellent piece on Wired recently by Corrina Lawson titled, “Open Letter to DC Comics, Part 3: Marketing Fail, Or Why Not Go After Truly New Readers?” In it, Lawson mentions DC’s current initiative to go after males, 18-34 for readership of their relaunched line. She makes some great points about the large number of females already into fantasy in other mediums or those that read GeekMom.com etc. and that DC has huge potential for new readership they are ignoring. She states the very basic incentive to get female readers, scale back the over-sexualized art, but her main gripe is with DC’s marketing itself, especially through social networking or lack thereof. And I have to say, I agree.
I didn't know Jill had a disability until I read her blogs about MDA fund raisers. Then she mentioned it again in blogs about Barbara Gordon/Oracle. In both cases it was obviously relevant.
You know these games dcuo cash? I am sure you will like it, come and play with me. Welcome to my home page.
She plays up that she's a female and has disabalities? I don't think so!
Well she plays up that she's a female but alot of the entries are about a female's take on comics and other assorted nerdery. So her "playing up" her being female is just keeping in topic with alot of her blog!
As far as her disablity goes I've only ever seen it brough up a few times. In Con coverage (which makes sense since it makes it harder to get around) and when she's promoting the charity events she works with.
I was reading Jill's work for quite some time and had no idea she had any kind of disability until I physically met her. Trying to think about it, I can't remember any time she's mentioned her physical condition in any way except when she was advertising a fundraiser or when she did her op-ed piece on Oracle becoming Batgirl again. And this is someone who writes a couple things a week at least.
She doesn't need my protection. She's savvy and tough and a rockstar and full of class. But friends being loyal and readers recognizing that someone is simply speaking an untruth is not the behavior of pity. It's people reacting to something they find shameful and based on deliberate ignorance. The kind of deliberate ignorance that comes from someone who claims that Jill is being anonymous by using a callsign like "the Nerdy Bird" even though her real name is attached to every one of her articles and web profiles. It's the same kind of deliberate ignorance that says a person can't desire strong female characters and advertise that she's a girl by calling her column "Has Boobs, Read Comics" without being a hypocrite. As if breasts are somehow a sign of weakness.
Argue and debate with her. She actually appreciates it usually. She and I have many debates, some of which have never ended in an agreement. She's smart enough and reasonable enough that she never expects folks to agree with her. But acting out of anger, hate and what seems to be envy and then claiming that these words and accusations can't be questioned because of evidence you talk about but can't actually produce? You just look like an idiot. It's an effort to even read your full comments because every sentence confirms that your existence is really not worth my damn time. Or hers.
Let's see I've known Jill to discuss her disability in two circumstances: 1) when fundraising or bringing awareness to MD for the MDA and 2) when her favorite female character Oracle was going to miraculously leave her wheelchair and become Batgirl again.
Even if I didn't love Jill, I'd call you (Fnstellar) a complete ass.
Let me ask you this, Fnstellar: Do you know the history of Stargirl? She's a character in DC Comics created by Geoff Johns. Her name Courtney Whitmore was a remembrance of his sister who died. Stargirl was created in 1996 and is still in the current DCU. I would love to see you tell Geoff Johns that he's benefiting from his sister's death every time someone writes Stargirl into a DC Comics panel.
Dollars to donuts, your lashing out is a manifestation of your jealousy for seeing a young headstrong woman like Jill succeed and continue to blaze trails for not only people with disabilities but also all women in entertainment who want to be more than just silicone implants reading a teleprompter.
Jeez, I hate to back to the content of the column, it seems so boring…
I think a fair question is, is it that Marvel is doing anything better in the social networking world, or is it that DC's audience is so different from Marvel's that DC's readers don't USE twitter (et al), or at least not as much as Marvel's do?
Marvel really does seem to attract a younger, more tech-savvy readerbase. DC readers, at least the more vocal of them, are older. If I had the proverbial dollar for every post I've seen online saying "I've been reading DC for…" followed by a number that, while not as high as the one I'd be posting, are certainly more than most marvel fans I see at cons have been alive.
DC's idea with the New 52 is to pick up that newer, younger audience that marvel seems to have cornered. With the ad campaign they've promised, they hope to reach the mythical new readers. If they can pull it off, it'll really change things. If they don't, they'll need to find a way to draw back all the fans who Quit Comics Forever.
I'm not convinced that DC doesn't see the digital side of the business as an obligation as opposed to an opportunity.
Even more than just twitter and facebook, DC should be making their website into more of a portal of its own. Marvel's site has so much content it's often hard to find what you want. DC's is to be polite, sparse. The DC Nation blog, the solicits, some previews, and that's about it. They need to ramp that up. Bring back the 20 questions column, do more interviews.
There's any number of writers who'd be happy to help (raises hand)
I'm not going to further argue because I've made my points and don't want to feed the monster.
I will say these few things, Fnstellar, yes you are posting anonymously. You're screen name links to a blogger profile that was created July 2011, leading me to believe you created it with the sole purpose of commenting here without being known. Mine links to my profile with my real name.
Josh, I replied to Gail's comment on Twitter via email. She's a friend of mine and I wanted to discuss the topic in more than 140 characters. So, no, I wasn't being rude.
As a general comment to everyone, if you don't like what I write, don't read it from now on. I'm sure you'll be a much happier person for it.
Thank you to everyone else who came to back me up or at least state your opinions on how that despicable individual was acting.
I will make this brief. I do not know Jill Pantozzi, except from what I read here and on her Twitter. But I will say I consider her a hero. I am disabled and it is hard to live with what I have to deal with. I get discouraged daily, and her upbeat, outlook helps. She doesn't let it hold her back, she enjoys life, and sets a wonderful example for those who may let it get them down. And it was hard to express my feelings here, but to stand up for a good person, I will.
Kudos to you NerdyBird, and many +1s
It is times like this that I remember how closed-minded and ignorant even some geeks are. For a community based on genres which require, and promote, both empathy and acceptance (whether it be of other ethnicities, species, physical conditions, nationalities, etc.), such blatant ignorance astonishes me.
First, DC's Social Media team may be working very hard, but obviously they have no desire to be in the public eye.
Second, it was an Op/Ed. It was not a personal attack on ANY DC personnel.
Lastly,I have followed the Nerdy Bird for a while, and she rarely brings up her disability. Until recently, I was not even aware she had MS. However, even if she did talk about it in excess, or, as you wrongfully accuse her of, "play it up" or "call attention to" her disability, so what? Everyone deals with their burdens in their own way. Seeing as this is the internet, you are under no obligation to read, follow, listen, like or even be aware of Jill Pantozzi.
I admit, her presence in the geek internet community is a little hard to avoid. I, for one, am glad of that. However, if you have a problem with it, don't be a part of the community; but, keep your ignorant comments and unfounded critiques/criticisms to yourself.
i %100 agree with fnstellar. i started out enjoying Jill's columns but time and time again she uses her disability and the fact that shes a woman for extra points and its just gotten disgusting. wow your a woman and you read comics, congratulations. who cares? i think its also a dickish move that you didnt respond to gail simone comment on twitter. gail simone is one of the coolest people ever and she made a valid point.
@Kristen
I have read your comment and would wish to exclude it from any criticism I made in regards to commenters here, because yours was one that seemed open to critics and on top of that, was a well written comment that tackled the situation, made a good argument AND did so without insults and I respect that. I salute your comment as it was clearly better than most here.
And in general I'd rather give up now. I can't shake the feeling that opinions not entirely in favor of NerdyBird are not wanted here and that I, being not a friend of hers, but simply a reader and writer that happens to like comics, probably am not wanted here either, so I better leave. Best for everyone I take it.
PBR: Had Fnstellar's question not degenerated into the personal, there would have been valid points. Read my prior comment on that. However, if you note in *my* comment, I'm not defending Jill, beyond calling Fnstellar out on bigoted comments.
I am personally enraged at the tone and comments, as well as the accusation Fnstellar made. Not because it was made to Jill, but because it was made at all.
Jill doesn't need us to defend her, but what we choose to do because we respect and care about her, is our business. We didn't check our free will at the door. Trying to say that having people who respect and care about you, who are willing to stand up for you, is a weakness, is absurd.
There have been comments on this blog that bring up legitimate points, which Jill has addressed. The fact that people feel justified in derailing what could be a deeper discussion of what the perception of social media is, what it actually is, and how different brands use is more/less effectively, simply to try to bully Jill, is sad on a number of levels.
You know, as a general rule for the internet, you should always ask yourself if you would say what you're about to post to someone's face. You would never say something like that about her disability to her face. Because you know it's wrong. You can lay out your lame justifications all you want, but your initial comment, Mr. fnstellar, called her an egotistical ****. Pretty sure we all knew what that meant. You can't pretend to be taking the high road now that you've said something even more offensive than that. Would you have said either to her face? No. Proof that it's just plain wrong.
Hiding behind the safety of your keyboard. It's cowardly and shameful. It's possible you had good points, but no one will hear them because you chose to be rude from the first comment on.
Also, I knew Jill online and followed twitter and blog for around 6 months before I even knew she had a disability. The first time I knew anything about it was when I saw pictures of her on Facebook. The second time was when she was raising money for MD.
You're just wrong. Period. Go away.
PBR, so what you are saying is that people should never use their own experiences in their writing? If Jill was writing hard hitting news articles things would be different. She writes OPINION pieces, REVIEWS, etc. Those require a personal touch.
We're defending her because we're her friends, and this guy is downright insulting her. She has no reason to pander when she obviously knows her stuff around DC and comics in general.
PBR, if you're going to take it upon yourself to act as fnstellar's advocate, you should remember a couple of things:
1) he did not just mention Jill's MD, he accused her of using it as an attention-seeking ploy. That's a personal attack, no matter how you slice it
2) Jill doesn't "need" anyone to "protect" her. But she's one of the brightest writers we've got in geek media, and she's put in the work to reflect that. That deserves respect, and your sniveling attempts to rationalize arguments based on ableism and sexism grow weaker by the post.
It's not a case of people having to "protect" Jill, it's a case of seeing something so blatantly false that we feel that we have to jump in about it.
"Replace all of that shit that he wrote in his post with the word 'black' and see how that goes."
I don't see the problem with that. The number of writers (in any field) overusing the race card is enormous. That is not a good thing, unless the topic they discuss deal with race, which is often not the case.
It may not be an opinion that is politically correct these days, but these things too are perfectly valid criticism when they appear.
No, I'm not trying to be controversial. But i'm trying to make a point here. NerdyBird is to her readers, first and foremost, a writer. And she should be held by the standards of anyone writing, a blog, articles, no matter what.
This most of all means that what someone sees as valid criticism should be allowed to be brought up and the argument against it should be "I don't think so" and not "How dare you mentioned her disability." THAT is the thing that bugs me.
Frankly, it is disgusting and insulting to HER, that everyone feels the need to protect her. She is disabled and female, does that mean she should not deal with criticism like other people do? Critics should be proven wrong. Not insulted. Or, if critics happen to be right (not saying that is the case here, though I do feel like NerdyBird plays the gender card too often and enjoys mentioning her looks a tad too much), maybe the criticism should be heard and considered to be taken into acount.
No, I do not know what it means to be in a wheelchair. I too have one close friend that does (well, did…well, he still does know, but…you get the idea and my english is failing me here, so forgive me that, the point is he was in a wheelchair, but is no longer). I have friends and family with other sorts of disabilities, but personally, no, I am perfectly fine and I am grateful for that.
But when it comes to writing, it should be about that: The writing.
That is all I am trying to say here…that and well, I think everyone would do good to calm down a bit. There is too much rage here when it is clearly not needed, no matter how much people may disagree with each other.
Not gonna touch assinine comments because I'm sure there will be a bunch of people doing so, but I did want to comment on the post as a whole a say that I hate the way DC uses social networking.
Even with Vertigo which I WISH they used in a better way. There are auto posted tweets linking to blogs and there's some good stuff in there, but that's all it ever is and it's BORING.
Plus, auto tweets only have a small descriptor and hardly do most of their posts justice, or describe them well. I use favoriting on twitter to bookmark things and I often bookmark Vertigo tweets and look at their post and think "Why did I even click that, it was STUPID."
So yeah, I agree that they need to step it up in a big bad way. Janna is kicking their ass! (especially that lunchtime reading thing they have going on-that's SUCH a great idea!!!)
Exactly. If Fnstellar had said that someone played up that they were black, or asian, or Jewish, or Muslim, this would be an entirely different discussion.
Replace all of that shit that he wrote in his post with the word 'black' and see how that goes.
P.S. FNStellar – you started the namecalling first by telling Jill that she was an egotistical ****. Don't dish it out if you can't take it, asshole.
Fnstellar, ANY legitimate points or questions you may have had, (and you originally brought up a couple of points I felt had merit for discussion,) were negated by three things: being antagonistic from the get-go, being patronizing, and having the temerity to accuse someone with a disability of using it to get attention. Is it legitimate to ask why someone thinks they're qualified? Yes. Social media has a lot of aspects, from the, "On-air," talent, so to speak, to the back of house data crunching. There are different roles in social media, and if you don't know that already, I question your intent or authority on the subject. Jill generates a lot of buzz for DC, for free – to dismiss that in favor of assuming that she thinks the DC SM team are idiots, is disingenuous at best. DC does not have the strategy or profile that Marvel does. I follow far fewer people under the DC-brand, but I associate Jill's personal brand with DC, so it's not pie-in-the-sky for her to say that she's in a good position to be part of that team. Lastly, when you failed to gain traction with Jill on previous comments, you throw out the, "I know someone who. . . and they. . . so you. . . " tired, cowardly, busted-ass attack. Well, allow me to point a few things out to you, that you may be unaware of: Living with a disability, isn't a picnic. It's not fun, it's not easy, it's not a way to get attention. Does Jill promote MDA in order to raise money to help others who have MD and fund research for a cure? Yes. Is she ashamed of having MD? No. See, what you call, "Begging for attention," is really just not hiding the fact that she has MD, or acting like someone, "Confined," to a wheelchair. She's not a victim of a disability, she's a person with a disability. A person. You're saying these things to a person, in case you forgot that. My mother has a degenerative disease and has been progressively disabled for years. I've seen people much older than her question her in parking lots, when she parked in a handicapped spot. I've seen people driving in a parking lot nearly run her over in the middle of a crosswalk because people can't be bothered to wait for the, "Cripple." I have chronic pain and neuralgia and have had it since I was nine. So, no: people with disabilities don't use it to get attention, we live with it, we cope, we adapt, and we try not to let people like you and a world that doesn't always have room for us to get through the door, make that life miserable. Oh, and the next time you try to pull out something so sleazy, imagine somebody talking to your mom or your grandmother like that. Show a little respect for other human beings. You don't have to like what Jill wrote, you don't have to like what I wrote, but if you can't make your case without getting personal, you've already lost.
An opinion based on personal observation? Somehow that makes it okay?! So if my personal opinion were racist or sexist, no one has the right to get offended? You're right, we should all aspire to that level of maturity.
I don't think that Anonymous was denying the disabled friend, he was denying these 'others' that FNstellar kept mentioning. PBR, are you jumping on the bandwagon simply to be controversial? People are absolutely allowed to have their opinions, and I don't think anyone is taking issue with that here. Saying something so blatantly false and completely ignorant is just insane.
Try living with a life altering disability and see if that doesn't come through in your daily life. I don't know who you are and frankly couldn't care less, but I would have to assume that you have no idea what it is like to live with something like muscular dystrophy.
And now we have people denying the existence of disabled friends. Sure, it's the internet, lots of people go saying such things. But by assuming right away that this is just a story, well, what if there IS this disabled friend?
It is at this point, that there is simply no way for you to be any better than what you claim the other poster to be.
And none seem willing to calm down a bit. (and please, do not follow up with a stereotypical "I am calm" response…the hate would be lesser, if that were the case)
I honestly not read one posting by Jill that had to do with comics that made her disability a talking point. She has used her disability to bring attention to the disability, and there is absolutely no problem with that.
As for her bid to be DC's social media maven, she's more than able, there's enough room, and honestly, I can't think of a more qualified person to do it. If she wants to post her desire to do so on her blog, who are you to crap all over that.
The really amusing part is…on the one end we have someone with a controversial opinion, obviously trying his best to voice said opinion while being as polite as one can be when one makes a valid criticism.
And on the other hand we have people enraged that he dared to do so and then there is the promise of fury and hell from friends and fans. THAT right there, is the real tragic thing here. Not that someone discusses a disability in a way that is not solely pity, but the fact that people go crazy about it.
This is not even a scenario where one would need a thick skin (like one should on the internet), because it's not even an insult. It's stating an opinion based on personal observation. There is NOTHING wrong with that.
I truly hope the people here at some point come to accept that these topics, uncomfortable they may be, can be disgust without turning someone into a monster or any such thing. I think everyone, including NerdyBird should be HAPPY if her fans show such a level of maturity. Sadly, the only mature person so far here, seems to be the critic that is hated so much.
You gotta love fnstellar's versatility – not only did he use the "I don't mean to be ____" card, but he combo'ed it with the Disabled Friend card, with a side order of "Geek Girls Pander," to boot. That sounds like a guy who listened to his friends' advice on how to win friends in social media. Jesus, guys like that are the ones that damn the rest of us by association.
In order to change the subject and put things on a positive note….
…you know, I'd love to do DC's social media as well. Of course, we have two options: we could fight publicly for the position, or we could work together. I'm sure we have strengths and weaknesses that could complement each other. Besides, it's all about DC, isn't it?
We could be, like, Hawk and Dove (which is the first metaphor that came to mind, only because I have a slightly Don Hall-ish personality and taste in neck ties).
Granted, you're probably reading this thinking I'm a little goofy, and you would be correct. However, there's a little too much divisiveness and sniping in comic fandom.
I support your efforts – in fact, I'm so supportive I wish I had a contact whom I could brow beat, er, I mean "persuade" to hire you. And would be more than willing to work with you. :)
A fellow DC fan,
Gordon
aka @gordondym
Also, as you seem to make incredible assumptions, why don't you prove your point? Make your way back through Jill's hundreds of articles and count up every time she mentions her disability. Please, attempt to prove this ridiculous claim that you have made.
People write about what they know. If someone is well versed in science fiction that comes out in their writing. And on and on and on.
You're not trying to be insulting? You just told someone who has a disability that they live with every day of their life that they use it for attention. If you even understood a fraction of what Jill goes through in her life you would retract that statement immediately.
Resorting to these sorts of tactics are cruel and unnecessary. You can disagree with someone without saying something so blatantly ignorant. Also, you're about to have furious hell rain down on your head from Jill's friends, co-workers, fans, and everyone else who sees this post. If you had ever bothered to meet Jill or speak to her (or read any of her articles because obviously you don't know what you're talking about) you would understand how incredibly incompetent you sound.
You're right. I should ignore the blatantly obvious bigotry and focus on some of your finer points.
Of course the topic of her disability comes up in her writing, it's part of who she is. Guess what? She's a woman too. That also comes up in her writing. This is her personal blog. I defy you to find ANYONE who's opinions aren't shaped by who they are.
And please, mention "others" one more time. Do you feel so guilty about what you're writing that you need to validate yourself by bringing "others" into the conversation? So far, you're the only one I've seen who has brought her personal life into this.
We could go back and forth like this for days, but the fact of the matter is I'm not Jill and you're not going to change. She's a big girl and I'm sure you'll see her response soon enough.
No, I made what I – and others – believe to be a valid point. In virtually EVERY article Jill writes, the subject of her disability comes up.
I'm not a bigot, racist, or misogynist. I don't think Jill enjoys her handicap. I do think, & others do as well, that it comes up pretty regularly in her articles, in some cases where it has no relevancy.
I'm not trying to be insulting. I'm not namecalling. I'm simply broaching a topic that I'm sure a lot of people feel should be taboo. But in my opinion – Jill has made the subject of her disability a conversation point based upon the number of times she's mentioned it. Nothing more, nothing less.
Perhaps "play up" wasn't the right phrasing – I don't mean to suggest Jill is faking in any way. But I do think she calls attention to both her disability as well as to her "boobs" as a means of getting attention, & I know others who feel the same way.
That you would take nothing else from what I said, & based on that would call me an asshole, says a lot more about you than it does about me.
All opinions on the state of DC's social media aside, do you want to know a surefire way to tell someone's a bigot? When they use phrases like, "I don't mean to sound racist/sexist, etc." or when they expect that all should be forgiven because they have a friend who is gay/black, etc.
"Let's be perfectly honest here, & I mean no disrespect in any way, shape, or form – you play up your disability for attention. I have a friend who's also into comics who spent a good amount of time confined to a wheelchair."
Are you fucking kidding me? Whether or not you were an egotistical ass before, you sure are now. I can't believe people like you exist. Do you think she ENJOYS having MD? In the grand scheme of things, you're saying that somehow the constant pain and struggle of living with a disability balances out because people pay attention to her? You took a healthy, albeit inflated discussion about comics and social media and you made it personal. Shame on you. Asshole.
First of all, how did I comment anonymously? I used a screen name, sure, but I highly doubt your real name is The Nerdy Bird.
Second of all, you can claim that it's an opinion piece all you want, & you'd be right. You can also claim you weren't trying to audition to get DC's attention to try & become their "Agent M", but you spent the first 5 paragraphs talking about how much of a social networking guru you are.
Lines like "I’ve been shouting to anyone who will listen for a few years now that DC badly needs its own Agent M and that I’d gladly volunteer for the job. Frankly, sometimes I feel like I already do that job for free with how much I talk about DC on my Twitter account" don't really do anything to help your case either.
Point of fact – the last two paragraphs of your article straight up say "Hire me." I'll quote them here.
"So, why not hire me? There. I said it. I want to be DC Entertainment’s Social Media Darling.
I live and breathe social networking and it’s helped me grow my own brand exponentially in a few years. I’m not naive enough to think everyone knows my name but I have a pretty wide reach. Just the other day my brother told me a friend of his from England asked if The Nerdy Bird was his sister. It was one of those surreal moments. I do what I do, every day, and can sometimes forget how many people are listening to me but it was pretty neat to hear. Ask any of my friends or 10,000 followers, I was made for this job, DC. I’m already hopelessly devoted to your brand, I know how to write and I look and sound good on video. Social networking/media is a lot more than just talking to people on Twitter but you have to start somewhere."
Fine, you want to be their "social media darling." You posted that on a website hoping to get support from your adoring fans, who are just going to say "Yeaaaaaaah, do it." But when someone asks you real questions, like what do you plan on doing to create a return on investment – how are YOU going to generate $$ to cover your salary & justify having you on the payroll – well, then suddenly you WEREN'T trying to get a job, or it was just an opinion piece, or blah blah blah because the fact is, you don't know.
You have a blog. And a Twitter feed. You get some articles on Newsarama. Kudos, for reals. There's a lot of fans who would like to do what you're doing.
But the problem I have is you play the victim card at every turn. I call you on something, suddenly I'm an egotistical ass (where did you get egotistical from, BTW?)
Let's be perfectly honest here, & I mean no disrespect in any way, shape, or form – you play up your disability for attention. I have a friend who's also into comics who spent a good amount of time confined to a wheelchair. He reads your blogs & is frankly very put off by what he sees as someone begging for attention attention attention.
You claim that you want more strong female characters, yet you identify yourself as "Has boobs, reads comics." Tongue in cheek, sure, but a bit hypocritical don't you think?
I'd really like to see you actually address anything I've said, instead of just labeling me an ass & moving on. Sorry we aren't all back-patting you here. But by my count, you have 8 posts on this blog, 3 of which directly call you out on your blog, & a fourth that mentions ROI – which you also didn't reply to.
You started this – now flesh it out. If you want people to think you can actually do this, show them. You haven't said anything that any other fan with a Twitter account & a copious amount of spare time couldn't say themselves.
EDIT: I am using an open name 'cause it appears I've been blocked from your page, but I'm sure that isn't the case.
PBR, a lot of people seem to forget that my column is an OPINION column, meaning I can talk about whatever I like. If i said the same thing in an actual article or interview I could understand what you're saying but it's an opinion piece. I mentioned how I use social media and how I perceive DC uses social media. I talk about myself in pretty much every HTMC column because that's what I was hired to do. It's my thoughts on the comic industry.
This is my personal blog so I'll deal with the commenters how I choose to, holding a position at a company is an entirely different role and comes with different standards. Again, thanks for stopping by and taking the time to comment (albeit anonymously).
But he/she does have a point. For a piece about the lacking DC social media (and noone is doubting they may be lacking in that or other departments, just looking at the Source can be borderline depressing at times), you spent an awful amount of time on the topic of how incredibly awesome you are.
Also, calling someone with fairly valid criticism an ass does not help you. It doesn't matter if he/she was anonymous. You are the public figure, you make a big deal about reaching many people – than you should start acting that role and be able to deal with shit thrown your way, even more so when it is really just slightly harsh criticism (I mean, seriously, by internet standards that was as nice as it gets). If you can't do that, social media is most certainly NOT where you should be.
Well thanks for being a bit of an egotistical ass yourself there Fnstellar. Why would you assume I don't know more about social media than simply Tweeting? I didn't go into those details in my OP/ED column because…it wasn't a job interview, it was an opinion piece stating the very obvious facts that DC needs to move forward with their social media. Everyone knows that's true. And everyone knows I'm a huge DC fan so why wouldn't I want to work there and say it? That's my prerogative, I'm sorry if it rubbed you the wrong way. If you don't like it, you don't like it. I wasn't throwing anyone under the bus, I was explaining how one company's approach to social media is hurting them. Thanks for stopping by and taking the time to comment (albeit anonymously).
I feel like I'm pretty media-savvy, and I didn't even know DC had anything but a facebook page and the DC Nation twitter account. I never pay attention to either because neither has anything that interests me.
I certainly had no idea they had an actual TEAM on the job.
I dare say, that points to a lacking performance.
I think you (Jill) would do a great job, but you might find that effectively speaking for a corporation like DCE, and now effectively Warner Bros. as well, may come with more limitations than you expect. Just because a company has social media people doesn't mean they'll use them like Marvel does, and it tends to be incredibly difficult to convince corporations to modernize, even if you work for them and even if you can substantiate your claims that your ideas would build revenue.
People are funny that way.
I think it's more of a comment on DC's approach to social media, not the individuals working there. As a company, they ARE lacking. I seriously doubt that's Christine's fault, nor is Jill pretending it is.
It's not a critique on their abilities, it's a critique on DC as a whole and their reluctance to move forward in that area.
I wonder how Christine Dinh and her co-workers on DC's social media team feel about you openly campaigning for their jobs by talking about how crappy they are at them. It would probably engender a wonderful workplace were you to be hired as a social media darling!