Whom can you trust these days? Memoirists are out, perhaps taking Oprah Winfrey with them, and one information source after another -- newspapers, magazines, TV news anchors -- has taken its lumps for playing fast and loose with the truth.
Surely, however, Bob15 is trustworthy. You know Bob15 -- he posts to that bulletin board you read. You know the names of his kids, Bob15.5 and PrincessPeach12. He is a valued member of your on-line community. (Just for fun, say this next line using your best anchor voice.) Or is he?
This week, several websites outed one of the video-game world's dirty secrets: hyping products on message boards using made-up personas. These shills may build up trust over weeks or months, then subtly push a product on their fellow forum members.
In a recent roundup of news and opinions, Jerry Holkins of Penny Arcade, a popular Web comic, quoted a letter from a marketer outlining how games are pitched to consumers on-line. Holkins included a link to a company called Hype Council, which lists some of the biggest companies in gaming and entertainment -- Electronic Arts, Ubisoft, Sony Music -- as customers. On its site, Hype Council says it focuses on integrating "your brand at hundreds of targeted Web channels." This approach includes "an on-line brand ambassador program" and "on-line community outreach."
The Consumerist, a shoppers' rights site, then weighed in with the news that executives at Nvidia, which makes graphics cards aimed at gamers, have been saying wonderful things about a similar marketing company, the Arbuthnot Entertainment Group. According to its website, AEG specializes in "seeding," community outreach that involves setting up personas on message boards.
Now most people know that the Internet, with its easy anonymity and endless supply of e-mail addresses, is susceptible to this kind of consumer con. We teach kids and teens -- or should be teaching them -- to never take strangers at their word on-line. But it's a dirty way to make a buck, and it's leading many honest posters to include lines like "I'm not being paid to say this" whenever they write something positive.
So, whom do you trust?
Coming to a world near you
James Cameron is working on a new film called Project 880, but the first glimpse of it will not be a trailer or commercial. The Canadian-born director of Aliens and The Terminator told Business Week magazine that he is planning to launch an on-line game months before the movie heads to theatres. Cameron is on the board of Multiverse, a company that makes massive multiplayer games.
"So much of literary sci-fi is about creating worlds that are rich and detailed and make sense at a social level," Cameron said. "We'll create a world . . . and then later present a narrative in that world."
How about mover?
Microsoft's Xbox 360 console allows users to download demos of new games, and the one making the most noise among players is definitely Fight Night Round 3. The latest entry in the Electronic Arts boxing series, which will hit stores later this month, turned heads at last year's E3 with its eerily human-like combatants and cheek-rippling replays. Even if you hate pugilism, its visuals are something to behold.
In fact, the movie that plays as the demo gets up and running ends with this challenge: "We need a new word for game." The four-round bout that follows, with Bernard Hopkins sparring with Roy Jones Jr., is admittedly amazing to look at. The boxers appear to be solid, as if they have a mass of their own in the screen, and they move fluidly. But are shinier visuals enough to antiquate the term "video game?" Do we need a new word for game in any case, and if so, what should it be? My nominee is above. Send your thoughts and ideas to the e-mail address below.
Five to Try
We asked for websites that you check every morning. News and weather sites were the most consistent choices, with quirky blogs and humour sites also making strong showings. Interestingly, several readers said they split daily surfing duties with a significant other, sending each other links to specific articles. Here is a representative list of the responses, with the next challenge below.
1. Boing Boing. The former zine made almost every bookmarks list and is living up to its motto: "A directory of wonderful things." boingboing.net.
2. Environment Canada. To bring the umbrella or not bring the umbrella, that is the question. weatheroffice.ec.gc.ca.
3. Guardian Unlimited. The most popular newspaper site (The Globe was disqualified due to a conflict of interest). The New York Times was a close second. guardian.co.uk.
4. Doonesbury. Comics and crosswords are like coffee to many people, and Garry Trudeau's daily offering still attracts a crowd. It is hosted by Slate, a Web magazine that was also on more than a few lists. http://www.doonesbury.com/strip/dailydose.
5. Fark. This hugely popular catch-all site began as one man's attempt to share Web oddities with his friends. It now allows thousands of articles and posts to be tagged and sorted by readers. fark.com.
Next up, websites that you think are design wonders, regardless of their purpose or content. Send your submissions to pluggedin@globeandmail.com with the subject line, "This site is art."