Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Our Lady of Earnest Apologies?

Oh Miss Asha, why have you gotten yourself into this mess? We're still not sure what you did for the tech hedge fund or whatever it was that you worked for, and what really qualifies you to be a tech expert, but you seem likeable enough, regardless of your lack of professional gravitas. Your humble apology posted today makes us almost feel bad for you. But, um, when you say in your post that there needed to be transparency, actually BEING transparent right then and there could go a long way in remedying that. You did no such thing. Oh, well. Live and learn?

Here's the post, bunnies:

RB: Meghan, Jan 14, 11:39am

I’ve avoided writing about the back end of our business for quite some time. My thinking initially was that running a website is like a stage performance and all the activity behind the scenes needed to just that— behind the scenes. After reading Julia’s blog post, I now realize that it may be beneficial to start talking about all that goes into running a startup. This is a particularly different kind of a startup because we are not just founders we are the content providers, dead set on turning NS into a network of many besides the three of us. Creating a community takes time, creating decent content takes time, creating the next site build outs takes time, all of which is a balance we’re still trying to manage.

We got slammed for the CES coverage, and I will take the blame for it. First of all, this was my first time covering a tech event with the girls and preset deliverable for sponsorship; normally I’m on my own with the freedom to blog tech all day long. That was not the case last week; I literally had an hour the last day of CES to check out the new product launches. Our shoots went longer than expected, both day and night. Call me naive, but I really had no idea that making 4 edited & 6 unedited videos would take so much time. It was like shooting 6 commercials in the span of 4 days. That being said, I’m looking forward to the end product and now know how I’d prepare for the situation in the future.

Guys, I’m really sorry, I let you down and I know it. There were so many parts of the equation that needed clarification; first off I should have explained CES to all the novices. I can’t imagine how annoyed some of you were with the lack of details on what exactly is the Consumer Electronics Show and why we were there.

Another issue that needed clarification was the CES Superlative site, it was put up as a way to get our readers involved in thinking about tech in an edgier more creative way. It was created for everyone, even if you were not at the event. My goal was to provoke a thoughtful discussion on which gadgets fit each category and why. Surprisingly, I did get some insightful submissions (I’ll post a little later), but I think next time we create a submission site we must provide more guidelines and examples.

My last issue with CES is transparency, we needed to explain our involvement and degree of participation (were we attending as bloggers, participants, paid reps). Fact is, I think we went to the conference for a multitude of reasons that weren’t entirely clear until we arrived. I’m not complaining, I think even with all the disappointment, it was a huge learning experience on what we can handle and what we can’t. The three of us are very capable, very driven women, but sometimes we promise more than we can deliver. In the past, I used to overextend myself with college courses and jobs until I burnt out. I don’t want to do this with NS, so next time it’s important to set realistic goals on coverage to my readers. I often have delusions of grandeur to be as informative and timely as an Engadget, Gizmodo, and TechCrunch, I must remind myself that these tech sites are staffed with way more than just one person. The bloggers on these websites are focused on one thing— blogging, which for me is not the case.

My last priority (which you’d think, should be my first priority) has been blogging, I’ve been preoccupied on how we can make enough money to build upon our following. I enjoy the backend, but it’s often hard to switch gears. As far as content is concerned, I’m still searching for my pace and beat, I’ll hit my stride sometime, but for now it’s a journey where all I can do is work harder. We have come so far, but still have a very long way to go, we’re learning from our mistakes, my main hope is that you too learn from our missteps, so you too can gain insight into your own life.

17 comments:

  1. I like her so much. She seems really grounded and genuine, completely unlike her other two counterparts.

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  2. Really, my heart goes out to her for this. I write this without any sarcasm whatsoever. Mary and Julia could take a lesson from her about disarming your critics.

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  3. She takes the blame and says it was her fault, but I find that very difficult to believe. Maybe if the group had SPLIT UP from time to time, they would have gotten something accomplished. I blame JA.

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  4. I feel so sorry for her. She really does seem the smartest and most likeable of the bunch. The other two just keep fucking things up and she takes the fall. That's big of her. A for the others... I won't even say. But back-dating your posts is so beyond shady, especially since they're taking a big game about transparency all of a sudden. Disgusting.

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  5. I'm not sure "smart" is right adjective...I mean, this was her deep insight into the failure of Lehman Brothers:

    "it’s hard to comprehend what all this means for the financial market. UGH!!!!!"

    But she does seem more sincere.

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  6. I do not feel sorry for her or the other two. If she is so smart, what is she doing hanging out with the other two fameballs? They are honestly so completely abhorrent to anyone with even the smallest bit of intelligence.

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  7. I do think Megan seems a bit dim, but she strikes me as truly likeable in a way the other 2 Bunnies don't. I cringe for her sometimes. But I only cackle madly at JA & MR.

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  8. I don't get the Megan love. She may not come across quite as obnoxious as the others but the fact the this trio embraces the entitlement model of business they've created speaks volumes about her too. I think three of them continue to offer excuses in their own ways (Megan's ust happens to be in more of a disarming, humble seeming manner) without actually making any change or seeing anything truly wrong with their 99%promotion 1%content product.

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  9. At least she has some class, unlike that soulless train wreck JA. According to Gawker the nasty hag also recently sold out one of her supposed friends, Rachel Sklar. What a nasty, duplicitous piece of work. Meghan and Mary should watch their backs.

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  10. I've been ragging on her constantly. She shouldn't get any sympathy. She's not an expert in technology! Her posts are really gloss cut and pastes from the providers marketing materials.

    She may be contrite but she's just as guilty as the rest of the vapid air heads because her content is in many ways WORSE then the other two.

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  11. Anonymous,

    Agreed. Though I'd say not worse than the other two but equally bad. Each is bad in her own way. Ultimately they share the same core values that allow them to be content with the crap they churn out and expect to make a living off of, a very comfortable living I might add.

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  12. @ Jacy Yes, just imagine the way the Sklar betrayal played out: Sklar makes the mistake of texting Julia about her discomfiture at running into Caroline at a party; Julia immediately texts Sklar's comments to Caroline, while the two women are still at the party. Fun times a la Non Society! Live differently!

    It really is so very, very high school, I suppose I shouldn't be surprised, but after all JA's online protestations about how nice she is, it's bizarre that she doesn't even try to keep up appearances.

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  13. i think julia takes advantage of meghan big time. i believe that julia treats her like crap and it is probably ruining her self esteem. i hope she gets out of their alive

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  14. I've been watching them, guiltily, for a while. And though I thought they were bumbling and pathetic/funny form the get-go, I never really thought JA was sick.
    Until now.
    That post (and actually it was a re-post) of her bulimia experience, published on NS 20 minutes before her "apology" strikes me as ao manipulative.
    Like, not only in the apology is she condescending with drivel about how busy she is, she sets that up with an emotional don't-abuse-me-I've-had-a-rough-go-of-it (which just as a side note doesn't strike me as a genuine confession anyway). It is very immature, very little girlish.. and kinda sociopathic. Tugging on people's heart strings to avoid or excuse a failing. That's kinda crazy.

    That's spooky. And it feels like she's done that opening up as a way to divert attention form some mess she made before...

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  15. Meghan is a dim bulb, plain and simple. She talks about how she worked at a hedge fund and supposedly is so "geeky" (message to Meghan -- just because you own Mac products does not make you "geeky" just as going out to parties does not make you "crazy!"). Yet, what information does she provide. How can she even say that she compares herself to Tech Crunch? She is so not even anywhere near in that league (I won't get into what a douche Mike Arrington is). Seriously, they should just pack it up and call it a day. It was a nice sabbatical from having to work a real day job, but the jig is up. The emperor has no clothes and Nonsociety has nothing to offer.

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  16. I almost hate to say it, but it's like poor Meghan is trying to prove herself to her ex, Michael Arrington, in the same way Julia Allison constantly tries to prove herself to her ex Jakob Lodwick. There is just something so compensatory about all the kissyface dressup pix, as someone so cogently described them here a while ago.

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  17. Let's go here-- her heartfelt bulimia post was supposedly written while she could have actually been preparing for CES. I tend to think that she felt the need to 'stir the pot'before they went. Just like the letters from readers that called her fat [think of all the real work she could get done if she wasn't so busy faking letters]

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