Austinist: I Am So Popular: If You Can't Shit In Public, Stay Home

seth

Thu, 12 Jun 2008 16:00:43 -0600

Just read through the 8.7 mb pdf guide. It's a Hippie fest. Seth

profstevie

Thu, 12 Jun 2008 09:11:51 -0600

@Spike: Thanks for the thoughtful response. I'm sorry if people have been hard on you. It's true that some people in the FS community were taken aback by this post and expressed displeasure, but a lot of people have also had very positive, supportive things to say about you and your writings. I supsect that this post will inspire a lot discussion and thought into what exactly Flipside's media policy is and should be. It's a growth process -- maybe one that you didn't want or expect to be thrust into the middle of, but it is what it is. :) take care, stevie

profstevie

Thu, 12 Jun 2008 07:55:11 -0600

@LoudMouth: yes, because the hope is that reading it will give especially first-time attendees some useful information and dispel disinformation, like for example that Flipside is a "hippie fest".

allenychen

Wed, 11 Jun 2008 23:01:35 -0600

LoudMouth: I am 100% with you on this.

Grape Ape

Wed, 11 Jun 2008 21:09:24 -0600

This is going to be so awesome next year when the frat kids start showing up.

spikegillespie

Wed, 11 Jun 2008 17:11:20 -0600

Steven, Thank you for your explanations. Prior to going to FS, I asked seasoned attendees if it was cool to write about the event. It was suggested I contact the media person. I went to the web site, dug around after registering, and finally found an email form to send in my questions. I wish I had saved a copy of that note. But it should be on file with LLC and it said, in essence, "I'm going to FS. I'm doing this for fun, not as a reporter. However, if it's okay for me to write about it, I might like to do that. Please let me know if it's okay because I don't want to cross any boundaries." Again, that's a paraphrase, not a direct quote. But I very clearly and very carefully explained who I was, what I do, what I might like to do, and asked to be educated re: protocol. When I got to the event there were tons of clearly posted signs about photo and video usage. There was also the sound policy, for which we all had to sign an agreement in addition to the release. I noted the photo policy and signed the appropriate forms. I never heard back from LLC. I had such an amazing experience that I did want to write about it. That's what I do and have done since I was first published twenty-five years ago: I write about my experiences, something for which I have taken a shitstorm of flack for over the years, but so it goes. I consulted some other folks about protocol prior to writing my piece. They were not LLC but they are knowledgeable re: FS. Consensus was it is fine to write about a personal experience. I was careful not to list particulars-- no names, no specific addresses, etc. Mostly I focused on learning how to shit in a portapotty, which was pretty enlightening. How I now wish that LLC had gotten back to me. It's unclear to me why a media contact is listed if there is not going to be a response. I also know that there are tons of blogs and flickr accounts featuring written tales and photos of the event. Do these places count as commercial media? It's a good question. Maybe the people posting the blogs and photos aren't making any money. But the sites they use often are commercial. For the record, I am not paid by the Austinist so, from that perspective, this is not a commercial endeavor *for me." On the other hand, yes, this site runs ads, so a strong argument could be made that it is a commercial site. It really bums me out that after posting what I thought was a "safe" post about a personal experience-- one that was very positive-- I am being come down on by members of the community (not you, Steven, but others). No one ever said, "Flipside is this hush hush event, don't speak of it." In fact, in private conversations, if I mentioned to friends (or even my kid) that I was going to FS, it seemed like everyone in this city had heard of it. I will apologize, a final time, for any offense the FS community has taken. None was intended. I would also gently suggest that if they don't want the event written about, they should specifically post that in the survival guide as well as at the greeters' table, just like they do with the photo policy. spike

LoudMouth

Wed, 11 Jun 2008 16:50:47 -0600

You're kidding. The hippie fest has an etiquette book and you expect everyone that goes to the hippie fest to read it?

profstevie

Wed, 11 Jun 2008 16:07:44 -0600

Hi Spike, I'm just writing because I get the feeling there has been a lot of miscommunication and misunderstanding on this issue. I hope that I can make that a little better rather than worse. I am just some dude; I certainly do not speak in any official capacity as I am in no way officially associated with AAR, LLC. I think there is some confusion as to whether this blog is "commercial media" or not. It appears to me that it is, since Gothamist LLC seems to be a for-profit venture and presumably its featured bloggers are what attract eyes to the site and its ads, but I don't know what the legal definiton of "commercial media" is. If this blog is indeed "commercial media", then it would seem that the following section of the Survival Guide (which all attendees are expected to have read) would apply, at least to the photographs used in this post: "Burning Flipside is a private event. The commercial use of photographs, video, film or any other medium taken at Burning Flipside is prohibited without written permission of Austin Artistic Reconstruction, LLC." Hope this sheds some light on the situation.

spikegillespie

Mon, 09 Jun 2008 21:19:06 -0600

Ice Queen, My apologies if you were put off by the piece. In fact I did write to LLC prior to the event-- I contacted the media rep and very clearly asked what protocol was. I wanted to be certain NOT to offend anyone or violate any boundaries. I did not hear back from media contact but spoke to a number of folks at the event who have attended for years. From what information I was able to gather, it was suggested that it *was* okay for me to write about my personal experience and to post pictures for which I had written approval. I did then just write about my experience and only posted pictures for which I had written approval. If the media contact had informed me that covering the event was off limits, I certainly would have honored that. spike

orange

Mon, 09 Jun 2008 19:50:43 -0600

Looks like Walter didn't include Page 13 of the Survival Guide during his crash course. As a result, you may have offended some of the people who embraced you that weekend.

icequeen

Mon, 09 Jun 2008 16:06:40 -0600

Uhm..we generally don't like people writing things about the event to the public without first getting permission from the LLC. Probably not a biggie here, just sayin' it's not nice to assume you can go writing stuff about a private event. Also, the event is held in Blanco County, not Hays. Can't you just enjoy the event and leave it out of the media? We have enough image problems as it is. Just my $0.02. Ice Queen

Kristina B

Sat, 31 May 2008 14:03:03 -0600

This post is so fantastic. I had tickets in my hands, but had to give them up. I'm sorry I missed it, but love this post and can relate to it on so very many levels.