Update: The Escapist Needs Newsies!

[Mr. Omega]

The first half of this thread is people complaining that the news writers at The Escapist aren't careful enough when fact-checking.

Now people are complaining that they were expected to fact check.

I think I just hit my irony quota for the month.

Indeed. It is rather amusing. Call me old-fashioned, but rather that complain that the "test was unfair", I'll just remember the lesson and hope to do better next time.

It was a stupid mistake on my part, and something I should have verified.

I'm just glad it hasn't completely ruined my application, because writing for the escapist would be a dream job for me.

I really love it here

Also this. Very much this. All counts of this.

 

[Daystar Clarion]

The first half of this thread is people complaining that the news writers at The Escapist aren't careful enough when fact-checking.

Now people are complaining that they were expected to fact check.

I think I just hit my irony quota for the month.

Indeed. It is rather amusing. Call me old-fashioned, but rather that complain that the "test was unfair", I'll just remember the lesson and hope to do better next time.

It was a stupid mistake on my part, and something I should have verified.

I'm just glad it hasn't completely ruined my application, because writing for the escapist would be a dream job for me.

I really love it here

Also this. Very much this. All counts of this.

Hopefully my witty charm will be enough to win them over.

A man can dream.

A man can dream...

 

[Baldr]

I also could point out that:

Satoru Iwata is the President of Nintendo
Fils-Aime is President of Nintendo of America

Not looking to score brownie points, just pointing out another error people like myself could have made.

 

[BENZOOKA]

Oh. It's not exactly the best way to find out about this... after it's too late to have a go at it.

Crap.

 

[Woodsey]

Totally glossed over the fact that Reggie's name was spelt incorrectly until after I'd sent the email, turns out that was because I'd spelt it properly automatically. (I did have to look up the Pokémon spelling like 5 times though.)

 

[Mr. Omega]

I also could point out that:

Satoru Iwata is the President of Nintendo
Fils-Aime is President of Nintendo of America

Not looking to score brownie points, just pointing out another error people like myself could have made.

I noticed that as well. Corrected it just in case. In hindsight, that should have clued me in about possible deliberate mistakes...

Also, I never did think I'd be asking myself "do you capitalize the P in Pokemon when refering to the species and not the franchise?"

 

[Fappy]

I also could point out that:

Satoru Iwata is the President of Nintendo
Fils-Aime is President of Nintendo of America

Not looking to score brownie points, just pointing out another error people like myself could have made.

I noticed that as well. Corrected it just in case. In hindsight, that should have clued me in about possible deliberate mistakes...

Also, I never did think I'd be asking myself "do you capitalize the P in Pokemon when refering to the species and not the franchise?"

Ha yeah, I did the same thing. You know, I should have noticed Google spell checking me when I was double checking his job title :/

 

[Mike Kayatta]

To those who didn't follow instructions (as you were told to do), or who failed to check for the correct spelling of Reggie's name...well, that's a shame.

That seems hardly fair, don't subeditors usually correct spelling errors in finalised version of an article? Are our applications automatically going to be rejected because of this regardless of the content and other research included?

No, we do not have a staff of people following along cleaning up news posts as they're written. That's the responsibility of the news writer. Typos will inevitably happen over the course of the job, but if you didn't check the spelling of the President of Nintendo's name, that's a serious error. If you didn't follow instructions despite being told that applicants who failed to follow instructions wouldn't be considered, that doesn't speak well of your attention to detail.

When applying for a job, it behooves you to try your hardest and do your best.

I find this quite disturbing and wrong. Many trust this site and would not have expected you to purposely trick them like that. If it was a real life article/situation that was set out then people would have of course researched into this themselves and verified information. As this was not and technically a fictional/set up piece then there was highly the chance that people would not verify due to the fact that it was fictional.

As I said, I am seriously disturbed you did this and I haven't even entered an article for this (I'm terrible at writing).

Your second point is "2) Below, you'll find a totally fake news story as reported by the totally fake gaming site, GameXtreme.com. Using the new-found wisdom you recently gained during step one, read it over, and rewrite it as a news post appropriate for publication on the Escapist." Why would you expect people to verify a completely fictional piece?

What's important to remember is that double-checking for errors like that is a real life situation. Multiple sources carry mistaken or poorly researched information, and remembering that fact while seeking out errors prior to publication is something for which our news team strives. Trust me, if that was simply designed as a "Gotcha!" move, it wouldn't benefit us during the hiring process. We take no pride or benefit in trying to "trick" anyone, especially a potential pool of Escapist writers!

We're looking for a very specific skill set, and part of that skill set is a fundamental skepticism and attention to detail. That being said, the Aime typo was one of many, many factors we're currently considering per submission. Although I'd certainly like it if it was the case, there's no way, realistically speaking, that anyone completely nailed everything. What we're doing is seeking out those who came as close to that ideal as possible.

Going through the applications, I must say that I'm already impressed by the level of talent and passion shown by our community. It's going to make the final decisions quite difficult!

 

[MostUncivilised]

Thank you for the explanation, Mike, very much appreciated!

 

[SomeBrianDude]

350 applicants? Looks like you guys got your work cut out, eh?

Best of luck to everyone who applied. I would love to think my entry would get me into consideration, but reading it over, there's a lot wrong with it (not Reggie's name, though!). The one positive I'll be able to take away from this, regardless of whether I make the cut or not, is that it's got me thinking about and writing news stories again, considering what angle to use and such like. I'd forgotten how much I enjoyed it. I suppose I owe whoever decided to advertise for submissions thanks, so...thanks.

 

[Jeff Dunn]

The first half of this thread is people complaining that the news writers at The Escapist aren't careful enough when fact-checking.

Now people are complaining that they were expected to fact check.

I think I just hit my irony quota for the month.

BINGO.

 

[Mumorpuger]

To those who didn't follow instructions (as you were told to do), or who failed to check for the correct spelling of Reggie's name...well, that's a shame.

That seems hardly fair, don't subeditors usually correct spelling errors in finalised version of an article? Are our applications automatically going to be rejected because of this regardless of the content and other research included?

No, we do not have a staff of people following along cleaning up news posts as they're written. That's the responsibility of the news writer. Typos will inevitably happen over the course of the job, but if you didn't check the spelling of the President of Nintendo's name, that's a serious error. If you didn't follow instructions despite being told that applicants who failed to follow instructions wouldn't be considered, that doesn't speak well of your attention to detail.

When applying for a job, it behooves you to try your hardest and do your best.

I find this quite disturbing and wrong. Many trust this site and would not have expected you to purposely trick them like that. If it was a real life article/situation that was set out then people would have of course researched into this themselves and verified information. As this was not and technically a fictional/set up piece then there was highly the chance that people would not verify due to the fact that it was fictional.

As I said, I am seriously disturbed you did this and I haven't even entered an article for this (I'm terrible at writing).

Your second point is "2) Below, you'll find a totally fake news story as reported by the totally fake gaming site, GameXtreme.com. Using the new-found wisdom you recently gained during step one, read it over, and rewrite it as a news post appropriate for publication on the Escapist." Why would you expect people to verify a completely fictional piece?

What's important to remember is that double-checking for errors like that is a real life situation. Multiple sources carry mistaken or poorly researched information, and remembering that fact while seeking out errors prior to publication is something for which our news team strives. Trust me, if that was simply designed as a "Gotcha!" move, it wouldn't benefit us during the hiring process. We take no pride or benefit in trying to "trick" anyone, especially a potential pool of Escapist writers!

We're looking for a very specific skill set, and part of that skill set is a fundamental skepticism and attention to detail. That being said, the Aime typo was one of many, many factors we're currently considering per submission. Although I'd certainly like it if it was the case, there's no way, realistically speaking, that anyone completely nailed everything. What we're doing is seeking out those who came as close to that ideal as possible.

Going through the applications, I must say that I'm already impressed by the level of talent and passion shown by our community. It's going to make the final decisions quite difficult!

When you go over mine, pretend you're starring in a Bruckheimer movie: you're dealing with a maverick that has a lot of raw, unpolished talent. (And also is prone to high-fives)

ACTION!

 

[Bloodstain]

I know I shouldn't find joy in other people's misfortune, but it seems my chances just increased, considering the number of people who forgot to check Fils-Aimé's name.

I do hope, however, that "rewrite" doesn't forbid additional research. I included information about Nintendo's past attitudes towards mobile gaming ? with sources, of course ? that wasn't included in the given fake article.

I still find it incredibly wrong to refuse certain applications that are good because of one small mistake that you gave to them. There are some brilliant writers out there, some of them not knowing that you have no sub-editors (as other companies/groups have different practises you must admit that). I hope you don't go writing off brilliant journalists simply because they are used to another kind of practise, I think it would certainly be a loss for the escapist magazine.

A 'brilliant writer' does not rely on others to correct their mistakes. A brilliant writer does his best not to make any mistakes in the first place.

The first half of this thread is people complaining that the news writers at The Escapist aren't careful enough when fact-checking.

Now people are complaining that they were expected to fact check.

I think I just hit my irony quota for the month.

Besides, very much this.

Anyway, again good luck to everyone.
[small]I need money, therefore a job...[/small]

 

[DeadAwakeUK]

Any idea if the writers that have been selected will be announced?

 

[Beautiful End]

To those who didn't follow instructions (as you were told to do), or who failed to check for the correct spelling of Reggie's name...well, that's a shame.

That seems hardly fair, don't subeditors usually correct spelling errors in finalised version of an article? Are our applications automatically going to be rejected because of this regardless of the content and other research included?

No, we do not have a staff of people following along cleaning up news posts as they're written. That's the responsibility of the news writer. Typos will inevitably happen over the course of the job, but if you didn't check the spelling of the President of Nintendo's name, that's a serious error. If you didn't follow instructions despite being told that applicants who failed to follow instructions wouldn't be considered, that doesn't speak well of your attention to detail.

When applying for a job, it behooves you to try your hardest and do your best.

I find this quite disturbing and wrong. Many trust this site and would not have expected you to purposely trick them like that. If it was a real life article/situation that was set out then people would have of course researched into this themselves and verified information. As this was not and technically a fictional/set up piece then there was highly the chance that people would not verify due to the fact that it was fictional.

As I said, I am seriously disturbed you did this and I haven't even entered an article for this (I'm terrible at writing).

Your second point is "2) Below, you'll find a totally fake news story as reported by the totally fake gaming site, GameXtreme.com. Using the new-found wisdom you recently gained during step one, read it over, and rewrite it as a news post appropriate for publication on the Escapist." Why would you expect people to verify a completely fictional piece?

I would expect people to verify the spelling of someone's name, the spelling of a game title, or any other number of key pieces of information. Many people noticed the error, but thought it was meant to imply the "fakeness" of the article, and commented as much in their application. That's fine by me. If the overall post was good, not catching the name wouldn't be enough to ruin someone's chances. But it's a big red flag.

I, too, am just sad/slightly upset, but not in a Hulk-like manner. I knew the name was spelled wrong, just as I knew GameXtreme.com was a fake site (I even Googled that). I thought "Hm, well, being a fake story from a fake site happening in a fake world, I bet this is like Reggie's alter-ego or something". I acknowledged the site and typed the name as the article showed it under that believe. I didn't want to openly say something like "And that totally fake name that sounds a lot like Nintendo's CEO's name!" because it just didn't go with the story and I was trying to keep a certain amount of professionalism. It's hard to explain. It's as if I said I want people to talk about Jay Lena's newborn child. Sounds like Jay Leno's alter ego or a bad joke or something. Or it could be just a typo.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that I'm a bit disappointed by that. You guys didn't clarify this, in all honesty. If the article would have been 100% true and not fake at all, then yeah, it would have been our responsibility to catch that. I wouldn't be able to argue against that. But if you misspell/change someone's name in an article that is obviously fake and meant to poke fun at something, then no. It's confusing. I couldn't figure out if you guys were for real or what. A safe bet would have been to spell the name correctly, but again, at least in my case, I took the article, I soaked it all in and made it my own. That one article from an alternate reality. I didn't want to alter it because that's not how news work. I mean, I followed the rest of the instructions and all.

I love it here at The Escapist and I gotta say I was really looking forward to have a shot to work with you guys, especially now that I'm close to getting out of the university. I guess that was just miscommunication from both sides. We could have asked here, too. I mean, whether you guys were willing to reveal that to us or not is another story, but still. I'll admit that. And I know you guys are sticking to your guns regarding all this. But I'm just disappointed. I really put a lot of effort into that article and to think that just because of that...*sigh*. It took me a whole week to write it, what with the spell-check and double checking the instructions and even adding a resume. I know, I know. You don't get a job based on effort, but results. And still, I'm just....sad!

But enough about that. May I ask, with all due respect, that next time you do this, if you do it, you're kind enough to take this into consideration? Being a bit more specific about? Either going with the '100% fake story but interested on content" or "100% true story and interested on its contents AND accurate info/spelling"? I'd like to think I'll have a shot in the future to work with you guys so I'll also keep this in mind in case you guys ever want to hire some more people.

[sub][sub]Though it seems highly unlikely...[/sub][/sub]

 

[MostUncivilised]

One thing I did discover on your submission guidelines page [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/content/contact] was this:

The Escapist is proud to present the most heavily edited and reviewed content in the field of online videogame journalism. ...

When your draft is submitted on or before the due date, you will receive an email confirming it was received and that everything is in good order. Your article will then go through a rigorous editing, proofing and fact-checking process before being returned to you, usually a week or two before publication. The editor of your article may request that changes or revisions be made, and will give you a date by which you will need to submit another draft.

So just to clarify for future reference, do you have people correcting minor errors like the slightly altered name or is Susan correct when she says you don't do anything like that? Most news sites tend to employ a sub-editor to help with clearing up grammar and the odd typo, I'd be very surprised if a site of this size didn't have anything resembling that.

 

[Grayston245]

So, is it safe to say that you guys need more time to deliberate on the articles that we sent in because you were whisked off to LA to cover E3? Or has the second step in the process already been set into motion, and I shouldn't get my hopes up?

Sorry to bump up an older topic, just curious.

 

[Bloodstain]

So, is it safe to say that you guys need more time to deliberate on the articles that we sent in because you were whisked off to LA to cover E3? Or has the second step in the process already been set into motion, and I shouldn't get my hopes up?

Sorry to bump up an older topic, just curious.

I'm interested in this as well. Is the selection over?

 

[Chrono212]

Who are the ones who got the jobs?

 

[Bloodstain]

*cough* I think I speak for everyone when i say...