As a journalism student the 'Write for the Escapist' ad caught my eye. I do have some questions though as I did not understand some of the outline.
Is the Escapist looking specifically for game-related news stories or are editorial pieces and opinion articles also what they are looking for?
After the whole Extra Credits episode the payment within 90 days line seems suspect, as that is an absurdly long time after an article is submitted to be paid. Especially considering the ad wants writers to submit to draft due dates. Payment isn't so much an issue, as I believe a website with as much traffic as the escapist would be a good place for written work to be posted, and it would be a useful addition to a person's CV.
Also by sending an article do you then enter into some kind of contractual agreement with the Escapist? The idea of non-staff writers contributing work to a website and then having to submit drafts and follow due dates (seriously, if it is not a news story, if it is a feature article how does a due date even make sense) seems a little ridiculous. I say this because it says 'the Escapist will chase after you'. If the Escapist was going to follow up on commissioned articles you would expect payment either prior to the article being published on the site or immediately after publication, not several months later.
This line also strikes me as bizarre: For interviews, please list contact information for the interviewee(s).
In my country, a journalist has a legal right not to reveal his/her source, even if court ordered to do so. I do realise that game journalism isn't real journalism with people in the field reporting on serious issues where sources may need to be protected, but the line still seems odd to me.
EDIT: To clarify, a journalist would presumably happily list their sources in any situation but the fact that it is a requirement to list contact information, not a recommendation boggles me
I do think this could be a good opportunity for some, but after the recent Extra-Credits issue and the revelation that the Escapist does not have a stable business model in place I would like some clarification for my above questions. It is highly unlikely that any person of the street would be able to cover gaming news faster than the Escapist does with proper interviews, so I do not really understand what the Escapist is looking for.
Is the Escapist looking specifically for game-related news stories or are editorial pieces and opinion articles also what they are looking for?
After the whole Extra Credits episode the payment within 90 days line seems suspect, as that is an absurdly long time after an article is submitted to be paid. Especially considering the ad wants writers to submit to draft due dates. Payment isn't so much an issue, as I believe a website with as much traffic as the escapist would be a good place for written work to be posted, and it would be a useful addition to a person's CV.
Also by sending an article do you then enter into some kind of contractual agreement with the Escapist? The idea of non-staff writers contributing work to a website and then having to submit drafts and follow due dates (seriously, if it is not a news story, if it is a feature article how does a due date even make sense) seems a little ridiculous. I say this because it says 'the Escapist will chase after you'. If the Escapist was going to follow up on commissioned articles you would expect payment either prior to the article being published on the site or immediately after publication, not several months later.
This line also strikes me as bizarre: For interviews, please list contact information for the interviewee(s).
In my country, a journalist has a legal right not to reveal his/her source, even if court ordered to do so. I do realise that game journalism isn't real journalism with people in the field reporting on serious issues where sources may need to be protected, but the line still seems odd to me.
EDIT: To clarify, a journalist would presumably happily list their sources in any situation but the fact that it is a requirement to list contact information, not a recommendation boggles me
I do think this could be a good opportunity for some, but after the recent Extra-Credits issue and the revelation that the Escapist does not have a stable business model in place I would like some clarification for my above questions. It is highly unlikely that any person of the street would be able to cover gaming news faster than the Escapist does with proper interviews, so I do not really understand what the Escapist is looking for.