Hard Rain
Today's recording of the Gillmor Gang produced some mixed feelings. On the one hand, it was nice to hear from Mike Arrington and Jason Calacanis, or as someone put it Calacarrington, light-sabering with each other. I'm grateful for their interest in being on the show, though Jason's bailout at the hour mark to do an interview with the Washington Post struck me as the right thing to do for him and AOL but not for the show. I semi-joked about firing him, but as with all jokes there's a real element of truth.
Arrington seemed irritated that I had written about what he considered a private conversation about another Washington Post reporter, but then he went far beyond me in explaining what he felt about the transaction. And that's what these intersections between "old" and "new" media seem to be: transactions. Both Calaconis and Arrington are experts at this form of transparency; the mainstreamers have some catching up to do.
No one is immune to this dance, certainly not me. I've been milking the lack of specifics about my move off ZDNet and the turmoil around the Gang, but behind the marketing and brand maintenance lie some real issues, some of which I can't discuss except by indirection. Some of the problems stem from the incredible and unanticipated success of Attention and Gestures. The dynamics of the show have vacillated wildly as outside events validate the work and principles of the AttentionTrust, GestureBank's open pool, the revolution that is the user in charge.
The AOL data dump, the Ozzie Live speech, Jason's Digg market-making Gesture gambit–they're all of a piece. Reading Joshua Porter's hat-tip to Jason's brilliant mashup of street smarts and ear-to-the-train-tracker instincts, I pull up short when he describes the Gang as cynical. This really stings. Not because I don't know what he's talking about, but because he betrays his lack of respect for what I'm trying to do here. It makes me want to crawl up in a little ball and quit. Is that all he gets out of this? Of course, he's right. I'm wasting my time.
I can't tell you how lucky I am to be in the same room with these wonderful people. I won't pretend that I don't belong there; of course I do. But that is not enough to let things just careen forward. This past week, the show was taken off of Sirius. In the wake of Arrington's resignation, I had decided to shut down the show and relaunch it under a new name. When Mike and I worked out the differences that had bubbled up on the show in question — you can clearly hear me baiting him into quitting, and despite what our demeanor suggests on the show, we are really good friends — the decision to resume the show as it stood was met with some bewilderment. The Sirius cancellation resulted.
If Joshua's lack of respect stings, you can imagine how the Sirius move feels. To be blunt, the Gang on Sirius is one of the best shows on that network. Forget about how I feel about it; what it says about my partners in the Gang is just fucking unforgivable. Doc Searls is one of the most important voices of our time, and reducing even for a minute the reach of that sound is just plain dumb. Dana Gardner, who sat with Mike Vizard and me in a bar at Comdex 4 years ago and dreamed up what became the Gang, and recently literally jumped off this cliff we're building without a parachute. Vizard, who leant his industry clout to the show from Day One and sent a signal to the right people that something important might be happening. Jon Udell, without whose weekly (now monthly) phone calls there never would have been the conversations we now routinely share. Dan Farber, you know what I, and everybody in the business, thinks about this guy. Arrington, Calacanis, lately Hugh MacLeod — each and every one of these guys can carry the weight by themselves.
The session today started slowly (what else is new) as the Gang wandered in. Someone pointed out that Jason and Mike accounted for about 80% of the stories on Valleywag, and Hugh took over the moderator role as I sat in the background and listened. Frankly, I was listening for the sound of a Gillmor-less Gang, something that was frequently run up the flag pole the previous week in the comment areas of Mike's and Jason's sites. If Doc had been on time and not called in via cell at first, we all might have gotten a taste of that product, which I honestly believe would be different but still entertaining. Every time I tried to tweak the flow, it felt superfluous. I wasn't interested in what I had to say, so I laid out some more.
Eventually, I came up with a device to rebalance the session. I asked each of the Gangsters to rate the previous segment from 1-10. Effective as it was in reinserting myself into the mix, it was even more effective in encouraging each player to own their part in the show. Somehow we got through it, with what Dana called a good vibe when we chatted later. The ratings started out high — too high for my taste — and slowly moved lower as the medicine took hold. By the end, Dana and Arrington were both voting with invisible gestures in my direction that were all too easy to see. At least it felt better.
Tonight Tina and I went to the movies — World Trade Center. A good film. One that knew what it was about. Optimistic in its honoring of bravery, that most mysterious of gestures. Made me feel ashamed and strong all at the same time. Nobody comes close to disrespecting me as I can; nobody is surer than me of the value of what we're doing. When it works, the stuff sparkles as it burns. My contract is with you.
August 12th, 2006 at 4:34 am
Steve,
I would like to correct you on a few things.
Gillmor Gang was not ‘cancelled’, in fact there is no such thing as a cancellation in our Sirius Satellite rotation. Our 4 hour block is intended to show as many sides of podcasting as possible, highlighting all kinds of programming, not necessarily from our own network. There is a rotation of programming that delivers on that promise. A number of slots in this rotation are reserved for recurring programming.
The Gang had its own slot, as did Gillmor Daily *because* of the amazing talent on these shows, including yourself.
The Sirius distribution model however, is an old fashioned one of linear nature, complete with time restrictions and deadlines for delivery of programming.
As you know the Daily shows were removed from the lineup long ago due to lack of timely delivery, if at all. Unfortunately, the Gillmor Gang fell prey to the exact same problem. Repeats are unacceptable and unnecessary.
It is your sole responsibility to produce and deliver your programming, as is the content of the programming.
If you can demonstrate consistent, timely delivery of the Gillmor Gang, it will be welcomed with open arms into Sirius rotation.
The same is true for Gillmor Daily.
If organization of the talent for each show is a barrier, then you should consider compensating your Gang members.
The production budget for your programming is considerably larger than that of a daily 4 hour satellite radio program, I suggest you allocate a portion of it towards ‘talent booking’ or production assistance.
Give the Audience the respect it deserves.
AC
August 14th, 2006 at 4:21 am
Hey Steve,
What’s up with The Gillmor Gang on Podshow? I got Ratings Gang I but II and III seem corrupted or something.
August 14th, 2006 at 10:52 am
Adam’s commentary reflects my own view of the Gillmor Gang. It has great editorial value, but poor and unreliable production. Some programming is old. I understand the splitting of the shows into several 30-minute segments, but the segments themselves are inconsistent in coming out. When I wait days between segments, I lose interest.
A labor of love can be hard to keep going without a monetary benefit. I put Gillmor Gang into the labor of love category. But that means that it may not be right for a Sirius show that requires more predictability and reliability.
August 14th, 2006 at 2:55 pm
Gilmour gang was one of the best programs on Sirius??? Are you kidding me? Every time I’d hear the Podshow block on Sirius, I’d listen until Gilmour and then tune out. Boring. Boring. Boring. Go to Amazon.com and buy yourself a clue.
August 14th, 2006 at 6:38 pm
Sir:
One of the best shows on the network? Boring. I too turned when you came on. You remind me of a guy who has drank to much sitting at a bar at closing time. Gimme the big mouthed lesbian and Norman anytime.
August 15th, 2006 at 5:27 am
My rating was a 3 out of 10 - from a loyal listener (not really interested in tayloring business)
August 15th, 2006 at 12:57 pm
Hey, it’s great show…Keep up the good works.
August 15th, 2006 at 3:58 pm
Enjoyed this show a lot. Good dynamics among the participants. I’ll rate the show a 7.
Glad you all found the Hugh MacLeod sound problem. His breathing and gasping was uncomfortably intimate in my ear.
August 15th, 2006 at 9:07 pm
Steve,
I love the show. I love your blunt and direct nature. I love the dynamics between the guests — especially when they get into it. However, you’ve got to get a handle on the production. Each caller needs to be on separate tracks and you’ve got to put a gate on each track. MacLeod’s breathing was down-right disgusting. I know its an expensive proposition, but I think the show is worthy of the upgrade. Get Curry to flip the bill. heh.
August 18th, 2006 at 7:54 am
I listen to the show because of your guests. Arrington and Calacanis are great, as are all the others. Hugh seems like a nice guy but never adds much in my opinion.
I don’t mind your bluntness, Steve, but when it becomes rudeness, it turns me off and frustrates me. Challenge your guests, by all means, but often you go farther than that, and it both puts a bad taste in my mouth and also ruins the flow of conversation.
I also agree that the production is a real problem. It makes it tough to listen to.
The ads are also a problem. Their presense isn’t a problem, but your homemade ones are so insufferable I now regularly skip all the ads, to avoid the boring “please give them the respect” blah blah. I get it! I have no problems with you having advertisers for God sakes! Please get out of the way and let them advertise themselves!
Anyway, I often enjoy the show, and I just wanted to register these complaints because the bad bits of the show often result in me unsubscribing from it for weeks. So far, I’ve always come back, but I wish you would make some of these simple changes that would hugely help the show.
August 27th, 2006 at 2:57 pm
[…] Gillmor talks about backlash to the gang. […]
August 29th, 2006 at 1:01 am
[…] Steve Gillmor’s GestureLab » Hard Rain I can’t tell you how lucky I am to be in the same room with these wonderful people. I won’t pretend that I don’t belong there; of course I do. […]
September 11th, 2006 at 3:59 am
[…] Gillmor vs. Curry - Round 1 Steve Gillmor is angry that the Gillmor Gang is no longer playing on Sirius 102: “To be blunt, the Gang on Sirius is one of the best shows on that network. Forget about how I feel about it; what it says about my partners in the Gang is just fucking unforgivable. Doc Searls is one of the most important voices of our time, and reducing even for a minute the reach of that sound is just plain dumb.” […]