je ne sais quoi
delicious
diggSteve, stop looking for others to commend you and give you the approval you so desperately crave. Are you really expecting people to praise you because you have so much time on your hands to listen to user submissions? The efforts you make to promote yourself aren't commendable, they're deplorable. It's only the ones that you're able to dupe with your armchair pseudo-psychology that will accept you as anything but as charlatan.
Lighten up.
*n*
"The only thing worse than being talked about is not being talked about" - Oscar Wilde
I've enjoyed being a small part of the online community that has blossomed here over the past month (one which seems to have been a bit overwhelmed the past few days with the onslaught of new entries and comments). It's heartening to see how helpful many contestants have been towards others in need as well as the overall sense of support most comments give off.
I say this because I wanted to make sure I didn't seem unappreciative of Steve's exploits - he's given my own posting a nice comment as he has many others. This latest line of entries here, however, seem to belie a subtle attitude of expertise without any actual proven experience. Listening to a great many postings doesn't give anyone the right to proclaim what hostiness is, especially when the proclamations come across as subjective opinions rather than objective facts.
Now that the quest has hit its first deadline, it would be a good thing to continue the support that many of us have set forth early on.
And fact is: Steve Stokes is a voter. Anyone who votes has every right to comment on their experiences and findings. Now if he goes around claiming to be PRX or part of the contest crew, then we'd have another issue altogether. But he doesn't and he hasn't.
I am seriously saddened that some people didn't get to post their audio because they waited (for whatever reasons) until the last minute, but I do agree that the last minute arrival shows certain character traits, and this time it just didn't pan out for them. Everyone's learning from this thing, I think.
To forum or not to forum? This has been an ongoing subject but I stand by my statement that I learned a lot about some people's potential hosting abilities by their participation in forums. But I'm only one voter and not a judge so what does it matter? On the other side of the coin there are many great contestants that didn't ever post comments and I remember them fondly and well.
Sincerely,
The girl with three jobs, two radio shows, a husband, a life, a psychotic cat and the occasional time to post a message (even with a dead computer.)-kb
Looking for answers? After checking out my submission here you can find them on www.prx.org/pieces/18374.
hostiness.
Steve
No one should, look back with regret on all that they never did: the beauties they did not see, the music they did not hear, the flavors they did not taste, the aromas they did not inhale, the sensations they did not feel.
OK...I just woke up, so sorry if this is incoherent...must...get...coffee....
Here's a couple thoughts:
1) To the person who posted that people have lives: I whole heartedly agree. I'm very rooted in my own on-line community and spend a lot of free time there. Since I submitted my entry, I've been spinning a few things I picked up here on these forums with my network to get their take on things. Also, I often work very long days with a call time of 6:00 a.m. or earlier being somewhat frequent. Finally, I produce a my own weekly podcast from start to finish. This is relevant because when I started doing these a year ago I...had...no...IDEA how freaking hard these were going to be. It seriously is like having a second job. Sometimes I cry and ask myself why when I receive an e-mail from a listener only to receive a complaint about the platform I use to create these (I love Mac's!) or when I take a day off from my real job for an interview with somebody who doesn't show up. Do you smell burnt martyr? Naaa...these podcasts are crazy hard, but they are enormously gratifying. They helped me get through the shock and initial grief of getting over the loss of my dad by giving me something to focus on.
2) To the person (actually it was probably Steve) who made the remark about opting in/out to be contacted: I was hesistant about this. I was afraid of spam. But I was curious as to whom might want to talk to me, and since it was clear I could opt out any time, I said "Yes!" and I'm glad I did!
3) I was surprised at the apparent Podcaster vs Radio mentality that I'm hearing from some independent podcasters out in the Poddosphere as well as from broadcasters. Podcasters act like they're some bastard child or something. Broadcasters seem to be apparently clueless and condescending to podcasters. I don't see the issue. What's the big deal? It seems obvious to me we should be one happy family. I listen to PR through podcasts these days and I also listen to my favorite independent ones as well. So...all this to say...I was dismayed when some of my favorite podcasters simply submitted a piece but did not participate in the forums.
4) I'm saddened by the lack of sympathy on those folks who where unable to submit their piece. I'm not talking about the ones with two minutes to spare. I'm talking about the ones trying to submit with two hours to spare. I push back on PRTQ. The onus was on them to be prepared for the onslaught. They set the deadline. They said "No excuses, the dog ate my mp3." Well, no excuses PRTQ, did the dog eat your server? As a contestant, I have my end of the rules to follow or I can be disqualified. So, I have a reasonable expectation that the site will be up and functioning until the deadline closes. It's like when I go to a store at 8:55 p.m. to get milk and they say they're closed when the sign says 9:00 p.m. Where I'm from, a business is legally required to follow it's advertised business hours. It's like every year I wait for my ticket to be released on-line for Burning Man and every year (except for this year, finally) the server crashes. Since I'm a boho on a budget, I try to get the first tier tickets because I save money. They sell out within hours. Every freaking year the server has a meltdown and then there's this big brouhaha on the message boards about the latest snafu.
5) I agree that hostiness is that "Je ne sais quoi". I thought I was being original when I said that to my podcasting audience, so I'm humbled that I should have lurked around more to figure out the host scene here. I think hostiness is also authenticity. I know it when I hear it. It doesn't mean production value, although it certainly helps. Some of the most powerful submissions I've heard here are from from low quality productions but their strong voice overrides this.
My two cents. Your mileage may vary. Did somebody say coffee?
Love & Rockets,
DaBomb
http://www.burncast.net
'Cause yer awesome. I fully agree that Podcasters and Broadcasters should have mutual respect for each other. We're all in the same business, just different means of distribution.
It's funny you mention that there's some kind of divide. I don't really feel that, but then I'm a weird hybrid-- a podcaster, whose show broadcasts on community radio. I think I definitely have more web listeners than people who tune in once a month for a half hour to hear me on the community station. And the luddites at the station are amazed that I've figured out how to do web distribution all by myself (they are still struggling with how to do this as an organization and I wasn't willing to wait). I'm excited to be podcasting and reaching people I couldn't otherwise reach with my voice on the radio, but I still relish the time I have when I know if I'm listening, other people are listening at the same time. You're right, though, it is A LOT of work. I don't know how you do a weekly show. Once a month is like a part-time job for me.
--
Julie
DIY Nation
I just wanted to add, based on an early comment here, that I didnt even post my entry until sunday as I didnt know the contest exsisted untill friday afternoon. Some folks I don't think procrastinated, they simply didnt know this was happening untill the last minute. I still put a lot of hard work that my limited acess to technology allowed. I might not have all the sizzle, but I think my steak is tasty. And so are many others.
Sarah The Dyslexic Librarian
Love comics? Anime? Sci fi? Gaming? Firefly? Star Wars? All the above? Then get Geek on NPR! Vote for Red Shirts Rising! http://www.publicradioquest.com/node/1202
A host wants to be connected to his world. Anyone that opted to not turn on their contact option has not this element of hostiness.
Steve
No one should, look back with regret on all that they never did: the beauties they did not see, the music they did not hear, the flavors they did not taste, the aromas they did not inhale, the sensations they did not feel.
There's connection and then there's spam. Remember that the default position for the contact is "OFF" (unchecked). Either people didn't check it for fear of spam and didn't understand they could turn it off anytime, or are overwhelmed with email as it is. Connection on the radio/podcast is a quality of voice and personality. Connection via email is a quality of time and typing skills ;-)
************************************************
Life is a matinee. BroadwayMatinee.com
Judge my hostiness in the PRTQ
something happens when you disagree...
Anyway. There was no fear of spam because the contact switch did not make your email address public. A passthru was employed.
But of course you are entitled to an opposing view on this and all topics.
Now, go bring us some shrubbery.
Steve
No one should, look back with regret on all that they never did: the beauties they did not see, the music they did not hear, the flavors they did not taste, the aromas they did not inhale, the sensations they did not feel.
Hostitude can not exist in the absense of worldliness.
A person that does not understand the modern world and know how to navigate in it is not hosty. This is not to expect a host to know everything... that's unreasonable, but only to expect the host to know how to get along in the world.
Anyone that thought that at 11:58:30 pm EDS 5-14-2007 they would be able to hit the submit button and everything would be o.k., lives in a cave, (with the windows shut and the blinds drawn).
They obviously missed the Turbo Tax snafu that happend only a few weeks ago. They have ignored Murphey's laws... maybe not ignored, maybe merely fluanted them. I don't know how they could expect anyone to want to go into business with them.
Furthermore anyone that has this failing, and is so myopic as to not know they have this failing (lacking worldliness) well that is excusable.
What is not excusable is for someone to send up a big red flair by announcing to everyone how it is that they failed the worldliness test. To announce to the world how you screwed up after you have screwed up, in an effort for us to make up for your lack of worldliness, (when worldliness is one of the things we are trying to identify) is height of "not-getting-it-iness".
Bottom line the deadline was a pass/fail test. If you failed, use that as a life lesson. Or paraphrasing Oprah, their are no failures, it's just the cosmo's way of showing you another path...
Steve
No one should, look back with regret on all that they never did: the beauties they did not see, the music they did not hear, the flavors they did not taste, the aromas they did not inhale, the sensations they did not feel.
Someone with hostiness has an agenda behind being on the radio, other than being on the radio "just to be on the radio". This purpose for hosting may not be articulated, but it certainly can be sensed. The opposite can be sensed too.
It doesn't matter how great the person sounds, if they are merely a voice that wants to be on the air, then they don't have hostiness.
Steve
I believe in philosophic conversation, and I believe you should believe in it too.
I once read something (was it a news story, or a commentary? can't remember) that essentially noted that many teenagers today, when asked what they wanted to be when they grew up, responded, "I want to be famous." And when prodded further to speculate on what their fame would be due to/based on, they usually didn't have an answer. They simply wanted to be known and recognized.
This ties in with your concept of a true hosty person having an agenda, Steve, but as a professional hair-splitter, I'd swap your word choice of 'agenda' for my word choice 'purpose.'
With purpose, intent becomes action, and there's a sureness behind a sense of purpose that can often compensate for talent, money, materials, or opportunities (or lack thereof).
I'd almost hazard a guess that being famous without a sense of purpose is a Catch-22 (unless you're Paris Hilton), because if your purpose to be famous would be to be famous, what would your purpose be?
It frequently seems that fame without achievement results in insecurity, uneasiness, and the ongoing fear that 'someone will find out I'm talentless and I'll lose everything I have.' And if you listen to many of those who experience too much too soon and blow it all away just as quickly, they often say they felt as if they'd never deserved it in the first place.
I once interviewed a Tony-award winning actress who shared a story that has stayed with me for years. She'd been told in her early twenties that she was very talented, but because she was not an ingenue type she would not achieve fame in her youth, though she would find steady work in the theater. Her acting coach had said she'd probably come into her own in her 50s and 60s - and that's exactly what came to pass. She won the Tony when she was 58 years old.
She was a gracious, humble, and articulate guest - self-assured and poised, yet frank about what it was like to work with purpose and with the respect of others but without fame for so many years.
I've always thought if I could be famous, I'd rather have it happen closer to the end of my life than the beginning. That way, you could know beyond a doubt that you had earned it. And you could savor it with a joy and a satisfaction that you wouldn't be able to comprehend if you were decades younger
-- Linda
Visit me in my House by the Sea:
http://www.publicradioquest.com/audio/user/1432
http://blog.syracuse.com/communitycritics/linda_lowen/
That way, you could know beyond a doubt that you had earned it. And you could savor it with a joy and a satisfaction that you wouldn't be able to comprehend if you were decades younger
Absofrikkenloutely. Every radio gig I got, I did not get when *I* thought I deserved it or thought *I* was ready for it. I got it when I would appreciate it the most. It was a hard thing to accept the first time I wasn't hired for a gig but when I was hired later, it really was the perfect time...
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Please listen, then vote and comment if you are willing, to my 2 minutes of funk (sans funk)
http://www.publicradioquest.com/node/805
Shtick… NPR hostiness eschews shtick. There is a certain repulsion to the phoniness that is shtick that keeps the truly hosty from succumbing to doing shtick.
Steve
I believe in philosophic conversation. And I believe you should believe in it too.
Hostiness is not displayed by any submitter that dumps their two-minutes and then "vanishes" waiting to get the phone call that they have moved on to round two. Doing such screams, "I am not a host!" It means that the submitter doesn't believe in their ability to be a host, and they are treating this quest as if it were a lottery.
Someone with true hostiness, fills out their bio, and turns on their contact option.
They do this because a real hosty ridden individual takes an interest in their peers and their peers' submissions. They make use of this tool afforded them, because a true hosty individual is hungry to learn as much as they can about the craft of hosting. A true host is always expanding their network so they can give back to the community which support them.
Steve
“Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” I believe the same thing should be said about thinking.
It means that the submitter doesn't believe in their ability to be a host, and they are treating this quest as if it were a lottery.
I am confident in my ability to be a host, but I am also treating this quest as if it were a lottery. Because it is a big gamble.
And, my ability as a host would not be lessened if I do not advance. My ability is there, even if I don't fit whatever specific characteristic(s) the judges are looking for.
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Please listen, then vote and comment if you are willing, to my 2 minutes of funk (sans funk)
http://www.publicradioquest.com/node/805
'Hostiness is not displayed by any submitter that dumps their two-minutes and then "vanishes" waiting to get the phone call that they have moved on to round two.'
That's one possibility, but another is that the potential host has a lot going on. Maybe they have their own podcast that they're publishing, and while they would love to participate in forums, they know what they really want is to express themselves in an audio medium. They want to learn, they want to stretch, they want to experience.
Perhaps they just have their own communities to relate to, and they are being hosty on their own, rather than hosty here.
Obviously this is not entirely true of me, but I can't say I entire agree with this particular sentiment.
.:Brian
My entry: The Flying Squirrels of Experience
http://www.publicradioquest.com/node/1686
Well said. Though my contact bounceback is because earthlink hates me.
A person with hostiness is a curious person, someone who enjoys that give and take of investing energy into another person or subject. You're right Steve about the ones that are waiting for the call not coming off as hosty. I feel I've learned more about potential hosting abilities from the message boards than anything else and I think many of you would seriously rock.
Hey, if none of this pans out it isn't exactly the end, is it? "Hey, my dad's got a barn and yours has an antenna-- let's put on a show!!"
Mind you, your thinking in other matters is a bit *fishy,* but on this point, you're on the money. As it were. Or so I think. Ahem.
*n*
"The only thing worse than being talked about is not being talked about" - Oscar Wilde
Steve,
After going through many entries myself as well, I cannot help but think that if Ron Burgundy was here, even he support your posting.
Sincerely,
JC
We agree on this one, even if I just turned on my contact option today. LOL
Check out my entry, "The Sonic Lab With Matt Boland", at http://www.publicradioquest.com/audio/user/4472
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