Photographers Gone Wild!

Due to circumstances beyond VFTD's control today's post will be postponed. Unlike the PSP this blog was unable to recover (from bursts of hyperventilating laughter) in time to post the 5 Worst Events in MLP History. [*] Look for it tomorrow. Instead to day's post will say everything that needs to be said about the latest brouhaha involving paintball photographers. (Link to PBN thread in post title.)
VFTD has long considered the bulk of paintball photographers to be nuisances and the majority of paintball photography to be the "extreme sport" equivalent of vanity portraiture. Amateur photogs taking mundane, virtually indistinguishable, repetitive images to sell to divisional players wanting a memento or two to take home. Which is fine--to a point. In recent years every sensible limit has been strained to the breaking point--which (apparently) snapped recently.
As entertaining as the thread in question has been I won't be commenting on the particulars because there aren't enough factual details. Instead I will be suggesting a measured response and future course of action to be considered in the aftermath. This is actually a bigger issue for the PSP than the raging photogs and should probably be addressed as such. It begins with the new PSP affiliated media company now responsible for the webcast and related media products. What if any exclusivity does or should the new media company have? My reply would be the match narratives that the webcast is attempting to capture and communicate. And if that's the way the league perceives it then still photography is not a concern, only alternative video products. If that is the case then the follow-on issue becomes what sort, if any, product should secondary video media producers be allowed to create, promote, display and/or sell.
I would say the league doesn't need to--or want to--monopolize live action at least for the time-being--but that's just me. In any case some thought will have to be given to what is and isn't acceptable when it comes to alternative video presentations.
Also I think it would behoove the league to have a simple use rights agreement with the featured teams signed on an annual basis. No monies need change hands but some clarity for all involved parties on what is fair and expected use could preclude future hassles. And if the webcast develops as anticipated it will eventually become an issue. Right now it's in everyone's interest to make the product available so now is the ideal time to begin a cooperative effort.
Okay now we can talk photogs. These can be divided between established media reps and vanity photographers. (I suppose a very few are both but then not all "media" is created equal either.) The media reps should be vetted and given access where and how the league determines. (Media reps can also include sponsor and team photographers.) The vanity photogs should also be limited to a pre-determined number and perhaps vetted based on a different criteria; years of experience, customer satisfaction, etc. The media reps receive credentials and in return agree to provide the league with images under a simple use rights agreement that serves and protects everyones' interests. The vanity photogs pay a modest access fee and are under no other obligation. Under such a system the league controls competing content, limits access, vets legit media outlets and provides some oversight of the vanity photography industry which benefits the players in general even if a limited number of photographers would likely mean higher prices. At some point the market; ie: the players, will decide what they're willing to pay.
Of course then I won't have anybody to make fun of anymore--except guys pulling off lame DMW.

The New Social Paintball

First a little love for the kids at Social. (Title is link to Social website.) They have put a lot of blood, sweat & tears into a labor of love and paintball can only benefit from the efforts of those willing to do so for the most minimal of returns--generally accompanied by more criticism than praise or worse, indifference. Second, you should visit Social, if you haven't, and see what the new site is all about. And I would recommend the same for any and all paintball-related sites that have something of interest to you. If nothing else support them by regularly checking in and seeing what's going on--and if you have anything to contribute to an ongoing conversation or the site, post a comment or three. Traditional media support of paintball is mostly a thing of the past and the plain fact is if you want to have a diversity of new media supporting and promoting paintball you (yes, you, no, not the other guy, you) need to actively support it. Just saying.
Now comes the part where I harsh everybody's mellow with some criticisms of the new Social PB. First up, "girl paintball tech" videos. For real? I know there's a contingent in paintball desperate to include more girls but pointing them (girls) out like freaks in a sideshow every time one shows up isn't the way to do it. If she was working on your gat is it important that she's a she or that she can do the job correctly? It's condescending (and isolating) whether it's intended to be or not.
Reporting & interviews. Neither one are about the reporter, what they think or how they feel. Case in point, the Russian Legion coverage. I realize the staff isn't professional journalists but more professionalism would go a long way from separating Social from the rest of the herd. (And frankly from much of the rest of paintball media, period.)
Keeping it real; controversy & taking a stand. This is an area that needs to be handled with care but not because it might upset some people but because it's easy to make a mess of it. For example, the piece called 'Does the APPA system class players out of the game?' For starters it's incomplete. All it does is throw out an assertion. It makes no case supporting that assertion or offers any alternatives. All it really does is re-hash in the most superficial way a subject VFTD broached in 2008. Is it a fair question? Sure, but if it's going to serve any purpose other than to rile up the ignorant or ill-informed it needs to be more than that. In fact APPA, working with the PSP, has changed the classification system dramatically from the time I first started posting about the issue until today and they continue to move in positive directions. (And of course the alternative to some sort of classification system is to say there is no such thing as sand-bagging. I'm okay with that but do you really want to go there?)
Then there is 'The Cost of Winning.' It isn't controversial or thought-provoking, it's just silly. It opens with the idea that Legion dropped it's American players from 2011 because they were more interested in saving money than winning paintball tournaments by equating them with professional football teams that focus on profit over winning. A) it misunderstands what Alex says in the PR, B) it demonstrates the author doesn't know the facts, and C) it strongly suggests the author has no clue about the realities of competing at the pro level in paintball. Later in the article he says, "Some pro teams are obviously worth more than D4 teams ..." No, they aren't worth more, they COST more. There is no profit, there is only cost and it is a flawed premise to begin with to equate any paintball team to a truly professional sports franchise. And everything that flows from that is misguided at best.
But it's hardly a make or break flaw. It is an example perhaps of trying too hard. Look, there are plenty of debatable topics in paintball. Exercise good judgment and some editorial oversight and raising controversial subjects will contribute to paintball instead of further muddying the water. Social has the potential to be a great paintball site and I am looking forward to seeing it reach its potential. 

PBN Sells Out!

Okay, maybe not or maybe they did that a long time ago--depending on your point of view--but you gotta admit it's a catchy title. (Did I mention the kids at ProPaintball have been doing good work lately? I didn't? Well, they have. Check out the PBN news here.) And while I'm at it the title is a link to the PBN news thread announcing the sale. (But you already know all this right?)
Here's an item or two you may not know. The Crowdgather folks have some detractors. (Right here!) And if you like legalese you can read all the down and dirty details of the deal right here.
(Link opens a pdf file.)
Now I'll be the first to admit I don't know how this dealio is gonna shake out but it appears that Crowdgather has so far only demonstrated an ability to lose (or spend) other people's (investors, one presumes) money. And if it is to be believed it appears Crowdgather isn't in the habit of dishing out real dollars for their past acquisitions so let's hope the cash is actual greenbacks (while they still retain some actual value.) Mostly I find these kind of paintball stories curiosities more than anything else but I do wonder what will become of the employees in the long run. And wasn't it Ed's kid who had the original idea for PBN? Is anybody cutting him a check? Curious (and idle) minds want to know. Sorta.

Hanging with Mike Tyson

VFTD 'rumored' months ago that Facefull (Rich Telford's Wide World of Paintball) was the magazine that wasn't but publications (of Facefull & Jungle) were already infrequent enough to keep most everyone confused. (The X3 kids didn't figure it out until a few weeks ago. I'm sorry but that's funny.)

However, Facefull recently tweeted--it's okay, they're French--that the magazine was coming back. There's also an obscure notification on their website. See it here. There's a lot of blather about restructuring blah blah blah but how long could that take? The new Facefull will be published 6 times a year. (Isn't that what it was before, too, or did they end up behind?)

Anyway, the next issue is supposed to hit the streets mid-May. And in the meantime VFTD hopes they enjoyed their vaca in Bolivian, hanging with Mike Tyson.

PBIndustry & Media

Here we go again. (Another rant.) Another paintball company (out of Canuckistan) has taken a flyer in the New Media goulash of mixing self-promotion with (supposed) entertainment. Not quite infotainment, the blasphemous offspring of celebrity & (low) culture, this latest effort is called Gab-fest and can be seen on ProPaintball among others. For starters the name is something MY grandfather would have come up with as hip and au currant. Seriously, Gab-fest? That'll definitely have all the prepubescent punks tuning in for sure. Then there's the topic of episode one which was practically ripped from today's paintball headlines, The Generational Differences. I know I can't decide who was better; Marty Bush or Jason Edwards--and it's driving me crazy. (How 'bout a call in feature to make Gab-fest interactive and maybe answer some of these important questions.) Unfortunately, most of today's players don't know and don't care that paintball was played before they started nor do they care who it was playing back in those dark Old Skool ages. To speak for the generations Gab-fest rounded up popular player Justin Rabackoff and--more importantly--his dad, Steve Rabackoff. The conversation went something like this: The game was slower then. It's faster now. We were really good. Everything was slower then including the guns and players. The best of the OG's would match up fine with today's top players. They couldn't compete with today's players, old man. Could so. Could not. Yada yada yada. But of course the real point was to get Steve front and center. [That last statement is speculation, not fact, but ...] Thing is, the Canadian company producing Gab-fest recently dropped one brand of paint in order to be Canada's sole distributor of another brand of paint. Coincidentally, Steve used to work for the dropped brand of paint but now works for the other. So without quite beating their audience over the head the producer reinforces their market tie-in, promotes their exclusive paint brand and builds closer relationships with the paint brand and its reps. All in the guise of an entertaining video with a couple of famous paintball peeps. [More speculation ...] The real purpose of Gab-fest is to popularize the producer's product lines using an infotainment-type vehicle instead of traditional advertising and promotion--marketing masquerading as media. Which is better than media shilling for PBIndustry but still, there's something about the blurring of boundaries I find troubling.

Next time on episode two of Gab-fest--and this is just a guess--sales reps from two gun makers the company sells will debate that perennial paintball contest; scenario vs. tourney. Sounds like another winner to me.

Paintball Stuff

I'm dodging a mailbag question I agreed to answer. Nothing outrageous or scandalous--I'd never agree to answer any of those--but it's gonna be a bit of work so why do today what I can put off until the weekend? Today you get a stream-of-consciousness response to various items of paintball news from the last few days. And if you find it all rather dull, join the club.

A marriage made in heaven--or was that hell?--redux. I apologise in advance for finding the news that Valken will be distributing Bob Long guns--again--rather amusing. Given that they've been there done that before and it worked so well they ended up in court suing each other what could possibly go wrong?

Then there's the latest scheme from Empire tying the Axe marker to potentially valuable paint savings in order to make a big splash in 2011 at the major league tourney level throughout the divisions. I don't know whose brainchild that was but it's looking like a winner and a number of the related emails I've seen have Johnny Posterivo's signature on them. Is it wrong of me to feel a little nostalgia for the old days, ugly and unproductive as they often were, when PBIndustry was a bunch of big fish in a small pond and every day was a food fight in the cafeteria? Johnny versus Gino in the squared circle. Family feud. Valken versus Kee. Let's get it on!

Speaking of the Axe dealio there's a bigger picture here, it seems to me. Given the price point and the general lack of flash if Empire can make the Axe both a general sales success and create a "cool" factor around its performance in 2011--putting the Axe in the dialogue--of must have markers it would be a real marketing coup. And could conceivably seriously erode the high priced end of the market. Peak popularity is fickle and if the time is right for the next "it" gun and it turns out to be the Axe ... all bets are off.

Then there's the new pro format announced recently by the NPPL. It's Race 2-2, more or less. And I don't think I like it much. Sure, one argument is that the better team(s) should win through more consistently and that the occasional flukey loss or poor referee's decision won't determine the final result--and I concede the point. And it's a good one. What kinda rubs me the wrong way is the sense that teams won't get to play against as many different teams in the new format as the old--and that's particularly true if you don't make it out of the first bracket--but in crunching a few numbers the teams that make the semi-finals will end up playing anywhere from 7 - 9 different teams during the event. The old way the max is 11 different teams with everybody playing at least 7 different teams. With the new formula 8 teams will only play 3 other teams. Perhaps it's viewed as potentially better TV. More pressingly I'd like to know how the initial seeding will be done and the reseed into the second round. And the scoring. And maybe even the new rules ...

I'm also still wondering about Facefull's future--and I'm still not seeing it. This isn't a covert rumor or anything of the sort. I just haven't seen a new mag in months, the website is collecting cobwebs and the lights were turned off a while ago at Facefull Online as the most recent mags available are over a year old. And I can't remember the last time I was able to pick one up at an event. (Yes, I'm a cheap bastard and part of the problem. It's that cursed pro sense of entitlement.) Somehow it seems inevitable--which is a shame. Perhaps the current plan is to keep the magazine alive by not actually printing any new editions.

In closing I'd like to welcome Robbo (of all things paintball fame) to the cyberpages of X3. Pete brings a unique perspective and I'm looking forward to his monthly contribution (in the Queen's English) and to see what our semi-literate hordes of punks and thugs make of his special brand of English abuse. Perhaps a small wager on the first appearance of "rocking horse poo" in his column is in order? (March) Almost like the good old days.

Pushing PBIndustry

Granted, I'm a natural born cynic--and I have lots of years of paintball experience on top of that. But instead of passing judgment I'ma just gonna point out a couple of factoids and let you decide what you think of this. It's not really a big deal one way or the other. Really. It's not. It was this or jumping into the debate over whether or not the PSP was gonna restrict D1 to 10 teams 'cus you know that's what the current team page shows. Does not. Does so.
What? Oh. Think of what? This is another look at industry and media, new or otherwise. It was the recent announcement from the PE Kidz that started me thinking. You know, the new ETV gimmick with their digital download store. PE has probably done more in the new media arena than the rest of PBIndustry--and good for them (although I wonder how much the vision belongs to guys like Dan Napoli.) The point isn't though that the PE Kidz are trying different things and looking for new ways to use their sponsored teams and the potential of new media. It's that they are looking to transform promotion into product. (Which I find interesting.) A sort of modern alchemy.
At one level everybody is doing it, or trying to do it. Dye does a solid job with their promotional videos. They have a coherent, consistent style that is so immediately recognizable they almost don't need logos and look very professional to boot. But they are mostly just video ads. Across the industry it's a mixed bag of product display, pro endorsements and action images. Not to be confused, of course, with video reviews, interviews, etc. from paintball websites building their own content libraries or home-made team & action videos from pretty much everybody and his third cousin.
With all that diversity of content and presentation it's easy for it all, the commercial to the amateur, to sort of blend together. Content shows up over and over in many of the same places like on various websites and YouTube. I'm vaguely curious if sources get lost in the process and if most viewers tend not to pay much attention to the sources. (Wow! Another really boring The Monday Poll!) I'm more curious what y'all think of PE trying to turn their variety of promotional videos into product. Is there enough non-promotional content that peeps will be willing to pay to download some of the videos? Does the promotional content matter if the quality is there? How much of a difference exists because of the perspective of the film maker? Is MWAG's 'Push' or 'Sunday Drivers' immune from a commercial taint because of the maker's intent compared to say, the latest 'Artifact' series? What do you think?

News or Propaganda?

Guess what. This is not the post I promised. Well, promised may be overstating it. The post after 'Interpreting History' was supposed to be ideas & answers for dealing with the current competition paintball landscape. This isn't that post--because I got distracted by something else. (Again.)

Regulars know I am endlessly fascinated with how the paintball media landscape has changed (and is changing) and what those changes mean for paintball in general and competitive paintball in particular. And there's a fascinating example over at Paintball.com. It's the (supposed) leak of a rumor that Spyder might be getting a Walmart deal. (After all, Walmart deals, or the lack thereof, are all the rage right now, so why not?) Is it news or propaganda?

Now this may surprise you but I'm going to call it propaganda. (Of course if I hadn't it wouldn't be much of a post, would it?) According to Webster's propaganda is "the spreading of ideas, information, or rumor for the purpose of helping or injuring an institution, a cause, or a person" and "ideas, facts, or allegations spread deliberately to further one's cause or to damage an opposing cause; also : a public action having such an effect"[.] No big lie required. Not even a modest deception or the attempt to deceive--even though that's how most people would define propaganda, as some sort of lie cloaked as the truth.
In the Paintball.com example the core info is called a rumor. Is it true? Could be but it doesn't matter one way or the other. Rumors, by definition, can have varying degrees of accuracy. Sometimes they are dead on, sometimes they aren't. The point of this post isn't about the rumor itself, it is about the presentation. It is about the rumor's source, the additional content provided and the existing relationships between Spyder, Paintball.com & Giant Paintball Parks. In fact, it appears an effort was made to distance those relationships in both what was said and what wasn't.
Look, I'm not going to break the item down line by line. Hit the link and go read it for yourself. Then ask yourself if the way the story was presented is misleading (and self-serving.) (A twofer.) The claim of unnamed insider sources sounds juicy, perhaps even journalistic, but it also means nobody actually has to take responsibility for it. It intimates Spyder was responsible for the expansion of paintball a decade ago. Then suggests the relationship between Spyder and Giant may have been crucial in the Walmart deal. [If there is a Walmart deal.] It also claims no one at Spyder was prepared to go on the record so they went to one of the owners of Giant Paintball Parks, Dennis Bukowski, for a comment. He can't confirm the rumor either of course but is thrilled at the prospect of how this could help launch 50 cal. The next paintball evolution. Paintball.com wants everyone to stay tuned for the latest.
What they apparently don't want you to know is that the deal between Spyder and Giant was a sweetheart deal for Giant to try and kickstart small ball at the local level or that the other owner of Giant is Gio D'Egidio who also happens to be COO of Paintball.com.
If the rumor is true and a deal is signed it's a "scoop" for Paintball.com and a front page of free promos for all the principles. If it isn't, well that's the nature of rumors but no one is at fault and the principles still get a front page of free promos by tossing the Walmart name around.

Am I being naive? This is hardly a first time occurrence. Don't situations like this one occur all the time in paintball between various business interests and the media simply as a function of the way things work? The first answer is no. The second answer is yes. And because the second answer is yes any media outlet staking any claim to independence and (dare I say, integrity) needs to be particularly scrupulous in their process. And instead of either demanding propaganda or conspiring with media PBIndustry should also look favorably on media independence. The general audience is already wary of advertising claims. As soon as they become cynical about the rest of the paintball media industry loses any effective way to reach their customers. And even fanboys grow up eventually.

Does this mean we can't be Facebook friends? I look forward to your comments and emails.

Burning Question

Is Rich Telford's Wide World of Paintball (FaceFull) still publishing a dead tree magazine?

(I haven't seen one lately and even the online version is months behind. Just asking.)

Scurvy, Who's Who & the Art of Photography

The cure for scurvy--a disease that in western history typically affected sailors--was lost for a period of time between the time when the British Navy began issuing rations of citrus in the 18th century and the arctic expeditions of the early 20th century. By virtue of an incomplete understanding, irregular scientific practice and a few incidents that inspired wild medical conjecture a disease nearly eradicated among the English prior to the American Revolution was killing upper class English children in the Victorian Age. (To read more, look here.) Knowledge once acquired can be lost along with history unrecorded--which is why I want to recommend you check out the Who's Who? over at the Big Bullet. If you see yourself or anyone you know I encourage you to get involved. Knowledge of paintball's history and personalities isn't a matter of life and death but if we don't preserve it, it will be lost with no one to blame but ourselves. Besides, the photos currently posted are a real rogues gallery of freaks, weirdos and malcontents likely to make the most hapless dweeb swell with new-found confidence. Preserving paintball's history is a project bigger than a Who's Who but it's a great start. Check it out. Offer suggestions. Contribute. Get involved.

There's a thread in the PSP WC forum regarding an incident (of sorts) in which the thread starter chides the league for its parochial behavior with respect to some anonymous highly credentialed fellow photographer. Normally this would elicit a yawn--at best--but I'm bored--nothing much else is going on--and criticizing the PSP (or the NPPL) is kinda my turf and while I'm willing to share there are standards to follow.
I'm going to post the majority of the original post sentence by sentence [uncorrected] and suggest you read the post in its entirety at PBN if you give a rodent's posterior. At that point I will entertain myself at this fellow's expense (and enlighten the knee jerk crowd while I'm at it.)

"One thing that I think you guys should highly consider not doing again is denying the President of the National Press Photographers Association and Professional NFL photographer,(who has the contacts with people at Fox sports) of getting a Pro fields pass when he has shot the past events with no problem."
Here is the NPPA. The other two relevant points are A) nobody was denied anything and B) the anonymous photographer has shot PSP events in the past. So he should known the process in advance.

"He was working on a story for his friend who is the Fox Radio Announcer at the Fox HQ."
And this is meaningful how? A paintball story? A PSP story? To appear when and in what market?

"He tried contacting you guys weeks before the event but no reply, when he arrived at WC he was told he couldn't have a Pro Media pass, and If he wanted one he'd have to BUY one!"
Is the suggestion here that since he's a bigtime credentialed photographer that he--and his pal (the post writer)--should receive special treatment that other photographers don't get? Or that it's somehow in the league's interest to give this guy the VIP treatment? Based on what? From everything stated so far all we know is this guy has shown up before, had his fun, but where is any evidence it has contributed in any way, shape or form to the betterment of paintball or the PSP?

"PSP please think over this again if you want to try to get the sport of paintball to grow."
Yeah PSP, grant special favors to my friend, and me, that other photographers don't get.

"This is not good for our sport, when a rep for a highly respected press photographer association and representative comes looking to help out but you reject it."
What help exactly was on offer?

"He finally got a pro media pass on Sunday, when our friend Kirill from RL had him added to the team roster under their team media."
Interesting given that NPPA has a fairly strict code of ethics and #8 reads: Do not accept gifts, favors, or compensation from those who might seek to influence coverage.

"I will end this rant now, when we finally got the passes all was well! The event was great and we had a blast!"
[Emphasis added] Looks to me like the real issue was the expectation of special treatment whether monetary or procedural. Since when does membership in a professional association confer unique privileges? And why aren't the other photographers who paid for their privileges up in arms over this abuse? And what, if anything, has the post writer or his credentialed pal ever done for paintball or the PSP?

What a joke. A tiny little passive aggressive joke.

The Media Mire

VFTD has been here and done this before. Even so, it remains a worthwhile subject. But first, the disclaimers. It is not my intention to tar any particular brand, company, media outlet or website. Most everyone involved in the enterprise of paintball is working the highwire without a safety net these days and it's not my intent to make things more difficult. That said, I'm inclined to think that some of those involved aren't doing themselves any favors nor are they doing the players a service.

What would you think if you discovered a magazine that only published photos that represented their advertisers without advertising the fact? Or an informational website that ran news items and industry press releases the same way, often without making any distinctions between the two? Or a site that purported to be general interest for the average paintballer but actually focused on the interests and businesses of partners or advertisers?

I'm not talking morality or ethics here either so remove those concepts from your consideration. I am talking integrity (a wee bit anyway) because the issue is trust. And for those of you who aren't sure why it matters let me explain. In hypothetical #1 a magazine presents itself as a resource of unbiased information about a variety of things paintball, from tournaments & scenarios to the latest new products available. Nobody has a problem with advertising or advertisements but what if all the event photos only feature advertisers guns, gear & sponsored teams? Or if all the product reviews are tied to advertisers? Is that a problem? After all, there's no magazine if there are no advertisers and as a niche market paintball doesn't get a lot of outside advertising. I'm saying it's a problem because it compromises the core of what a magazine is supposed to be, independent. If it isn't independent before long it's just a lot of advertisements stuck together pretending to be what it's not. In the second hypothetical mixing news items with press releases without distinguishing from the two allows the press release to trade on the public perception of the source--but not for long. Ideally, a news item is a set of facts presented in such a way they serve to inform the readers about an event, etc. and accepted on the assumption the facts offered represent the truth. For our gullible friends--that is not what a press release is. A press release is a public notification produced by an interested party. Gunmaker Joe has just finished his latest magic gat and wants everybody to know how awesome it is so they will want to buy one immediately, if not sooner. A press release is Gunmaker Joe extolling the virtues of his new gun in a manner similar to a legit news item. The problem is that at first the potential confusion favors the press release but eventually peeps start to notice and begin to regard the source site as unreliable or intentionally compromised. In the third hypothetical you have something a little different, misrepresentation. Ever run across on online store that draws you in with some enormous tag cloud or claims to be a general interest paintball site when in fact it's just a store? There's lots of misdirection variants but they all trade on confusing you about their purpose and intentions.

These issues and others have always been a part of the paintball media equation. It's not new. What is new is the diversity of media in play these days and the fact that much of it is in amateur hands. That's not necessarily a bad thing but it's a terrific example of how the road to hell is paved with good intentions. I bring stuff like this up now and again because I share a tiny corner of current paintball media and because I'm convinced that a positive and vibrant paintball media is a necessary ingredient to a better paintball future.

Here's a timely example. The Dail-E download hosted by Matty Marshall and brought to you by E(Eclipse)TV. Available for download from any of the family of Eclipse network sites. It will include daily giveaways and they describe it as a kind of re-cap of the day's action and results though at around 3 minutes it can't cover everything. The real question is; will it really cover anything? Don't get me wrong. I like the idea. PE in general has been at the forefront of using new media and the daily download could fill a legit void for a lot of interested ballers around the world. But at the same time don't you have to assume their primary motivation for any of these sorts of projects is to promote their brand and their products? And do you see how projects presented this way overlap with the role of independent media only adding to the general confusion? It's probably smart business. It's just unfortunate there's nobody, including the PSP, doing anything similar.

Some More Talking Paintball

We's Talking Paintball some more, picking up on the excellent comments posted in response to the first post a couple days ago. It's more accurate to say that a generally accepted and understood paintball vocabulary doesn't yet exist. This runs the gamut from ways to communicate conceptual elements of the game and play as well as a paintball specific slang--which in paintball's case seems mostly to have been appropriated from other fringe activities. I'm beginning to wonder how much of a factor this limitation is when it comes to converting new players and helping to build a fan base. Perhaps counterintuitively I've always assumed while some understanding of the game is necessary it isn't critically important. Players play and fans enjoy--for whatever reason. My mom was a huge basketball fan at one time--she's more into baseball these days--but her enjoyment and appreciation of the sport wasn't predicated on a complex understanding of the game mechanics. Far from it. Over time she learned a reasonable amount about how the game was played and what was really going on when it sometimes looked like chaos but something about the game drew her in before she really understood the game. Does competitive paintball have a "natural" fan base or do paintball fans need to be educated? And if past efforts at educating a potential fanbase through prior televised programming haven't quite succeeded what's it gonna take?

Okay, so talkin' paintball is kinda tough but we still have the teams and the players. Sort of. Without continuity teams struggle to build a fan base and the players, most of them anyway, are virtually anonymous to much of the competitive paintball world. That was slightly less true when there were a fistful of printed mags but even then the mags tended to be starmakers or star-perpetuators and paid only scant attention to the rank & file pro.

Which is where traditional and new media have an opportunity to step up. (And have always played a role.) Although as was also pointed out in the comments it's difficult if not impossible for paintball media to act as disseminater of information, watchdog, friend of the game, etc. all at the same time when it's industry money footing most of their bills. (You might be surprised that cash paying advertisers don't like bad reviews or lots of pictures of the other guy's gear.) Of course if paintball specific media can't pull it off then maybe it's time sports media got involved. Oh, I know, easy to say but how to make it happen? (Coming later this week in the long promised league promotion post. Promise.) In the meantime part of the future is direct outreach. (Which we're seeing.) By the industry. Direct advertising & promotions. By the teams with videos and Facebook. Even by players with personal websites and social networking and other venues. By folks like Social Paintball and Traumahead. (What's the chance of the Traumahead TV shows being made available in alternative formats?) And MWAG & Derder do awesome work but part of their appeal as documenters of the sport trades on already established teams and players.

No wonder this talkin' paintball thing is hard.

Brothers in Paint

Post title is the link to the 4 part video: Brothers in Paint. Produced by one of the players for Cyclone the piece won awards at the North American Association for Consumer Research 2009. Its now recut and subtitled so its more suitable for public viewing. The ideas presented may not be new to the thinking paintballer--all six of you--but the context is unique and offers some good insights into the world of competitive paintball. Check it out. (Thanks, Sam)

The Great Social Media Experiment Continues

It's official, Twitter sucks. But then I'm not doing it right, or taking full advantage of the potential or some similar nonsense. Thing is I don't "follow" anybody--actually I think I follow 3 or 4 other sites and frankly, one of them is really starting to annoy me. The problem is I don't want to network. I don't care what special sale Joe's PB Emporium has this weekend only or what color your DM 9 turned when you baked it in the oven or even how instrumental the raid you led against the Klingons was in last weekend's scenario game. I really don't want to know about the new rims you bought or that Scrappy has worms--again. And I sure as hell don't want to be bombarded with hundreds of dumbass tweets from the hordes of mostly imbeciles who think they have a life 'cus they "tweet" the same lame, boring worthless drivel out into cyberspace that they text to their friends.

So maybe Facebook?

Spamalot?

Not really. Just once in a while. Innocently even, as it happens. But regardless--

It seems I have--once again*--fallen foul of the watchful guardians of PBN in my latest effort at self-promotion. (Rats, foiled again.) I posted a reminder in each of the pro forums (mostly) encouraging them to take advantage of the Pro*files opportunity and that, unlike the magazines of the past, I wasn't going to seek them out--I was just making the opportunity to participate available to anyone or team who wanted to get involved.

This was deemed to be spam and removed, except for the first of the posts. So Aftermath has the original post still up in their forum but I'm not stalking them. Honest. (Btw, how's that gonna work now that Aftermath is officially not a pro team anymore?) And about the spam business--I'm sure by PBN's definition is was spam--but it was also an effort to inform and provide an opportunity to the pro players and teams--not PBN. So there you have it, I'm a (dirty, rotten) spammer.

And, big picture, without rules everything descends into chaos and anarchy and we can't have that, now can we? So for those inclined to think PBN autocratic or just plain silly, remember, they are our first line of defense against the collapse of civilization.

* I was banned once for quoting a mod

In other VFTD "news" I expect to get around to the new classification system and some other PSP related items this coming week along with a new playing the game feature--I'm thinking maybe something about playing the snake.

Pro* files in Paintball

With the loss of much of the traditional paintball media and the tendency of the remaining bastions to be either regionally oriented (some might even say regionally biased) or out of touch with the latest word in competitive paintball it occurred to me there are a lot of holes in what the media covers and what it doesn't. Mostly--it often seems--it's just an outlet for the latest industry press releases. While VFTD tries to do a little bit of some of everything this isn't a traditional or non-traditional media outlet, nor do I have any pretensions of being a journalist, a media personality or anything other than a guy who gets bored easily and happens to like talking about competitive paintball.

Even so, there are perhaps a few things VFTD can do to fill in a gap or two. In the past one of the things the magazines did was help make the pro players accessible and elevate some of the pros to star status--within the confines of the paintball community anyway. Not only doesn't that happen today but the majority of competitive players probably don't even know who most of the top players are anymore. And in an era where teams as brands and players as personalities matters maybe more than ever before VFTD is interested in doing pro player profiles as a regular feature. Once a week or twice a month maybe. As a reader if you'd like to see the profiles say so. If you currently are or recently have been on a pro roster and are willing to participate drop me a line at Baca's email. (Link at the top of the sidebar.) My idea is to include a picture, a bio brief and a short list of questions to be answered. It's not huge, it's not complicated and it's not comprehensive. I won't be doing life stories but it will be a start. If there's enough interest I have a few other ideas for ways to expand on the theme. Player (& team) participation is essential. I can't make you do it so it's in your hands.

Paintball Media: When More Is Less

Confused? If not I'm losing my touch but all will come clear quickly. (Alliteration rocks!) This is, by the way, Part 2, of a paintball media series begun with 'Paintball & Media, part 1'. If you're wondering about the title switcheroo just thinking about typing Paintball & Media, part 2 bored me blind--so I didn't. Sure, it might've been easier for you but since when did that matter? That's right, never. Good to see we're on the same page.

The first part concluded with the observation that with the demise of the paintball magazine (mostly) that no other media had really taken their place as a portal into the game for those who don't already play. [Okay, of the surviving mags we all know APG has the greatest reach and has always been a significant first point of contact--and probably still is--even if that knowledge makes us cringe just a little bit. Or is that just me?]

A magazine was (is) an easy access, all things paintball to all people that offered, often unintentionally and even passively, an invitation to join the fun. Maybe it's me but I don't get that from most paintball media today. Modern media outlets and sites are fragmented and their products are targeted--mostly to existing players. Each one designed to serve a narrow purpose. There are stores, forums, blogs, team sites, video sites, dedicated business & team & player sites on places like Facebook, more stores, local field information sites, gossip sites, tournament series sites, industry sites, online magazines and a few general interest and/or paintball information sites ( that often go long stretches without being updated or only provide generic content.) Most of these are niche elements focused on serving a specific function and, as a practical matter, are aimed at existing players. Sure, there is some overlap and any one of these sorts of sites might grab the attention of a non-player but that isn't what the sites are about. Hundreds and hundreds of different paintball-related sites and almost none of them are dedicated to communicating the thrill of the game to those who haven't played it already. And that goes for other media as well. Stuff like DVDs and free webcasts and, despite their best intentions, much of what has made it onto TV was, at best, a display of paintball but seldom a celebration of the game or the sport. A reason to want to participate.

Today, right now, more (and more diverse) media is less because the paintball-related outlets that exist tend to specialize and focus on attracting and serving elements of the existing player base. But there isn't any blame to be assigned here. Many of the media outlets were never intended to be paintball outreach and for the few that are it's difficult to find ways to make it feasible if not profitable. It's a new and developing world and we're still learning. Things can (and will) change. Right now the challenge is to find ways to exploit the opportunity that exists, to find new and creative ways to attract non-ballers to try paintball. For example, could a new broad-based outreach campaign be a part of what the PSTA becomes? And there are already some websites looking to act as clearing houses for news and information. How many steps beyond that is it to becoming something more, an enticement, an open invitation to the non-baller to get into the game?

Paintball needs, maybe now more than ever, to inform, educate and excite non-ballers to the thrill of the game.

Paintball & Media, part 1

The long VFTD nightmare is over. The paintball media series begins! Feel free to breath a collective sigh of relief. Whaddya mean you forgot it was coming? Well it is so count your lucky stars. Oh yeah, and it's coming in at least--at least--five installments! So there. (Okay, probably more like three but the threat of five had you going, didn't it? Admit it.)

Today's installment looks back for a quick review of paintball's relationship with media (and what media was) prior to the I.T. revolution and the explosion of web based communications. Primarily we's talking magazines. (Sure, video was around (getting started) and *gasp* even some television programming existed but neither filled the role magazines did.) The typical mag offered a little of all things paintball; gossip, technical info (kinda), news, how-to's, general paintball information and, to a greater or lesser degree, all wrapped in an entertaining package loaded with photographs.
Of more immediate interest (to me) is the factoid that the paintball magazine was both celebrity driven and the star maker. Mix in an advertising base that was almost exclusively pbindustry and the result was often front to back paintball cheerleading. The result was a largely uncritical monthly promo for the competitive side of the game and the manufacturers who (seemingly) made it possible. (Yes, I know there are still a couple mags out there but they a) follow the formula, and b) only have a fraction of the impact the galaxy of unchallenged paintball mags once did.)
It was also the primary portal for the non-paintballers entrance into the world of paintball.

Warning: Quasi-related Tangential Thought. (If you have ADD or ADHD please skip over this part and come back to it later. Otherwise the focus shift could leave you disoriented and confused. More so than normal that is.)
Maybe the (partial) cause of one of paintball's current "problems" is its relative ubiquity. There was a time, not all that long ago, when paintball was routinely "discovered" by non-ballers as if it were some mystery shrouded underground happening. Today, certainly in America, nearly everybody has heard of paintball even if their actual knowledge of the game remains vague. And that supposed familiarity has killed the thrill of discovery.

Back to the post. Whatever the journalistic faults the old mags may have had they filled a need, not only for the players but also for the game. And that need has not been filled by any of the follow-up media that has developed in recent years. (Not even VFTD, which is less about reaching outside the game than it is devoted to inside the game.) Sure, some aspects have been duplicated, often intentionally, and some media outlets provide some of the same functions--at least hypothetically--hang on, I smell a Monday Poll--but the majority of the current paintball-related media is inward oriented, targeting paintballers. I know, you're gonna say, d'oh!, what do you think the magazines were doing but the mags had a more far-reaching effect that is missing today. And desperately needs to be re-captured. More next time.

Travails of a Wannabe Paintball Writer

Tired of all the sturm und drang going on in paintball? Me too. So how 'bout a story instead?

Shortly after the USPL announced its original schedule, complete with conference only events, I got an email from the editor of FaceFull inquiring as to my interest and availability in producing an event report for them for the DC Challenge. Since I always liked doing event reports I replied that I'd be happy to undertake the assignment. In this market environment such opportunities are rapidly dwindling. We didn't discuss things like payment or word count as they would sort themselves out later on. Paintball media tends (or tended) to be a bit more informal, shall we say, than many other forms of publication. Although not quite down to the level of neighborhood newsletters writing for paintball mags was often a bit less glamorous and lucrative than I suspect many people often think. Anyway, it sounded like fun to me. (Just wait, my ideas about fun get worse.)

Welp, in the meantime the DC Challenge was rescheduled and the whole notion of regional conference events got rolled back into national events and pretty soon a number of months had gone by without any contact between me and the magazine. The week before the event I dropped the editor a brief note looking for confirmation of the assignment--not really expecting to get it. Which I didn't.

For those of you who don't only look at the pictures (a minority I'd guess, present company excluded) you're well aware that Rich (Telford) handles all those sorts of duties for FaceFull. (He also, as it happens, does a terrific job of it, dammit.) So of course once the DC event became a national event that Rich would naturally attend FaceFull promptly forgot about poor old Baca. Which is just what I expected to happen. (And, alas, I'm almost always right.)

Before I go any further just to show there's no hard feelings here's a freebie. Good as Rich is in print he's better live. If FaceFull wants to enter the 21st century they ought to start doing sponsored Rich-hosted podcasts. (Or Rich could throw off the shackles of Old Media and do them himself--I suggest subversively.) Besides, (I'm starting the rumor) the wife ghosts all his written material anyway.

If you are now disillusioned by the notion that writing for a paintball mag isn't all champagne brunches and bikini-clad beach bunnies I'm gonna take another moment to drag your feet closer to the ground. The reason the FaceFull brush off didn't bother me in the least is because I knew it wasn't personal. And I knew it wasn't personal based on the criterion used to contact me in the first place. If you're thinking brilliant writing, think again. If you're thinking experience you're not even close. If you're thinking involved in the pro scene I scoff at your naivete. In some measure those things do matter (kinda, sorta, sometimes) but the priority is no out of pocket cost to the magazine. In essence if you are a warm body and you are present you are in the running. As it turned out it was likely for the best. If I'd been doing the piece I'd have felt obligated to hang around on Sunday--though I know of an event or three where the writer wasn't actually present--and I had a great time at the National Gallery of Art in DC instead. (See? I warned you about what I find fun.) Most of the team had never been to DC so they were up for the trip though nobody joined me mostly wandering off to the Air & Space or Natural History museums.

Here is where I confess to an ulterior motive. Thing is I've been cogitatin' on paintball media lately and its roll (and importance) in the development and popularity of the game and starting soon I'll be doing a series of related posts and this was my way of introducing the idea. It's an overlooked (or at least under-discussed) aspect of paintball's recipe for future success. And seriously, would most of the stars of pro paintball be half as popular as they are (or were) without a paintball media?

Btw, seen a Paintball Sports recently?

Paintball Sucks!

Before this goes any further, or anywhere at all really, I'd like to make it clear I don't have an ax to grind on this issue. Or even a paring knife that needs sharpening. And I have every intention of opening myself up to charges of hypocrisy as soon as I get around to it--which could be any day now excepting, of course, that like you, I am a lazy slacker.

Hang on, I've missed something. Oh yeah, it would probably be a good idea if I explained what this issue is, otherwise all my non-ax grinding clarity will go to waste. The cause du jour is the recent practice of paintball companies "sponsoring" media peeps. And if you are inclined to favoring consistency of thought and deed the same concerns apply to virtually all traditional paintball media. (Some relatively recent changes in our internet universe have altered the basic equation a bit--more on that part a little later.)

My issue with this may surprise you. I'm all for anybody involved in paintball coming out ahead on the deal. And I have no problem with PBIndustry making every effort to promote their products within the limitations of the law. (To be totally honest I'm not really all that worked up about the law biz either unless consumers are being blatantly ripped off. Hey, what can I say? I'm a laissez faire kinda guy.) I'm also okay with sponsorship (generally) though we're getting closer to my concern. Part of my concern is some of these media peeps run the serious risk of compromising themselves and/or simply becoming shills for their sponsors when they accept money and/or product with the expectation they will look favorably on the sponsor/advertiser. Now I'm not particularly concerned about any individual media type as I am with the wider potential impact on paintball and the ongoing discourse about paintball. You see, if what passes for paintball media undermines its own integrity in the eyes of its audience everybody loses. The media types lose. The audience loses. Paintball loses and even PBIndustry loses because everything is perceived through the skeptical/cynical lens of how are these guys trying to manipulate me today.

Of course this isn't a new problem. It's mostly more of the same old problem that has afflicted Paintball and others as long as there has been an unequal media/industry relationship. Take for example one of my favorites; car magazines. I've been reading them forever and for as long as I've been reading them there are regular comments to the editor(s) questioning a magazine's integrity with regards to one review or another or their treatment of one brand compared to another and the magazines have been open to that perception because the bulk of their advertising support comes from car makers. Same with paintball and it's a legit concern because it's largely unavoidable. Realistically, the best a news or magazine type format can do is offer their product, acknowledge the issue and leave it to their consumers to decide how honestly they are doing their job. Some consumers don't care. Others aren't perhaps particularly savvy to how some of this stuff works--like kids--and others, like me, tend to survey everything with a jaundiced eye while the truth probably resides somewhere in between. Today, though, things are changing with most of paintball media being virtual mags and online media of all sorts. And I'm specifically pointing out the personality driven paintball media because that is where VFTD lives.

I am convinced that a dynamic and diverse paintball-centric media is a key ingredient to paintball's future success. A suspect media cannot succeed because it can't broker open and honest discourse. Neither can a co-opted media. That is why this issue concerns me. Further it strikes me as dishonest not to address the issue when you--okay, not you, I, fully intend to get mixed up in it. (As I said, I'm not too worked up over what anyone else chooses to do, only what the cumulative impact might be.) At some point in the hopefully not too distant future I will be looking to develop an advertising model to help support this site but at the same time I will not let that alter what is posted here and I don't want it to alter how you perceive what is posted here. At any rate, now you know.

One last thing--If you didn't enjoy Ask the Coach, tough. I laughed myself silly and you can count on seeing more episodes in the future.