Open letter to NAG Magazine re:abusive language by staff

[Impi]

I support NAG though I dont use the forum maybe twice 3 years ago.
I read through the article and so on, the only think that bothers me is my question.
Do they value a freelance article writer more than a reader/customer/fan if thats the case what would happen if 500 or even more readers didnt buy the magezine after reading this?
I buy NAG to get the DVD and to look for the badger nothing else.

 

[Dan]

The mag isn't bad but I stopped visiting their forum years ago.

Constant fascist thread-locking and petty name-calling in almost every thread. Bleh.

 

[Voicy]

I think I've only ever once bought a NAG mag, and that's when they released it with a copy of Fifa2006 - which I've also never bothered installing.

I don't know hey, I'm funny like that. The last PC format I bought was in April '98 (which might have been one of their 1st now that I think of it)

I prefer doing my reading/research online... but that's just me.

 

[RedTide]

Reply...

I’ve waited for what I consider a fair amount of time.

In my defence, I did reply (last week Wednesday) directly to the person that sent in the original complaint and invited him to post my reply wherever he liked. It’s not surprising that he hasn’t done this and is therefore just another troublemaker that wasn’t really looking for a reply. He also posted on www.hellopeter.com before he even sent me a mail. I was under the impression that you first contact the company responsible for whatever you’re not happy about and then if they don’t give you a satisfactory reply you take it further... This is just me however.

In essence, I’ve implemented a swearword filter on the site (PG13) – even though I realise this wasn’t the real issue, and I’ve instructed the moderators to behave accordingly. I do agree with some of the points raised and I will take steps to correct any problems.

There’s a lot of negativity towards the magazine, the forums and even the people that work there. I respect everyone’s opinions, but I won’t take any notice of those replies that are crude or factually incorrect. Interestingly, most of the factually incorrect posts are usually crude - supporting my reasoning.

I’d just like to state that we’re not arrogant – just very straightforward in the magazine. We’re writing opinions pieces on almost everything all the time. Depending on this opinion, it can sometimes appear that the tone is arrogant. But, we’re not writing text for stupid people – gamers are smart and I’m assuming generally the kind of people that won’t enjoy a magazine that panders to everyone’s sensitivities. So, yes, we’re harsh and tell it like it is. If this standpoint offends a small minority of people there’s not much we can do about it. No matter what we do or say there will always be people that don’t like us. The important thing to remember is that we’re not doing anything for the wrong reasons and never operate from a negative point of view. The magazine is fun to do. We don’t all gather around the boardroom table to try and find ways to be full of it. I’ve read some very arrogant and scathing posts on these forums (and others), which is okay... because it’s not... what? I can’t figure it out. We’re exactly the same, but just speak to more people and in a printed format.

I’m not sure what else I can say here, considering this is hostile territory. I just hope this has cleared up some of the new issues and answered the original issue.

 

[Voicy]

Kudos to you Redtide and thanks for the pro-active steps taken to avoid something similar happening!

I definitely hope this resolves the issue that the OP had with NAG.

 

[Isengard]

I’ve waited for what I consider a fair amount of time.

In my defence, I did reply (last week Wednesday) directly to the person that sent in the original complaint and invited him to post my reply wherever he liked. It’s not surprising that he hasn’t done this and is therefore just another troublemaker that wasn’t really looking for a reply. He also posted on www.hellopeter.com before he even sent me a mail. I was under the impression that you first contact the company responsible for whatever you’re not happy about and then if they don’t give you a satisfactory reply you take it further... This is just me however.

In essence, I’ve implemented a swearword filter on the site (PG13) – even though I realise this wasn’t the real issue, and I’ve instructed the moderators to behave accordingly. I do agree with some of the points raised and I will take steps to correct any problems.

There’s a lot of negativity towards the magazine, the forums and even the people that work there. I respect everyone’s opinions, but I won’t take any notice of those replies that are crude or factually incorrect. Interestingly, most of the factually incorrect posts are usually crude - supporting my reasoning.

I’d just like to state that we’re not arrogant – just very straightforward in the magazine. We’re writing opinions pieces on almost everything all the time. Depending on this opinion, it can sometimes appear that the tone is arrogant. But, we’re not writing text for stupid people – gamers are smart and I’m assuming generally the kind of people that won’t enjoy a magazine that panders to everyone’s sensitivities. So, yes, we’re harsh and tell it like it is. If this standpoint offends a small minority of people there’s not much we can do about it. No matter what we do or say there will always be people that don’t like us. The important thing to remember is that we’re not doing anything for the wrong reasons and never operate from a negative point of view. The magazine is fun to do. We don’t all gather around the boardroom table to try and find ways to be full of it. I’ve read some very arrogant and scathing posts on these forums (and others), which is okay... because it’s not... what? I can’t figure it out. We’re exactly the same, but just speak to more people and in a printed format.

I’m not sure what else I can say here, considering this is hostile territory. I just hope this has cleared up some of the new issues and answered the original issue.

Thanks for the reply Redtide. I would not say this is quite hostile territory (I love NAG), there are a few people here who do support the magazine. I would never hold the magazine accountable for one persons actions. Not missing an issue for at least five years should be proof of that. We should all be supporting local publications, they can only get better that way, just look how they've improved since 1998.

Long live New Age Gaming.

 

[Welshman]

The quality of the reviews for both games and hardware is definately not up to standard. I used to buy NAG on a regular basis but i've recently moved over to SACM since it's focused on hardware. NAG is trying to cram everything into the magazine and doesn't contain anything of a particularly high standard.

 

[rpm]

Hi Redtide

Thanks for taking the time to respond. Forums are not an easy environment to control and one must get all the facts before even thinking of making a judgment. I personally think NAG magazine is leading in its class – and from the distribution numbers many gamers agree – but it is inevitable that conflict will arise in an online environment and I guess some people will link it to the NAG team.

It can usually be amicably resolved unless one of the parties is unreasonable, and I am sure in this case it will happen.

Regards,

RPM

 

[Shamrock]

Well, I got a couple views on this. First thing is, I honestly don't think the swearing is a problem. From a member of staff, sure, and I'd expect the writers to be more mature than that.

On another hand, getting pissed off with someone over the internet makes absolutely no sense to me. Internet drama is almost as bad as South African TV shows

 

[Xero]

You're wrong - Interwebz drama is waaaya better than 7de Laan !
However and forgive me for deviating slightly off topic here , but the question should not be one of Is this acceptable or not, but does the level of anonymity the internet grants us sometimes threaten to overpower both our common sense and basic human civility ?

I know that I have a very strict no BS policy on our forums, and I regularly weild the ban hammer to defend it, I simply see forums as one of two kinds
1- Productive and informative
2-Flaming with Sarcasm and hostility

I prefer visiting and being part of the former , while trying to avoid the latter at all costs.

@ Redtide
It hardly seems fair to brand this fledgling forum and its community as "Hostile".
The opinions raised were exactly that , and should be treated as such.

 

[RedTide]

Sorry, I used the same reply here for those NAG haters over at mybroadband.co.za. I should have left the last line out for this forum. I certainly feel the love here...

 

[Voicy]

Sorry, I used the same reply here for those NAG haters over at mybroadband.co.za. I should have left the last line out for this forum. I certainly feel the love here...

/me hugs RedTide in a more-than-just-friends-kind-of-way.

Don't worry dude, just remember the golden rule... "It's only gay if you make eye contact"

 

[Tinman]

Thanks for the reply Redtide. And please, don't feel that you are in "hostile territory".
Sure we may have some lippy forumites, but thats just the Internetz for you.

 

[bokka1]

I can't see the issue here. If two people haggle over something on the internet it will only be natural that at one stage somebody is going to say GFY or WTF? The internet works that way and I don't see any need for anybody to apologise about that.

We are too politically correct.

I like NAG BTW.

 

[Voicy]

Thanks for the reply Redtide. And please, don't feel that you are in "hostile territory".
Sure we may have some lippy forumites, but thats just the Internetz for you.

What Tinman said.

There will always be someone taking things out of proportion... but I do find it interesting that the OP only posted twice on this site. Both were to flame you. Troll or upset customer venting the wrong way? You decide.

My apologies referring to only buying NAG once, I think the mag i bought with fifa2006 might've been GEAR.

 

[Staalbal]

Did anyone of you actually go and read that forum ?

I took the time to do so over the weekend and decided that if said forum is the official forum for NAG, NAG gan go nag someone else to buy their Mag, I'll read SACM instead then tyvm.

 

[Tinman]

I read it Staalbal, and I agreed that the comment was out of line.

However, Im not sure if its reason enough to trash an entire publication.

BTW, SACM = NAG.

Same journos, same office etc. And the offending Mod actually writes a column for SACM every month.

 

[Staalbal]

I read it Staalbal, and I agreed that the comment was out of line.

However, Im not sure if its reason enough to trash an entire publication.

BTW, SACM = NAG.

Same journos, same office etc. And the offending Mod actually writes a column for SACM every month.

I know and that is exactly my point

Do you see a SACM forum where the population on there is swearing away, mods swearing at forumites . Seriously, I for one don't mind foul language what so ever. But to have that on a forum being linked directly to your publication is a massive no-no. NAG as it is, is being directly linked to that forum which is very sad.

SACM is the mature side of the publication I can't give 2 parts of a crap about NAG. I did however buy it on 2 occassions for items I needed on the Disc. Now I'll rather download them instead .

 

[Warlynx]

NAG is a great mag in my humble opinion, but sure, you will always get the different strokes for different folks kinda thing.

Personally I love the letters to the editor, and the replies the editor makes as well as the reviews, which has saved me the trouble and the money of buying a game that looks great, but which has no real content in.

The online forum world is a jungle, and should be treated with caution. First read around the forum, see if you like the vibe and what it is about, then if you do get as far as to create an account try and avoid conflict causing situations, even trolls.

I like a good online tuff every now and again, but nothing that climbs into the character of the other person, and personally I wouldn't want to micro-manage a forum for swearing, because as someone stated on the NAG forum, frak you can also mean phuck your or fuck you

 

[Staalbal]

NAG is a great mag in my humble opinion, but sure, you will always get the different strokes for different folks kinda thing.

Personally I love the letters to the editor, and the replies the editor makes as well as the reviews, which has saved me the trouble and the money of buying a game that looks great, but which has no real content in.

The online forum world is a jungle, and should be treated with caution. First read around the forum, see if you like the vibe and what it is about, then if you do get as far as to create an account try and avoid conflict causing situations, even trolls.

I like a good online tuff every now and again, but nothing that climbs into the character of the other person, and personally I wouldn't want to micro-manage a forum for swearing, because as someone stated on the NAG forum, frak you can also mean phuck your or fuck you

I agree fully.

The thing that seems to be lacking on above mentioned forum is the lack of respect for other forumites. The worst of it coming from the Mods. But they have their own little crowd and followers so I wish them well. At least now we have a decent gaming forum

Just hope those posters on there actually know how to behave themselves in a more formal/less lose forum