This is kinda old news but I didn't see it mentioned and thought it interesting.
http://www.catherinedeveny.com/columns/2013/6/13/equal-not.html
Equal approached Catherine Deveny about offering her comments on several different subjects that they would then use, along with her name, to promote the sweetener and in theory feminism and the choices women make. Only they weren't going to pay her. Just use her name and her comments and allow her to participate in the online real time debates. But hey, it would totally enhance her rep. For realsies.
QuoteWe'll publicise these topics and your contribution, and invite all Australian women to join the online debate. We're hosting 2 live debates (similar to TED.com format) to which you're welcome to join the debating panel. What's more, if you would like to be available for media interviews or to launch trending topics, let us know and we'll incorporate you into our PR plan.
Unfortunately Equal cannot offer you cash for comment. However in exchange for your time, we will promote your contribution and profile alongside other influential Australian women such as Deborah Thomas, who has already agreed to take part.
So she ripped them a new one.
QuoteJoining a debate about the choices women make?
Here's the choice I make. Not to work for multinationals for free. Or any businesses. I am a single mum and I pay every single person who works for me.
Women are 50% of the population, do two thirds of the work, earn 10% of the money and own 1% of the property.
And you have the gall to frame this opportunity to work for free as some kind of feminist jamboree. And why we are on gall, promoting a dieting aid with feminism? Excuse me while I throw up in my mouth. Sorry what? It's about health, lifestyle and choices. No it's not. It's about selling dissatisfication and self loathing. I think you've picked the WRONG GIRL.
She got a decent reply but I find the whole topic interesting and I wonder how it turned out.
hahahaha! Awesome.
That was a great response, though.
Oh, yes. You're right. This entire thing is unacceptable. I'll advise the client that they suck.
"All publicity is good publicity." - Lee Harvey Oswald
I was never very likely to use Equal, now considerably less so.
I need to look more in-depth to see if there's anything else about this. I'd like to know if all the contributors actually got paid.
Quote from: AnneEqual believes there is no right or wrong
What?
This is an unfortunate problem in all media nowadays.
Publications like The Atlantic will frequently print articles from freelancers...for no pay. The freelancer gets "access" and "name recognition" in return for their work.
If this weren't merely a cynical ploy to milk freelancers and "non-professional commentators" for all they are worth, it might even be a good idea. But it is not, so it's not.
Quote from: Cain on July 04, 2013, 06:13:25 AM
If this weren't merely a cynical ploy to milk freelancers and "non-professional commentators" for all they are worth, it might even be a good idea. But it is not, so it's not.
You could replace "non-professional commentators" with "academics" which just makes me laugh like a drain.
It is incredibly common, to tout 'exposure' as adequate compensation. A lot of the places I've been looking at to submit my stories don't offer pay. You just get a publishing credit and get your shit out there. Which is fine for beginners and for fun. But if you're spending tons of time honing your craft and trying to stay afloat, you're gonna have to get paid at some point.
I was looking at an online writing gig and while some people get paid $100 or $200 per article, first you've got to write a whole ton of articles to demonstrate your ability to bring in readers and THEN after you've been assessed and proven to be of value, then they'll pay you. Maybe. I wrote it off as a scam and then two days later one of my friends e-mailed me and said I should try it because it looked so cool and I'd get my writing out there for everyone to see, yay! :P
Of course, this is the same person who wanted me to crochet a California-king sized lace-weight mohair afghan in a kaleidoscope of colors. Pay, you ask? Why no! You get to play with the yarn! Besides, everyone knows yarn is super cheap - people are even making it at home these days.
Quote from: MMIX on July 04, 2013, 11:51:08 AM
Quote from: Cain on July 04, 2013, 06:13:25 AM
If this weren't merely a cynical ploy to milk freelancers and "non-professional commentators" for all they are worth, it might even be a good idea. But it is not, so it's not.
You could replace "non-professional commentators" with "academics" which just makes me laugh like a drain.
Really? Why?
Quote from: Cardinal Pizza Deliverance. on July 04, 2013, 05:18:15 PM
It is incredibly common, to tout 'exposure' as adequate compensation. A lot of the places I've been looking at to submit my stories don't offer pay. You just get a publishing credit and get your shit out there. Which is fine for beginners and for fun. But if you're spending tons of time honing your craft and trying to stay afloat, you're gonna have to get paid at some point.
I was looking at an online writing gig and while some people get paid $100 or $200 per article, first you've got to write a whole ton of articles to demonstrate your ability to bring in readers and THEN after you've been assessed and proven to be of value, then they'll pay you. Maybe. I wrote it off as a scam and then two days later one of my friends e-mailed me and said I should try it because it looked so cool and I'd get my writing out there for everyone to see, yay! :P
Of course, this is the same person who wanted me to crochet a California-king sized lace-weight mohair afghan in a kaleidoscope of colors. Pay, you ask? Why no! You get to play with the yarn! Besides, everyone knows yarn is super cheap - people are even making it at home these days.
I've had my share of people who think I should work for free, and it always makes me question whether they're actually my friends, or at least whether I want them to be.
Quote from: Pæs on July 04, 2013, 02:42:17 AM
Quote from: AnneEqual believes there is no right or wrong
What?
Yeah, that line is AMAZING. And very descriptive of corporate ethical values.
As bad as it sounds out of context, in context it's fucking spectacular:
QuoteThis means Equal is now both an artificial and a natural sweetener...which is ok because like Australian Women, we're comfortable with making contradictory choices. Equal believes there is no right or wrong, and is now demonstrating this via exploring the choices we make on equalchoice.com.au.
Equalchoice.com.au will be launched late August 2013. It will be a space where we invite Catherine and other influential Australian women to debate topics.
We'll post 30+ topics that range from the controversial, frivolous to serious. For example:
Ageing...fight it or let it happen gracefully?
Politics...addictive or aggravating?
Legal drinking age...fine as is or should be raised?
Marriage equality...universal or sacrilegious?
Boat people...genuine threat or seeking asylum?
Childbirth...drugs please or drug-free?
Botox...wonderful or woeful?
Quote from: M. Nigel Salt on July 04, 2013, 06:22:59 PM
Quote from: MMIX on July 04, 2013, 11:51:08 AM
Quote from: Cain on July 04, 2013, 06:13:25 AM
If this weren't merely a cynical ploy to milk freelancers and "non-professional commentators" for all they are worth, it might even be a good idea. But it is not, so it's not.
You could replace "non-professional commentators" with "academics" which just makes me laugh like a drain.
Really? Why?
Good luck getting paid for any academic journal articles you author, Nigel. Most academics are not writing under a book contract but as free [and gratis] intellectual spirits . Its how the whole academic system works. Academic journals are produced by for-profit publishing houses but their authors are, in the main, unpaid "
contributors".
Quote from: MMIX on July 04, 2013, 06:37:20 PM
Quote from: M. Nigel Salt on July 04, 2013, 06:22:59 PM
Quote from: MMIX on July 04, 2013, 11:51:08 AM
Quote from: Cain on July 04, 2013, 06:13:25 AM
If this weren't merely a cynical ploy to milk freelancers and "non-professional commentators" for all they are worth, it might even be a good idea. But it is not, so it's not.
You could replace "non-professional commentators" with "academics" which just makes me laugh like a drain.
Really? Why?
Good luck getting paid for any academic journal articles you author, Nigel. Most academics are not writing under a book contract but as free [and gratis] intellectual spirits . Its how the whole academic system works. Academic journals are produced by for-profit publishing houses but their authors are, in the main, unpaid "contributors".
Derp, that's true, and there is a great deal of bullshit and favoritism and corruption in academic publishing, (my friend Emily is a major voice in the librarian-backed movement for academic publishing reform) but I don't think that we SHOULD be paid for publishing. We are paid for doing our work, and our work is meaningless unless we can communicate it. Publishing and presenting are the two primary avenues for sharing our findings. The reform that is needed has nothing to do with being paid for publishing, which would only worsen the existing situation with limited access to dissemination of research results.
If we, as academics, want to get paid for writing (outside of what we're already paid, since most of us at grad school level or above are stipended or salaried), we can write books or magazine articles, and compete with actual writers for entertainment money... and see if our research careers survive.
On a completely different note, I found this quote by following links from the link in the OP:
QuoteMichael Kors also reminded everyone to treat models as humans, not mannequins. He challenged designers to "stay away from child-size clothes unless you're designing for children," pointing out that fashion influences the Hollywood aesthetic--and when celebrities starve themselves to fit into sample sizes, it has a dangerous and far-reaching influence on girls and women everywhere.
I am rather fond of Michael Kors' work, particularly his color work, so this made me happy.
That's a positive thing.
Quote from: Cardinal Pizza Deliverance. on July 04, 2013, 08:03:09 PM
That's a positive thing.
Yeah, he also won't work with models under 16 and makes his runway designs in plus sizes. Pretty cool, for such a fucked-up industry.
[nearly unrelated comment]
Botox is now a prescription migraine medication, or at least it is being billed as such here.
[/nearly unrelated comment]
I can't imagine that being particularly helpful. O.o
Fuck if I know, I only know I saw a commercial for Botox as a prescription migraine medication. :lulz:
http://www.allergan.com/assets/pdf/botox_pi.pdf
If I had to have a needle stuck in my head that many times to make migraines go away, I think I'd just shoot myself in the head instead. Also, it treats overactive bladder and several other unhappy things.
It's apparently pretty much the injectable duct tape of the medical world. Still don't wanna try it.
Quote from: Freeky Queen of DERP on July 04, 2013, 10:45:14 PM
[nearly unrelated comment]
Botox is now a prescription migraine medication, or at least it is being billed as such here.
[/nearly unrelated comment]
I was trying dopeymax (topamax) for migraines.
...Psych doc who prescribed it was trying to run a department and do an initial assessment at the same time.
This turned out to be not a good thing; she didn't bother to tell me topiramate screws with your ability to sweat.
...I found this out on my own when I went to ride a few bicycle laps on the first 99-degree day of the summer season. Not good.
I will stick to 800 mg of Ibuprofen, PRN, thanks.
http://www.businessinsider.com/skinny-women-make-more-money-2011-6
Men are apparently rewarded for being on the sturdy side of normal, while women who are stick thin tend to earn WAY more money:
Quote"Perhaps the most startling finding of this investigation is that men and women experience opposite incentives regarding weight in the very thin to average weight range. Whereas women are punished for any weight gain, very thin women receive the most severe punishment for their first few pounds of weight gain. This finding is consistent with research showing that the media’s consistent depiction of an unrealistically thin female ideal leads people to see this ideal as normative, expected, and central to female attractiveness."
Quote from: hylierandom, A.D.D. on July 04, 2013, 11:06:36 PM
Quote from: Freeky Queen of DERP on July 04, 2013, 10:45:14 PM
[nearly unrelated comment]
Botox is now a prescription migraine medication, or at least it is being billed as such here.
[/nearly unrelated comment]
I was trying dopeymax (topamax) for migraines.
...Psych doc who prescribed it was trying to run a department and do an initial assessment at the same time.
This turned out to be not a good thing; she didn't bother to tell me topiramate screws with your ability to sweat.
...I found this out on my own when I went to ride a few bicycle laps on the first 99-degree day of the summer season. Not good.
I will stick to 800 mg of Ibuprofen, PRN, thanks.
http://www.businessinsider.com/skinny-women-make-more-money-2011-6
Men are apparently rewarded for being on the sturdy side of normal, while women who are stick thin tend to earn WAY more money:
Quote"Perhaps the most startling finding of this investigation is that men and women experience opposite incentives regarding weight in the very thin to average weight range. Whereas women are punished for any weight gain, very thin women receive the most severe punishment for their first few pounds of weight gain. This finding is consistent with research showing that the media's consistent depiction of an unrealistically thin female ideal leads people to see this ideal as normative, expected, and central to female attractiveness."
I really want to examine their methodology, because a number of studies have found strong correlations between stress and weight gain.
I don't doubt that thin people tend to be favored, at all; it's pretty well established that pretty people are favored. However, they may be drawing the wrong conclusion from the correlation they've found. Study after study has found that more-well-educated and higher-earning people tend to be thinner, and It's hardly scientific (yet) but I have observed in a number of women I know a trend of weight loss after college, as their income rises. So, the question becomes, are thin women paid more because they are thin, or are they thin because they're paid more?
Quote from: M. Nigel Salt on July 04, 2013, 11:24:29 PM
I really want to examine their methodology, because a number of studies have found strong correlations between stress and weight gain.
I don't doubt that thin people tend to be favored, at all; it's pretty well established that pretty people are favored. However, they may be drawing the wrong conclusion from the correlation they've found. Study after study has found that more-well-educated and higher-earning people tend to be thinner, and It's hardly scientific (yet) but I have observed in a number of women I know a trend of weight loss after college, as their income rises. So, the question becomes, are thin women paid more because they are thin, or are they thin because they're paid more?
Damn good point.
I would be interested in the results of that study. Because if giving me wads of cash will make me lose weight, I'm on that program. :D
Quote from: Cardinal Pizza Deliverance. on July 07, 2013, 04:26:03 PM
I would be interested in the results of that study. Because if giving me wads of cash will make me lose weight, I'm on that program. :D
I don't have time to dig the studies out, but you might be interested in the documentary "unnatural causes".
Also look at this: http://www.pbs.org/programs/killer-stress/
Bonus: Sapolsky is fucking entertaining as hell.
I'm definitely considering a study on whether chubby college graduates tend to lose weight as their incomes rise, but that's at least two years out even if it's what I decide on.