Science Blogger's WTF Moment.

[Cardinal Pizza Deliverance.]

http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/urban-scientist/2013/10/11/give-trouble-to-others-but-not-me/

Sorry if this is a repost. Didn't find another thread.

It wasn't just that he called me a whore – he juxtaposed it against my professional being: Are you urban scientist or an urban whore? Completely dismissing me as a scientist, a science communicator (whom he sought for my particular expertise), and someone who could offer something meaningful to his brand.What? Now, I'm so immoral and wrong to inquire about compensation? Plus, it was obvious me that I was supposed to be honored by the request..

Duuuude. What is it with people thinking if they throw fancy names around, others will roll over and beg to give up their time and energy for free . . . and then getting butthurt when that doesn't happen?

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/urban-scientist/2013/10/11/give-trouble-to-others-but-not-me/

Sorry if this is a repost. Didn't find another thread.

It wasn't just that he called me a whore – he juxtaposed it against my professional being: Are you urban scientist or an urban whore? Completely dismissing me as a scientist, a science communicator (whom he sought for my particular expertise), and someone who could offer something meaningful to his brand.What? Now, I'm so immoral and wrong to inquire about compensation? Plus, it was obvious me that I was supposed to be honored by the request..

Duuuude. What is it with people thinking if they throw fancy names around, others will roll over and beg to give up their time and energy for free . . . and then getting butthurt when that doesn't happen?

Oh I am full of HEART HEART HEART for that biologist's response!

[Pæs]

People flipped out in that site's forums. Ofek is fired.

http://www.biology-online.org/biology-forum/about34647.html

[Pæs]

So in this thread, everyone is all "Kudos on firing that dick and publicly apologizing, you guys are ace."

And some idiot moderator comes in and blurts out:

Please, stop acting like crazy, people. Yeah, he did what he definitely shouldn't. However, we couldn't act earlier since we didn't know about it and DNLee decided to rather write a blog about that instead of handling it with someone above Ofek. I understand that since she didn't have any other contact than him, but it's her decicion.

Which is responded to calmly with "I am going to read that in the most forgiving light possible and assume you're not blaming Dr. Lee."

And the douche responds with:

I never blamed her for being called a whore, I blamed her for the delay in our team's response. That's a difference. And I blamed the anonymous users here, who registered just two days ago from being out of their mind. If they could, they would lynch Ofek. How are they different from him?
BTW Ms. Lee called our team in one of her tweets "asses", very professional from her.

HEY, YOU WERE BASICALLY FREE AND CLEAR FROM BLAME. WAY TO FUCK IT ALL UP, YOU UTTER JIZZLORD.

[Cardinal Pizza Deliverance.]

I can totally understand the frustration Mr. Unprofessional's are experiencing. The negative publicity and sheer volume of crazy they're going through has got to be such a pain to deal with. They're probably visualizing pitchforks and torches right about now. They think, why didn't DNLee just check their website and inquire with them directly.

And sure, she could have done that. But why?

It isn't likely they would have taken her complaint seriously or resolved it in any meaningful fashion. Not without some sort of outreach on her part, like through her blog, anyway. Keep it under wraps and it just goes away. Speak out and something happens. That's the trend.

'Reasonable discourse' has become another euphemism for 'you pat my back, I'll pat yours, unless you're of no consequence than me and then I'll just ignore you'. So what's left?

Why, that would be the great equalizer - the internet. :P Gotta a blog? Got a Twitter? Get your shit out there. Bo-yeah, RESULTS.

So I don't think they should be that surprised. And it isn't her they should be frustrated with. I think their angst is misplaced and would be better served by making an example of what's his nut and perhaps tightening up their standards of e-mail etiquette.

Newsflash : Condescension; not the social skill you thought it was.

[Bu🤠ns]

I thought her reply is tactful and addresses a larger issue.  Also I'd have never heard of her if it wasn't for this douche so in a weird roundabout sort of way she'll ended up probably getting those 1.6 million viewers, anyway.  

I love what she's doing with her own style of science.  I mean reaching out to urban folks so that it's accessible to people who might not initially go toward science...that's just beautiful. 

[The Good Reverend Roger]

I thought her reply was brilliant, and I thought it addressed several issues.

1.  When asking someone to write (or do anything else) for free, mention that little detail in the FIRST PARAGRAPH.

2.  When they say they aren't interested in working for free, calling them "whores" is just a little unacceptable.  Just a little.

The mod's later response indicates that this isn't an isolated problem at that board.

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

So in this thread, everyone is all "Kudos on firing that dick and publicly apologizing, you guys are ace."

And some idiot moderator comes in and blurts out:

Please, stop acting like crazy, people. Yeah, he did what he definitely shouldn't. However, we couldn't act earlier since we didn't know about it and DNLee decided to rather write a blog about that instead of handling it with someone above Ofek. I understand that since she didn't have any other contact than him, but it's her decicion.

Which is responded to calmly with "I am going to read that in the most forgiving light possible and assume you're not blaming Dr. Lee."

And the douche responds with:

I never blamed her for being called a whore, I blamed her for the delay in our team's response. That's a difference. And I blamed the anonymous users here, who registered just two days ago from being out of their mind. If they could, they would lynch Ofek. How are they different from him?
BTW Ms. Lee called our team in one of her tweets "asses", very professional from her.

HEY, YOU WERE BASICALLY FREE AND CLEAR FROM BLAME. WAY TO FUCK IT ALL UP, YOU UTTER JIZZLORD.

Do you have a link to that thread?

The mistake that douche is making with their reasoning is the assumption that Dr. Lee had enough knowledge of their organization to even know there WAS someone above Ofek. They are a nobody organization and the only contact she had from them was through Ofek, who, for all she knew, could have been the site owner.

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

Found it. Locked. http://www.biology-online.org/biology-forum/post-157260.html

I am very suspicious of a forum that locks a thread when members are critical of a site employee.

[Cardinal Pizza Deliverance.]

Found it. Locked. http://www.biology-online.org/biology-forum/post-157260.html

I am very suspicious of a forum that locks a thread when members are critical of a site employee.

Yeah, that's not hinky at all. O.o

[The Good Reverend Roger]

Found it. Locked. http://www.biology-online.org/biology-forum/post-157260.html

I am very suspicious of a forum that locks a thread when members are critical of a site employee.

I am very suspicious of a forum that locks a thread.

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

Also, ALL the employees there need some training, as the only time it is appropriate to refer to a Dr. as "Ms." in a professional or academic setting is never. It's perfectly acceptable to call them by their first name if invited to do so, but it's absolutely condescending as hell for an employee at some unknown biology blog site to repeatedly refer to Dr. Lee as "Ms. Lee".

[The Good Reverend Roger]

Also, ALL the employees there need some training, as the only time it is appropriate to refer to a Dr. as "Ms." in a professional or academic setting is never. It's perfectly acceptable to call them by their first name if invited to do so, but it's absolutely condescending as hell for an employee at some unknown biology blog site to repeatedly refer to Dr. Lee as "Ms. Lee".

Yes, it's a good thing there is no bias there or anything.

[Cardinal Pizza Deliverance.]

The offer made was utterly fraudulent, as it promised the prospective guest blogger something of value that could not be delivered:
"...By writing [for us] and linking to us, you not only receive traffic from us..."

No, Bioloy-Online receives traffic from the guest blogger's link to the post, and not the other way around.
If Bioloy-Online might link back to the guest blogger's blog, then perhaps this might be possible, but no such offer is made, nor do any of the "guest blog" entries on Bioloy-Online have such links back to the guest blogger's blog.

"Ofek" goes on to claim that "it can have a direct effect on the traffic and rank of your blog, and that in turn has a direct effect on advertising revenue". This is also untrue, as it would only be possible if there was some sort of easy way for those claimed 1.6 million visitors to easily FIND your blog, such as a link to it.

But http://alexa.com/siteinfo/biology-online.org seems to indicate that this is a site of little or no consequence, stumbled upon nearly half the time via Google search for some specific term. No 1.6 million anything here.

So, in an addition to an apology, a POLICY CHANGE would be a good way to respond, one that would involve providing links back to guest blogger's blogs, and thereby honestly providing the (dubious-seeming) advantages offered to the guest blogger.

As a senior scientist and lab manager, my advice is to get the 11-foot pole from one's quartermaster before touching "Biology-Online" in any way. Mere gloves, goggles, and fume hood seems insufficient protection from so much toxicity.

packetfire

That's interesting, too.

[Cardinal Pizza Deliverance.]

Here's the actual apology :

http://www.biology-online.org/biology-forum/about34647.html