Re: Sweet Name!
 

See Chit Chat for the "420".

Dionysus? hmmm.....yes I heard of the Dionysian and Apollonian duality. Dionysian meant uninhibited and stimilus seeking. Apollonian meant
controlled and stable. Something like that...I learned that in my Alcohol, Drugs, and Society class.

Anyways, I picked that name for an entirely different reason, though "Dionysian" kind of describes me.

I'm not gonna tell you to do this or not to do it; the vague concept of the show makes me nervous, but if we Greeks are so scared of any media coverage, we'll never get good coverage either.

However, they are under no obligation to show you the tape before airing. That's called "prior restraint," and no responsible journalist will agree to it. News people are supposed to be objective, and having ya'll review the tape could put them in the uncomfortable position of being asked to remove something that truly is important or newsworthy.

On the other hand, no irresponsible journalist will agree to it either, because if they don't want to be objective, you won't like the tape then, either.

So if you ask for that - don't be surprised if they say no.

I thought that perhaps this could be legit until i read the link about it that 33girl posted. They want shocking crazy stuff, and I'm pretty sure that a dry activity in a dry house in NOT what they had in mind. They want the crazy stuff that "frats" do because the general public thinks that greeks are out of control. THAT'S the kind of stuff they want. READ WHAT'S IN THAT LINK. If you still think they are going to portray you in a good light I think you have to be out of your mind. I don't mean to be rude, but seriously!

Theta,

There may be some First Amendment issues here, and no producer worth the name is going to allow pre-approval of any script or edit decisions.

(See the "prior restrain" comment above which must have been posted while I was writing this originally)

If they say they will, be sure to get it in writing. Besides, with their schedule, it'll be aired before any legal action can be taken.

It's also doubtful that any court is going to censor a program before the fact. Besides, it'll be your word against theirs. Tough to fight that kind of battle.

Seriously,

Not to disrespect you in any way because I agree with everything you say. But again, I am not a stupid person. I understand you have more experience than me in these matters. But I also have brains. I asked for people not to talk down to me and I think that you are. Understand this. I am a bright young man with a major that is well respected and understood to be respected. I have concern for my fraternity and my wellbeing in this matter. I will make the right choice. I have help. If any problems are to occur, I will seek legal council. Its really not a problem. The fact that you shy away from an idea just because it is vague shows that you are afraid of this. Why? Maybe they are greeks. Maybe they want to show the greeks in a different light. Maybe they want to expose people to something they have never seen before(which I really doubt), but never the less). I think you are too closed minded and you should be optimistic and less pessimistic. It may brighten your outlook on everything. There's a term called "Amor Fati". If you don't know what it is look it up. I live by it, and its a great thing. Hope you all have a wonderful month. Thanks.

-J-

DeltAlum Supporter!
 

Theta - I think if anyone is talking down, it is you. DeltAlum has offered you advice that is 110% on target. He hasn't said that he is afraid of anything. He also has never said that you have no brains or had a "questionable" major. That's just hype on your part.

As for his advice, he is absolutely correct -- they are never going to let you "view" it before airing. I'm not in broadcasting, and I know that much. Why would they? They just want to come in and get anything that they can use for shock value on their little site. And besides that, I hate to tell you, but if there isn't anything shocking going on, they aren't going to use your group.

As for AX's out there - nationals has already stated "NO" to any type of participation in these "shows" - so please don't apply...not that any of you would ;)

The following was originally posted in the Chit Chat board:

Jeff OTMG
Member

Registered: Apr 2001
Location: Austin, Tx (for now)
Posts: 97
"Be very careful when dealing with TNN. It use to be The Nashville Network and was owned by a high school buddy of mine, Ed Gaylord, and his dad who own Gaylord Entertainment. They also own the Opryland Music Hall, the Opryland Hotel, and Country Music Television. When it was sold to Westinghouse it was moved to New York City and became The National Network. They have a political agenda to promote and will slant and/or bias program content to achieve it. A guy I know, Jim Scoutten, was the producer and star of a couple of programs on TNN. When it went to NYC, his program on shooting sports was pre-empted and kept being shown at different times each week with no advance notice. The ratings dropped (DUH!), so they cancelled the show. It did well when it was on at 10:00 every Saturday AM, but they lost the demographic on purpose because the powers that be did not 'approve' of the content. After doing this I would not trust the integrity or content of any program shown on TNN and as a result I have the channel deleted from my 'surfing' list on the cable box. If you deal with TNN do so at your own risk. Jim's program was happily picked up by the Outdoor Channel."

DeltAlum's comments:

Gaylord Entertainment is a well known company in the broadcasting/enterainment world. So is Westinghouse. I worked for Westinghouse (Known as Group W in the trade) a couple of times -- they also own CBS. Group W is pretty ruthless -- not an uncommon trait in the industry.

Here's a major difference between the broadcast and cable worlds. TV stations have labored under the sometimes heavy hand of the Federal Communications Commission which holds the power to grant or reject their license to broadcast -- in other words to survive and do business. Cable networks (like TNN, the one in question here) are not licensed, and so they can be much more agressive in putting forward their own agenda. They can also be much more daring in term of program content.

Consider the Fox News Network. It is run by Roger Ailes (a fellow Ohio University graduate), who is an absolutely die-hard ultra-conservative Republican and former head media advisor to the Nixon White House. I am not making any kind of political statement here on whether that's good or bad, but simply pointing out that an on-air TV station would be hard put to be that one sided without running afoul of FCC rules and regulations.

So, here's a point to consider. A cable network (TNN, FOX, E!, Playboy Channel, ESPN, etc.) dosen't have to follow the same rules that major on-air stations (and thus their networks since they own several TV stations each -- which is where most of their incomes is derived). Cable has no such regulation. Thank goodness that MOST cable operators have at least a modicum of taste, honesty and integrity -- well most of them do. Even the ones who don't, though, have lots of high powered lawyers. There is simply no way that a person or small group is going to fight a legal battle and win unless they are willing to spend a LOT of money and several years in the legal system.

Finally, the people who are doing this program are independent even of the cable networks. They are privately owned production companies. Probably their only goal in life is to produce a program that they can sell to a cable network. Take a hard look at the so called "reality" based program genre and ask yourself, "Is this really reality," or is this sensationalism -- something aimed simply at grabbing an audience made of of the lowest common denominator among TV viewers in the market? I have never heard of this particular company (which also worries me a little), but many (maybe most) will stretch the truth as far a humanly possible to achieve that end.

Through creative editing and use of music tracks, a kiss becomes an orgy, a dance beacomes a rave, an arrest becomes a riot.

Ask yourself if you want to take the chance that this unknown producer is not like I've described above.

Ask yourself if you really want to put your reputation in their hands.

Try to convince yourself that they don't already have a pre-conceived idea of how the story will be told.

My admittedly negative viewpoint is built on thirty five years of hard won experience. Been there, done that, got the tee shirt.

Take the advice or leave it.

Again,

I understand. We have a process of dealing with these as well. Don't worry about it. As for the attitudes of all the alumni in this matter. What did you want to do when you were in your house? Have Fun. Learn. Create some good memories. Yeah us too. As for the advice. I again thank you for it. After hearing the same thing over and over, you sound more and more like parents naggin their children. Sometimes I think that alumni are too closed minded for certain things. In all reality, they are too closed minded in general. Having a house that was just recently re-chartered, our alumni support is low. We will not do anything to hurt us more. We are very very careful of that. However we still do have a chapter advisor. He is there to help us make the right decisions. He is also a part of our Grand Lodge as the National Rush Chairman. He is an experienced person. Let him make the call.

I'm not sure if anyone watched Late Night with Dave Attell, where SAE's was a part of the show. It showed their house as a typical frat house. Did people warn them? Where was their chapter advisor?

Again I hope everyone has a great day. try not to let this bother you so much.

Jay yedinak
Theta Xi - Upsilon Chapter
House Manager, Event Chairman

p.s. I feel like I'm 16 all over again talking to my parents.

People, there's more than one way to find an answer.

*to the tv people*

Will this help me get my SAG card?

Theta-
This is just a question, but have you even read the link, or contacted these people yet? Allow me to quote:
The very first Internet site to allow users to watch, collect, contribute and send the world's most wild, spontaneous, funny and jaw-dropping real-life videos, Alltrue.com is instantly set to become the place to check out and capture life's most astonishing moments.... As the Alltrue team has conceived the site, it's the ultimate destination for life's true and most inspiring, off-the-cuff, "money shot" moments. Culled from surveillance cameras, private investigators, professional cameramen and just plain folks, Alltrue clips are all about what people do when they don't realize they're not alone.

Now you tell me, does this company sound like they want to get the "good greek" side of things, or does it sound more like they are looking for that greek stereotype we have all tried so hard to avoid?

You said that your advisor was a national officer, but have you checked specifically with your NHQ? If this turns out wrong, it's the type of thing that could get your charter pulled again. I'm not trying to tell you how to run your chapter, but I would seriously look into this with NHQ by your side and take it all with a grain of salt. A lawyer does no good if the whole country has already seen your mistake.

OBVIOUSLY A SCAM
 

Guys, and this isn't just for Theta, but for anyone else who is even bothing to consider this an issue...

We have seen this on GC before. Someone (or thing) comes on GC, posts ONE thread and then disappears, never to be heard from again. Sorry, but if this was a legit org genuinely intersted in portaying greek life, don't you think they would have posted at least once more to appease some of the skeptics? This was purely a spam message that was missed in the filtering process. Theta, don't waste your time. It's not an issue of anyone thinking you're not thinking it through. But unless you'd get debt relief from one of the hundreds of angencies that send spam to your hotmail account, I wouldn't bother with this either.

Just a thought....

Close-minded...
 

Funny choice of words regarding the "alumni" -- well if being closed-minded means to keep my house off of a shock-value show like this, then so be it. And as for "having fun, learning, and creating some good memories" -- well we did this WITHOUT national publicity...good, bad, or indifferent. Geez, I'm only a few years out...not like I'm relieving the golden era through the new millenium or anything. AND being in a chapter advisory role, my butt is on the line if the collegians screw up (which is the point of having advisors).

And I know for a fact that our national headquarters does not approve of being involved with these types of productions. So its not just me - it is the governing body of my fraternity...which, in my opinion, carries a little bit of weight. But I can only speak for my org's policies.

I'm sorry you feel like you're 16, but as my momma says "act like a fool and you get treated like a fool" -- not to say that you are a fool, but that you are responsible for your own actions. Unfortunately, if something *stupid* does end up happening (whether at your event, or made-up by the TV show) it will further the stereotypes about greek life. So its not just Theta Xi that stands to lose here - its all of us.

Think about the headlines when a fraternity member dies -- it doesn't say "AB Mourns Loss of Brother" - it says "Fraternity Pledge Dies During Hazing Related Incident" -- even if alcohol/hazing had nothing to do with the fraternity!! Then the story always goes on to include any information (regardless of age) about any other deaths or incidents of previous situations in greek life. Welcome to the world of spin! Shock sales...period.

Whatever. Let his chapter do it. Let them be made fools of on national t.v. Let them be portrayed in a bad way. Let their charter get yanked again. Then, the next time something like this sounds like a good idea, maybe they'll think twice about it.:rolleyes: :rolleyes: ...instead of telling all the alumin that we're "close minded".

NEW IDEA
 

Have an of you thought of this:
Maybe the company posted a message JUST to get us to check out their website...I'm sure there are some of you out there that found their site interesting and went further than the first page. Did anyone watch 48 hours last night? Shock value, yes. Girls Gone Wild, they went over that and I'm sure that thousands more people went straight to their website and placed orders.

What a cheap, free way of advertising their website. If this guy does it...I agree, let him, he'll see the repercussions. If we're wrong, then great! I never wish bad on the Greek world.

Enough from me....

TV Show looking for frat/sorority event
 

I'm the producer from Alltrue Networks. I've been so taken aback at the heat of the response to our posting that I've waited for what seemed like an appropriate time to respond. About Alltrue: yes, it promoted itself back in the day as having some "shock value" content on its website but, as anyone who was actually familiar with the site would know, we specialize in an approach to reality tv that is innovative and comic, not particularly shocking. We are now producing a variety of television programs, including the one for TNN that may involve a fraternity or sorority event. We didn't detail the nature of the production for the sake of brevity in our posting but, to give this justifiably wary chatgroup something that will, perhaps, allay some of your fears I'll quickly outline the concept: It's a game show in which 2 contestants "crash" an event, their interactions with the real guests at the event are covered by hidden cameras and they score points based on their ability to do funny things without being discovered and, perhaps, kicked out. The organizer(s) of the event - in this case, the fraternity/sorority social director and/or President - are in on us covering the event and we get their approval on all the gags that the "crashers" will be asked to accomplish. THe show's concept is not about embarassing or revealing shocking details about the people at these events. It's a high-stakes situation for the contestants and their reaction to the tension is both exciting and funny. For the sense of "crashing" to really work, the event must be with a group that considers itself somewhat exclusive but (and this is why we are hoping to find an event that may be panhellenic and/or involve alumni) offer some possibility that there would be people not everyone would know.
I appreciate and have learned a great deal from your perceptions of reality television and I can't argue that much of your skepticism and trepidation is well-founded. I also can't answer for less ethical producers and/or less well-intentioned shows with whom some of you have had bad experiences.
All I can say is that we've shot several events already, they've all massively enjoyed the injection of entertainment that the "crashers" brought to their parties and more than 80% signed the appearance release necessary to use any image of anyone on an entertainment program.
For those who remain interested in our show, please contact me.
And thanks for the chance to communicate this opportunity with all of you. Thanks.
dthompson@alltrue.com