OK, so Wick told us that “The key to FrontBurner’s success is that it has always primarily been a conversation among the editors.”
But to me it looks an awful lot like this conversation is just now starting. Or if not that, it’s really become apparent. Perhaps Wick sent a memo out to his staff telling them to start this public conversation. It probably looked like this:
Dear Staff,
I told FrontBurnervians that we shut down comments because FrontBurner was always meant to be a conversation among ourselves.
Because of that, I want to start having a conversation among ourselves. So I insist that you respond in your own post any time I write something (which I will be doing a helluva lot more now that we’ll be losing page impressions).
Also, use the odd abbreviation “Ctd.” at the end of the blog subject line, because we’re trying to keep our character count low.
All the best,
Wick Allison
Or something like that. But a quick search of FrontBurner shows that they just started using “Ctd.” after the comments era ended.
Is it just me or are they going out of their way to force this conversation on us?
UPDATE (4:11 p.m. April 27): A LodoWickian has e-mailed me to remind me that “Re:” was often used by the FrontBurner guys before this “Ctd.” fad started. And, of course, the editors (mainly Eric, Zac and Tim) used the comments sections to offer feedback on others’ posts. It’s just more noticeable now because it takes up more real estate, I guess. False alarm?
Wick seems to also be taking a cue from TDMN, which he praises in a previous post for deliberately changing out its readership in search of a quality audience, quality defined as eager to pay top dollar to take what it’s offered. For Wick, finding his own niche within this strategy seems to involve dumping those prone to talk back in favor of a rich, previously untapped vein of mute Kabuki theater enthusiasts.
Wick’s is the gift that keeps on giving. Gordon Keith was so impressed with the reaction to his comments on comments last Wednesday that yesterday he felt he could not in justice deprive himself and his commenters of the opportunity to do it all over again while the corpse was still warm, this time commenting on his comments on comments.
Taking a similar wormhole within wormhole ride into splashing commentary necrophilia must have been too much for Eric, who we find today ejaculating spontaneously from the experience.
When Gordo gets all Churchillian I get moist and tingly. Do you think he might be the next Obama?