Do you think Speakers Corner reviews should be paid?

I am appalled recently at the level of writing within the Speakers Corner category and don't agree with them being paid.

Topics such as my favourite Superhero, and Top Ten jokes are tantamount to laziness and don't deserve payment...

Whereas intelligently debated arguments should...

What do you think?

As already stated-only ones that are opinionated (Should smoking be banned in public places etc.) should be but the Top Tens shouldn't. I would rather stop payment for all SC reviews rather than pay for them all since the site is becoming ridiculously clogged

I say stop the payments.

I`ve got no reviews ready to post at the moment and it would be so easy to go copy and paste a few jokes together and post that!

They wouldn't even be my own work!

But thats the thing-people do it because they get paid and it is easy. I could post a jokes one but havent and like to think myreviews are helpful to membes and none members. I think ciao is the place for 'Top Tens' since IMO it is less of a review site and a bit more of a fun community where you can post basically anything under 'Anything that begins with 'A' etc.

I put No, although it is a slightly cautious No.

The site is filling up with garbage, and that is as much an editorial control issue as anything (dooyoo used to be really strict, I remember I tried to add some food product years back and they didnt want it - and I have not done many food products so I am sure it wasnt run of the mill product. )

I dont think a line between the general crap and the more "debatey" topics can be drawn for payment purposes either.

PS: mods, I could see the results of this poll before I had logged on and voted, isn't that a bug??

I say yes to payments but make sure the subject headings don't degenerate in to crap like "my favourite top ten celbtrity superheroes in my bag". If the subject titles were properly monitored then theres no problems...simple.

Its not a case of don't pay people because the standards are low...just raise the standards by only alloing proper subjects that need to be debated properly.

I didn't realise (know) that Dooyoo couldn't work with different payment structures in different categories. This explains why they pay in SC.

My main bugbear is these awful top ten reviews spouting up all other the place - these I genuinely think do not deserve to be paid.

Quote :

I didn't realise (know) that Dooyoo couldn't work with different payment structures in different categories. This explains why they pay in SC.

Exactly. You can bet your bottom dollar if they were ABLE to not pay, they'd not pay.

Agreed. Not just because I believe a lot of the reviews to be mediocre, but also because it makes business sense. Why would dooyoo honestly pay us to write a whimisical top ten when it won't generate any revenue for them...except perhaps retain members and encourage them to write product reviews which does generate revenue.

I think they need to unredesign speakers corner and allow the forum section again - this way I (and probably others) can stay clear...and possibly upgrade their system to stop paying!! (in my dreams)

I do think they should rein in the frivolous categories.

Jill Murphy wrote:

I do think they should rein in the frivolous categories.

My point exactly, I like to write relatively serious pieces in that category but would be penalised because of the "top ten favorite socks" brigade if they took away payment. Instead throwing the baby out with the bath water and getting rid of almost every review (which would happen if it wasnt paid I suspect, if they were just sensible about what topics they allowed in then things would be musch better. Okay you will still get people who's reviews amount to 32 words that basic say "i don't like paying tax" but thats a criticism that could be layed on the site as a whole. If it was returned to its former role as a debating arena rather than quickbuckcity then it would be a benifit to the site.

Like some previous comments I still think they should pay (in reality they have no choice) and at the same time exercise some editorial control over the categories they set up.

Personally I'm quite happy to churn out a top ten and earn my £1.20 and if you put a little effort in they can still be an entertaining read for some people and even spark a limited debate as my last review did on the in-breeding that goes on in East Anglia, and I was only writing about Sale of the Centuary.

What I think they should do:

Speaker's Corner has a ridiculous 1,765 categories, 1,400 of which are sport-based. The navigation is impossible because the categories, as I said earlier, were just shunted there wholesale from the individual category forum areas during a previous redesign. Ever wondered why there are so many "general" categories? That's why. They used to be under a navigation tree of, for example, Home>Sport>Football>General. Now however, it's just under Home>Discussion>General - as is the previous general category for everything, not just different sports.

So, I think they should go through Speaker's Corner - they won't have time to do it, so perhaps they could ask guides to lend a hand - and identify all these categories, plus all the categories for political discussion that are now out of date. They should then move them to the dead-as-a-dodo Archive section, where they should have been sent in the first place. This wouldn't stop people writing, but it would stop the opinions appearing in the new lists, thus reducing Dooyoo's costs and a lot of pointless opinions.

I think they should enlist the aid of the guide to think up some properly meaty and up-to-date new debate categories to stimulate MEANINGFUL contributions in the area.

And I think they should stop adding frivolous categories. I don't mind Top Ten Books, but I do mind Top Ten Jokes and Contents Of My Handbag.

That's my two pennorth, anyhow.

Jill Murphy wrote:

And I think they should stop adding frivolous categories. I don't mind Top Ten Books, but I do mind Top Ten Jokes and Contents Of My Handbag.

That's my two pennorth, anyhow.

Of course, therein lies the problem, the whole thing is too subjective as to what adds any kind of value or not, and what should be paid or not. People who don't read books, but like copying jokes off emails and joke websites would probably disagree Jill!

I don't mind the debates (although I agree some are WAY out of date). I think there have been at least a million reviews on "Should We Have an Erotic Category". For chrissake, someone put that in the dead-as-a-dodo section where it belongs...

I think it is a qustion of strict editorial control, then I don't think there is any really harm if say1-5% of reviews are on genuine "Speakers Corner" topics (until they can figure out how to program their little site for a "no-pay category" option, which seems alarmingly simple.

After being away from the site for a few months. I'm amazed at the number of inane categories that have been added. Where the heck did top five superheros come from, and what possible use is that category on the site.

Mind I've voted with my feet (or hands rather) and refused to even open reviews in those categories, just as I never opened them on Ciao.

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Of course, therein lies the problem, the whole thing is too subjective as to what adds any kind of value or not, and what should be paid or not. People who don't read books, but like copying jokes off emails and joke websites would probably disagree Jill!

Yeah, I know, but um... can't you just say I'm right?! Teehee.

sandemp wrote:

Where the heck did top five superheros come from, and what possible use is that category on the site.

.

Awww, please read my top five superheroes review, it took me hours...!!

No 1. Spiderman
No 2. Superman.
No 3. errrrr.....Batman????

I ran out at three...sorry hope no one minds - I know it says five. I couldn't think of five. I will update this review, when I think of 2 more.

Yes the categories have gone stark raving mad, and it is the Ciao members coming over for a fast buck BUT it is only Dooyoo who can stop it. (apart from not reading, which is my tactic too)

Tomorrow I am posting my top ten Dooyoo members

Jill Murphy wrote:

Quote :

Of course, therein lies the problem, the whole thing is too subjective as to what adds any kind of value or not, and what should be paid or not. People who don't read books, but like copying jokes off emails and joke websites would probably disagree Jill!

Yeah, I know, but um... can't you just say I'm right?! Teehee.

Nope. Books are the scourge of all evil. Just think of all the religious problems we could (re)solve if books had not been invented? No?

Helen hates me. I'm going to tell my mum.

sandemp wrote:

Where the heck did top five superheros come from, and what possible use is that category on the site.

I agree it is of little use until they add "My Top Five Super Villans" as a balance to the debate.

And just for Helen I suggest Barb Wire so wonderfully portrayed by the multi talented Pamela Anderson as number 4 and Catwoman by the lovely Michelle Pfieffer for number five, I look forward to nominating the final review.

helencbradshaw wrote:

sandemp wrote:

Where the heck did top five superheros come from, and what possible use is that category on the site.

.

Awww, please read my top five superheroes review, it took me hours...!!

No 1. Spiderman
No 2. Superman.
No 3. errrrr.....Batman????

I ran out at three...sorry hope no one minds - I know it says five. I couldn't think of five. I will update this review, when I think of 2 more.

Yes the categories have gone stark raving mad, and it is the Ciao members coming over for a fast buck BUT it is only Dooyoo who can stop it. (apart from not reading, which is my tactic too)

Tomorrow I am posting my top ten Dooyoo members

Well you could write a very good and interesting Top Ten superhero review.

You could give some background on each one, when/where they were first published, how they have changed over the years, have they been made into films, cultural aspects, explain why you personally like some more than others etc...

The problem that I find with most of these categories is that people are lazy when they post reviews and they sem to use them as a easy ways to get some reads.

I do like some of the discussion topic that exist and I also like some of the top ten sections, which as Jill said have been around for years, some of the recently added categories are quite strange but even there I think it is down to how well and how much effort the writer has put into the review.

Mauri wrote:

Well you could write a very good and interesting Top Ten superhero review.

ME!!I couldn't, I can only name three, and couldn't even write a sentence on that

Mauri wrote:

You could give some background on each one, when/where they were first published, how they have changed over the years, have they been made into films, cultural aspects, explain why you personally like some more than others etc...

I hate em all. I prefer the Top Ten Book ones

Harry Potter 1
Harry Potter 2
Harry Potter 3
Harry Potter 4....

Mauri wrote:

I do like some of the discussion topic that exist and I also like some of the top ten ections......

Could you fix that typo, I first read it as something else, and I don't want to know the top ten of those...!

helencbradshaw wrote:

Mauri wrote:

Well you could write a very good and interesting Top Ten superhero review.

ME!!I couldn't, I can only name three, and couldn't even write a sentence on that

Mauri wrote:

You could give some background on each one, when/where they were first published, how they have changed over the years, have they been made into films, cultural aspects, explain why you personally like some more than others etc...

I hate em all. I prefer the Top Ten Book ones

Harry Potter 1
Harry Potter 2
Harry Potter 3
Harry Potter 4....

Mauri wrote:

I do like some of the discussion topic that exist and I also like some of the top ten ections......

Could you fix that typo, I first read it as something else, and I don't want to know the top ten of those...!

The "ection" has now gone....

It's the same as writing a film review and saying " this film was cool!". The problem is not with the category its with the people writing.

I am with Jill. I think SC should still pay but needs a serious overhaul.

I'm in agreement, it would be a shame top stop the payments but a change is needed. As some of you have said debates can be very interesting to read as can my top ten ........, I do however feel that the site has become over run with them Lisa x