Gentlemen, someone here is a Cowboy Bebop spy

[Joe Tully]

This was on 60 minutes tonight, but they have an online article too. I'll quote the most relevant part. Basically, it's about how people were paid/bribed to promote the movie online.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/10/23/60minutes/main579657.shtml

Subtle is Elias' weapon of choice. On the day 60 Minutes visited, Soulkool operatives were going undercover on the Internet, promoting the movie "Cowboy Bebop," an animated feature.

Soulkool employees, all of them barely in their 20s, boost the promotion by flooding Internet chat rooms and message boards with rave reviews for the movie.

Soulkool does not mention any professional affiliation, so the kids who read their messages have no idea they're talking to a paid marketer, hired to plug the movie. And it's not just Soulkool employees who are doing the plugging.

There's Lucas Schlager, a 13-year-old "Cowboy Bebop" fanatic, one of 350 volunteers across the country enlisted by Soulkool to hype the movie in exchange for T-shirts and posters.

From the comfort of his Long Island bedroom, Lucas spends hours in chat rooms, typing and hyping away.

“Thirteen different chats and four message boards, multiple postings. And I would just, you know, completely tell everything about this movie. And just get people to go see it,” says Schlager.

Lucas sometimes mentions Soulkool in his chats, but often he doesn't. The other person has no idea he's dealing with a marketer.

[Chris Wood]

No kidding. This place is full of people saying "Bebop is the greatest anime ever!" But that's cool. Maybe they're earning their way through college.

[RD!]

Doesn't Cowboy Bebop more or less sell itself?

[RedBoot]

This sort of thing is becoming more common these days, I know Atari used these people for their DRIV3R game.

At least in this case they were advertising for a good thing as opposed to Driv3r, which is a horrible game.

[Master Moron]

No kidding. This place is full of people saying "Bebop is the greatest anime ever!" But that's cool. Maybe they're earning their way through college.

You know I remember when I first started using the internet several years ago. I remember actually being able to go into chat rooms that weren't filled with bots and professional advertisers. This sucks, as does all the lying and misinformation on the internet.

[Nin-Nin69]

This sort of thing is becoming more common these days, I know Atari used these people for their DRIV3R game.

At least in this case they were advertising for a good thing as opposed to Driv3r, which is a horrible game.http://www.penny-arcade.com/images/2004/20040630l.jpg

[shogunthethird]

okay....getting paid for shilling stuff I already like? where can I get a piece of that action? I could seriously use the money

[Lord Dalek]

Lord, I wish I was a Cowboy Bebop spy.

[Tienshin]

I am rethinking waggytoon.

[Master Moron]

I am rethinking waggytoon.

Huh? You mean Waggytoon was a spy?

[The Dork Knight]

Yeah, Waggytoon used to always talk about how great Timon and Pumba was.

- The Dork Knight

[RedBoot]

Yeah, Waggytoon used to always talk about how great Timon and Pumba was.

- The Dork Knight
You don't have nearly enough color or :yakko: :wakko: :dot: to be Waggytoon.

[The Dork Knight]

You don't have nearly enough color or :yakko: :wakko: :dot: to be Waggytoon. You're right. ;) :bosko: :bubbles: :knd1:

- The Dork Knight

[Pimmelmann]

No kidding. This place is full of people saying "Bebop is the greatest anime ever!" But that's cool. Maybe they're earning their way through college. I just think it is good. It honestly never occurred to me to suspect that someone else who expresses such a sentiment might be some corporate flack, and it makes me worry that a third someone might suspect that I myself am such a flack. Oh, the web of lies that is the Internet! :confused::sweat:

[Mynd Hed]

I dunno, it seems like usually people who are on the payroll make it pretty obvious-- their reviews read like they're quoting a press release, and they include way too many links to official web sites. But then again, maybe only some of them are like that and the rest are so subtle that I can't tell.

I guess it does kinda suck, but since there's not much I can do about it (unless they spam so blatantly that they wind up getting banned, I guess) I try not to let it worry me.

[Artimus Gigan]

Well whoever the spies are, usualy spies don't give any of their personal history, photo identity, real name, and stuff like that.


The real good ones are subtle and usualy post often in non related subjects or a somewhat relating subject and then they may post one thread about the show or somthing so they appear to be one of the people and not a slave to big corporations...


however they get free stuff on occasion....

or so I've heard...

[Conekiller]

I dunno, it seems like usually people who are on the payroll make it pretty obvious-- their reviews read like they're quoting a press release, and they include way too many links to official web sites. But then again, maybe only some of them are like that and the rest are so subtle that I can't tell.
*wonders about that kid hyping the hell outa the (dull and boring)official dot hack website a few weeks ago......*

[saladdays]

Yeah, we had a post about this last October.

http://forums.toonzone.net/showthread.php?t=92734

[Obi]

HEY GUYS!!!


Have you seen the new Cowboy Bebop movie yet?!?!


GO BUY IT ITS AWESOME!!!1

[Artimus Gigan]

So let's say that someone is found out to be a spy, what will the consiquences be? Are they going to be punished? Will the longetivity and past and present overall activity on the boards be a variable to what happens?

[Chris Wood]

So let's say that someone is found out to be a spy, what will the consiquences be? Are they going to be punished? Will the longetivity and past and present overall activity on the boards be a variable to what happens?
I'm all for flogging with a tire iron. What have you got?

[Nin-Nin69]

A bag full of broken PS1 parts. ;)

[Mackaybear]

a Lifetime of watching 4 Kids dubbed anime??

[Yash]

a Lifetime of watching 4 Kids dubbed anime??
No one deserves that treatment.

Unless it's Uncut.

[Jave]

There is one particular member I'm willing to bet is a paid Nickelodeon spy. Go to the General Animation Board and look at the talkbacks.