Anyhoo, his presentation is a pretty detailed resume of what he's been doing the past 10+ years and the fabulous people he's worked with, although I did like what he said about bloggers - bloggers are outsiders who don't like it when people mess with their sh*t.
Calcanis' key to being an A-List blogger: Go to TechMeme and comment on the top story, mentioning the top five bloggers that also talk about it. Repeat for 30 days. Go to conferences. Voila - you're an ALister. They he gets serious - write about something interesting, read other people's blogs and comment. Be a part of the community.I'm warming up to his rant on PayPerPost because I believe like he does - lack of transparency ruins the blogosphere. He compares PayPerPost to drug mules who protest they aren't drug dealers because they only carry the drugs. PayPerPost enables companies by allowing
them to tell bloggers: "Write about me, but only good things and don't say you are being paid to do so." Comparing it to fashion marketing or any other marketing is disingenious - deceiving someone is wrong no matter where it occurs. He slams Tim Draper for his investment in PayPerPost.What he says would be correct would be to say, right at the beginning: "This is a review for which I am being paid by PayPerPost. The opinions expressed here are my own and I am/am not required to write a good review. To find out more about PayPerPost click here."
His take on the future - podcasting. He looks to his own habits where he is listening to more radio than anything else, although he never turns on a radio. Since all this listening is via podcasts or other online. He just announced that GoDaddy and Podtech are sponsoring 50 episodes of a new CalacanisCast. The proceeds are paying to send two disadvantaged foster kids to an exclusive school in New York. Very cool, and very great way to impact someone's life.
My overall impressions - Jason has sold me - he started out a little arrogant and, frankly, boring, but really got me engaged when he started talking about the AList and PayPerPost. He's also cute in a blond - Michael J Fox-ish kind of way. He also drinks gin, which I admire in anyone.
Update: Fixed Jason's last name. That darned second "a" gets dropped each time. Thanks, Easton!
Your fingers are probably flying - just wanted to note that his last name is spelled "Calacanis."
Weblogs, Inc. is a very impressive network - thanks for sharing these notes, Diane!
Posted by: Easton Ellsworth | October 26, 2006 12:23 PM | Permalink to Comment