In Chris’ defense, I guess I should have clarified when doing the interview that Mortified is not doing UGC directly in relation to our new ‘video show’.

However, we have (as SR noted) for many years already had a popular UGC component to Mortified (Woe & Tell: getmortified.com/woe), which allows unfiltered user contributions in a manner that we believe adds value to our brand. And we are actively working on ways to make this existing version more modern (resources being the biggest hurdle).

Admittedly, our current UGC model is very antiquated and in need of a major update (hence submissions were shut down due to the efforts of a militant, anti-semitic hacker who plastered our site with propaganda). But for all its shortcomings, our UGC section gets the job done… and lots of people enjoy it, blog about it, and even cover it in the media.

So given our resources as a very small, grassroots organization with healthy press but minimal funding, this is what we have to offer for now.

We fully recognize the benefits of UGC, and when we are able to harness it better than we already do — in a manner we can afford and feel comfortable with — we will. This model just may not tie directly into our video show per se.

Hope that clarifies.

As for SR, yes, doing UGC for the sake of doing UGC can be damaging if done poorly. Especially if you are a small brand that cannot easily deflect mistakes. Some UGC content can indeed add clutter rather than value. It all depends on the type of content you are asking people to submit. Indeed, this is a subject we have given a lot of thought to over the years.

Anyway, it’s a discussion worth seeing more of… as it relates to things MUCH bigger than little old us.

In short, you are both right. (And we hope that doesn’t sound like a cop out answer.)

That’s a pretty good idea, but Comcast is totally missing the potential of amateur content and user participation.

Or the Macrovision piece last month, where Chris wrote:

TV Guide may be the go-to source for professional, mainstream content, but it basically ignores independently-produced video.

Maybe I’m overreacting a little because it’s Monday and I’m grumpy. Before we ask “where’s the UGC?” perhaps we should ask “what would UGC add to this, and what would it take away.” With a concept like Mortified, isn’t there a real danger people would start just making stuff up?

I have no connection to Mortified (or Comcast, TV Guide or any other business discussed herein), but it seems to me that Mortified is trying to build a brand, like This American Life on NPR, or The Moth reading series, or even someone like ZeFrank. Ze found really smart ways to invite his audience to participate, and maybe once Mortified establishes themselves they will too. I see they’re already taking text and photos (or were until they were hacked: http://www.getmortified.com/woe/submitform_temp.php).

Thanks for the comment. But for something like Mortified, which is based entirely on the stories of everyday people, it seems like a natural fit to include a UGC component.

I read NTV regularly because you’re reliably on top of the news. But when you drift from reporting to analysis, some very weird, seemingly unsupported biases show.