We all KNEW it was a gag...right?

June 10, 2001 11:28 AM

We all KNEW it was a gag...right? J-Ko hasn't sold out (but it's allright if he had) after all. Just some reassurance for all the left-of-center folks who questioned his motives.
posted by davidmsc (49 comments total)

Which reminds me...on a Friday several weeks ago, J-Ko encouraged us to click on the Yahoo! photo to get it to #1 on the charts. The x10 gag was attributed to a slow Friday, too. Looks like he needs a hobby to occupy his time on Fridays. Ideas?
posted by davidmsc at 11:30 AM on June 10, 2001

yawn...
why is this worthy of conversation? does Steve Jobs know that Jason Kottke has stolen his reality distortion field?
I like his page, but sheesh...
posted by machaus at 11:44 AM on June 10, 2001

it's worthy because its... um...

uh...

...

i have nothing.

why don't my updates on the pigeon farm ever mentioned on mefi?

/me inserts tongue in cheek.
posted by jcterminal at 11:58 AM on June 10, 2001

AUGH! Self link! Hope you've got your flame-proof clothing on...

Welcome back, Crow. I see you got an ISP. :)
posted by SpecialK at 12:23 PM on June 10, 2001

Although it was obviously a joke, it is an interesting topic for discussion (i.e. web log sites having advertising or charging). If you go to the Tomalak's Realm Yahoo Group, you'll see people trying to figure out how to keep Lawrence financially solvent so he can keep up with sending out the daily linkage (since it's an unwritten taboo to charge for it).
posted by timothompson at 12:39 PM on June 10, 2001

This has only become a conversation about web-economics because we have turned into such. What this has really been about is hanging on Jason's every word , and believing everything he says as gospel when he really is just yanking our chain. I agree that the net economy shake out is interesting, but I'd rather talk about something substantive like the tomalak thing than self-involved shenanigans.
posted by machaus at 1:11 PM on June 10, 2001

AUGH! Self link! Hope you've got your flame-proof clothing on...

It is well-established that a self-link within a comment is perfectly acceptable, especially if you label it as such. No foul.
posted by jpoulos at 1:11 PM on June 10, 2001

it's ok! it's a joke. me and specialk go way back...

...about a month.

:D
posted by jcterminal at 3:12 PM on June 10, 2001

This is just another example of a-list-blogger-narcissism.

I've been reading kottke.org for a while and it's no more entertaining or insightful than countless other, less known, blogs. I don't understand why so many treat him like he's celebrity.
posted by saturn5 at 3:26 PM on June 10, 2001

Next thing you know kottke will be hanging out at Laker games. Stop worshipping people, people.
posted by owillis at 3:40 PM on June 10, 2001

Like the Kaycee debacle, this proves that duping webloggers is easier than shooting fish in a barrel.

Manufactured hype. You know I love it.
posted by dr. zoidberg at 3:53 PM on June 10, 2001

saturn5, cal ripken jr. is almost a shoe-in to be voted in as the AL all-star 3B, even though his numbers are not as good as others. the bottom line is that both cal and jason have been around for a long time, and they have a high name recognition. is that narcissism, or simply a matter of course?

i don't think people who love kottke.org do so in spite of all of the other, perhaps better-written weblogs out there; they simply have a narrow list of frequently-read weblogs, and he's one of them.
posted by moz at 4:10 PM on June 10, 2001

Sweet mary mother of jesus, you're comparing baseball's Iron Man to kottke?!
posted by owillis at 4:20 PM on June 10, 2001

they simply have a narrow list of frequently-read weblogs, and he's one of them.

The Chauncey Gardener theory of celebrity?
posted by Opus Dark at 4:22 PM on June 10, 2001

MOZ, I agree with every point you made. It's possible my words were not understood as intended.

The point I attempted to make was that Jason's latest Friday-boredom-killer only serves as evidence of his growing ego.
posted by saturn5 at 4:29 PM on June 10, 2001

The point I attempted to make was that Jason's latest Friday-boredom-killer only serves as evidence of his growing ego.

Thanks for spelling that out, saturn5. It was so difficult to determine what you meant when you called him a narcissist.
posted by rcade at 4:43 PM on June 10, 2001

saturn5, build something like 0sil8.com, perhaps people will start reading your stuff religiously too. Mr Kottke has been doing good stuff on line since the dawn of time. That's why people keep coming back for more.
posted by prolific at 4:56 PM on June 10, 2001

The point I attempted to make was that Jason's latest Friday-boredom-killer only serves as evidence of his growing ego.

Connect the dots for me. How does it illustrate that? Take us through the whole argument.
posted by rodii at 4:58 PM on June 10, 2001

I'm not quite sure what the point of your post is rcade, but you're welcome, nonetheless.

In any case, I should be thanking you. I was going to explain the meaning of sarcasm to everyone but, it seems you already have a firm grasp of the concept.
posted by saturn5 at 5:01 PM on June 10, 2001

well, the way that i interpret kottke.org is that it's jason's homepage, and i think that complaints about his ego do not apply. the way i am reading your words saturn5, i think you're trying to say that jason has a responsibility to us — that he cannot do whatever he likes, but rather only what is "acceptable" to you. i think that, through sentiments like those is jason elevated to celebrity. maybe you don't have to look to others to answer the question why jason is treated like a celebrity.
posted by moz at 5:10 PM on June 10, 2001

saturn5, build something like 0sil8.com, perhaps people will start reading your stuff religiously too.

First, my critisism of Jason was restricted to this silly little advertising joke of his. What was the point? To gauge the reaction of his readers? Second, what gave you the impression that I: a) want to be read religiously or b) resent Kottke's large audience? In either case, my comment that his BLOG is average, stands. It's neither a critisism or a compliment.

Mr Kottke has been doing good stuff on line since the dawn of time. That's why people keep coming back for more.

You sound more like a follower than an admirer. Nevertheless, I agree that Jason's contibutions to the online community are numerous and of quality.
posted by saturn5 at 5:27 PM on June 10, 2001

MOZ, there is no hidden meaning in the comments I wrote. How did my comments infer anything in your conclusion?
posted by saturn5 at 5:41 PM on June 10, 2001

> ... evidence of his growing ego

Actually, the size of Jason's ego has been shrinking steadily for months now. From a high of nearly 27m³ it is now a paltry 6.8m³ — barely bigger than your average grad-student-turned-retail-clerk.



The downward trend is quite alarming. I respectfully ask everyone to be careful; any imprudent remark at this point could be enough to put him over the edge.
posted by sylloge at 5:42 PM on June 10, 2001

saturn5, you say that jason's site is an example not just of narcissism, but of "a-list" narcissism. i thought you had a point to mentioning that it's "a-list" besides making a statement of the obvious, that being that if a site really is a-list, its "ego" or narcissism should somehow be different (possibly toned down?) due to its popularity. sorry if you didn't mean anything by it. my own opinion is that just because someone is "a-list" does not mean that they have to change the way that they write or the means by which they communicate than if they were unknown.
posted by moz at 6:13 PM on June 10, 2001

What was the point? To gauge the reaction of his readers?

Maybe to amuse himself? Seems reasonable to me.
posted by kindall at 6:15 PM on June 10, 2001

Stewart Butterfield, will you marry me?
posted by bradlands at 6:49 PM on June 10, 2001

Sylloge (Who's the face behind the name, anyway?), I'm so sorry to hear that your cat died.
posted by bryanboyer at 6:59 PM on June 10, 2001

I wasn't able to tell if Jason was kidding or not when he added the ads to his site and then followed up with an explanation here on Metafilter. I took him at face value and took the time to blog my own thoughts on the issue.

Now, finding out that he was just joking around, I do feel a bit gullible and foolish. Another example when my trust in someone's electronic words turned out to be misplaced. Fool me once...

The fact that I'm feeling foolish, however, is my problem, and not Jason's. Jason, like all of us, can do and say whatever he wants, just as we are all free to form our own opinions.
posted by Calebos at 7:31 PM on June 10, 2001

If there's sarcasm in your original post, Saturn5, I couldn't find it. I also can't find the narcissism in putting an X10 ad on a weblog. It seemed like a sly way to make note of the X10 phenomenon and play with reader sensibilities about the non-commercial nature of weblogs. But I guess I'm just another one of J-Ko's followers.
posted by rcade at 7:39 PM on June 10, 2001

Narcissism has no place on the web.
posted by halcyon at 7:44 PM on June 10, 2001

halcyon: Thank You.

next thing you know, J-Ko will be putting his naked butt on his website for the world to ogle. - rcb
posted by rebeccablood at 8:14 PM on June 10, 2001

Stewart is a fuggin' genius. He ought to have his own weblog.
posted by rodii at 8:41 PM on June 10, 2001

My tongue-in-cheek theory on the bipolar phenomenon of internet micro-celebrity:
Some people will do anything to maintain their sense of inferiority, while other people feel a need to vehemently deny that any such possibility could exist.

Vaya con ovejas.
posted by cardboard at 8:56 PM on June 10, 2001

next thing you know, J-Ko will be putting his naked butt on his website for the world to ogle.

C'mon, I doubt even Kottke would be that pathetic in his need of attention.
posted by bradlands at 10:28 PM on June 10, 2001

God I miss the "I am Jason Kottke" meme.

Glory days, my friends. Glory days.
posted by CrazyUncleJoe at 11:19 PM on June 10, 2001

Sylloge, nice use of silkscreen!
posted by FPN at 3:59 AM on June 11, 2001

If this is how people react to J-Ko, I'm glad that MeFi wasn't around for Carl in his Dianabear days.
posted by holgate at 4:21 AM on June 11, 2001

Has anyone got an 'A'-List FAQ?

I simply don't have time to keep up with who's done what to who and why.

JKottke? He Does Glassdog right? Is he shagging Matthowie? Who's Brad? When does Bobby wake up to find it was all a dream and VC funding still flows like wine?
posted by fullerine at 4:30 AM on June 11, 2001

MOZ, when I made the "narcissism" comment, it was in reference to the "joke" and not the blog in its entirety.
posted by saturn5 at 5:18 AM on June 11, 2001

...I would also like to add that at no time did I condemn Jason for any of his "behavior". I merely labeled the one action, last Friday, as being narcissistic. I never eluded to whether or not I think that the "narcissism" was "good" or "bad". That being said, I'm really curious why so may of you have taken such offense to my remark.
posted by saturn5 at 5:30 AM on June 11, 2001

As you have a picture of yourself as the heading of your weblog entries, and have your own name written at least 3 times above the fold, I think we know your position on narcissism. ;)
posted by FPN at 6:23 AM on June 11, 2001

I don't know about anyone else, but for me at least "A-list" is a running joke. I don't take it seriously, but it's fun to kid people about it. (Especially since I'm not on it, sob. Thank goodness for the "C-list".)

The last place I used to work, employee identification numbers were sequentially assigned, so a person with a low number had a lot of longevity. The number was on someone's badge (which we were all required to wear at all times) so you could see them, and it was a running gag to kid someone with a low number, things like "Well, he must be right; after all, his badge number only has three digits."
posted by Steven Den Beste at 6:26 AM on June 11, 2001

Saturn5: I took offense because there's a specific group of people whose work can't be praised, or even discussed, without this goofy "A-list" resentment perpetually cropping up, as if this were an S.E. Hinton novel.
posted by rcade at 8:52 AM on June 11, 2001

That's right. And if you object to it, you're categorized as some sort of A-list lackey and therefore part of the conspiracy.

Other people can make a joke or a pull a prank without it being characterized as narcissism. But when you're an "A-lister", everything has to be viewed through the lens of your so-called fame, or your supposed lust for egoboo, or your desire to suck up to J-Ko, or whatever form the resentment takes on that particular occasion. Just give the whole meme a rest.
posted by rodii at 10:23 AM on June 11, 2001

I get to be Soda Pop!
posted by CrazyUncleJoe at 11:29 AM on June 11, 2001

Simple enough: I enjoy reading J-Ko's occasional postings. His attitude (reflected via his font), his writing style, and his observations are at once casual and witty enough to make me come back the next day. I have a list of blogs that I check daily, and his just happens to be one of them. C'mon, you've gotta admit that the x10 thing was pretty funny, coming on the heels of the recent MeFi thread/s. And the *perfect Powerpoint* slide? Genius. Narcissistic? Perhaps...but so what? It's still entertaining. Lay off, already, people -- if you don't like kottke.org, don't read it.
posted by davidmsc at 3:36 PM on June 11, 2001

You know, if you all keep pestering the poor guy, he's gonna go all Eddie and the Cruisers on us.....
posted by jessamyn at 6:41 PM on June 11, 2001

Ladies and Gentlemen, please put your hands together for The Beaver Brown Kottke.
posted by CrazyUncleJoe at 9:08 PM on June 11, 2001

rodii: That's right. And if you object to it, you're categorized as some sort of A-list lackey and therefore part of the conspiracy

Note & half-aside whisper to self: rodii knows too much.
posted by davidmsc at 10:33 PM on November 9, 2001