Jeremy wonders: > Should advertisements for Web auctions of film/TV-related materials be > permitted? > > On the one hand, Screen-L has always permitted postings from > commercial entities. E.g., film/TV publishers/distributors/magazines > who wish to announce new materials are allowed. So, there is some > precedence for advertisements on Screen-L. > > Moreover, an auction site such as eBay can be a good source for > off-brand film/video equipment (e.g., super-8 projectors) and film/TV > memorabilia--which can be useful in the teaching/research of film/TV. > If a Screen-L subscriber posts a search for such material, would there > be anything wrong in someone saying, "Oh yeah, you can find it on > eBay--auction #xxxxxx"? > > On the other hand, auction sites can encourage naked opportunism, > commercialism, and consumerism. Is this something Screen-L should > tacitly endorse? My immediate reaction is a qualified "No!" SCREEN-L doesn't have blinking banners, cookies, or other attempts to grab the reader and make him/her buy something, and I don't think it should be encouraged. I think that there is a qualitative difference between such appeals to to buy a product and things like notices about books, magazines, film festivals, and conferences that may be of special academic interest. It's the difference between Rutgers Press announcing a new series of scholarly film books and a set of announcements from Amazon, Borders, and Barnes & Noble each trying to undersell the other. There are so many potential sites for sales of hardware on and offline that the list could risk becoming a set of unpaid classified ads. However, there are other lists where advertisements for hardware of one kind or another might be especially welcome. None of this precludes someone from sending a specific query for a particular piece of equipment, as a few recent posts have done, or anyone from answering that query. It also does not preclude discussion about the merits of a particular brand or new form of technology (eg., the unlamented DIVX vs. DVD). I just think that such dicussion and information about places and prices should come from individual list members for particular purposes, not broad-based advertising by a commercial entity. Don Larson ---------------------- Donald Larsson Minnesota State U, Mankato [log in to unmask] ---- To sign off Screen-L, e-mail [log in to unmask] and put SIGNOFF Screen-L in the message. Problems? Contact [log in to unmask]