Once again the self-appointed righteous are out in force. I see this happen a lot. Travel bloggers as a whole are a pretty generous lot. When it comes to helping each other out and donating to causes I have seen them do some amazing things. There is, however, a small group of people that always seem to find fault in what others do. Some time back there was a heated discussion on advertising, with some saying that is was akin to selling out. There have been other such ongoing spats from time to time. It seems that some people are not happy when a blogger finds success or they don’t like their viewpoints, method of travel, who or what they take photos of or something else.
Recently Kobi and Gabi Klaf of The Nomadic Family were openly attacked by a newspaper in Israel saying they were abusing their children for having them travel and not be in school. My personal opinion is that the kids are probably getting a world class education. They are traveling and experiencing people, places and cultures that most others will never see. What a fantastic education.
Another such disagreement happened on Twitter between a few travel bloggers over the Travel Bloggers Calendar. I won’t mention the names of those involved but one blogger basically said that it was vain and ego driven for those that participated. A few sites have even jumped on the bandwagon dismissing the idea as silly and futile. I won’t mention those sites either because there is no need to give them the publicity. But let’s see here, New York Firefighters have been posing for calendars for years. Airline crews, Farmers, Sports Teams have all participated in Charity Calendars and who can forget the lovely ladies of Calendar Girls who bared all for Charity. I guess they all did it because they were vain and ego driven.
It seems that there will always be someone that wants to openly disagree and cause a problem where none exists. I think it might be because they read somewhere that if you cause a controversy people will flock to read what you have to say and then leave tons of comments on your blog. That does work but only for a short time. No one really wants to put up with loud mouth, complaining jerk in person and after a while no one really cares what they write either.
As far as the Travel Bloggers Calendar goes, I say good for those that participated and I hope they earn a boat load of cash for charity.
UPDATE 3 Feb 2013
Today I received an update from Jeremy Foster, one of the bloggers behind the calendar.
Instead, people were more focused on slinging mud. The whole project was for the sake of charity and that aspect of this project was almost entirely overlooked by the travel blogging community.
We realize that we are not celebrities, but it was nice to feel like it for a short while. We realize that you are not dying to buy this calendar so that you can hang some no-name bloggers on your wall. What we hoped is that you would support your fellow bloggers and friends and donate to two causes which are tirelessly in need of assistance.
We marketed the living hell out of this thing. Our efforts did not fall short. What fell short, ultimately, was the backing we received. At $25 a pop, with free worldwide shipping, it was not a big ask. I now find myself feeling disappointed and I wonder if I can even call this a community anymore.
If you’d still like to purchase a calendar, we have stock left. Please visit http://www.TravelBloggingCalendar.com.”
I have learned that for the most part Travel Bloggers are a generous group. Whether it is helping other bloggers or supporting charities. There is no shortage of charities that various bloggers have supported over the past and will continue to do so. Most that have read this blog for awhile know I have a soft spot for the Philippines so I searched and found a charity that gives a majority of funds donated to the cause and not to administrative fees. I have supported the charity and encouraged my readers and others to do so. That being said I think what Jeremy and others did is commendable and they thought outside the box and came up with a new idea instead of others, me included, that have just stated a need and asked others to donate. However it is done, whether my way, a group of bloggers banding together, personal fund raising or any other way I believe the intention is good and should be supported.
The Calendar caused an uproar with bloggers and others, some aghast at the idea and others in total support. I didn’t see anything wrong in the calendar and still don’t. I have tried a lot of things in the past that I was convinced were great ideas but for whatever reason didn’t pan out. I would suggest to those involved with the calendar not to feel too bad about the success of their efforts and continue to do whatever they can to find causes they can support in whatever way they can.
I really appreciate this post and your opinion. I have to agree with everything you said, well done!
Thanks for all you do
Thank you for your post. Unfortunately there will always be people out there who direct their negativity towards others. I think congratulations are in order for the people who have created this calendar and for any blogger who’s successfully used advertising/sponsorship to fund their travels.
Thanks for stopping by and expressing your views I appreciate it.
Thanks for the big thumbs up mate, much appreciated and fingers crossed we make some good sales.
Thank you for your post and your kind words! Our goal is to raise $10,000 for these charities and posts like this will help us do just that!!! Cheers for your contribution 🙂
Thanks for all your hard work and generosity Jess.
This story seems to be normal for me. Because some people don’t tolerate your success and therefore they try to do whatever they can to hinder your progress, it has happened to me many tines. What i do in a situation like that it Just IGNORE them.
Sometimes that is best.
The negativity of Haters can be toxic, and it’s even more annoying when it’s done just to get attention. It seems ironic that the site in question has a misspelling of the word “News” in its name, as it was perhaps the least newsworthy post I’ve ever seen on an industry-related website. Thanks for drawing attention to the calendars and our attempts to raise $$$ for charity!
I think that is the case in a lot of circumstances where it is done just to get attention.
Interesting post! Its a pity that it has to revert to hatred and nastiness as it distracts from open dialogue about blogging as a growing profession. I’m all for people suggesting that blogs are selling out if they are putting advertising on their site if that’s their thoughts, however they just cant bag it without coming up with a more constructive way for bloggers to make an income or in a constructive manner that allows the blogging community to develop overall.
Unfortunately instead of an open dialogue it often turns into a public name calling match where someone wants to impose their standards and way of doing things.
Well said. These were my thoughts when witnessing the whole twitter debate… I really can’t see the harm in the calendar at all and especially if it is for a good cause.
I don’t like the current trend of certain travel bloggers acting like they know the only one right way of doing things and looking down their noses at everyone else for doing it “wrong”. There are no rules and who really cares what other travel bloggers do? The critic in question here chastised these travel bloggers for acting “like Ryanair” when he thought they should be acting like a “luxury Middle East airline”, but that’s just silly. Who says all travel bloggers have to have this type of brand? We are all different people so we will all have different styles!
Also, it makes me laugh when almost every travel blogger argument on Twitter comes back to, “Oh yeah, well I have more followers than you!” Just because you have followers doesn’t mean you are not being a jerk. If Hitler had a Twitter account, he would probably have a lot of followers.
Anyways, let’s all stop judging each other and being mean and just have fun travel blogging in our own styles. 🙂
I don’t really appreciate when people declare themselves “the” authority and lecture others as to how to run their business. Maybe that’s why I quit reading on that particular website a long time ago.
would you be kind enough to e-mail me the name of this person who started this whole debacle? I really want to know the name, but don’t want to give him/her publicity here 😉
– Maria Alexandra
There you have it. Kevin gave you his email.
Thanks for the kind words, mate. Good to see not everybody thinks we’re being vain and selfish, haha
Best of luck on sales.
I certainly embarked on the project more in the spirit of Calendar Girls than under the delusion I was in the Spice Girls.
I think it was a great idea.
oh come on, don’t bring my happy childhood and Spice Girls into this!
– Maria Alexandra
Thanks for sharing some positivity 🙂
My pleasure, good luck on the project.
“Calendar Girls” sprung to mind immediately for me too when I read the negative article. It’s all in the name of fun for a good cause, not to be taken too seriously!
Agree, don’t see any reason to bash those involved just because you don’t like it.
I cannot understand why some people are having problems with the calendars. There plenty out there full of photos of spectacular scenery. These calendars are different because they feature travel bloggers we follow. I suspect the criticism is down to jealousy for not being involved. In the end the money raised is going to a good cause.
I agree completely Steve. Thanks for stopping by.
Thanks for the kind words and support! We just hope all the other bloggers who agree with us will support us by donating to our cause. If we can reach our goal, the numbers will speak for themselves.
Wish you and the rest the best of luck Jeremy.
People are always going to find something to complain about…. but a charity calendar… come on….
Now if I was featured in the calendar I could see a reason for complaining.
Cheers for the article. Gone over the arguments for and against the calendar intensely over the weekend elsewhere. Happy to see the debate continuing here.
Just two things:
@bret – deliberately “nooz” in Tnooz, not a typo, as you propose.
@kelly – i’m very glad to say that at no point at all during the unfortunate twitter scrap on Saturday did we ever mention number of followers/fans as a debating point. That would be rather silly, as you suggest.
Thanks for the opportunity to add these comments.
Kevin, Thanks for stopping by and appreciate the clarification. Feel free to stop by again and give us your point of view on the article you wrote or the comments posted here. Personally I see nothing wrong with the calendar or the attempt to support charities. Unless you see it otherwise.
Great stuff…never have understood why some have to create division within our community, instead of helping to build it up and “raise all ships” in the process.
Thanks for the tip of the hat Deej, I agree, it can only be good helping each other out rather than bashing people who put themselves ‘out there’ in this case quite literally.
I think there can be a lot of self-righteousness among people who travel a lot – as much as I love the travel blogging community, it can be really easy to decide that since YOU are so worldly and well-traveled and enlightened, YOU must know best. Not particularly compassionate, though.
If your talking about me I can assure you I don’t know what is best but I also don’t bash others for what I have deemed not up to my standards or try to belittle them or their projects.
I don’t understand the controversy created by something people decided to do to help others out. WHY are there always the complainers, even about things that are nice. I guess everyone is entitled to their opinion, but why can’t people look at the ultimate goal of this project? All I can do is shake my head and my opinion is this idea is a great idea. Wish I could be on the calendar, but you may not sell as many copies! LOL 🙂
The people who have the means, inspiration, creativity, and the know how NEED to reach out and help others. The world we travel, or wander upon in my case, can only survive if we all work together to make it a better place for all mankind; not just the few. I believe the ultimate goal to help better children’s lives and eradicate poverty in some ‘pixel’ sized spot in a world full of places of suffering is admirable; and this should only be a starting point for the rest of us to get involved in whatever way we can. Maybe if the complainers saw some of this suffering up close, like some of us have, there would be a different attitude toward this project.
HUGE KUDOS to “The Calendars For A Charitable Cause”. YOU ROCK 🙂
I agree, I think it is commendable for anyone that sees a need and attempts to help. And I wish the creators and participants of Travel Blogging Calendar the best.
I can never understand when people complain about charity projects.
So they posed in a bikini to raise funds…so what?! Advertisement agencies do it ALL the time: Beautiful people on billboards and other ads in order to lure consumers into buying their products.
A couple of attractive travel bloggers get together in order to help some CHARITIES and people bashed them?! Furthermore, people from their OWN community! People are utterly ridiculous sometimes, seriously.
It makes me sad to see how the travel blogging industry keeps getting polarized by today. Seriously, we used to be such a nice little group, but now that we’re getting some attention from outside sources, some of us have gotten quite b**chy. Wtf? *smh*
Personally, I am PROUD to be part of this project, helping communities in the process. I hope we sell A LOT of calendars!
– Maria Alexandra
Well said, I hope you sell a lot also.
Maybe they should have used older, overweight possibly, bald, and wrinkly travel bloggers. Or candid photos of how we actually look like when we are blogging! LOL That would have helped sell the calendar and had them achieve their charity goals….. NOT
You can reach me here: Kevin[at]tnooz.com
Happy to chat via email, Maria, if that’s what you’re looking for.
Kevin, I appreciate your being willing to answer some of the questions so many have expressed. After reading the comments here and elsewhere it seems most people do not have a problem with the calendar and even support it. Are you still against it?
Thx for opportunity to discuss here.
As previously stated, right at the beginning of the saga, we look at everything through the prism of the industry perspective.
Out opinion comes after hearing and listening to the comments of countless people in the industry who have the PERSPECTIVE that the so-called community is inward looking, not reaching out beyond those they copiously retweet and hang out with.
The calendar, though for a VERY WORTHY cause, does not do anything to shift that mindset.
So, the original article still stands, in that regard.
To be pilloried for having an opinion about something is disappointing. It is opinions and personality that makes what so many of do (we hope) stand out from the crowd. Don’t forget that.
Yes, we took a hard(ish) line on this, but it was just an opinion.
Depressingly, to eventually be threatened with a black eye (yes, physical violence) for merely stating an opinion says a lot about how some react to the merest piece of criticism.
The world of publishing is not one giant love-in – at some point, shock horror, someone is going to disagree with what another person says.
Get used to it.
Kevin, Thanks for commenting and leaving your point of view. Let me address what you said.
As previously stated, right at the beginning of the saga, we look at everything through the prism of the industry perspective.
Out opinion comes after hearing and listening to the comments of countless people in the industry who have the PERSPECTIVE that the so-called community is inward looking, not reaching out beyond those they copiously retweet and hang out with.
To be pilloried for having an opinion about something is disappointing. It is opinions and personality that makes what so many of do (we hope) stand out from the crowd. Don’t forget that.
Yes, we took a hard(ish) line on this, but it was just an opinion.
Thx again for quite clearly being the most constructive and rational person on the “against” side of the debate (i.e. against the original article).
And cheers for allowing me to respond.
The web would be a terrifyingly dull place if everyone had the same point of view and, as I have said continually, I was simply outlining an opinion based on what we hear from our contacts in the industry on a pretty regular basis.
Many bloggers produce great content, and it could be incredibly valuable to new readers, you know, travel consumers (often via industry partners), but what puts many organisations off from collaborating is THE SENSE AND PERCEPTION that the so-called community is insular, writes for itself, is too focused on process rather than content.
I was very proud to have moderated a fantastic session at WTM this week where six bloggers outlined some amazing initiatives they have worked on during 2012. Quality stuff, straight out of the top drawer.
An industry figure I know very well came up to me in the hallway after and said (paraphrasing here a bit): “Excellent!! That’s the innovation we want to see from travel bloggers. Not the endless retweeting of one other’s silly lists of things to do in destinations, blogging about blogging and the community.”
You get the point.
What have I learned from the exercise? Not a lot really. We get into scraps with people all the time and would rather trigger debate or discussion about a topic which we know has polarising views. Media brands do that all the time.
I’ve also learned that some people really need to grow a thicker skin if they want to have a presence on the web. If they can’t take a bit of criticism on the chin and debate rationally then they would probably do well to at least not demonstrate their anger so publicly in the future. It does them, their apparent arguments and their brand no credit at all.
I agree that there is a lot of content on blogs that organizations might find “fluff material”, some on this blog. Since a lot of blogs are not niche sites (hostel guides, pet friendly parks etc.) but general travel blog sites you wind up with a mix of humorous stories,lists of what to do in cities, destination pieces and so forth in an attempt to appeal to a wide audience. There are arguments for and against such approaches but the fact is that is what most do.
Speaking for myself I would like to see the industry approach bloggers they might want to work with whether on an individual case or in a members forum type setting and say “we want to partner for an article or series of articles relating to …” There are a lot of bloggers that are not full time nomads and as such don’t personally contact tourism departments and travel brands to get a feel of what message they would like to portray. As a result you look at what posts are popular from your readers standpoint and when “Top 10 bars in Botswana” ranks up there you tend to give the reader more of that.
Of course reading industry news and following trends can help in formulating stories but when you are a staff of one trying to appeal to your readers, you can only do so much.
I also agree that a thick skin is needed not only for criticism from your peers but your readers.
COMMENTS ON THIS TOPIC WILL BE CLOSED SHORTLY
Just out of curiosity, why are you closing comments on this post?
I am not closing comments now but I think after a certain point after all sides on the situation have made themselves heard then it almost becomes counter productive. But if people want to comment for awhile then it will remain open.
A lot of people have left our Facebook groups, where travel bloggers should be helping each other just because of the haters, complainers etc. It frustrates and saddens me – people need to get over themselves, offer help or be quiet. Anyway, the calendar is a fun and cute project to raise money for charity! I like the idea, why not?
I agree Cheryl, no need to create a lot of drama over a charity calendar.
@cheryl – really? did they say they left the FB groups because of the criticism of the calendar? that’s very peculiar…
Yep. I left all of them because of all the narkiness that goes on in them. Only just randomly stumbled upon this catfight today. So glad I’ve left them all so the poison no longer infiltrates my life. Been Soooo great without it.
I don’t give a shit what anyone else is doing, because I am so happy with what I am.
Do your own thing. Ignore every one else. Help as much as you can! Looks like all the boxes were checked for the calendar peeps.
Time to head back to the peace hole!
I agree, and it hasn’t hurt you a bit for those that haven’t found it yet Caz runs a great site.
It’s a pity that people feel they need to waste so much energy chastising other people for their choices – especially when it doesn’t directly affect them. I’ve never understood it.
Hi all…
As we promised in our original article, following up to get a sense of how many calendars were sold and delivered in the end, and how much was raised for good causes.
Any feedback people can share would be useful and we will gladly update our original story. Always happy to be proven wrong!
I have sent in a request for an update on how things are going and hope to put out an update soon.
great – looking forward to hearing how it turned out in the end.
Hey – did you get any response about how it went?
Efforts at our end have proven fruitless so far…
Kev
Hi Kevin,
I’m going to be releasing a statement soon. Cheers!
Jeremy
Still waiting for our to arrive in the mail – Men of Travel Blogging – can’t wait to spend some one on one time with it 😛
well I know you will enjoy. 🙂
Jeremy Foster has kindly given us an update today…
http://www.tnooz.com/2013/02/04/news/travel-blogging-calendar-project-falls-flat-organisers-blame-rest-of-travel-blogging-community/