The day I lost my innocence

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mikenixon
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The day I lost my innocence

#1

Post by mikenixon »

It was heady, surreal. Having been invited to a private luncheon given by one of the sport's premier motorcycle touring magazines, surrounded by senior editors and contributors whose names were household words within the moto-marketplace, I was excited to be included in the meeting's agenda of discussing the magazine's next issue. I was there because I had been invited to work alongside these accomplished writers. I was excited, thrilled, beside myself.

And incredibly naive. As if it were a bad dream, on that bright afternoon, objectivity, competence, experience and understanding, were vigorously and bald-facedly discouraged. In no uncertain terms I was directed to cater to one of the magazine's top advertisers, a then-prominent synthetic motor oil retailer, in my contracted articles. Over Shrimp Scampi, in Southern California's lofty Agoura Hills, I sought confirmation among the seven at table of what I seemed to be hearing. But it was unmistakable and disheartening. Sick with the loss of my innocence and subsequent to confirming phone calls and letters, I could not to come to terms with this brand of journalism. After agreeing to a generous "kill fee" I moved on to more of life's hard lessons. And you can bet I've not looked at magazines the same way since this episode almost 40 years ago.

Despite the experience I never gave up writing, ultimately landing a succession of increasingly responsible technical writing posts in which I could practice the craft, and enjoying a very rewarding and stimulating vocation.
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Whiskerfish
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Re: The day I lost my innocence

#2

Post by Whiskerfish »

Sad but so many things are all about the dollar not the truth. That is why sometimes accepting a different path in life (maybe more difficult) is much more satisfying.
Good on ya for walking away from it.
"Agreement is not a requirement for Respect" CDR Michael Smith USN (Ret) 2017
"The book is wrong, this whole Conclusion is Fallacious" River Tam
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Psst. oh and by the way CHANGE YOUR BELTS!!!!
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5speed
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Re: The day I lost my innocence

#3

Post by 5speed »

darn..I thought this was going to involve the prom queen and a secluded spot in a 57 chevy. :mrgreen:
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Re: The day I lost my innocence

#4

Post by wingandaprayer »

darn..I thought this was going to involve the prom queen and a secluded spot in a 57 chevy. :-D

Me too lol

On the subject of advertising, in the UK in the 1970s Bike magazine was known for its irreverence, and loved for it.
They published a road test on the early GL1000 and described it as a pointless 2-wheel car.
And promptly lost Honda's huge advertising budget.
Things were never quite the same again.

(All done from memory, feel free to fact-check me)

Cheers
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Re: The day I lost my innocence

#5

Post by rcmatt007 »

It is the very reason we do not allow Drug Reps to give presentations (or samples) to our resident physicians.
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mikenixon
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Re: The day I lost my innocence

#6

Post by mikenixon »

wingandaprayer wrote:On the subject of advertising, in the UK in the 1970s Bike magazine was known for its irreverence, and loved for it.
They published a road test on the early GL1000 and described it as a pointless 2-wheel car.
And promptly lost Honda's huge advertising budget.
Things were never quite the same again.

(All done from memory, feel free to fact-check me)

Cheers
:)
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Sidecar Bob
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Re: The day I lost my innocence

#7

Post by Sidecar Bob »

My son (who had a background in electronics and computer programming) worked in telephone tech support for a few years. When he started there he tried to use his knowledge to help people that called with problems and he was told not to because company policy was to go strictly by the scripts provided.

He felt much the way you did.
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mikenixon
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Re: The day I lost my innocence

#8

Post by mikenixon »

:)
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