AOL/Huffington Post Fires Moviefone Editor Who Asked Freelancers to Work for Free

On Thursday, April 7, 2011 FoxNews.com reported that a top editor at AOL’s Huffington Post Media Group’s Moviefone was fired Wednesday after suggesting in an email that terminated freelancers should consider contributing to the website for free, the Wall Street Journal reports.

Some critics say the decision to fire Moviefone Editor-in-Chief Patricia Chiu is hypocritical considering Huffington Post’s controversial longtime practice of not paying contributors to the site.


Chiu reportedly circulated a memo to freelancers and bloggers who had just received notice that they were fired as part of a company restructuring that would include a move back to using mostly paid staff journalists. But it was her suggestion that the freelancers should continue to work for free that reportedly landed Chiu in hot water.
“We will, indeed, be moving away from a freelancer model and toward one relying on full-time staffers,” the e-mail read. “Sometime soon – this week, I believe – many of you will be receiving an [email] informing you that your services as a freelancer will no longer be required. You will be invited to contribute as part of our non-paid blogger system; and though I know that for many of you this will not be an option financially, I strongly encourage you to consider it if you/d like to keep writing for us, because we value all of your voices and input.”
Last month, the national Newspaper Guild called for a boycott of Huffington Post after a “refusal to compensate its thousands of writers in the wake of its $315 million merger with AOL.”

But AOL/Huffington Post rep Mario Ruiz defended the website’s practices, saying most of their free bloggers are “not professional writers.”
“People blog on HuffPost for free for the same reason they go on cable TV shows every night for free: because they are passionate about their ideas, want them to be heard by the largest possible audience, and understand the value that that kind of visibility can bring,” Ruiz told FoxNews.com in a March email.
“There’s no commitment; they can post as frequently or infrequently as they would like to. The Huffington Post makes no claim of ownership over their posts, and they can cross-post on other sites, including their own,” he said.
According to the Wall Street Journal, the email wasn’t Chiu’s first misstep.
Several weeks ago, she reportedly urged staffers to take into consideration the need to maintain positive relationships with movie studios when making editorial decisions.
“The reality of our situation is that, as a movies site, we work with movie studios every day, and it is in our best interests to stay on good terms with them,” she is quoted as writing. “Staying on good terms with studios means that we will relay information if asked. It does not mean that we would ever force a writer or an editor to edit their work for the sake of a studio – or anyone else.”


AOL’s $315 million purchase of HuffingtonPost has resulted in AOL laying off roughly 20 percent of its workforce, or about 900 employees. According to the New York Post, none of Huffington Post’s staff was affected.
On Wednesday, AOL also fired the last of its freelancers at its business and finance sites, AOL Daily Finance and Walletpop. According to Business Insider, the full-time staff at those sites is down to 1-2 employees.
FoxNews.com’s Diane Macedo contributed to this report.

Source: FoxNews.com

Editor’s Note: It is sad the big online media sites want writer to work for free and yes some are bloggers but the same expectations are demanded from them. Many bloggers did not went to school for journalism but still they are doing a great job in telling us the news.

About Esteban "Steven" Escobar

Executive Editor In Chief, Director of Public/Media Relations & Community Affairs, Sales, Reporter, Webmaster & Graphic Designer Specialist. About Esteban “Steven” Escobar: Esteban A. Escobar (born in El Salvador, Central America on September 6th) is an Award Winning American (Journalist, reporter, editor, columnist, writer, producer, director, publicist, radio personality, accounts receivable specialist, humanitarian and philanthropist). Esteban is known as Steven Escobar. He is the Executive Editor-In-Chief of Diversity News Magazine, an online & special print consumer news magazine that is visited by close to two million visitors a month while growing each day. Esteban “Steven” Escobar is also Producer, Director of Diversity News TV, the host of Diversity News Radio, on Air with Steven Escobar and the President of Diversity News Publications, a news/entertainment multimedia firm in Hollywood, CA. Steven Escobar owns E.E.Enterprises and an affiliate of The Diversity News Publications Family of Companies. Steven Escobar is also the official Hollywood and Los Angeles County Events Examiner for Examiner.com and contributor for Yahoo.com distributed via Yahoo Voices. Steven Escobar also gives back to the community by helping charities, and since 2003 to the present, he has been raising money and awareness for AIDS Walk LA benefiting AIDS Project Los Angeles. Also in 2011 Steven Escobar raised money and awareness for The Life Group LA and volunteered for Exotifit For Humanity and The Human Rights Campaign Los Angeles Steering Committee. Steven was nominated for The Shorty Awards 2011 and the People’s Choice Fan Award 2012. In 2012 Steven Escobar receives the Humanitarian Award at the 2012 International Noble Awards. Also on June 2, 2012 Steven Escobar Received the Community and Humanitarian Services Award at Kayamanan ng Bayan for all his contributions to the Filipino American community in Southern California. On 12-12-12 Steven Escobar received Award for Most Fascinating Person of the Year 2012. On 2-22-2013 Steven Escobar is nominated for a 2013 EOTM Award (Entrepreneurs on the Move) for Outstanding Journalist and on April 25, 2013 receives nomination for 2013 EOTM Award for Outstanding Internet Radio. On April 4, 2013 Steven Escobar receives award for Diversity News TV “Best B-Roll." Yahoo.com names Steven Escobar the Hot 500 contributors during the month of March 2012 of Yahoo! Contributor Network. Steven Escobar currently resides in Los Angeles County in the City of Hollywood, CA. For more information visithttp://www.stevenescobar.diversitynewspublications.com, http://www.stevenescobar.blogspot.com or his IMDB at http://www.imdb.com/name/nm4164655/

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