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View Full Version : Screen-scraper Doanalsin - Spot The Difference competition


chordie
10-Mar-11, 16:57
Spot the difference between the Hot News from our roving reporter here:

http://forum.caithness.org/showthread.php?138016-More-pay-for-councillors


And this news story on the BBC website:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-12700009



Nice to see that all that years of journalism taught him to acknowledge his sources when he does cut-n-paste.
rob murray
10-Mar-11, 17:01
Outrageous, The man should be transported to the colonies for a period no less than 10 years
RecQuery
10-Mar-11, 17:05
LOL, I like it. May as well just pull directly from the BBCs RSS, cut out the middle man.
Droopy
10-Mar-11, 17:13
Outrageous, The man should be transported to the colonies for a period no less than 10 years

At least he'd have a story to write then...:lol:
orkneycadian
10-Mar-11, 18:03
Whats the fuss about? He's changed the title hasn't he? And embellished it with a "5 words to the screen width" font?
orkneycadian
10-Mar-11, 18:29
Chordie,

Since you appear to be running a book in another thread, how about running one or a sweepstake on what the next piece of cloned news is going to be?
chordie
10-Mar-11, 18:35
Chordie,

Since you appear to be running a book in another thread, how about running one or a sweepstake on what the next piece of cloned news is going to be?

Oh, I don't know, let me think - maybe something copied off the NFU's website. I'll give you 4/1.
Thumper
10-Mar-11, 18:47
news is news,if he changed it much you would then be complaning that he had embellished it :roll: god sake what is it with all the griping and cattiness on here lately?The whole forum is going downhill rapidly!x
Metalattakk
10-Mar-11, 18:56
Big fuss about nothing as per usual, just more nit-picking at a favourite target.

I notice the BBC don't reference their source (http://www.google.com/hostednews/ukpress/article/ALeqM5iB8tWwVBjArcBdVm8gCsTIkJSuPQ?docId=N04098212 99766571254A)either.
orkneycadian
10-Mar-11, 19:03
Hmmm.... From the Forum rules here (http://forum.caithness.org/showthread.php?13581-Forum-Rules)...

Content From Other Web Sites
We have no problem with users pasting in passages from other web sites. We would prefer that anything posted in this manner comes with a link to the original or at the very least, gives credit where it is due. We will not tolerate people claiming to have written the piece when they have not. Users will find that it is easy to be caught out with this practice and it can be very embarrasing.

Plagiarism without proper credit carries is 1 Infraction point for 3 months

Now, wonder how many times I've done it.... :confused :)
Mystical Potato Head
10-Mar-11, 19:21
news is news,if he changed it much you would then be complaning that he had embellished it :roll: god sake what is it with all the griping and cattiness on here lately?The whole forum is going downhill rapidly!x

Yep,its the same 3 or 4 stooges on almost every thread who think they are oh so smart.Chips on shoulders and large egos.
unicorn
10-Mar-11, 19:38
Yup same old same old with some people, picking things apart to stoke their own egos' I suppose.
It must be great to have so much free time to pull other people apart.
Moira
11-Mar-11, 00:42
I find it strange that folk are unable to distinguish between a Newsreport by Noel Donaldson and a thread posted on the General Section. There is a difference.
Chalkie
11-Mar-11, 11:07
I'm surprised, with the wealth of knowledge that abounds here, that certain people do not know how the news business works. How is news passed round the globe? By "press release" of course.

Surely you didn't imagine local reporters were running all over the country or world even, gathering news.

Big institutions like the government and police, for example, release information and hope that the details are copied accurately.

Many stories in our local papers are based on the information in press releases without acknowledging the source.

So Noel is just doing what most reporters do.
orkneycadian
11-Mar-11, 12:19
:confused I must have been reading the sub heading Articles from local reporter Noel Donaldson wrong then.... I assumed this meant that all postings in there were the work of him.

Its confusing this news business! You can say that things are from a certain person, when they are not necessairly, but you dont need to credit who they are actually from? :confused
Chalkie
11-Mar-11, 15:31
Yes, you were reading it wrongly. It says "Articles from a local reporter" not Articles "by" a local reporter.