From Zemiro To Zero

I received an email yesterday, purportedly from Julia Zemiro. I presume she is either referring to this post or this post, although she could really be talking about any of my Thank God You're Here (TGYH) posts. Maybe she's talking about all of them, in a general sense.


If it even was Julia herself (and not some blog reader amusing themselves - which is equally likely), then this is an interesting development in the history of I Blogged Myself. It's the first time that a celebrity being discussed on these pages has 'Googled' themselves (or been directed here by someone else) and read my words about them. At least, it's the first time that it's happened that I'm aware of.

Here is the email in its entirety. I will not include the email address in case it's real (a courtesy I would extend to anyone who emailed me, whether they were being positive or negative).

Hi there,

You know it's weird reading people's opinion on your work. Blogs afford the opportunity for anyone to be an expert critic And write what they like.

Those who can do, and those who can't ... Write blogs.

Cheers
Julia Zemiro

It certainly doesn't read like a prank email, but I suppose this could be anybody. The interesting thing about it is that I've re-read my original posts that featured her two appearances on the show, and they really weren't that bad at all. I thought I was pretty fair in my assessment of the job she did - including highlighting her funnier lines and ending with an overall compliment on the work she did. So why would she be miffed with me?

Well, the idea with which she finished the email sums it up. The old "tall poppy syndrome".

Julia, if you're reading this (and if the email was genuinely from you), I'm sorry if what I wrote offended you in any way. I'm not retracting my summary of the shows in question, but it certainly wasn't my intention to offend you or even speak badly of you. In fact, I don't think that I did. I trust your motivation for emailing me is more than the fact that I somehow hit a raw nerve in regards to your skills and ability, because I know that you're a seasoned performer and would clearly be way above being bothered by the view of some low-level fool and the thoughts he publishes on his blog. It would appear instead that you're upset about my ability to exercise free speech concerning the television shows I watch. Surely we don't need to get into an argument over such basic rights?

Perhaps you're actually more indignant about the way I spoke of other people on the show, rather than what I said about yourself. Someone like Tom Gleisner or any of the others involved with TGYH. Perhaps you take exception to my rant and rave over Judith Lucy, or the it-wasn't-but-it-could-end-up-in-an-argument-about-it-if-someone-thought-it-was sexual generalisation my wife brought up. If any of these are the case, all I can say is you've got to read my comments in context, as any reader of my blog would do, and see the development of the Judith Lucy gags throughout the season's summaries, and that my 'harsh' assessments of the performances were brought into line by some of my readers and I amended my style accordingly. As for the Tommy G judging comments, no one disagrees with me about that. Not even in the 'real' media. And I have stated how much I enjoy his off-camera work, too, to counter-balance it. I do not 'slam' people unreservedly.

Let's face it; my blog is a very little fish in a massively large pond. It only attracts 100 to 120 hits per day, and I suspect that's just the same 20 or so people checking back five or six times each. So don't worry yourself with the idea that my words are being spread far and wide. I don't get the daily hits Ms Fits gets, for example, which I conservatively estimate to be in the hundreds of thousands.

I don't try to be one of those bloggers who 'go off their nut' about people and intentionally incite anger by slamming reputations without rhyme or reason. There are plenty of those kind of bloggers out there, but I choose to speak honestly and - above all - fairly. (My little joke in regards to Judith Lucy being the exception, but I have also addressed the reason for this in the past couple of weeks.)

If I was going to hack on things for the sake of tearing them down indiscriminately, you'd know about it. It would be a very different kind of blog, a much nastier type of summary on the show, and no one would be spared. But I'm not like that.

It seems to me that for someone in your profession it's better to be spoken about in negative terms than not be spoken about at all (to paraphrase Oscar Wilde). And I don't even agree that I was speaking about you 'in negative terms'.

As for your implication that I can't do it myself, I'll let that one slide. You don't know who I am and what I am able to do, and I won't bring this whole situation down any further by listing my credentials in response to your baited remark. Again, some of the comments (written by people who actually know me) throughout my TGYH posts will attest that perhaps I am capable. But your point is probably a specific reference to the level of success one must have reached in order to appear on TGYH itself, and naturally I tip my hat to you on this one.

I haven't hid the fact that I'm unemployed at the moment, so maybe you're just trying to stick the boot in. If so, and you perceive that I have insulted you in any way, then I can't begrudge you that. I hope it made you feel better.

Again, if I inadvertently insulted you, then that surprises me. However, I apologise for any offense caused.

But I stand by my words.

And I would suggest that if what I wrote was enough to upset you, perhaps you need to work on thickening your skin.

Also, I have explained only last week how I feel the writers of the show aren't doing the female guest stars any favours, giving them the weaker of the scenarios they dream up, because it's easier for a group of men to create a lively, exciting 'cowboy' or 'spaceman' scene than it is for the same group of men to create an interesting, amusing and challenging scene for a woman to perform. I even said that the women are looking less interesting than perhaps is fair to them, so if you'd read all my TGYH summaries, you'd know that I don't hold anything against you, Fifi, Tanya or Robyn personally. And I'm not sure how I'll feel about Kate when she appears in the series finale next week. I've never been a fan of hers.

Sadly, my respect for you has gone down a few notches after receiving this email. Not because I'm offended by it, but because I think it's a pretty dumb idea to send it as a 'response' to someone's blog. Was it meant to embarrass me? Get me angry? Shame me into removing the posts? It doesn't seem like it could serve any purpose other than letting off steam if I caused you any hurt. My summaries were hardly an 'attack'.

Of course, it's just as likely that the email didn't come from the real Julia Zemiro, so let's not necessary attach the above words to her, in case that's an unfair stigma that you'll carry around in your minds in relation to her forever more. We wouldn't want that.

Additionally, if this was the real Julia Zemiro who emailed me insulting bloggers as a whole, that seems to be a pretty silly way to address so many millions of Internet users (and potential fans) across the country and the globe. Like it or not, blogs are very much the way of the future. Those who haven't come on board yet are just staving off the inevitable. All areas of business have embraced them as part of our natural development, with the general exception of the entertainment industry. Why? Maybe because they view blogs as a potential loss in revenue (in much the same way that radio, cinema and theatrical companies despised the advent of television, although none of them had anything to worry about), and maybe they haven't properly grasped its value and incredible growth-rate. With so many people starting up blogs every day, wouldn't bloggers as a 'people group' be a poor one to target for an across-the-board insult? And shouldn't the entertainment industry stop trying to bad-mouth what it doesn't understand and perhaps endeavour to learn from the world of blogs and maybe even look at ways to utilise the concept for their own gain (and - at the very least - survival)?

Just a thought.

(Incidentally, the aforementioned Ms Fits is one such entertainment personality who has fully embraced the blogging community and is using it to her advantage - whether that was her initial intention or not (and I happen to know that it wasn't). She enjoys herself, and that's all that matters. For others in the entertainment industry who are doing the same, check out all the links I've listed under 'Celebrity Bloggers' on the right.)


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