I see that in typical TYM fashion, 90% of people are too busy talking shit and throwing everyone else's credibiilty into question to actually discus a topic like adults. I know this site is not full of adults, and can't expect adult behavior from it, but still, there is a certain quality of post that I hope to see when spending my time on TYM.
As a moderator, I have to stay neutral, so here's how it is. @
CrimsonShadow undeniably did not word his post as well as he should have. It is my personal belief that what he was trying to say was that KIT pools commentary is only what put him over the edge, not necessarily that the commentary was so atrocious that it needed mentioning on the forums. He's not saying the commentary was so bad that it's driving the affected to hide under their blankets and cry for days, so let's stop treating him like it. He has (as always) stayed neutral in his posts. It is alright to identify problems, to identify trends, to ask the community if they can think of any solutions for the issue at hand. The many in opposition of his standpoint make solid points, and they should not be ignored. In keeping with TYM tradition, however, it is
how these viewpoints are presented that is problematic.
None of that really matters though. The topic at hand is as follows: Should there be a code of ethics that commentators follow at major tournaments? Should we, as commentators, be presenting ourselves profesionally, in the hopes of attracting sponsors and growing the scene? Should we allow any random guy to get on the microphone, giving them the potential to say whatever they want about whomever they want? Is regulation good or bad, and why? What about from the perspective of streamers and TOs, does a commentator unfairly blowing up players constitute defamation? If yes, does that defamation damage the brand of [insert streamer name here] or [insert tournament name here]?
This isn't personal. This thread isn't a callout on a specific commentator, a specific match, a specific situation. This is meant to be a discussion to move us forward, so we can try to make up our minds as to where the line should be drawn. Currently, everyone thinks that line's in a different spot, and it's turned into a mess of sand with nobody agreeing where boundaries originally lied.
Personally (that is to say, MY opinion, no longer speaking as a moderator), it is my view that none of this discussion matters at all. What we think or say means nothing, and here's why. It comes down to each individual streamer how they want their brand to be represented on Twitch, and by extension the TOs/TDs as well. It could be required of commentators to sign a contract agreeing they will not abrasively slander any entity during their time on the stream. If I woke up tomorrow and was magically Sp00ky, and it was my duty to stream Injustice at EVO, and therefore represent the largest video gaming competition in the world... I would do this. I'd want the integrity of my stream to remain intact, but not to be so restrictive as to make things dull and kill the soul of the FGC. However, not all events are on this scale, and it goes without saying that the commentator's code of ethics would loosen its death grip as events become smaller and smaller profile. If you want to get on the mic at casuals and do your thing, whatever. It's casuals, it's just there for fun and a small entry fee pot. No big deal. But when it comes to majors, it doesn't matter what peons like us think. No matter how much we kick and scream, it all boils down to the people running the events, and how they want their brand to be represented. I suppose that our feedback could be important to them, but they're still gonna do what they're gonna do... and if we don't like it it's up to us to make what we want happen ourselves instead of relying on others.
In closing, I'll ask this question: Do you want the scene to grow, therefore increasing prize payout; or do you want to keep things small, abandon the chance of sponsorship, and have this all be for props? Currently, it's the latter, as the payouts aren't really all that special by an eSports standard. I can see both sides and would rather have some community commentary with a few questionable things here and there, that's what makes the FGC what it actually is. The FGC is the soap opera of the gaming world, and I don't think the FGC wants things any other way. If you want to keep things the way they are, just remember not to quit your day job in order to practice the game. I respectfully disagree with CrimsonShadow, and I hope that this post clarifies the issues that are truly at hand here.
