IAWTV Board Elections: Voting starts today!

 UPDATE: all the submitted candidate videos can be seen on the IAWTV YouTube channel "Board of Directors Campaign Videos" playlist.

Voting for five seats on the IAWTV Board of Directors opens today
When I wrote about the last IAWTV Board Election in January of this year I had no idea that I would be a candidate for the Board myself in this election. It was a huge honour to be nominated, and a big surprise (I still don't know who put my name forward). I accepted the nomination because I want to show that I believe the IAWTV has a great future and that anyone - anyone - that has something to offer can help build the organisation.

Video stars
The Communications Committee has been working hard on new innovations and one of the differences in this election is the new video statements from candidates. When I read the email outlining this I was filled with....well, trepidation. Anyone who has seen my videos knows that I am not afraid to make fun of myself for a cheap laugh, but this was different. Although the temptation was to turn it into an edutainment exercise (with the emphasis on 'tainment'), I quickly realised that that wouldn't do. This election, like the last one, is IMPORTANT. The IAWTV means something to me and I desperately want it to grow and expand.

Seriously serious
The problem is, of course, that being serious to camera - and learning a 90 second script - is so far out of my ken that I cannot even count the number of takes it took to read (and yes, I am reading) my earnest statement in one mostly-flub-free take. This is the result:



Now, the astute of you may conclude that my honour is still intact - I am still not afraid to make myself look foolish in front of the camera. That is true. Even though I might wish to look more polished, professional and actorly, the truth is that those things don't bother me. I simply want people to know that I care about the future of the IAWTV and I want it to be truly International.


Candidate choices
PLEASE read the candidate statements and watch all the submitted videos. They are on the IAWTV YouTube channel on the main channel page and also under the 'Playlists'.* There are some amazing candidates for the Board and it is a testament to the passion people have for the IAWTV that there are so many diverse candidates. However you vote there is already a renewal going on in the organisation. Please remember to vote because, like the last election, it really does matter.

* There were two options for candidates, either send the video to the IAWTV or upload it on your own channel and send a link so it could be on the playlist. I uploaded it to HigletFilms because it seemed more efficient to do that, so you'll find my video on the IAWTV playlist.

IAWTV Revote: Necessary and needed, so make it count

IAWTV.org

The Revote Round 1 Ends Tomorrow

It's been another busy week for webseries creators and followers with many new projects announced, seasons ending and shooting schedules agreed. In between that and getting on with the business of making a living it is easy to let things slip through the gaps.

Members Need to Exercise Their Choice

IAWTV members are revoting this week for in the first round of votes for the Board of Directors. I posted a couple of week ago about how important these elections are. The fact that there has been a revote could be seen as an annoyance but I think it shows that the IAWTV takes the future seriously enough to want get things right from the start. I really hope that my fellow members take the time to re-look at the candidates and register their votes.

Just do it!

I voted this morning and it took about 2 minutes, and that included finding the email in a chaotic mailbox.  Voting ends tomorrow, Friday 18th February at 18:00 PST. So just go and vote. Right now*.

*Why are you looking down here? You should be voting!!

IAWTV: Election Update - Letter from the Board of Directors

Update: Jenni Powell has posted her thoughts on the matter.
More: Tom Konkle posted about this and there is another discussion over on webseriestoday.com. There is also lots of comments and thoughts on twitter.

As I posted last week, there have recently been elections to the IAWTV Board of Directors. The closing date for the final votes was last Friday and was looking forward to seeing who would be elected. This morning members have received an email to say that the elections will now start again. Once I had read the email and looked at the Forum I can say that I think this was 100% the right decision.

Here is the official IAWTV communication about the issue, sent today*:

Dear Academy Members:

This weekend, the Board of Directors had a conference call to discuss our latest Board election process and the online platform used to collect votes. While it does not appear the election process was compromised, we concluded it is best to nullify the election and start the process over from the beginning. The main concern surrounding our latest elections is the potential for a member to vote more than once. We use an online survey platform that places a cookie on receiving members’ computers. It is possible for a member to erase the cookie and vote multiple times. Also, each member was not issued a unique password.

Our Executive Director, Elisabeth Flack, gives a more detailed recap of the issues surrounding our latest election below:

Up to this point, we have been using an online survey service to collect votes. Members of the Academy uncovered that by deleting cookies placed on their computers by the site they could vote a second time, thus revealing a potential way to skew voting in favor of one candidate over another. These members alerted the Academy about the potential problem and any duplicate votes found were deleted, leaving only the original first ballot cast according to the timestamp of when the ballot was submitted. 

Separately, the online survey service doesn’t issue unique passwords that can only be used once. In the prior election, I’ve verified votes by reconciling the IP information from each vote against the IP information on file for member accounts. 

This election not only has the problem of the potential for duplicate voting, but there are a few IP addresses that could be not determined as belonging to members. While I don’t believe anyone in the membership tried to skew the vote or shared the voting information outside of the Academy, these do not make for the fairest election possible.
This differs from the previous board election because IP addresses and ballots were verified as corresponding to members and no duplicate voting occurred. In addition, the ballots and vote count were reviewed and verified by 3 members of the Academy in good standing, each of whom was not running for office at the time and had no conflict of interest with any of the candidates running for office. These verifications was done before the new board members were announced. 

In the interests of the membership and ensuring the fairest vote possible, here is what the Board has decided as best next steps. The Board, working with committee chairs, will identify a superior voting platform that will ensure our Board election process and results cannot be compromised. Our goal is to identify a solution by the end of this coming week. If anyone has suggestions for a platform we should evaluate, please email Elisabeth. After the new platform is selected, we will start the board election process over from the beginning. We plan to begin the call for nominations the week of January 31st.

Unfortunately, our new Board will not be in place by February 1st as originally planned, so the present Board will continue to serve until new Board members are elected. We are expecting the new election to conclude by the end of March. 

We deeply apologize to all of the candidates and to the membership at large for this inconvenience. And we thank you for your understanding and patience as we work through upgrading our election capabilities.

If you have any questions about the board’s decision regarding redoing the Board elections, please email any Board member or Elisabeth directly. 

Sincerely,

The IAWTV Board of Directors

Michael Wayne, Chair
Dina Kaplan, Vice-Chair
George Ruiz, Secretary
Drew Baldwin, Treasurer
Miles Beckett
Felicia Day
Zadi Diaz
Jim Louderback
Chris McCaleb
John McCarus
Tim Shey
Joshua Cohen, Emeritus Director

Speaking as a member of the IAWTV, I think that the fact the IAWTV has moved so quickly to correct the potential problem indicates that they are committed to fairness and openness - and not afraid to take tough decisions. This bodes well for the future.

The fact that we are now back to nominations means it will be some weeks before the new Board is in place. This is unfortunate but it is better to make sure that everyone has the opportunity to vote and that the results are fair, and are seen to be fair.

A New Look IAWTV Website
There was further evidence of the work that is going on in the IAWTV today. The IAWTV.com website has been updated and more functionality is planned. It still looks clean, but there are now links to become a member and to access the Forums straight from the Home page:

*I asked permission to repost the whole document.

IAWTV: Voting for the Board ends Friday - why it matters!

Let's rewind to 12 months ago...
The call for nominations for the Streamys 2010 went out in December 2009, and voting for the nominations ended on January 15th 2010. Anticipation was already building for the event and everyone expected it to blow minds. Which it did, but not exactly in the way imagined. As many will remember, the ceremony itself unfortunately detracted severely from the fact that there were Award winners, and the fall out from that is still being felt.

We are all doomed
...to repeat history if we don't remember it. Immediately after the Streamys last year there were all sorts of questions, accusations and intrigues around the Streamys and the International Academy of Web Television. It was not a comfortable time for anyone and there was inevitably soul-searching. But good things have come from that. The questions asked then have led to changes and new directions for both the Streamys and the IAWTV, and I think this is very positive. Last week the IAWTV held the first round of voting for the new Board of Directors, which has left 12 people in the running for the 6 positions.

The IAWTV, renewed
The idea of a dedicated body for web television is sound. And even while people can argue about terms (even 'web television' is contentious), reach, focus and goals, I don't see a better alternative anywhere. The election of the new Board will set the path ahead. The 12 nominees all bring their own ideas, enthusiasm, perspective and experience, and all of them will serve the Academy well. I have voted for the people I think will serve the Board the best, but every one of the nominees has much to offer. If you are a member of the IAWTV don't forget to vote - use your voice and make a difference!

The end of the beginning
There is still so much to do it would be foolish to imagine that the having a new Board will magically make things better. And yet, in a way it will. The new Board will be able to build on the work that has already been started and set the IAWTV on course to become the leader it needs to be. There will be a focus and that is the key to making progress. When there is so much to be done it is hard to get anything done. I'm looking forward to seeing what the Board sets as priorities so we can move things forward.

I'm ready to pitch in and help in any way I can. Are you?

P.S. I'd like to underline the fact that I think the IAWTV has made big progress in the last year. I am incredibly grateful for the hard work that has gone on there, often behind the scenes with little recognition. Thank you all.

Clicker, Indie Intertube and more: The Awards kick off

The Best of Clicker 2010 Awards announced...
...and there were some familiar names among the winners. The Guild took 'Best Web Comedy (Serial)' and The Jeff Lewis 5 Minute Comedy Hour took 'Best Web Comedy (Episodic)'. This is the second year of the Awards and over 200, 000 people voted. I interviewed Patrick Sullivan from Clicker about the awards last week in PinkRaygun. One of the thing that was most pleasing about the Clicker Awards was the number of categories for web content and the range of shows nominated. This bodes well for the future.

The Indie-Intertube Awards 2010
This week also saw the announcement of the nominations for the Indie Intertube Awards. With a huge raft of categories and shows this will likely be the most comprehensive listing this year. The weekly Indie Intertube podcast is always the place to start if you want to know what is happening this week in the the webseries world, and so it's no surprise that many of the nominated shows are new to me. That is one of the joys of Indie Intertube (apart from Destini and Shadhavar, of course!) - the fact that they have introduced me to so many shows I had never heard of before.

You can also vote for the Audience Choice Award on the Indie Intertube website. The Guild, The Jeff Lewis 5 Minute Comedy Hour and  many others are among the nominees, so you will be spoilt for choice. It's a good job you can vote every 30 minutes!

The Shorty Awards
...are also underway, and apart from loving the fact that @TheBloggess is again rocking the 'government' vote, there are some interesting nominations and categories. For a start, there are multiple nominations for Felicia Day but under different title, so she does not show up on the 'Actress' leader board as yet. Top of the Actress board is Stana Katic, which is great for us Castle fans. Nathan Fillion is also doing well in both the 'Actor' and 'Green' categories. I'm hoping that Browncoats: Redemption will do well in the charity category - they are 4th so far.

More Awards Coming Up
The Streamys and the new IAWTV Awards will be coming up later in the year, which will be well worth following closely. After all the discussion, changes and community growth over the last 12 months, people will be waiting to see what happens.

Felicia Day and Kim Evey have long been hinting about new projects they are doing and Felicia teased some more this morning:

Maybe next year there will be even more nominations heading her way....

What other Awards are you looking forward to?

The IAWTV and Streamy Awards part company

UPDATE: Interview with Amber J. Lawson, Chair of the Awards Committee of the IAWTV on rocketstail.com (via Jeff's link on indieintertube.tv/Backchannel)

In an announcement today, the International Academy of Web Television revealed some of its plans for the future which include detaching from The Streamy Awards and creating their own awards due in Fall 2011. This has been met with surprise in some quarters, but most of the reactions I've seen have been positive. And the IAWTV and members have stressed that the parting is amicable and based on how best the IAWTV can serve the community.

Zadi Diaz, (Epic Fu, New Mediacracy Podcast and much more), the well-respected new media creator and commentator, posted her take on the announcement on her blog:

"...This change will allow the IAWTV to focus on investing all of its efforts into providing valuable resources to its membership.

Three months (six for veteran board members) and dozens of meetings (between the board and all the committees) later and I am confident that we are on a path to creating an organization that will provide great value to our community as a whole. .."

Zadi also published the announcement letter sent to IAWTV members which outlined the main reasons for the split:

"... Non-Profit vs. For-Profit: Due to the IAWTV’s legal structure as a non-profit entity with the mandate to serve the community for which it was established, all profits from an award show in which the IAWTV is involved should go back to the Web television community through programs and resources established by the IAWTV. The Streamy Awards is currently structured as a for-profit entity. We have found it impossible to harmonize these competing objectives and desired ends.

· By the Community, For the Community. IAWTV membership is growing now that open enrollment is in place. We have an awesome Executive Director, a fantastic, professional Board of Directors, and terrific members taking leadership roles at a grass-roots level. Due to these realities, we agreed producing our own awards event is possible and makes sense. Therefore, we believe it is important that the IAWTV create a non-profit award show for the community, by the community that benefits the community.

· Financial Responsibility. The primary obligation of the Board is to do what is financially responsible for the organization. We have very limited funds presently at the IAWTV. If we were to work with a for-profit entity to produce an ambitious event for the sake of maximizing profits, we would likely put the IAWTV under severe financial stress. We decided it is best to live within our means and not spend money we do not have..."

Felicia Day, (The Guild, Dr Horrible and much more) also set out her views on the announcement in a blog post:

"...My biggest hope with this change is that we can move on and focus on how the IAWTV can serve the community at large, to help and educate people who want to make their own content, but need more tools.  Opening enrollment to EVERY qualified member recently was a big step. There’s a lot of mobilization with the current members to form writing groups, producers groups, creation of a new website to connect members from around the world etc.  THERE is where the future of the non-profit IAWTV lies: in servicing the members.  And if we can have a low-key awards show to honor the members of our community for their talent, then that will be the icing on the web video cake...."

Liz Shannon Miller broke the news on NewTeeVee with the headline "IAWTV Dumps Streamys For Its Own Award Show". Reading through the article and those above, though, it seems that rather than simply 'dumping' The Streamys, the IAWTV have taken some tough decisions and come up with some solutions that should best serve the community.

It has been a long six months since The Streamys and during that time, like many people, I've been doing a lot of thinking, trying to work out what has been going on and what role I want to take (if any) in this community. I love creating, commenting and being part of the new media/webseries world, and I've made some amazing friends in the process. I wouldn't be making a new webseries if I wasn't committed.

I held off applying for IAWTV membership because I simply had no real clue what I was signing up for. The path still isn't crystal clear but I am very happy with this announcement and the direction things seem to be going in. I'll be applying to the IAWTV next week. If I get in I will take an active part in the forums and discussions because this community excites me, fires me up and inspires me. You can discuss this over at the IndieIntertube 'Backchannel' message board, where several people have already commented.

What do you think of the announcement?

Updates and observations: OH HAI INTERNET

Caution: Hubby at work!
So then, what's been going on with you? Seems like a long time since I wrote anything here but even I was shocked to see it was nearly 2 weeks! I'll be out of the Blogger's Loose Association with No Set Agenda at this rate. So - what have I been doing, I hear you ask? The answer is Pretty Cool Stuff. And because it is traditional for me to mark periods of not blogging with a megalistpost, here's a quick rundown:

• Building Sets & Polishing Scripts for 'Mind My Brains, Darling!': new posts up on HigletFilms.com about our progress. And don't forget that you still have 23 days left to help us raise the last $239 we need to reach our goal on Indiegogo.com. A huge thank you to all the generous people who have donated so far - you rock!
• Follow ups from VCON: We made some great new contacts at VCON and we're hoping to be able to share some more of this in the coming weeks. And I'll be publishing an interview with Alyssa Ciccarelli from Riese the Series on PinkRaygun soon. Riese is a Steampunk webseries that was launched in 2009. It has been picked up by Syfy.com and will be airing every Tuesday and Thursday on http://www.syfy.com/riese/
• Fighting GDS with Legend of Neil and Jeff Lewis 5 Min Comedy Hour: Guild Deficiency Syndrome can be temporarily relieved by ingesting quantities of these two shows, although 'ingesting' might not be the word to use given the last 'Jeff Lewis...' ep. And next week is the LAST EVER episode of Legend of Neil, which is a whole other type of syndrome waiting to happen. Will our suffering never end? Yes, because 'Knights of The Guild' podcast is still running with new shows and competitions! Guaranteed to cheer up the most down-in-the-mouth Guildie :)
•  IAWTV opens its doors to....everyone!: After months of debates, it seems the IAWTV has decided to allow anyone with an interest in webseries to register as a member. You might have missed this because it is not on the public IAWTV website or Twitter stream because there are issues in updating these sites. But Jack Ferry has done an admirable job of spreading the word, and it was this article by him that really got the ball rolling. Liz Shannon Miller wrote about the change on NewTeeVee.com and Tubefilter also reported on the changes. I think the challenges for the IAWTV are large but not insurmountable, and it will be interesting to see what happens. I think this a massive step in the right direction.
• Castle - must-watch TV!: Ah, there are only 2 things I'm watching on TV atm and Castle is one of them. Nathan Fillion, Stana Katic and all deliver a dependable dollop of pure enjoyment.
• Caprica - also must-watch TV!: From the ridiculous to the sublime? Possibly. All I know is that I love this show immensely and hope it is renewed for another season or five.

IAWTV: changes afoot. Meetings today and Thursday

Like many people, I've been waiting see what would happen at the next two IAWTV (International Academy of Web Television) meetings held in New York today, and LA on the 17th. After the May meeting in LA, Jenni Powell did an excellent summary, as did Liz Shannon Miller from NewTeeVee. Felicia Day, who is a member of the Board couldn't attend but wrote about her thoughts regarding the future of the IAWTV post-Streamys. The excellent podcast, New Mediacracy, also recorded a show straight after the May meeting, with Tony Valenzuela, Casey McKinnon, Barrett Garese, Brett Register, and Rudy Jahchan. This podcast is hosted by Zadi Diaz,  Steve Woolf and Chris McCaleb. I highly recommend listening because it touches on many of the pertinent matters related to the whole new media/web video community in a straightforward and personal way.

Earlier today Brady Brim-DeForest tweeted a link to an open note from him to the members of the IAWTV:

"...I am writing to inform you of my intention to resign my position as a member of the Board of Directors of the International Academy of Web Television, in concert with three of my fellow founders, Joshua Cohen, Marc Hustvedt, and Jamison Tilsner. Jamison and I will also be resigning our respective offices as Treasurer and Executive Director of the IAWTV..."

Mr Brim-Deforest and the other members will not be leaving the IAWTV but will remain members and still contribute as such. A letter from Elizabeth Flack dated May 26th, which was been posted on webseriesnetwork.com, said that this would happen and also outlined the new committees being set up. It also announced a new 'Director Emeritus' seat to be held by one of the six founding members of the IAWTV.

Real changes are afoot and it looks like the June meetings might bring about some positive plans for the future. I'm looking forward to seeing feedback from people who attend.

The Streamys: Rebuild the trust?

This is what the Streamys 2010 should be remembered for - excellence rewarded. Felica Day FTW

EDIT: Added link Derek Housman's tumblr post

These wounds are made for picking
The last two weeks have tested the mettle of many supporters of Web TV, webseries and web communities as a whole. After the events three weeks ago there have been claims and counter-claims across the web. And now there is a new movement afoot. Here are some recommended reads:

http://news.tubefilter.tv/2010/04/26/the-truth-about-the-streamy-awards-and-the-iawtv
A special Tubfilter Editoral from the creators of the Streamys Awards, Drew Baldwin, Brady Brim-DeForest, Joshua Cohen, Marc Hustvedt and Jamison Tilsner

http://rebuildthetrust.org/
The Manifesto from RebuildTheTrust

http://www.caseymckinnon.com/blog/personal/2010/04/26/the-elephant-in-the-room/
A rebuttal from Casey McKinnon, new media creator

http://rebuildthetrust.org/community/comments.php?DiscussionID=6&page=1#Item_2
@theonetruebix has asked for details about who does what at the IAWTV, Tubefilter and the Streamys

http://rebuildthetrust.org/community/comments.php?DiscussionID=7&page=1#Item_1
@Jeff_Koenig has asked for clarification on the 'takeover' section of the RebuildTheTrust manifesto

http://www.barrettgarese.com/post/551640683/my-total-speculation-on-what-the-truth-about-the
@SpyTap, Barret Garese, speculates on what it all might mean

http://kentnichols.com/2010/04/26/streamys-and-iawtv-there-can-be-only-one/
@kentnichols (AskANinja.com) looks at what might happen

http://derekhousman.tumblr.com/post/551571819/building-the-future
Derek Housman adds his take on the situation (thanks to Jeff_Koenig for commenting with this link)

The road to hell is paved with good intentions
My Gran was fond of that saying, usually applied when one or other of us had neglected to do homework, dishes or another decade of the Rosary but really meant to do it very soon.
Most people mean well but the gap between the intention and the result can be - well, very gappy indeed.

Confusion Reigns
I have no idea what is going on.
You have no idea what is going on.
We have no idea what is going on.

All I know is the following:

• I love me some webseries and have a lot of respect for the creators out there doing their thing
• I cannot shake the suspicion that money, influence and things unrelated to promoting new media/online entertainment are behind many of the issues being aired in public on both sides
• Transparency is a good thing as long as it works both ways
• Change is not always good, or bad

What I hoped the Streamys would be about:

• Celebrating achievements and efforts of the whole community of creators in the new media space.
• Promoting online entertainment as an industry to the world as a whole.
• Showing that creators can come from anywhere - that the quality of the product and the sincerity of the pursuit of the craft is more important than where you live, who you know and the funding you receive.

What I hoped the IAWTV would be about:

• Setting standards of propriety and openness that the rest of the new media/online entertainment industry could work towards.
• Building on the efforts of the creators to establish online entertainment as a vibrant and diverse community with common goals, standards and aspirations
• Organising, or at least setting standards for, outreach, learning and technical workshops for ALL the community

What happens next?
I have no clue. Letting the dust settle seems an appropriate response at this juncture because I have no idea what is really going on. The last three weeks have left me heartsore for all our community. There is more shock and disbelief today. People are trying to do the right thing. It's just a pity that there is no consesus on what that might be.

Let’s Talk About the Streamys

"After months of campaigning and hundreds of tweets, the Streamys nominees were finally announced. Predictably, heavy hitters like Dr. Horrible, The Guild, and Legend of Neil swept the nominations. Kudos to them. They’ve had great years, great shows and they deserve the recognition (isn’t that the point?)...." 

But there has a bitter backlash...Why? This is an interesting article for anyone who love webseries and has been awaiting The Streamys. For what it's worth, my opinion is that the people who have been nominated, and the members of the new International Academy of Web Television (IAWTV) are all at the forefront of web television. They have worked hard to get the recognition they have gained and deserve to see success because of their hard work. 

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