Gawker: valleywag, joanne colan

Vanity Fair displays new media acumen with "Blogopticon"

Jackson West — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 23:00:00 EDT

In a wonderful piece of linkbait, Vanity Fair produced an illustration featuring a number of popular "blogs" arranged in a cartesian graph from "Scurrolous" to "Earnest" on one axis and "Opinion" to "News" on another. While we're trying to grasp how the 'Wag ended up on the earnest side of the scale, more confusing is the inclusion of Salon and Slate. Apparently, if you're not printed on paper, you're a "blog" — even though both publications predate the term. But where the chart really gets things wrong is in using the disembodied head of Amanda Congdon to illustrate online video program Rocketboom. If the authors or illustrator actually watched the show or read many of the listed blogs, they'd know that Joanne Colan took over as host after a very nasty and public departure from the show by Congdon. Keep trying, guys, you're bound to figure out this Internet thing eventually!

Andrew Baron bags a Rocketboom distribution deal

Nicholas Carlson — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 11:20:00 EDT

Lucky to attend the Founders' Club party, we bumped into Rocketboom creator Andrew Baron last night. Baron told us Rocketboom will sign a "fat" deal with a major content company as early as today. "Is that phat with a ph?" asked a bystander about the boast. "Fat in all meanings of the word," Baron said. "I just don't want to jinx it by saying who it is." He held up his hand and made a C with is thumb and forefinger to indicate, what, "a fat stack of cash?" I asked him. "Exactly." We asked if the deal was with Quincy Smith and CBS, because of Smith's deals for Wallstrip and Moblogic. "No, someone bigger than CBS," Baron said. Our second guess? Viacom. We haven't heard a no on that one yet.

Baron also told us that despite rumors to the contrary, host Joanne Colan will not be leaving the show. "That was just a rumor," said Baron. "Gawker writers these days get paid by pageviews so I think they sometimes just make stuff up." Trust us, if we made up posts for pageviews, they would involve drug warehouse orgies with prostitutes and private jets turned into hot boxes, not a host leaving a low-budget Web show.

Host Joanne Colan Leaves Rocketboom

Nick Douglas — Tue, 27 May 2008 19:34:31 EDT

According to a source at the Creative Artists Agency, host Joanne Colan is leaving Rocketboom, one of the Internet's first prominent news videoblogs. During her tenure, Colan never managed to transform the show (directed by creator Andrew Baron) from a quirky but inscrutable cult favorite into a mainstream online news source. (See for yourself below by watching today's weird episode.) Nor did she achieve the same web fame as her predecessor Amanda Congdon, who left a job with ABCNews.com last year.

No news yet on whether Baron will try to hire a third host for his show, which would mean the show had as many hosts as it's had paying advertisers.

Rocketboom creator takes on Calacanis

Nicholas Carlson — Wed, 14 Nov 2007 11:21:52 EST

Jason Calacanis's human-powered search engine Mahalo is "fundamentally flawed," says videoblogger Andrew Baron. Well, we could have told you that: It's basically Yahoo's directory, 12 years too late. But Baron, best known for creating Rocketboom, trashed Calacanis's service not for its lack of originality, but for its lack of critical applause. "Mahalo is not a worthwhile product," Baron wrote, "I have never seen a single positive review of the site." What's got the guy so worked up?

In his post, Baron gripes about Calacanis's "aggressive marketing tactics" to promote Mahalo Daily, the site's videoblog with former CNET host Veronica Belmont. But in a reply to Baron's attacks, Calacanis guesses the antipathy stems from Calacanis's public attempt to hire Amanda Cogdon after she quit Rocketboom.

Yeah, it could be that. Or it could be that in Mahalo Daily's launch trailer, Calacanis and Belmont parodied "Rocketboom" on Mahalo Daily and Calacanis said, "Hm. Been thinking about it. Rocketboom just isn't that funny."

There's only one way to resolve this, of course. No, not a catfight between Belmont and Rocketboom anchor Joanne Colan, pervs. Instead: Bulldog love!

Vlog Hot: Babes Semifinals Heat 1

Chris Mohney — Mon, 05 Mar 2007 13:00:39 EST

The first 16 heats of the Vlog Hot reader poll have concluded, so it's time for the semifinals — four heats of the top vote-getters (two heats of ladies, two heats of gents). Voting will run through this week and conclude at noon Eastern time on Sunday, March 11. You can vote in all heats once per day by clearing browser cookies from polls.gawker.com. The four semifinal heats will be announced throughout today. In this first heat of womens, we have Katrin Bauerfeind, Christine Gambito, Joanne Colan, and Adriana Gascoigne. Hit it after the jump.

If you can't see the voting mechanism below, we can't help you. We don't know how it works either. You might try turning off firewalls and turning on cookies. Note that you can now vote more than once! And why not? You should be able to vote once per day in any of these polls, showing true devotion to your favorite vlogger by suborning the more casual, ephemeral love showered on her or his opponents. Again, if you have technical problems with that, don't call us. For amusement only, far as you're concerned.

Sing-along: Don't you vlog me baby

Nick Douglas — Sat, 22 Jul 2006 21:47:12 EDT

The star has gone, the glamour's worn thin, and Rocketboom's former vlog host is already fading from memory after her public fight with her producer Andrew Baron (scroll through this page for background). In celebration of Amanda Congdon's rapidly ticking 14th minute of her 15 minutes of fame, Valleywag presents "Don't You Vlog Me, Baby."

Drew:
You were working as an actress playing coat-check girls
When I met you
I placed an ad, put you at a desk, and spun you around
Got you into media (new)
Now two years later on you've got the world at your feet
Success has been so easy for you
But don't forget it's me who put you where you are now
And I can put you back down too

After the jump, sing along with the chorus. "Don't! you! vlog! me! oh!"

Chorus :
Don't, don't you vlog me?
You know I can't believe it when I hear that you won't film with me
Don't, don't you vlog me?
You know I don't believe you when you say that you don't need me
It's much too late to find
You think you've changed your mind
You'd better change it back or we will both be sorry
Don't you vlog me baby? Don't you vlog me oh
Don't you vlog me baby? Don't you vlog me oh

Amanda:
I was working as an actress playing coat-check girls
That much is true
But even then I knew I'd find a much better site
Either with or without you
The two years we have had have been such good times
I still love you — um, actually, I don't —
But now I think it's time I filmed my life on my own
I guess it's just what I must do
(Chorus)
Don't you vlog me baby? Don't you vlog me oh
Don't you vlog me baby? Don't you vlog me oh

Joanne Colan: What the !@#$ are you two still going on about?

Photo by Eddie Codel

Who's better at Rocketboom, Amanda or Joanne?

Nick Douglas — Fri, 14 Jul 2006 17:37:50 EDT

It is unfair to pit a former host and current host of a show against one another in some kind of popularity contest, especially when the current host has nothing to do with the fight that ended with the former host's exit.

Armed with that knowledge, check out, say, this archived Rocketboom episode with Amanda Congdon, and compare to today's episode with new host Joanne Colan. Now,

Yes, yes, they're both so wonderful. Pick one.

Earlier: Rocketboom wants Amanda Congdon back

Rocketboom wants Amanda Congdon back

Nick Douglas — Wed, 12 Jul 2006 15:02:38 EDT

The nation's hottest video blog is back, and it's snappy. Rocketboom interim host Joanne Colan (pictured here holding a symbol for triumph) displays the polish and ease that many viewers felt long-time host Amanda Congdon lacked.

But that doesn't mean producer Andrew Baron has forgotten about his recently-lost partner. He writes on the front page, "best wishes amanda you will always be welcome back," linking to her "Amanda Unboomed" weblog. Drew, babe, it's okay to beg her to return. But don't do it in front of the whole world, 'kay?

Rocketboom, July 12 [Video blog episode]
Earlier: Rocketboom hires host from MTV [Valleywag]

If she can boom it here, she can't boom it anywhere

Nick Douglas — Tue, 11 Jul 2006 18:57:04 EDT

Say hi to Joanne (not Joanna) Colan, the new host of Rocketboom. The vlogger just opened her blog at JoanneColan.net.

Her blog's slogan — "If I can blog it there I can blog it anywhere" — is a touch ironic, considering that "blogging it anywhere" is just what the last host wanted to do, and just what producer Andrew Baron wouldn't allow.

JoanneColan.net [Official blog]
Earlier: UnBoomed: Rocketboom hires host from MTV [Valleywag]