A Seibertron.com Call for Volunteers - News Crew Needed

So what exactly does the job entail? Day to day I mean. Is it something where you sit down and do your daily work in a couple of hours, or are you always 'on call' so to speak. I definitely need some time to think about this, but it sounds interesting. I thought about applying to the podcast as well, but this being in the background sounds a bit better for me.

Man it would be nice to be part of the crew.



But I'm not sure if I'm going to have the time to always be here and I decided to look at my history here and I'm honestly shocked at how immature and aggressive I was a few years ago but then again that was when I was like 15 or something but I have honestly grown up and matured since then and am no longer like how I was.


I also have a few news credits here as well.




Once again though it would be really cool to be part of the news team.

welcometothedarksyde wrote:So what exactly does the job entail? Day to day I mean. Is it something where you sit down and do your daily work in a couple of hours, or are you always 'on call' so to speak. I definitely need some time to think about this, but it sounds interesting. I thought about applying to the podcast as well, but this being in the background sounds a bit better for me.

How you work around posting news depends on what your personal availability is. The current staff has office workers, food makers, students, family supporters and more, and all in slightly different timezones too.

As this is a volunteering position, we would not ask you to always be 'on call', as you say. But if you do have ten-fifteen minutes to spare in between cooking or meetings, homework or a commute, then yes, feel free to use them to post something!

(Personally, I find myself more or less always ready to go, except for my full teaching/meeting days. But I am an example, not a sample, and not a representative one at that.)

mirageandjazz1197 wrote:Once again though it would be really cool to be part of the news team.

Consider applying then! As I said, we turn no one down without good cause.

This sounds interesting, as a student, I pretty much have mos of my afternoons free, thankfully my career rarely leaves homework
Seriously though, I'd love to be a part of the team, I'll give this a try, I wanted to get in the Podcast team, but I don't have the proper equipment, so this would be a nice way to be a part of the team

Va'al wrote:

welcometothedarksyde wrote:So what exactly does the job entail? Day to day I mean. Is it something where you sit down and do your daily work in a couple of hours, or are you always 'on call' so to speak. I definitely need some time to think about this, but it sounds interesting. I thought about applying to the podcast as well, but this being in the background sounds a bit better for me.

How you work around posting news depends on what your personal availability is. The current staff has office workers, food makers, students, family supporters and more, and all in slightly different timezones too.

As this is a volunteering position, we would not ask you to always be 'on call', as you say. But if you do have ten-fifteen minutes to spare in between cooking or meetings, homework or a commute, then yes, feel free to use them to post something!

(Personally, I find myself more or less always ready to go, except for my full teaching/meeting days. But I am an example, not a sample, and not a representative one at that.)

Alright, well I definitely have time to spare here and there and I'd love to help out running Seibertron. I have some experience administrating web-stuff, but the kind of engagement (viewership, comments, etc.) is around an order of magnitude smaller. I'm always up for a challenge though, so consider my hat in the ring.

welcometothedarksyde wrote: I'm always up for a challenge though, so consider my hat in the ring.

MaverickPrime wrote:Seriously though, I'd love to be a part of the team, I'll give this a try, I wanted to get in the Podcast team, but I don't have the proper equipment, so this would be a nice way to be a part of the team

Drop me an email as I detailed in the OP, so I can keep full and fair track of applications!

Hey Va'al, what are news credits for anyway?

SW's SilverHammer wrote:Hey Va'al, what are news credits for anyway?

My own personal delectation. Much like PCC and Alpha Bravo.

Va'al wrote:

SW's SilverHammer wrote:Hey Va'al, what are news credits for anyway?

My own personal delectation. Much like PCC and Alpha Bravo.

Ooooh, so am I titillating? Or do I have to change my avatar to something mooooooore; Alpha Bravo?

SW's SilverHammer wrote:

Va'al wrote:

SW's SilverHammer wrote:Hey Va'al, what are news credits for anyway?

My own personal delectation. Much like PCC and Alpha Bravo.

Ooooh, so am I titillating? Or do I have to change my avatar to something mooooooore; Alpha Bravo?

News credits are a way to show the community how actively engaged in the news reporting non-staff members are. It holds the importance you give it as a user, so it can be very little or really quite significant!

Once you become news staff, the credits become optional (I had personally planned to keep mine for ever at 42, but other news staff have credited me a number of times). We have our own score board of news posts to keep track of everyone's activity, so credits do not matter as much.

Va'al wrote:

SW's SilverHammer wrote:

Va'al wrote:

SW's SilverHammer wrote:Hey Va'al, what are news credits for anyway?

My own personal delectation. Much like PCC and Alpha Bravo.

Ooooh, so am I titillating? Or do I have to change my avatar to something mooooooore; Alpha Bravo?

News credits are a way to show the community how actively engaged in the news reporting non-staff members are. It holds the importance you give it as a user, so it can be very little or really quite significant!

Once you become news staff, the credits become optional (I had personally planned to keep mine for ever at 42, but other news staff have credited me a number of times). We have our own score board of news posts to keep track of everyone's activity, so credits do not matter as much.

Lol, jokes aside I didn't actually know what they did until this point; thanks

Va'al may have forgotten to mention that News Crew = Seibertron staff which means you're also expected to act as a Moderator and deal with problems as well.

Burn wrote:Va'al may have forgotten to mention that News Crew = Seibertron staff which means you're also expected to act as a Moderator and deal with problems as well.

Yes, very true. Thanks Burn!

This will not be a massive burden, nor a requirement during the initial period of your time as staff. Once you're settled in, however, you will be required to do some tidying up and shoulder-tapping.

I just went through the training process, and it wasn't too daunting. There's lots of help, and you don't need to be incredibly computer savy. On a personal note, it's very satisfying (and fun) to know I'm contributing to the fandom I know and love!

Va'al wrote:

Burn wrote:Va'al may have forgotten to mention that News Crew = Seibertron staff which means you're also expected to act as a Moderator and deal with problems as well.

Yes, very true. Thanks Burn!

This will not be a massive burden, nor a requirement during the initial period of your time as staff. Once you're settled in, however, you will be required to do some tidying up and shoulder-tapping.

I'm probably not going to be the best when it comes to dealing with arguments I would probably end up getting baited sometimes depending on the topic.


I do however have a news story ready if I do end up joining (it's one of concept art of the wfc ds games that somehow avoided detection).

It takes a certain type of person to do this kind of volunteer work. In my experience, some people do not have the patience, people skills, or a righteous attitude to handle it. Va'al and Burn are examples of good moderators and fair people as I have dealt with both many times on this site, and they have always been fair and honest staff members.

I see some names posting here that I do not think can emulate this kind of staff member nor can they properly represent this site.

Hopefully I am wrong.

shockblast2 wrote:It takes a certain type of person to do this kind of volunteer work. In my experience, some people do not have the patience, people skills, or a righteous attitude to handle it.

Just to make sure I am covering all angles of this post: If you have concerns with staff members, please feel free to send me an email directly to discuss this. I, and Seibertron.com, take issues of unprofessional behaviour seriously, and would like to make sure none of it is taking place.

Obligatory:

Va'al wrote:

Burn wrote:Va'al may have forgotten to mention that News Crew = Seibertron staff which means you're also expected to act as a Moderator and deal with problems as well.

Yes, very true. Thanks Burn!

This will not be a massive burden, nor a requirement during the initial period of your time as staff. Once you're settled in, however, you will be required to do some tidying up and shoulder-tapping.

Can you sign up for just the tidying up and shoulder tapping part and not the News Cruise?

Kibble wrote:Can you sign up for just the tidying up and shoulder tapping part and not the News Cruise?

That would be forum staff and you answer directly to me.

At the moment things aren't too bad, if I were to add any Forum Moderators there wouldn't be any more than two. But hey, you spoke up, I'll keep you in mind!

Oh yeah, to those who'll end up as part of the crew, a few tips from personal experience.

Have fun, and don't overdo it. Never forget, there are others in the team as well, so don't feel like you have to post all 20 potential news stories of the day, post as many as you can, but give the others a chance.

Don't be a dick to the rest of the crew, as in, do not go and delete an existing news story by someone else, just to then post your own version to get all the credit for it.

Do not let members bait you, it will happen to you at least once a week, you make one tiny mistake (mostly spelling or grammar) and there are people who will jump on your back for that, some actually only ever post to do just that. I know what it's like, and I know what it's like to finally loose it completely and start insulting people over it. I know it's super tempting, especially if the person is a total asshole about it and you've seen him do plenty of similar f**kups in the past, going and calling them out on it, especially by quoting their own mistakes will only result in you earning a warning. As a member of staff you're under higher scrutiny than normal members and will actually be more vulnerable to those than normal posters.

Chill and take a break after a while, sure, you have the responsibility of posting news and visiting the site on a regular basis, but if you overdo it you burn out, which will make you just feel even worse if a good chunk of your stories have been deleted and replaced by someone else, making your count look lower than it actually should be. Remember, it's just a number, it's not life or death.

Proofread, always proofread. Do it at least once before you hit publish, and then do it again after it being published and on the front page a few minutes later, this will make it look more professional and protects you from the asshats.

Keep in mind, that as par tof the news crew, you will have a higher exposure to the news concerning our fandom, you will likely know of certain things way before anyone else and have a higher understanding of something. Just because you've dealt with a certain topic for weeks on an almost daily basis, do not assume that all do it. Some might remember my epic meltdown concerning the Masterpiece Movie 01 Starscream, I've been in contact with that thing for weeks and explained over and over what it was just to then explode when after all that someone still managed to miss all that and not understand it. I forgot that not everyone had such a high exposure to it as me at the time, so don't go full Dead Metal on posters. You never do that, especially since that's my stick and I will sue yo ass over it

Dead Metal wrote: don't go full Dead Metal on posters. You never do that, especially since that's my stick and I will sue yo ass over it

Because you'll also be shouted at by me, probably suspended and if too badly dug into a hole, banned for a bit.

Now that I have read your war story, Dead Metal, are you saying that the stress of the job is too much, even if I make one mistake (which humans do on a regular basis)? I want this to be my second chance at earning the entitlement as news staff, to be a part of something, but your post is giving me second thoughts.

OptimalOptimus2 wrote:Now that I have read your war story, Dead Metal, are you saying that the stress of the job is too much, even if I make one mistake (which humans do on a regular basis)? I want this to be my second chance at earning the entitlement as news staff, to be a part of something, but your post is giving me second thoughts.

No. What I'm saying is don't let it consume you. I was super proud of my position and enjoyed it a whole lot, but I overdid it, and let it become too important to me. In the end I nolonger enjoyed it.

So basically, you're human, you make mistakes do not let them affect you to the point that you hate doing this.

But to clarify, something, I never erased pp's articles, that happened to me a couple of times and I'm not talking about the times an admin did it. I pointed it out because it's a really shitty thing to do.

That is a very good distinction: an admin (me, Burn, Seibertron) can and will modify/remove news articles and posts if needed. A reason will always be given though, and it will never be done for the sake of augmenting another staff member's news count.

Va'al wrote:That is a very good distinction: an admin (me, Burn, Seibertron) can and will modify/remove news articles and posts if needed. A reason will always be given though, and it will never be done for the sake of augmenting another staff member's news count.

Oh yes, admins can and have to in some cases, like if it's a hoax or something. But yeah, we had this one member back during my time, who actually did do that - multiple times.

So... What came of this?

I am working on it. We have several applications, and need to discuss with the rest of staff as well as prepare some easy to follow instructions and 'tests' to see how to proceed.


Fear not! All shall be revealed.

Va'al wrote:Fear not! All shall be revealed.

FFS ... can't you keep your pants on for once?

I work pantless.

Oh, thanks! I thought I had been forgotten!(that or that a mail had been sent and my junk folder ate it)

Oh my I left and Burn is in charge. God help us.


Just kidding dude. I'm Baaaaaaack.

Seeing as though I literally have nothing to do but sit around looking for Transformers news on the internet all day, I'd really like to volunteer. My concern, though, is that I vowed never to make an account on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or any of those websites. And I doubt anyone would even trust me with being a mod, regardless of what I say.

SlyTF1 wrote:Seeing as though I literally have nothing to do but sit around looking for Transformers news on the internet all day, I'd really like to volunteer. My concern, though, is that I vowed never to make an account on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or any of those websites. And I doubt anyone would even trust me with being a mod, regardless of what I say.

You would not be a moderator, but a news staffer. They are different roles and guidelines.
IF you are not willing to make any social media account, I doubt you'd be able to find news as quickly as it comes out, as those are the preferred channels for Bay, Paramount and the like! That said, please send along an application anyway.

Dr Va'al wrote:

SlyTF1 wrote:Seeing as though I literally have nothing to do but sit around looking for Transformers news on the internet all day, I'd really like to volunteer. My concern, though, is that I vowed never to make an account on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or any of those websites. And I doubt anyone would even trust me with being a mod, regardless of what I say.

You would not be a moderator, but a news staffer. They are different roles and guidelines.
IF you are not willing to make any social media account, I doubt you'd be able to find news as quickly as it comes out, as those are the preferred channels for Bay, Paramount and the like! That said, please send along an application anyway.

Oh, I'm willing. I'll just have to change my vow. I was honestly considering making accounts on social media just the other day, all so I could follow Bay and be the first to know about things going on regarding the production of the movie. This just gives me even more of an incentive.

Are there any tips to finding newsworthy items? Seems I got my first news credit as a complete surprise and I really would like to contribute more articles.

will there be another one soon

Bumblebee21 wrote:will there be another one soon

If some people don't start pulling their weight, damn straight there will be.

You interested?

Burn wrote:

Bumblebee21 wrote:will there be another one soon

If some people don't start pulling their weight, damn straight there will be.

You interested?

yes please

I have updated our request of new volunteers for the Seibertron.com News Staff. The revised request can be viewed here. If you are interested in helping and think you meet the requirements, please reach out to us. Thank you!

Well, it looks like I fail on #6. Better luck next time.

Amelie wrote:I'm considering applying, as its something I can do during breaks at uni or on my way home ect. I'm also not sure if I'm active enough....

Same, but it's worth a shot, right? So long as that's it, it won't be too hard to fix. Definitely easier than fixing age, right?

Got a great response from this message. 14 people volunteered! I will reach out to all of those who are interested to see where we go from here. Thank you to everyone who volunteered. If there are any others, now is the time. We could really use your assistance.

If any of you are still interested in being part of Seibertron.com's news staff, please let me know.

Specifically, I am looking for a news administrator, i.e. the person in charge of the news section who will make sure that the news section is up-to-date, will delegate news to be posted to the news staff, and who will make sure that we are not falling behind on news. Whereas Burn is my right-hand-person on the forums/HMW, ScottyP is my right-hand-person with the Podcast/VSD/Sightings section, the news admin would be my right-hand-person for the news section.

My fellow Seibertronians, lend me your listening devices. We are always looking for the best volunteers to contribute as part of the news staff, and it is time to open up the call again. With 2020 right around the corner and Transformers news coming out of the woodwork left and right with so many different toylines and new comics currently running, we could really use some extra hands on deck.



What we're looking for are fellow fans, active members of the boards and keen enthusiasts of one or multiple aspects of the franchise, from comics to cartoons to toys and other collectibles, you name it. You'd be able to tap into your own knowledge pool to present news items, as well as receive support from everyone currently on staff. Ideally, we are looking for fans who are available during the 9:00AM-5:00PM EST timezone to help out with daytime news

---

Seibertron.com News Staff Requirements:

1. Knowledge of and love for the Transformers brand - Even if something isn't your cup of tea, you'll need to keep up with and hunt for any piece of news, no matter how trivial, regarding the Transformers.
   
2. Dedication to the hobby and the position - You will be a volunteer. The incentives that come with the position are what you can make of it, be it contacts, a name for yourself for your reporting and news sourcing, previews at upcoming figures, and early access to in-stock notifications, pre-orders, etc.
   
3. Accessibility to a computer, laptop, mobile or tablet device - the device you use should be a modern device and should be in working order. Seibertron.com's news process currently works best on a traditional computer or laptop, but a phone or tablet can be used as well.
   
4. Must be an active member of the Seibertron.com community - You must be an active member of our community, and you must be willing to continue to post on the forums regularly after joining. Staff members of other Transformers fansites are not eligible.
   
5. Must be willing to participate on a regular basis - There is Transformers news every day. While we don't expect you to post every single day, it would be great if everyone on the staff could post at least 1 or 2 news stories per day on average. If everyone on staff contributes regularly, there is less burden per individual staff members.
   
6. Good writing skills - What it says on the tin. We are an English resource for Transformers news, and need good writing and reading skills to effectively communicate news to the fandom. While we understand everyone makes mistakes with spelling and punctuation from time-to-time, it is expected that you will work to catch errors to the best of your ability. You wouldn't believe how many times the word "Transformers" gets misspelled!
   
7. Team first mentality - Remember, you will be an official part of Seibertron.com. You will have several perks that come with the job, but are speaking for Seibertron.com at all times while a member of staff.
   
8. Age requirements - While we don't necessarily have age requirements, we would prefer staff members be over the age of 18. However, if you're into everything and anything Transformers, are younger than 18, but still want to contribute, you can still apply.
   
9. Must be on good terms with Seibertron.com - Having a forum warning doesn't preclude you from applying, but we will be looking over your board history. You should be on good terms with Seibertron.com.

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How to apply:

If you feel like you meet all of the requirements listed above, please contact Ryan (the owner of Seibertron.com) directly via our contact form at https://www.seibertron.com/contact/index.php?subject=staff. Please include your name, geographical location and time zone, language skills, and a brief introduction to yourself and why you think you would make a good addition to the Seibertron.com team.

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Deadline:

While there is no specific deadline for new applicants, we request that you reach out to us as soon as possible if you are interested in becoming part of the Seibertron.com News Staff.

---

The position comes with full News Crew privileges and a Seibertron.com staff email, and will include both a training and a test period for you to develop your skills and for us to assess your abilities. We will not turn down anyone without good reason.

Good luck, and thank you for applying!

This is an awesome opportunity for the die hard transformers fan that loves spreading to joy. I loved my time on the team. Highly recommend it, Ryan is one of the best guys around.

Seibertron til I die!!!!

Wish I could come out of news staff retirement, but I sold my soul to the Army so.....

Although it would be cool to be apart of the staff, but my job keeps me away from things too much. Im away from home 2 weeks at a time and internet sometimes is questionable. On the other hand I would like to join a podcast at some point, but again my work schedule dictates alot.

First Gen wrote:This is an awesome opportunity for the die hard transformers fan that loves spreading to joy. I loved my time on the team. Highly recommend it, Ryan is one of the best guys around.

Seibertron til I die!!!!

I'll second all that. It's cool to get a behind the scenes look and sometimes early access to info/news. I enjoyed my brief time as a newsie. Definitely worth a go if you've got the interest and time time

STngAR wrote:Although it would be cool to be apart of the staff, but my job keeps me away from things too much. Im away from home 2 weeks at a time and internet sometimes is questionable.

That was pretty close to my situation at the time and completely killed the fun for me. So I wouldn't recommend it if your availability is spotty.