The best letters we received in June and the first half of July 2008.

Feature Details
Author:  Staff
Class:  Mailbag

 

Yo DeViney -

It seems a former editor of yours has nothing good to say about GamePartisan and you personally after quite a memorable stint with the site: former senior editor Thomas Wilde said, pertaining to GamePartisan, "I used to write for a deeply terrible website called GamePartisan" and, about you, "utterly insane owner (it takes a very special boy in the year 2001 to be a big fan of one Richard Nixon)". Then, in a comment made on his own post on his LiveJournal (http://stolisomancer.livejournal.com/), he goes on to again suggest your insanity and, oddly enough, says "[he is] substantially more conservative than I am". What’s the deal? You and Wilde end on bad terms or what?

- John Westbrook, Arlington, Virginia

 

Hi John -

In answer to your query, I’m not really sure what the deal is. Thomas left GamePartisan on very good terms. When he departed the site, and shortly thereafter we held our final conversation, things seemed fine. That said, I’m very sorry he feels that way about us as a site after all of our hard work together. As far as the personal remarks go, my only response would be that I was never trying to impress Thomas with who I admire and/or research. It’s a shame that there is apparently such negativity on his end of things, but I wish him all the best in his current and future endeavors. As pertains to the political remark, I’m used to being mislabeled by ignorant wannabe socio-political pundits: my liberal counterparts label me conservative, my conservative counterparts call me a liberal. The truth is, I am a centrist/moderate (or "Nixon-Rockefeller") Republican. But conservative? Tough to be conservative when you’re pro-choice and pro-gay marriage. I guess Mr. Wilde can’t be right about everything.

~ Jonny DeViney

 

Dear GamePartisan staff -

I’m still a fan of the site, but I have to concur with a previous letter you guys published in your March 2008 mailbag: a change in the site’s leadership may very well be what it takes for you guys to move forward. I do not agree with some of the critics of Jonny DeViney and Ben Paddon who suggest that they fabricated the whole Microsoft story, however; why would GamePartisan want there to be a rift between them and a long-standing ally? To create such a story would go against your journalistic integrity (which you have successfully displayed time and again) and defy all conventional logic. However, I just feel that perhaps the effectiveness of the DeViney administration (if you will) has begun to wane in a major way. May the democratic process of the site prove true and do the site a favor and begin a new era with a new editor-in-chief. No offense, DeViney.

- Barry Hester, Chicago, Illinois

 

Dear GamePartisan -

I just recently stumbled upon the story on Digg about the whole Microsoft affair and wanted to say a few words: first, anyone who suggests the story was something DeViney and Paddon dreamed up for their own amusement and some free traffic has lost their [expletive deleted] mind. No one would cut their nose off to spite their own face that way; creating such a story and weaving such a web around Microsoft, an industry giant and longtime friend of the site, is crazy talk. Second, congratulations on once again proving your mettle: just like with Electronic Arts, you didn’t back down and it earned you major points with a lot of gamers out there. Please, keep up the good work: we need GamePartisan in this industry.

- J.T. Carroll, Miami, Florida

 

Dear DeViney -

As a longtime follower of the site, I have been keeping up with the ongoing chatter around the ‘net about the Microsoft/XBL/Ben Paddon "Livegate" scandal, and I just had to send you a letter urging you to press on in the same vein in everything you do. Congratulations for not being afraid to take a stand when the cause is just and the time calls for it. You definitely got my respect.

- Peter J. Lawton, New York, New York

 

To Barry, J.T. and Peter -

This topic just doesn’t seem to want to die, does it? Thanks, as always, for following the site and taking such a keen interest in our affairs and, above all, our well-being. I very much respect and appreciate your opinions and hope that you will continue to follow us each and every step of the way as we work toward going print. And no, I still don’t regret the stance I took on "Livegate". It was a customer service nightmare that Ben Paddon did not deserve whose resultant product was a public relations disaster I desperately tried to help Microsoft avoid. My hands were tied and each of my efforts to work out a compromise before the story went public were hamstrung by blank stares and static from Microsoft PR and Xbox.com officials. I will not accept responsibility for the controversy: Microsoft created that. I merely stood by our editorial staff member, Ben Paddon, when it was abundantly clear that Microsoft had no desire to rectify the situation. Again, thanks for sticking around.

~ Jonny DeViney

 

Hey DeViney -

First Ben Paddon and now Paul Willis? What’s up with people jumping ship? Is this the proverbial handwriting on the wall, the beginning of the end, or just the beginning of a new era for GP? What’s up?

- Roger Ingram, Jacksonville, Florida

 

Roger -

Thanks for taking the time to write us. As far as the "jumping ship" bit goes, I must say that terminology couldn’t be further from correct. Ben Paddon simply had far too much on his plate, especially with the wonderful opportunity he has with Jump Leads, to continue working on so many projects at one time. He put forth a valiant effort as interim editor-in-chief during my brief hiatus during the late winter, and it was the closing chapter in a brilliant career with GamePartisan. Paul Willis, on the other hand, has some extenuating circumstances in his life that made fulfilling his duties as senior editor very difficult. The dialogue between our two camps is constant, and the bridge between us remains entirely intact: Paul could come back at any point. There will always be a place for him here, and he knows that. When he gets ready, I’m sure we’ll resurrect his presence on the editorial staff in a big way. Additionally, we’ve brought in a whole new wave of talented staff members as we head into the summer, our content has been consistent in production and solid in quality, and our traffic is the best it has been since November 2004 (before the Electronic Arts/GameRankings affair). The handwriting on the wall? Waterloo? Not hardly. But thanks for asking. Stick around, because we are.

~ Jonny DeViney