 |
| TV show producers accused of fraud looking to charge Media $19,800! |
Who's looking out for the best interests of Media? Borough council isn't, and neither is Mayor Bob McMahon. Turns out there are serious complaints and fines against the company that Media borough is enthusiastically looking to ratify a contract with on July 19th.
The Florida Attorney General filed a case against this organization(which goes by many names), and towns across the country who got the same pitch Media did are also up in arms. If borough council and the mayor were paying attention, someone could have at least taken 5 minutes to do a bit of due diligence in the best interest of the community.
I've notified the RTM school board and Brandywine Convention and Visitors Bureau of these developments. They both were being solicited by Media Borough and the mayor for funding towards this project.
 |
| Paragraph from the Florida Office of the Attorney General (click to enlarge) |
 |
| (click to enlarge) |
- Here's the PDF of the Florida AG case against Platinum Television Group, Inc
- The same exact pitch was make to another town as reported by clark.patch.com
- Parsippany rescinds contract with this company due to allegation of fraud
- http://www.scaminformer.com/scam-report/insights-with-terry-bradshaw-u-s-media-television-they-c74123.html
Complaints made against this company:
- http://www.ripoffreport.com/directory/today-in-america.aspx
- http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-954-379-4870/5
I can't stop laughing!!! Media is so gullable...well, elected officials are, i guess!
ReplyDeleteGreat work, Tedman.
ReplyDeleteGreat job, Ted.
ReplyDeleteI don't think there's any doubt that Media shouldn't be spending this money. I've never heard of any reputable production asking for an appearance payment. And who's ever heard of this program before anyway?
This sounds like the TV equivalent of the 'who's who in american students' vanity pitch.
tedman doesn'tknow what he is talking about...goodness!
DeleteLooks like another political setup by Mr. O'Hara.
DeleteAre you part of the bat***t liberal contingency who's sole purpose is to quell news and opinions that differ with that of the resident 'people's party'?
DeleteIf this blog is half right with all the alegations it has toward local governmnet, than this town really has some issues with it's officials.
ReplyDeletei still don't even understand what this show would be about? Just a 5 minute segment profiling media? is it supposed to drum up tourism or interest in the town? It is stupid idea and waste of money even if it isn't a scam.
ReplyDeleteSo, someone please put it to me in a way we've seen wasteful spending described before: how many beers per resident is this mistake going to cost us?
ReplyDeleteIs this Ronald's brother,again? Used to see his posts on Web sites. Explain to me why we have Freedom of Expression? Give me a Burger King, please! And a Diet Doctor
DeletePepper. 32oz.
About 5000 beers at John's.
DeleteThis is a fine example of how blogging and citizen participation can really make a difference. If just a fraction of this turns out to be true, Tedman has provided a huge service to Media.
ReplyDeleteGreat work.
If we are lucky, someone on council will follow-up on this and stop it in its tracks. They'll probably take credit for sniffing it out, but that is a better outcome than the town losing money to scam artists.
More information:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.ripoffreport.com/tv-advertisements/todayinamerica/todayinamerica-platinum-telev-39868.htm
Tedman,
ReplyDeleteYou lost two elections, why do you continue to bad mouth our great town? How about you and Mr. Indorff move somewhere else!
Tedman ain't moving anywhere. He is a asset to the Media community. He writes the BEST blog on the Daily Times site.
DeleteWhere does Mr. Indorff stand on this issue?
DeleteWhile everyone is looking the other way thinking Media is going to be showcased on some show, Tedman of all people wacks us with a story like this. How's he know this when no one else did? Bizarre.
ReplyDeleteFew expected clarity from business owners wanting the publicity...
ReplyDeleteThis has all the characteristics of a classic scam. And reading the comments proves how easy it is to manipulate people who spend based on emotion rather than careful thought. It's even more dangerous when it is other people's money you are spending. Why not pay $50,000 for a 15 minute commercial that no one will see? How about $100k for a full half hour? Who has shown that this is a smart way to spend money?
ReplyDeleteWithout knowing all the details, it just seems hard to believe that all of those towns across the country would get duped by an ostensibly legitimate Discovery Channel show. To say "Media Borough About To Be Scammed By TV Show" seems a bit sensational. Almost reminds me of the New York Post.
ReplyDeleteIf buying infomercial time on the Discovery Channel makes you a legitimate Discover Channel show then I guess 'Yoga Booty Ballet Workout' is a legitimate... oh, you get the idea.
DeleteThere's a difference between 'not wanting tourism in Media' and saying that paying an infomercial company $20,000 is not the best use of public money. Media could get a much better return on investment elsewhere.
ReplyDeleteHow successful are the YouTube vidoes? Let's look at all the cities/towns posted more than a month ago and see how successful they are:
Monterey County, CA: 15 views
City of Hawkinsville: 89 views
City of Tomball: 84 views
City of Alabaster: 24 views
City of Eau Claire, WI (population 67,000): 1,804 views
Of course, if private donors want to fund the whole project, it's a different matter.
This begs the question: Must one be lobotomized before running for Media Borough Council or does that happen after the swearing in ceremony?
ReplyDeleteOnly if you are Mayor. And only after your 15th term in office. Whatever.
DeleteThe dopey mayor has gotta go. People have been saying that for awhile.
Deleteisn't there a local production company that could put together a video piece for a smaller charge, they can also put it on youtube for free.
ReplyDeleteI seem to remember one being made a few years ago by a local guy that was really well done.
**found it on youtube for the Ikea contest years ago, there isn't a much better advertisement for media than this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zXF_Q_Ni3RA
Check this out:
ReplyDeletehttp://mid-riffs.com/2010/07/fayetteville-approves-infomercial-feels-special/
Personally, I think 20K could be better spent buying all the residents of Media "The Hula Chair". But that's just my opinion.
How many two buck chucks would that buy? I'm bad at math
DeleteAsk the other blogger!
DeleteWhat blogger would that be?
DeleteHey man, it's all good. Let's make a video of the greenway way, yeah man that's what I'm talking about!
ReplyDeleteIs that you Mickey?
DeleteLet Paul Indorf do the video. I not kidding. He is a talented guy. Probably do it a lot cheaper, too.
ReplyDeleteBlueberry Bog is getting constantly sued by people who 'think' they are being ripped off?
ReplyDeleteWhy is Blueberry Bog "constantly" being sued? Isn't that exhausting?
ReplyDeleteA local production company like www.alliedpixel.com could do a fantastic job for much less (and no travel expense). Why would Media Borough use a company that wasn't local?
ReplyDeleteThe $20K does not simply pay for the production of the segment; it is payment for air time. As I have expressed in other comments, I think that the quality of air time is suspect. For that reason I believe the $20K could have been spent on producing a locally made segment which Media borough would retain all rights to use in whatever fashion they wished to us it. They could use an edited version in TV commercials, place the entire segment on a YouTube channel, etc. From what I have read, it seems council wanted a company that could compile all current video of the Borough. If that was the case, who better to do that than a local production company.
ReplyDeleteLocally I can think of:
Spring Garden Pictures
Media Dog Films
off the top of my head. I am not affiliated with either in any way, but those came to mind.
Correction: "...they wished to use it."
ReplyDelete