Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Breaking News: Media Borough about to be scammed for $19,800 by TV Show!

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)


Complaints made against this company:



39 comments:

  1. I can't stop laughing!!! Media is so gullable...well, elected officials are, i guess!

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  2. Great work, Tedman.

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  3. Great job, Ted.

    I 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.

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    1. tedman doesn'tknow what he is talking about...goodness!

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    2. Looks like another political setup by Mr. O'Hara.

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    3. Are 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'?

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  4. If 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.

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  5. i 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.

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  6. So, 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?

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    1. Is 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
      Pepper. 32oz.

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    2. About 5000 beers at John's.

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  7. This 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.

    Great 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.

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  8. More information:

    http://www.ripoffreport.com/tv-advertisements/todayinamerica/todayinamerica-platinum-telev-39868.htm

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  9. As someone who's company is constantly being sued via frivolous lawsuits, by people who simply 'think' they are being ripped off, these charges don't even make me bat an eyelid.

    We would pay money, and receive a commercial for Media. Services rendered fair and square. I don't see any fraudulent activity there. I am most interested in the excess footage we can buy to show our own high-production commercial for the surrounding area. Also, the show posts all of the videos to You Tube, which we can then share.

    A wedding photographer can cost $5,000-$10,000, so the cost is minimal for what we would be getting, (a high quality Media commercial).

    Private donors may pay for this, so why the residents of Media are so up in arms over the cost is beyond me. (Yes I understand RTM was asked about $).

    It is my opinion that most residents do not want tourism in Media, but then scratch their heads when buildings go empty.

    I watched a bunch of their you tube videos, and the towns were so charming. I want to go to there.

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    1. Few expected clarity from business owners wanting the publicity...

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    2. There'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.

      How 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.

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    3. Blueberry Bog is getting constantly sued by people who 'think' they are being ripped off?

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    4. Why is Blueberry Bog "constantly" being sued? Isn't that exhausting?

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  10. Tedman,

    You lost two elections, why do you continue to bad mouth our great town? How about you and Mr. Indorff move somewhere else!

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    1. Tedman ain't moving anywhere. He is a asset to the Media community. He writes the BEST blog on the Daily Times site.

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    2. Where does Mr. Indorff stand on this issue?

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  11. While 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.

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  12. This 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?

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  13. Without 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.

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    1. If 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.

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  14. This begs the question: Must one be lobotomized before running for Media Borough Council or does that happen after the swearing in ceremony?

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    Replies
    1. Only if you are Mayor. And only after your 15th term in office. Whatever.

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    2. The dopey mayor has gotta go. People have been saying that for awhile.

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  15. isn'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.

    I 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

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  16. Check this out:

    http://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.

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    1. How many two buck chucks would that buy? I'm bad at math

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    2. Ask the other blogger!

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    3. What blogger would that be?

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  17. Hey man, it's all good. Let's make a video of the greenway way, yeah man that's what I'm talking about!

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  18. Let Paul Indorf do the video. I not kidding. He is a talented guy. Probably do it a lot cheaper, too.

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  19. A 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?

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  20. The $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.

    Locally 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.

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  21. Correction: "...they wished to use it."

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