Journo requests, they're not just for sad and lonely children any more

[drspouse]

Just had a journo request through to me because I'm down as the contact for our local knitting circle.

Someone from Channel 5 is looking for senior citizens to take part in a series on "how senior citizens and younger people interact".

I was happy to be able to inform her that we don't have any senior citizens in our group...

(Technically, I think we have 2 members that are retired but both under 65 having retired early).

"Hi there!

I hope you don't mind me emailing you, I found your contact details via the Knit Together website. I wandered if you might able to help me at all. My name's Rosie, I work for a television company that is currently making a series for Channel 5. The programme will explore the age divide in today's society and we're currently looking for senior citizens to take part.

I just wandered if there might be a way to help us reach out to the members of your lovely knitting club in the hopes that they might be interested in finding out more?

The programme will be an interesting and topical social experiment which will explore the generation gap in today's Britain. We want to see whether a group of older and younger people can learn from each other by living together, and find out if it's possible to bridge the gap between the generations. It's going to be a groundbreaking series that will get the nation talking!

It will be a ‘back to basics’, warm and feel-good show with interesting characters at its core. We're looking for real people with real opinions from all walks of life, who aren't afraid to speak their mind. We're keen to hear from passionate, honest characters who would be happy to voice their opinions and appear on television. I am hopeful there might be some outspoken ladies in your club!

I'd really appreciate it if you could help us with our outreach by spreading the word amongst those in your group, whether it's forwarding our information and flyer onto your mailing lists, word of mouth or social media. We want to make sure as many people as possible are able to hear about this exciting opportunity!"

[user1477282676]

I don't really understand your title...what have sad and lonely children got to do with anything?

The way that request is written annoys the hell out of me though! Send it back to her with editing.

She "wandered" about "your lovely knitting group" did she?

Tell her your "lovely" group is made up of violent ex offenders and that you're all currently knitting life sized figures of mass murderers.

She sounds like an ignorant fool.

[drspouse]

Tell her your "lovely" group is made up of violent ex offenders and that you're all currently knitting life sized figures of mass murderers.

Excellent idea.

I wrote this about an hour after someone put up a media request from the DM for sad and lonely children.

[PhilODox]

I think user147 missed a thread yesterday!

[drspouse]

Yep I think so!

Should we maybe show the journo a collection of knitted female body parts, too, do you think?

[user1477282676]

Yes. Vulvas, breasts and penises. Wearable ones.

[Maudlinmaud]

Quite an assumption on the journos part that only senior citizens knit.

[drspouse]

Oh definitely wearable.

I replied to her, and copied in the knitting group email, to say I'm sorry we don't have anyone who fits her stereotype, but thanks for the assumption.

[IamNotDarling]

Sounds like an intern thinking 'outside of the box'!

[drspouse]

Is that the box where senior citizens don't conform to the stereotype of knitting and drinking tea at home by the fire?

[user1477282676]

Must be...except she lost the key for that box so just made one up based on her short life experiences.

[JoffreyBaratheon]

I have a modest stash on Ravelry. I've been weaving, dyeing, spinning and knitting for 30 odd years - it would be rude not to have some kind of stash. That said, I have spent the past 3 years knitting/weaving it down to the point that my 30 plus year stash actually lives in one large plastic box and one drawer of a dresser. Reasonable, right?

I had a journo contact me via messages on Rav, asking if I wanted to be in a TV show about 'hoarders' who hoard their hobby stuff... Cheeky sod. I gave that the contempt it deserved and ignored it.

Years ago, I was at a hospital appointment with one of my sons at a large city Children's Hospital. It was a physio appointment - he has special needs - and the physio asked me if I minded this young woman sitting in on his appointment as she was a researcher for a TV company who wanted to make a TV show about children's hospitals. I said I didn't mind her sitting in, but what the hell was her company doing makign yet more voyeuristic kiddies-with-illnesses 'documentaries' when the TV was already full of them? She went very quiet.

[WiseOwlLady]

I can just imagine the voiceover. "This is unemployed Joan who has been in the knitting circle 3 years. She spends most of her time here as she enjoys the sense of community and is unemployed. She also enjoys crochet, hates foreigners and her latest activity is knitting National Front scarfs with wool paid for with taxpayers money"
Channel 5 programs piss me off.
Rant over.