Modernista!'s new website, or whatever you want to call it, is making Wikipedia very mad. But before we get into why, I must explain that Modernista!'s website recently underwent a revamp and is no longer a website at all. In fact, when I went to Modernista.com, I was actually redirected to DARPA's website for no apparent reason. Anyway, the only thing that is consistent about Modernista!'s new site is a static, ugly red menu.
You see, Modernista! no longer has a proper "About" page. It just links to the Modernista! entry in Wikipedia. When you click this link, the red menu stays on top of the Wikipedia page after it loads.
Wikipedia's response:
The website for this company obscures our logo with their own, and may lead the viewer to believe that Wikipedia serves as their homepage provider. This is not correct. Wikipedia has no affiliation with Modernista and has requested that Modernista cease this use of our website.Ooo, burn! Wikipedia even left off the exclamation point in Modernista!'s name! DOUBLE WHAMMY.
Wikipedia is an encyclopedia written from a neutral point of view and does not endorse nor condemn Modernista, but is opposed to being used as a promotional mechanism in this manner for any third party.
EDIT: I should add: Modernista!'s new site is an attempt to show the world they understand Web 2.0 by using Flickr, Facebook, del.icio.us and YouTube (among others) as the various "sections" of their site. Some have called it bold and brilliant while others say it's just plain lazy. Check it out and decide for yourself.
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3 comments:
Didn't McKinney do something like this with a campaign before too?
Here we go.
http://www.adrants.com/2006/01/mckinney-silver-behind-pherotones-viral.php
So...cool vs. lazy.
My vote is that it is attempted coolness coming off as laziness.
I think their initial intent was to be cool, to build something that was buzz-worthy...to do something no one else had ever done, and ultimately name themselves as the "King of Cool" -- the "Cool Maker."
They failed.
They went about trying to be cool in the wrong way. Yes, it is in the digital sphere, connected to social networking sites and wikis, which seems to be the ad industry's current obsession. But to be truly "cool" you have to start something...not join in on something already established, like Facebook (which now has Facebook Chat...lameeee). Because, that just makes you a follower of "cool" and not a definer/maker of cool.
Anyway, my point is that their original intent was to be cool. But, the way they went about defining themselves as cool was wrong, and as a result is coming off as laziness on their part...because they didn't have the energy, dedication, motivation to start something. Instead, they are just "cool" leeches!
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