Online fandom: Have we gone too far or not far enough? - Page 7
© Michael Martinez
How Xoanon got the images apparently wasn't questioned by New Line Cinema. That he posted them on TheOneRing.Net was the problem. Such leaks, possibly made with the knowledge of some people in a position to decide whether such things can be done, have occurred before. Moriarty, one of the contributors at Ain't-it-cool-news, was shown the original script Peter Jackson had written for the two-movie deal with Miramax which fell through. The same script (or a variation of it) was eventually given to TheOneRing.Net as well. It's one thing for an extra who is retired from working life to risk losing his job, but is it really all that common for other anonymous people to be divulging secret after secret and earning no repercussions for it?
Leakage has been a staple of film industry gossip for years. It used to be only the entertainment news media competed for all the insider hints and tips. Now they have us to compete with, and one gets the impression (however right or wrong) that perhaps every now and then a shadowy hand moves in Sauron-like fashion to manipulate the ironically naive fans.
It's not always so shadowy, of course. New Line Cinema compiled a list of 25 Webmasters and recruited us into helping promote the release of their Internet trailer. They have hinted other joint operations may lie down the road (there I go again!). Sometimes they even answer our email and provide useful information.
And sometimes all we hear is silence. Many fans asked why E! Online was given the nod to produce the monthly "Insider" reports. They obviously aren't dedicated fans. No, but they are a media operation with a commercial budget and a professional organization. They won't cross the line, whatever that line is, which stands between New Line and the media. There is no line between the fans and Peter Jackson. He used to answer questions on a fan-run message board. Michael DeLuca has answered fan email (he's even responded to one of my questions).
These guys don't have time for us, but they've made time for us anyway. That's not the hand of Sauron stretching out to rule the world, it's the friendly grasp of Gandalf moving to inspire the masses and kindle hearts.
It's tough to know the difference between right and wrong, or perhaps too close and too far, when you can practically send email to someone somewhere and get some sort of authoritative answer. It's impossible to know what the ramifications of any statement or revelation will be before you post it on the Web and see if the fickle masses are turned on to it or pass it by with their noses in the air.
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