Zachary Houghton resigns as an ENnies judge

[Morrus]

Please see the ENnies website for our announcement regarding Zachary's resignation.

The ENnie Awards- Index Page

 

[davethegame]

This is true of the vast majority of print publishers, too.

You're right, and my fault for implying otherwise.

But print publishers generally have the expectation of making money as well, along with advertising budgets that involve giving away promotional copies.

 

[Crothian]

I was infuriated and then heartbroken to see the "Fan Product" category last year. Podcasts, websites, and a PDF adventure all lumped in together.

This was done because of lack of entries all around. It is not something that we wanted to have happen, but it was either lump them together or not have them as part of the awards at all.

 

[El Mahdi]

As someone who is relatively new to ENWorld, and new to the ENnies (this is the first year I knew anything about them and voted in), these revelations bother me. Maybe people take ENnei winners seriously, maybe they don't, but I know that before I joined ENWorld, and I saw an "ENnie Award Winner" tag on an item on RPGnow or other places, I thought it actually meant something and gave the item a closer look because of it. After reading some of this stuff, I can say I won't be voting in the ENnies again, or giving any consideration to that "Award Winner" tag again. Whether some publishers opinions or encounters with the ENnies and the ENnie judges were as expressed or not, the fact that an actual judge reveals that there is favoritism based on monetery incentives for judges is a huge deal. As I said before, I don't know that much about the ENnies or how they are structured, nominated, and judged, but this sounds like a pretty strong and valid instigation of impropriety. ENnies have just lost any validity with me.

 

[Morrus]

the fact that an actual judge reveals that there is favoritism based on monetery incentives for judges is a huge deal. As I said before, I don't know that much about the ENnies or how they are structured, nominated, and judged, but this sounds like a pretty strong and valid instigation of impropriety. ENnies have just lost any validity with me.

Please read the announcement. You're welcome to consider the ENnies as valid or not as you wish, but (a) Zachary did NOT say there is favoritism based on monetery incentives for judges; and (b) if he had it would be a blatant untruth.

 

[davethegame]

This was done because of lack of entries all around. It is not something that we wanted to have happen, but it was either lump them together or not have them as part of the awards at all.

Sure, I've heard the reason, but look at it from the point of view of someone whose website or podcast wasn't included... knowing the reason doesn't make it any less frustrating.

 

[Morrus]

Sure, I've heard the reason, but look at it from the point of view of someone whose website or podcast wasn't included... knowing the reason doesn't make it any less frustrating.

It's a policy; it was there before anyone submitted anything; everyone knew about it; it has always been there.

10 entries for a category, or it gets merged into another category. That's how it works.

If there were only nine entries, all a nomination would mean is "it wasn't in the worst half". Nothing to be proud of, really. Even 10 is fairly low in my opinion, but the line has to be drawn somewhere.

The fault does not lie with the ENnies, and it's not the ENnies you should be "infuriated" at and "heartbroken" about. The ENnies judges don't enter products, they just judge them.

 

[El Mahdi]

Well, to me, judges being paid means monetary incentive, I just don't see how this isn't, no matter what "label" is applied to it (a flat compensation for judges I could understand, but a "percentage" of entrance fees is another story, especially if, as implied, not everyone pays an entrance fee). Also, I did read the announcement. Basically it says to me that those people Zachary Houghton worked with on the ENnies consider his statement as either speaking out of school, mistakenly wrong, misinformed, or blatantly incorrect (in other words - lying - and not in exact words but definitely by implication). I don't know Zach, and I don't know the other people who work on the ENnies. But, in my experience, people don't make decisions like he did lightly, and it seems he has strong procedural and ethical differences with his fellow staff members and judges. If even half of what he said is true (and why would he lie), then to me, that seems to cast considerable doubt on the fairness and validity of the awards.

If I can't trust them, then I'll disregard them.

 

[WayneLigon]

This is still over the silly disc thing? I guess they still think they should get an exemption instead of being glad that such categories are even considered award-worthy.

 

[Morrus]

Well, to me, judges being paid means monetary incentive

Judges are NOT being paid.

You are welcome to disregard to ENnies for any reason you wish; I'll not argue with you on that. But be informed that judges are not being paid.