Ok, I've tried to be good. Now it's payback time!

This follows on from the last blog, which I maintain is about positives despite my also having a bit of a 'vent'.

This... is pure... eyebrow twitching.

On more than one occasion, we have been told that because we're 'commercial' (we take ads to fund our merry ways) we cannot be featured (we report, but we also like to be reported on) in various 'non-commercial' (which does seem to cover a multitude of si...tes) media outlets. 

The definitions can get a bit hard to grasp. In my 'Cross of Ross' guise I once took to task a major publically-funded - and highly precious of its responsibilities editorially - broadcaster. It was for a news item that seemed to consist of 15 minutes on the joys of plastic surgery vacations, devoted solely to one exotic 'venue', their pricelist & gushing testimonials included (plus some gory T&A), with no analysis of the competition or any pros and cons. I suspect they did not reply because I opined this was more a blatant funded jolly for the production team and ratings grabbing filler for the editorial, than any attempt at objective news.

And elsewhere we have already found ourselves denied coverage on more than one occasion despite being free to use, yet seen others gain coverage when their - admittedly ENV/RE: - products or services do actually involve the audience in costs.

Anyway, who said life was fair? 

So I could not help but be tickled by a piece, nutritionist-endorsed even, complete with price details, by a major online feed (slooow news day guys? Or a relative starting the business?) about a portable, temperature-controlled butter dish, called...[no way do I share this !!!], which keeps butter at... 'the optimal spreadable temperature of 18.5 C'.

Let me get this straight. A thing you plug in, 24/7, to keep the butter spreadable, when all you need do is take it out the fridge 5 minutes, and it gets national media coverage? Wish I could show the grab it took to you. But then that would be promoting this thing, now wouldn't it?

But you know the best bit? The banner ads around this were all for renewable energy, carbon footprints and such.  

Delicious. The irony, that is.