Demand Media cuts demand for freelance writers

A week ago, Demand Media emailed its so-called “army of freelancers” to let them know why it was offering fewer writing assignments for its sites, including eHow.com. In the email, which is posted in full here on Business Insider, Demand says now that there’s a huge backlog of stories on eHow, it is shifting its […]

Posted on October 12, 2011 at 2:19 pm by editor · 4 Comments · Tagged with: , ,

WANTED: Freelance writer (or best offer)

Is this what the publishing world has come to that companies in search of freelance writers must resort to Craigslist?

Posted on August 11, 2011 at 3:37 pm by editor · LEAVE A COMMENT · Tagged with: , , , , , ,

Huffington Post Canada on “content mills”

Well, this is something. In a post on HuffPo Canada, freelance writer Bob Beaty discusses the value of freelance content sites and asks writers to weigh in on them too. The conclusion of the article, in brief, is that while writers are severely underpaid by these sites and are dissuaded from putting any personality into […]

Posted on July 20, 2011 at 8:17 am by editor · LEAVE A COMMENT · Tagged with: , , , ,

Demand Media demands quality, attention with new Feature Writer role

Notorious content farmers Demand Media (read up on them here) issued a press release recently, announcing they are creating new roles for feature writers, through their “content creation studio,” that will provide content for their online properties eHow.com, typeF.com and Livestrong.com. These features will “incorporate original reporting, exclusive quotes, side bars, and have word counts […]

Posted on May 10, 2011 at 12:14 pm by editor · LEAVE A COMMENT · Tagged with: , , ,

Content farm spoof hits its mark

Content farming, as a web-based business model, is going through a tough time. Increased scrutiny from media critics and frustrated web users is targeting sites like Mahalo, which had to significantly decrease its staff after Google made its algorithm change, and the various online properties owned by Demand Media. Some people also include the Huffington […]

Posted on April 29, 2011 at 11:00 am by editor · LEAVE A COMMENT · Tagged with: ,

Publishing What the World a Search Engine Wants

Thrown into the spotlight by Google’s recently declared update targeting the practice of content farming,  so-called info factories and their presence online is impossible to ignore. And for freelancers looking for a reliable source of income, however modest, the work they offer can be enticing. Part of the February 27 episode of CBC’s Sunday Edition […]

Posted on March 1, 2011 at 9:00 am by editor · LEAVE A COMMENT · Tagged with: , , , ,