Fiftteen Years of Writing Second Life News

 

By Bixyl Shuftan 

Where to begin ...

By late summer 2007, I was just starting to find my way in Second Life. Although my journey here started in December 2006, shortly after I got high-speed Internet, for months I didn't log on much as the lady who invited me over was suddenly given more responsibility. Then in July 2007 she told me about the Relay Weekend and suggested I check out the area. So I did, and my interest in the virtual world was rekindled. I began dropping by more often, eventually finding Luskwood and making some friends there, and getting my first paid-for avatar, the red Luskwood fox. I girl I met at Luskwood told me about another place, the STA, and there I met more friends and found another hangout. 

I wanted to find out still more about Second Life, what events were going on and what interesting places were around. So I started checking out blogs and newsletters about this virtual world. Among them was the "Herald," which stared off as a Sims Online newsletter, which while occasionally informative was basically a tabloid. There was "New World Notes," a newsblog by Hamlet Au. Informative, but as Linden Lab's "embedded reporter," he was obviously limited in his ability to criticize them. And then there was the Second Life Newspaper, owned by JamesT Juno with Dana Vanmoer as the editor. It had a number of reporters and several sections, reporting on various people, places, and events around the virtual world, plus the latest on what the Lab was up to. Something else that got my attention, they occasionally called for submitted articles and pictures from the readers. So I decided to send in a few pictures plus a couple personal stories of mine at the time. I guess I impressed them, as James and Dana invited me in for a job interview. After some talk, they told me I had the job, and offered me the use of one of the office spaces.

In real life, I had been keeping up with the news on a daily basis since I was a teenager after hearing about a mob taking over our embassy in a foreign country and the government there siding with the hostage takers. And now, I had the chance to be a news reporter myself. I would use the payment for my first official article to get a fedora and leather overcoat, the classic reporter's look. Along with my fox avatar, it became my trademark appearance, one that continued as my main look with only minor alterations for over a decade. And of course there was the "Fox News" pun.

I did feel a bit of uncertainly in the first few weeks. I was the "new guy" and finding my footing. But I soon got the hang of things and was writing about various people, places, and events in this virtual world. With my sense of humor, I also ended up becoming the main source of the SL Newspaper's cartoons. Sometimes I would write about larger events, such as the Second Life Birthday and the Relay for Life and more noteable sims. Other times, I would describe more out of the way places and smaller events, such as of the STA, Woodlin Community, and Bahama Beach Club that I was a part of. After some prodding by James, I would also do one article about one of the more adult places and it's manager: ZZ Studios and it's owner Cindy "Zig-Zag" Babi. 

 

Sadly, not all of the articles were happy ones. I would end up writing about the closing of the STA just a few months after I joined the paper, and later on the sunset of Woodlin and the BBC. And the paper itself would soon run into some trouble in fall 2009 with the high-profile bankruptcy of our sponsor BNT, and James having to step away due to real life. I was made the office manager of SL Newspaper, which meant updating things when Dana couldn't. And in 2010, this was happening more and more. Finally in April 2010, Dana told the staff due to real-life she would have to step away from running the paper, and as she didn't have the authority to turn over the paper to anyone made the decision to close. So I talked to Gemma Cleanslate and two others, and as the Second Life Newspaper closed in June 2010, a new newsletter began, the Second Life Newser. And my role changed from just another reporter to the head of a team. We hit the ground running as our first big story was a week after our start, Linden Lab laying off a third of it's staff. It was a very interesting year newswise, and we were there to cover it.

So week after week, month after month, year after year, I've been continuing to write about this virtual world and what it has to offer. There have been numerous stories about how this world helps people, such as fundraisers like the Relay for Life and Veterans Isle concerts, and help groups such as the Survivors of Suicide. I have written about controversy on occasion, but it's never been for it's own sake. Occasionally I've written about Linden Lab's goofing up, which was more common early in our history. Perhaps I've gotten a softer edge over time, but there's been less spectacular goof-ups over time such as the closing of the SS Galaxy due to a Linden telling a longtime owner of the sims he wouldn't get any more rollbacks due to damage by griefers. An incident like that hasn't happened in a long time. More recently are the stories of Linden Lab getting new owners and it's place in the Waterfield Network. And as always the occasional story of my home area: the Sunweaver community.

Sometimes real life gets reflected into Second Life. One example is politics. In 2008, there were numerous political groups and locations for the candidates and discussion. But as time went on, the groups and locations became less common as political discussion in real life got more and more toxic and confrontational. One talk show held here would be canceled as the host felt no desire to keep repeating what had become an "echo chamber." Another would be the Coronovirus Pandemic that hit in 2020 and with people in quarantine were spending more time online, and here. 

Sadly among the things I've had to report on are the closings of some well done sims. Even sadder, I've had to report on the passing of a number of residents. Last year, this would include two friends of mine who were noteable members of the community I became part of. They would join the ranks of those who made great content for others, and then there would be no more. While it was an honor to write about them, these were some of the saddest articles I've had to write.

So what does the future hold? Over time there's been no shortage of "the end is near" comments about Second Life. With the virtual world currently in healthy shape, unless there's some kind of global calamity, it's a safe bet it will be around for several more years at least. For yours truly, I've also been doing some writing other than news stories. I have been doing a novel on the side, "The Corsean Encounter." It's mostly finished, just needing some editing, then I need to figure out how to publish it on Amazon. 

While there may be occasional disruptions, as long as there's a team to back me up, I'll be writing about the people, places, and events of Second Life for some time to come.

"And that's the way it is." Good day from Second Life Newser.

Bixyl Shuftan

Commentary: Fourteen Years of Writing About Second Life

 
By Bixyl Shuftan

In real life, I take pride in a number of things. One is keeping up with current events. I recall as a child, hearing a foreign country had up and stormed our embassy, taking our people there hostage. So I kept up with the story by watching the news. Eventually, the hostage crisis was resolved, but I continued watching, learning about daily events in the wilder world around me beyond that of school and the video arcade. Another thing was writing, a lifelong hobby of mine. I enjoyed writing stories in school, and would sometimes write for fun, occasionally sharing them with friends. This included a few that were background stories for roleplaying game characters. While my studies in community college were for a degree in natural sciences, there were a couple creative writing classes. When I finally got access to the World Wide Web, eventually I would start my own website, one with some science-fiction stories of mine (and updated most every weekday with a new joke).

While I first came to Second Life in December 2006, shortly after I got high speed Internet, it wouldn't be for a number of months that my story here truly began when I started logging on here on a regular basis. By this time, the FTP for my website updating had broken, and I decided to take a short break from writing. Instead, I went about exploring Second Life, and coming across some fascinating places and things, as well as events. Wanting to learn more, I started looking up blogs to read about the virtual world, and came across magazines and newsletters too. One such newsletter was the Second Life Newspaper, founded by JamesT Juno, and managed by Dana Vanmoer. It would have stories about the people, places, and events around Second Life, and regularly checked up on it.

One day, I noticed a request for reader submissions, either articles or pictures. So I sent in a story of a couple personal accounts and a few pictures. It seems I did something right, because I was invited to the office to talk to the editor and owner about a job. The meeting was in voice, but fairly short. I was given an office, and was now a reporter. And after turning in my next story, I used the payment to get a fedora and overcoat, which along with the fox avatar became my trademark look.

It did take me a little while to get the hang of things. But before too long, I was coming out with stories of all kinds. I would write about various people, places, events and things across the grid. Sometimes these were big events like the Second Life Birthday and Relay for Life and better know sims. Other times these were smaller events and out of the way places. Two of my high points were the second anniversary party, which was also the high point of the newspaper. The second was when I was made the office manager, which was updating the paper when Dana couldn't. But not all of the stories were happy ones. Sadly some were reports of the troubles and closings of hangouts and communities I was a part of.

In 2010, my time as a journalist here would change. Due to events in real life, James and Dana made the decision to close down the Second Life Newspaper and leave Second Life. So I, Gemma Cleanslate, Shellie Sands, and Grey Lupindo would form a new paper with me as the editor: the Second Life Newser. We hit the ground running as our first big story was a week after our start, Linden Lab laying off a third of it's staff. I was still reporting about the people, places, and events across Second Life. But it would be as the leader of a team.

Fourteen years later, I've written plenty about what I've come across and seen. Some of it is about the community I've become a part of, the Sunweavers. There's also yearly events such as Burn 2 and the Relay that provide plenty of story material. But I still come across new people, places, and events that are noteworthy. The Newser continues to be in solid shape, with sponsors providing ad revenue. .

Second Life itself has seen many changes. I came on during it's Golden Age when it seemed to some this was the future of the Internet and some big companies such as Circuit City and IBM were putting big money here. But many were confused by the lack of clear goals, "how do you win?", dissappointed by the quirks, crashes, and the ever-present lag, had bad first impressions such as running into griefers. So it stopped growing, and the Lab was trying to figure out how to continue the growth, then trying to figure out how to stay profitable. The Lab has gone through a few CEOs over time, and being acquired by an investment team. There have also been efforts to technically improve it from Mesh to moving the data to cloud servers. A number of Lindens have also left, including some popular ones such as Torley, Xiola, and April.

While some of my competition in the past liked to focus on drama, such as the Herald, for the most part I've avoided that. It's better to focus on what and who makes Second Life a fun place. And then there is showing the good this virtual world can do good. The Relay for Life is one prime example, raising thousands every year for the American Cancer Society. Then there are the veterans benefits. There are the science and health discussions. There's the mental health group therapy. There are the writers' groups for aspiring writers.

Sometimes real life gets reflected onto Second Life. In 2007 and 2008, one could keep a political discussion civil between opposing sides and there were a number of groups around the US Presidential Election. But things would soon sour, and became full of drama. More recently, the Coronavirus Panemic has had an impact on Second Life through increasing it's numbers, at least temporarily, as more were looking for things to do online.

Sadly, with change comes loss. I've had to write about the closing of some good places. And unfortunately about the deaths of some people, including a few friends. While sometimes what they made could be continued to be enjoyed, there would be nothing new. While I consider it an honor to help make a record of them, obituary articles are sad ones to write.

So what does the future hold? There's been no shortage of "the end is near" proclamations for Second Life since I was new. And while the new owners of the Lab haven't been perfect, it would appear they would prefer to keep the virtual world running and make money over the long term. So it's a safe bet that there's at least a few more years of Second Life news for me to write about.

But that isn't all that I've been writing about. I have a blog "Food on the Table," in which I write about something other than Second Life every few months or so. There's the occasional short story. And I've been writing a science-fiction novel on the side: "The Corsean Encounter." This tale is about First Contact between a couple humans in the 1920s who come across a portal and find a planet of beings Medieval to Colonial Age in technology. In order to get a chance at returning home, they'll need the help of friends and allies, as well as having to deal with those who see them as monsters to keep in a cage, or worse. It ultimately will be a series of novels as the first is finished and I've been going between editing the first (someone I was going to ask has been busy lately) and writing on the second. Hopefully I'll soon be done with the editing.

That's all for now. See you in the virtual world.

Bixyl Shuftan
 

Interview With Bixyl Shuftan

By Deaflegacy

Bixyl Shuftan

Bixyl Shuftan is the editor for Second Life Newser. He had been working for the Newser since its beginning in June 2010. Before that, he was with JamesT Juno's Second Life Newspaper. Bixyl  has been an editor and head of the Newser team for eight years now. He writes some of the articles himself, but the paper has always been a team effort.

I asked Bixyl Shuftan what his biggest accomplishment is. “In Second Life, at first thought, it would be the formation of the Newser,” replied Bixyl, “But starting a business is one thing. Keeping it going is another. And if it wasn't for certain individuals, it probably would have closed by now. But thankfully, it's still going. And becoming a part of a community here that I feels I do a lot for them.”

I wanted to know if Bixyl would continue being an editor for a long time. “Yes. I think Second Life will continue to be around for some years to come. So yes, I expect the paper to be going," said Bixy, "If some real life emergency makes running the Newser impossible, I would try to put someone else in charge.”

We started discussing about Bixyl's goals on Second Life. “When I started the Newser, it was to keep the team together and give our readers the best job we could on delivering the news about Second Life, big and small," he told me, "Today, that's still the case." He mentioned another goal, "I've become a regular part of a virtual community, the Sunweavers. So naturally I want to do my part in keeping things happy and active there as well.”

I asked Bixyl  if he knows that he is an inspiration to some people. “Some have told me that, and that makes me happy.” he replied with a smile, “I've had people say they are thankful for the Newser, not just to me, but the whole team and what they do. So I suppose you can say the whole team has become an inspiration to others." I also told him that he is a mentor, too. I just wanted to know if he is aware of that as well. "Thank you. That's very nice of you to say that," replied Bixyl, "I have had a lot of practice in writing. If others use my work as examples to write better well, that means a great deal."

When Bixyl was asked what he would say to someone who wants to be a writer, he replied, “There's a lot I could say. I guess the key to being one is writing regularly, even if it's just a private journal. Writing better, you can read examples of what others do, and see over time what works and what doesn't. There are also writers workshops to see how you, and others are doing, including some here in Second Life. Back to writing. One artist once remarked good artwork requires doing hundreds of bad artwork first. Perhaps an exaggeration. But it does emphasis the importance of practice. You, I would say, got the less than quality stories out before coming here. (smile)”

My next question to Bixyl was if he is proud of how things have been going for eight years. “Yes, I am proud to have lead a great team of the best journalists here in Second Life,” he said with a smile,“The stores we've done. The adventures we've had. And what will will do and have had.”

I pointed out to Bixyl that there are also others who are proud of him, what he had accomplished. If I don't say it, then I should say that now. He has accomplished a great deal. I asked him if he has an inspiration and who would that be? “I have a number of close friends whom help keep me going. Nydia, Skylark, Cynthia, Shockwave, Dusk, Little Spirit, Nikki, Rita, and many others we don't have the ink to mention... But of course there's the Newser team, Gemma, Klause, those in the past such as DrFran, Shelly, Grey, and of course there's you. (smile)” I told Bixyl that he had done a great job over the years,and have made the paper what it is today. “Thank you,” he told me with a smile.

My last question to Bixyl are what is his hobbies. “I read fiction and nonfiction. I also try to keep up with the news. I've also played computer games for years, strategy as well as shooting, and more recently survival games. I've also been a writer of fiction, I'm currently writing a sci -fi novel on the side. I thanked him and wish him luck on his stories.

As you have it, Bixyl Shuftan who had been an editor and head of the Newser for 8 years. I look forward to working with Bixyl on the Newser for years to come. He did teach me a lot and opened the door to being a writer. I owe him a lot of thanks. Thanks, Bixyl Shuftan, for giving me a chance to be a writer. I'm glad I took that chance. That was and still is my lifelong dream coming true.

Deaflegacy

Interview With Bixyl Shuftan

By Deaflegacy

Bixyl Shuftan and I met at the SL Newser building.  He told me he first got started as a virtual journalist when he was coming onto Second Life on a regular basis, instead of just sporadically, in summer 2007.

"That's how I found out about the Second Life Newspaper, owned by JamesT Juno and run by Dana Vanmoer," he described, "They asked for reader submissions, so I sent them pictures and an article." They must have been impressed with what they saw, as they asked Bixyl Shuftan in for an interview, "After a rundown about what being a reporter for them entailed, at least an article a week, I was officially hired."  And he has been writing about Second Life ever since, November 2007.

For how the Second Life Newser was founded, the first part of the story is a little sad.  The Second Life Newspaper ran for two and half years after Bixyl Shuftan joined.  However, around the time of its third anniversary, James had to leave the Second Life for personal reason. Dana kept the paper going, and even found a new sponsor after one of their longtime main business partners went bankrupt.  But soon Dana had her own personal problems.  In April 2010, she told the crew in a meeting that she had made the decision to close.  They were shocked.  Gemma was the most outspoken person, insisting that there had to be another way.  But Dana told them that James had the sole rights to the name, and no transfer of the ownership could be done without his approval.  They went on, continuing to write. Eventually Bixyl began talking with the others about what could be done.  They eventually came up with the idea of doing a new paper.  It would be four of them, Gemma Cleanslate, Shellie Sands, Grey Lupindo, and himself, Bixyl Shuftan.  As he was the office manager of the old Second Life Newspaper, they agreed that he should run it.

I asked Bixyl who came up with the name, "SL Newser" and he told me, "I was the one who came up with the name. I recalled a real life news site calling itself 'Newser' as part of it's name. So I went with that. It was close to the name of the old paper, and readers of Second Life News would make the connection."

June 5, 2010, was the last day Second Life Newspaper would run, going out with a goodbye party and a final entry by Dana, which was later reprinted in the Newser when the old publication was taken down from the Internet a few years later. Bixyl then pointed out the Newser's first story, that of James and Dana's closing party, which appeared later that night and most readers would see the next day.

Bixyl went on to say that it was a sad day for them when the old Second Life Newspapers closed.  Their old bosses, whom they considered close friends, would be leaving the grid for who knows how long, and they were basically out on their own.

"I felt I had some big shoes to fill, and had no idea what lay ahead.  Would the readers keep following us? Could we get new sponsors?  It didn't help that one secondary sponsor from the old SLN was furious at Dana for closing,"  said Bixyl, "But we were also getting support right away. Friends told us they were sorry about the old paper closing, and wishing us well with the new one. So we were a bit scared, but also hopeful."

I asked Bixyl Shuftan what their greatest accomplishments was, and he said, " As for our greatest accomplishment, well, from the start, we set out to report the news, big and small, of the people, places, and events of Second Life.  We've done so to the best of our abilities, with how our real lives on the other side of the computer allow. But we've also been a source of information of Second Life for people who aren't online here, or are curious about joining.  And I'd like to think we've improved the reputation of Second Life journalism." 

The 'arch rival' of the days of the old Second Life Newspaper was "The Alphaville Herald".  While they were occasionally informative, Bixyl Shuftan found them to be mainly peanut gallery material, focusing on drama and trolling, and wondered if they had given inworld journalism a bad name, "In our early days, some people were hesitant to talk with us, knowing SL Journalism only from 'Herald' articles.  Others were thankful we were around, calling us a refreshing change." said Bixyl, "Having said that, the Herald did give the old paper what I felt was a more or less respectable goodbye. I guess whatever else can be spoken of them, they did respect James and Dana in the end. They themselves would update sporadically a few years later, and eventually stop publishing."

Does Second Life Newser have an arch rival? Bixyl doesn't think they do. "There are other newsletters and blogs, we're just the number one of them," he told me with a smile, "We basically more or less cooperate. If we write on a subject they covered and end up using one of their articles as a source, we give credit."  They do have a link exchange with the Second Life Enquirer.  Bixyl stated, the Enquirer's editor doesn't consider SL Newser a rival as they see them as more "hard" Second Life news while they mainly cover entertainment.

There are four writers on SL Newser whom are not considered on hiatus - Gemma Cleanslate, DeafLegacy, MajikVixen (BlueVioletVixen Lorefield) and Bixyl Shuftan himself. "Yes, barring some real life difficulty, financial, health, or otherwise, I plan to keep on running the Newser." said Bixyl.  They have been continuing to go strong with 45,000 readers a month.

SL Newser has given a physically disabled person a chance to make a name for herself as a writer (and in Bixyl Shuftan's opinion she's more than earned her place).

Of the SL Newser's sponsors, the first would be Ranchan Weidman, who runs the sim of HV Community where the Newser is. Ranchan is considered to be their land sponsor., "Ranchan owns this sim, and she told me she would provide an office, and land, rent free, for us." said Bixyl, "Originally it was a grey building." The current office with much larger windows would take its place a couple years later.

Bixyl Shuftan went on to say that Nydia Tungsten has also been a longtime friend and a source of support. She would also join the paper for a couple years and write some articles.

Bixyl Shuftan also mentioned the Sunweaver community.  The other sponsors include Farshore Radio and more recently, the Lorena Chung Estates. "Podex was a longtime, faithful, sponsor," Bixyl told me, "but they were shut down by Linden Lab due to changes in the terms of service.  Steelhead was another longtime sponsor, but they had to stop when the community closed for a year. They're back, so they may sponsor us again soon.

His cat, Chilly, was there.  Bixyl told me he had gotten the Kittycats "firekitty" at a Firestorm Viewer team anniversary party a few years earlier. Rather then keep it in his inventory or alone in his tiny treehouse home, he lets it run loose around the office.

As for Bixyl Shuftan's closing thoughts, he has this to say: "I'd say we've been doing well. We're not always perfect, but on the rare occasions we make a mistake, we own up to it and correct it. We've created a publication that has gone on for seven years with thousands of articles, cartoons, announcements, and other posts, with 45,000 readers a month. Over time, we've had many fine writers on the team. I'm sorry that many couldn't stay, but real life comes first of course.  I've seen the occasional 'Second Life is DOOMED' rant. But people have been predicting it's demise for years, and we're still here.   And it's safe to say it will be going on for some time, and we'll be here to cover it."

Deaflegacy