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by YVETTE BEST THE VOTING SYSTEMfor the 98.1 The One/Banks Sweet Soca competition has struck a sour note with some people in the industry. Producer/musician Mikey Hulsmier created a stir in cyberspace on Wednesday when he criticised the texting component on his facebook page. A copy of the letter was also sent to the NATION. He was responding to the decision by producer the National Cultural Foundation (NCF) to discontinue the online voting component. "Upon close observation, an anomaly in the online voting was detected which led to the discovery of a flaw that was leading to a manipulation of the outcome of the vote," an NCF statement said. Hulsmier said he read the story which appeared in the MIDWEEK NATION with "great amusement" and wondered when it would create another "anomaly". He is concerned that the vote could also be manipulated by artistes with major sponsorship, who could launch a campaign, and be sent straight to the finals to the disadvantage of someone who does not have that kind of backing. "I'm very afraid, very afraid of what I see as the monster that the NCF has created here. We'll wait and see how much damage it does. Sad day "I hope they realise that this system can possibly see the exit of some of great music from this competition at absolutely no fault of the singers of these songs," Hulsmier noted. Several people in the industry agreed with his point of view. "Mikey, it is a sad day for musicians. One day people will see who is serious about music," DJ Fuzz said. "Why can't the organisers have a semi-final with judges, like other countries do. That is the fairest way in my opinion . . .," Marcia Chandler contributed. Online voting Franchise holder for the Miss Barbados World Pageant, Stephanie Chase knew how online voting could be manipulated, but while she understood Hulsmier's concerns, she noted it was the nature of competition. "Having set up online voting for the Miss Barbados World Pageant, I know for fact that online voting can be manipulated, especially if the person is a computer programmer. "I understand [his] concerns about the artistes who are heavily sponsored financially [and] can create their own Vote for Me campaign to generate votes, which could place them into the finals. But that is what competition is all about, it's about self-promotion. "It would be unfortunate that some artistes who have good music may be left behind because they do not have the wide fan base or corporate push. "I would think that all these were taken into consideration when the format for this competition was conceptualised. Beat the system "If one wants to speak about the competition, one would have to ask about the transparency with which the semi-finalists were selected," Chase observed. Shontelle Layne said people would always find ways to beat the system in any competition. "Let's think about how many competitions worldwide are based on this type of system. These competitions are on a much grander scale than the Sweet Soca Competition and work. "Every artist must be prepared to get out there and find creative ways of campaigning and promoting themselves. "It's like being mad at a political candidate or a brand of any kind because they have support that allows them to be more visible and marketable. It's the nature of the beast," she suggested. Wayne Simmons of the NCF said: "Any system may be compromised, but wewill remain vigilant in our scrutiny of the daily voting because we can monitor, and if there is need to take appropriate measures then we will do so." Hulsmier called for an organisation to be set up and run by people who know what it takes, and would put their all "into trying to develop those with the true talent to take our music forward". This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it |