MSNBC went counter culture for a brief moment today, featuring a Newsweek “web exclusive” story on a recently released DVD, featuring tours of some of the worst places on the face of the earth.
The Vice guide to Travel, is the creation of Vice Magazine, a pop culture publication that is certainly more in your face and less concerned about the conventions of modern journalism than oh lets say Newsweek.
Some of the sunspot destinations that Vice checks out for the faithful include, checking in with illegal-arms dealers in Pakistan, sharing some quality time with dirty-bomb dealers in Bulgaria and just in time for hunting season a quest for the wild, radioactive boars of Chernobyl. Now let’s see you get that package from the Travel agency in the Rupert Square.
MSNBC claims to provide a few samples of the DVD’s “tours” on the story page, though they refused to load for me when I tried to access them. I’ll blame the recent cutbacks at NBC; most likely they fired the guy that embeds the clips to the website. When in doubt always blame the management!
The magazine is definitely shooting a at least one decade and maybe two, below my demographic, but that doesn’t stop me from trolling it’s web platforms pages on occasion. If for no other reaston than just to see what it is that I’m missing out on, as I ponder the sunset years on my horizon. It makes generous use of YouTube video and takes an approach to current events that the mainstream outlets won't dare to try anytime soon.
Be warned ahead though, they like to drop the F bomb ( a lot) and it's not something you want to be surfing at, when the young ones come around to see what Mom and Dad are doing on the computer!
One of the publishers, Shane Smith is a Canadian, who takes on the role of guerrilla tour guide himself on some of the expeditions. He started the Vice project while living in Canada but has since moved himself and his idea down to New York, using it as his base for world travel.
He offers one hint as to what it takes to successfully go into places that most journalists, let alone travel writers would have difficulty finding. “We dress up the part and go with them. They say, don't act like an American and you won't have problems. When you're just kind of bummy, wearing an old T shirt and have a beard with food in it, then no one looks twice.”
Foreign correspondents of the world take note!
In the Newsweek piece, Vice's creators expressed concern over its recent affiliation with the MTV network in the USA, feeling that they probably don’t have as much in common with them as that pop culture network might think.
Though you have to wonder how they must feel about the attention from MSNBC and Newsweek, we gather it’s probably a lot like the feeling that kids get when they find out that the parent’s have actually figured out what they’ve been up to!
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