- Playing
- Online Dating, Amazon Style
- From
- Sean O'Connor
...women were being merchandised at the cash register like Dentyne and Tic Tacs." If Amazon is to the bookstore what online dating sites are to the singles bar, then why not a merger?
Now you can judge a potential mate based on their taste in literature - or self-help or cookbooks.
From page turner to head turner.
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Related Pieces
Piece Description
...women were being merchandised at the cash register like Dentyne and Tic Tacs." If Amazon is to the bookstore what online dating sites are to the singles bar, then why not a merger? Now you can judge a potential mate based on their taste in literature - or self-help or cookbooks. From page turner to head turner.
4 Comments
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Review of Online Dating, Amazon StylePiece was fun to listen to and thought-provoking. Good, authoritative delivery. I enjoyed listening to this. |
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Review of Online Dating, Amazon StyleEntertaining. Even when the joke seemed like it might stretch too far, I still couldn't help thinking of more possibilities -- "one-click dating," "user reviews," etc. Let's hope Jeff Bezos doesn’t hear this or satire might become reality. Exactly what you'd want to hear after a dreary stock report or a news story about a corporate scandal. |
Broadcast History
Not broadcast
Transcript
Surfing the web for a date while dressed in a robe and slippers does have a certain Hugh Hefner decadence to it. And if your slippers happen to be the likeness of Sponge Bob Square Pants–all the better. Point. Click. Date. It’s the best thing to happen to dating since Caller I.D.
Despite – or because of – these improvements, I find online dating to be disturbingly similar to buying a book online. Just as Amazon recommends books based on your preferences, dating sites do the same thing. It is every bit a retail transaction, only with people instead of pages.
“Based on your tastes, here are some other women you might want to consider dating.” This message, along with photos, popped up on my screen the first time I emailed a woman through a dating site. It was kind of creepy. I didn’t expect such slick salesmanship while looking for a date. Women were being merchandised at the cash...
Read the full transcript
Timing and Cues
Run Time: 2:46
Music: NA
Outro: ...in Seattle, I'm Sean O'Connor.
Portia Langworthy
Posted on August 02, 2004 at 10:17 AM | Permalink
Review of Online Dating, Amazon Style
O'Connor's look into the world of on-line dating takes a funny turn when imagined as the amazon.com "if you liked this book, you may be interested in..." genre of matchmaking. Creatively constructed, this piece made me smile throughout the day.