Outpost 42 News is a satire news site revolving around roleplaying and simming communities, roleplays, and the like. It is self proclaimed as "#1 most trusted fair & balanced name in news!" sarcastically. The site regularly humorously roasts prominent simmers, role play organisations and common role play topics. Outpost 42 News' articles often blur the lines between in character and out of character. It was launched in March 2018 by Major Tom.
History[]
On April 1, 2018, Outpost 42 News published its first article[1] which was met with positive reception, with over 44 likes on Facebook and three comments, all positive.
On December 26, 2018, Outpost 42 News created its most popular post of the year Fantasy RPG Moderator Deletes Post Revealing Secrets of the Universe Because It’s off Topic[2].
On January 20, 2019, Outpost 42 News won the "Captain's Award" from Sci-fi Avatars. Almost one month later, OngoingWorlds presented the "Community Honor Award" to both Major Tom and Lieutenant Dan. Outpost 42 also received awards from 5th Fleet and Feedspot in 2019.
On November 27, 2019, Outpost 42 News published its most popular article ever Multiple Clubs Accused of Cultural Appropriation of Star Trek; Colonel Arzy Forced out at USF After Thanksgiving Day Reenactment[3] with 411 likes on Facebook.
Outpost 42 News won many other awards in 2020, including The Simming Prize on January 13, 2020.
Outpost 42 News published it's 42nd article on March 31st, 2020 which generated much controversy. This was one day shy of the blog's 2nd anniversary. Major Tom then disappeared for over 2 years leading many to speculate about what might have happened to him. Outpost 42 News then published it's 43rd article on April 24th, 2022.
Content[]
Frequent targets of its parody include Mike Bremer (referred to as Mike K. Bremer), Starbase 400 (referred to as Starbase 400,000), Bravo Fleet and Chas Hammer. It also features several made-up characters (Richard, Cooper Driver and Brian Bumsworth).
Staff[]
Major Tom is the Editor-in-Chief & Chief Correspondent of Outpost 42 News. His hobbies include skydiving, bungee jumping, and putting out oil rig fires. Tom can be reached at majortom42news@gmail.com.
Lieutenant Dan is the Art Director & Chief Graphic Designer of Outpost 42 News. His hobbies include reading romance novels, watching sunsets, and long walks on the beach. Dan cannot be bothered at this time.
Reactions[]
"That's hilarious." --Deborah Plom
"That's awesome!" --Kathryn Burke
"Awesomely hilarious." --John Saxon
"The best thing since the peanut butter and jelly sandwich." --unknown
All though most people find Outpost 42 News funny, there have been negative reactions. The most notable was in response to Outpost 42 News's most popular article[3]. Immediately after it was published, a moderator from the RPG Recruitment Discord Kaveh Arzie called Major Tom an "ass", and then the group's Owner Phoenix Lalor banned Major Tom from the group. Kaveh Arzie blamed Major Tom for his rift and separation with the USF, a point which other USF members strongly disputed.
Awards[]
Captain's Award from SciFi Avatars
Community Honor from Ongoing Worlds
Friend of 5th Fleet Award from 5th Fleet
86 of the Top 100 RPG sites from Feedspot
Roleplay Influencer from Shattered Universe
42nd Starbase 400 Award from Starbase 400
The Simming Prize
References[]
- ↑ https://outpost42news.com/2018/04/01/bravo-fleet-jag-finds-defendant-not-guilty/
- ↑ https://outpost42news.com/2018/12/26/fantasy-rpg-moderator-deletes-post-revealing-secrets-of-the-universe-because-its-off-topic/
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 https://outpost42news.com/2019/11/27/multiple-clubs-accused-of-cultural-appropriation-of-star-trek-colonel-arzy-forced-out-at-usf-after-thanksgiving-day-reenactment/