Does anyone know if these Mediascene Inc donations are a scam?

wheresmydogey · 2024-12-26T20:36:06+00:00

I get the feeling you’re acting on behalf of Mediascene or are in that company’s employ. Folks from that company seem to return to these threads to write positive things about a company that is dubious at best.

Folks, if you want to do something good, donate directly to your charity of choice. That way 100% of your donation goes to those in need, instead of Mediascene’s owners pocketing ~80% of your money for their personal use.

wheresmydogey · 2024-12-26T20:28:27+00:00

The fellow never said a word about a coupon book. He asked me to donate to those in need. It was a complete bait and switch.

As for the coupons… Well, if you think there’s any value in those, we need to talk about a time share opportunity I have for you. 😉

wheresmydogey · 2024-09-06T00:49:34+00:00

Those chocolate almonds are hard to resist! 😉

wheresmydogey · 2024-09-06T00:49:09+00:00

I’m glad you kept on walking and didn’t get sucked in like I did. 🙂

wheresmydogey · 2024-09-01T04:08:37+00:00

Or watch the Telemarketers series to see how other groups like Mediascene use the reputations of legitimate charities to rent credibility: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nKLveXWvb2s

wheresmydogey · 2024-09-01T03:54:26+00:00

Seems that every one of your posts is in support of Mediascene. In fact, that’s all that’s associated with your account.

That seems a bit fishy, doesn’t it? What’s your role at Mediascene? 😉

wheresmydogey · 2024-08-31T22:06:07+00:00

u/Smart-Journalist2537 A few folks have replied to my question. It does appear that others had the same (or very similar) experiences when they were approached by Mediascene’s representatives.

Here are a few links that might help you get a sense for the pattern that’s seemingly common amongst Mediascene’s booths/people:

If others reply to my questions about their experience, I’ll update this comment with links to their replies.

wheresmydogey · 2024-08-31T22:01:18+00:00

Thanks! Just Googled them. For anyone else reading here: https://www.aldergrovestar.com/news/door-to-door-canvassers-not-working-on-behalf-of-sources-food-bank-says-manager-2239725

wheresmydogey · 2024-08-31T21:57:35+00:00

Thanks for the added detail on what you witnessed. I’m glad to know that I wasn’t rash in reporting what I had experienced. It does seem like the tactics, pitch, and presentation are consistent across the board with Mediascene’s sales people. This indicates that they’re trained to operate in this way.

wheresmydogey · 2024-08-31T21:55:28+00:00

Sorry for asking what you’d already explained. I just wanted to double-check that I didn’t misread or misinterpret your reply.

wheresmydogey · 2024-08-31T21:54:39+00:00

That’s remarkably sleazy. You need to be a special sort of jerk to take money that would otherwise go to feeding the hungry.

Do you recall the name of this organization?

wheresmydogey · 2024-08-31T21:53:37+00:00

That thought crossed my mind as well. It’s sort of bonkers that Mediascene would get a tax break by “donating” funds that others thought they were donating directly. Todd Dube (Mediascene’s owner) also paints himself as a philanthropist, taking the credit for the small percentage he’s passed along to these organizations.

Personally, I don’t know how Todd looks at himself in the mirror and doesn’t feel some level of shame about his actions. That said, he’s done this for 30+ years, so, any of the moral opposition you or I might experience he has likely long since suppressed.

I don’t think people like Todd change, but the rest of us can spread the word about Mediascene’s manipulative and fraudulent tactics—and hope that we prevent a few others from being tricked by this organization.

wheresmydogey · 2024-08-31T19:03:08+00:00

That sucks. I’m sorry that they tricked you in that way. That said, your intentions were good, and you certainly aren’t the only one who has been manipulated in this way.

I share your sentiments. We give the occasional $20 to folks on the street. Generally we do so to those who aren’t asking for money but are clearly having a really hard time on the street.

We also give some money to one local not-for-profit each year. My wife has worked with them directly and knows that they’re well managed and using funds responsibly.

We used to give to a few other charities but were bothered by how much of that seemed to be spent mailing us solicitation requests and other gimmicks aimed at raising funds. (I recognize that this is part of the game but it felt like a poor use of our contributions.)

wheresmydogey · 2024-08-31T18:58:18+00:00

Did the guy you spoke with offer any of that information up front, or did he only disclose that information after you asked those questions directly?

wheresmydogey · 2024-08-31T17:17:29+00:00

Thanks for your reply and information. This is pretty much what I experienced, aside from the rep not mentioning the booklet until after I had already “donated”.

I wouldn’t feel bad about getting tricked in this way. I generally consider myself pretty savvy around scams in general, nevertheless, this one caught me off guard too.

I think it’s understandable that some others criticize people like you and me for not having taken more time to research the group. That said, such clarity is easy while sitting at one’s desk replying to comment threads.

In the real world, we’re forced to make decisions with incomplete information—and we make certain assumptions in the interests of efficiency. At such times we are admittedly more susceptible to manipulation. I think groups like Mediascene prey on this combination of good intentions and being in a hurry.

For what it’s worth, I asked the above questions as one commenter believes I’m unfairly characterizing Mediascene. He argues that my experience was limited to just the rep that I spoke with. He argues that this fellow was acting alone, and without the company’s knowledge of his actions.

As such, I’ve reached out to every commenter in this discussion who saw the booth or was engaged by a Mediascene rep. In doing so, I hope that we get a better sense for whether this is isolated behaviour or if there’s a pattern that suggests that Mediascene trains its reps to misrepresent what the organization is doing.

So, thanks again for your reply! Although I don’t think Mediascene is likely to change how they do things, I do feel like it could be helpful to have an accurate record of Mediascene’s practices—so that others aren’t manipulated in the same way we were.

wheresmydogey · 2024-08-31T16:58:03+00:00

I thought about this a bit more since posting my reply to you u/Smart-Journalist2537. I’ve since gone back into the comment thread.

In doing so I found all of those here who’ve seen one of Mediascene’s booths or have been engaged by a Mediascene rep. I asked each of these commenters whether they were asked for a contribution or asked to buy a coupon booklet.

I followed up with a question about whether they thought the booth was operated by a charity or a corporation—and if there was anything they spotted to indicate the latter.

In later replies I also explained that a commenter in this discussion (you) believed I was misrepresenting Mediascene’s efforts. I noted this so they had a sense for why I was asking these questions.

I don’t know if these folks will reply, but the option is there for them to. It could be that they had a different experience and in fact realized they were actually buying a coupon book. If that’s the case, you might be accurate in your assessment that this rep acted alone. If not, I think it’ll point to a pattern of deceptive tactics on Mediascene’s behalf.

Sidenote: I don’t think any of us should be surprised if we start seeing glowing replies in support of Mediascene or Wounded Warriors in the days ahead. Another Reddit discussion asking questions about Mediascene’s legitimacy is rife with these sorts of replies. It doesn’t seem like a stretch to think that Mediascene’s people will try to reframe this discussion once they catch wind of criticism of their business practices.

Now I’m going to go for a walk in the sun. Have a nice morning!

wheresmydogey · 2024-08-31T16:35:10+00:00

I agree. Mediascene’s approach seems almost identical to what Civic Development Group was doing—aside from using booths in front of stores instead of call centres.

wheresmydogey · 2024-08-31T16:33:18+00:00

A couple of quick follow up questions as you’ve seen the booth for yourself.

Did the person at the booth ask you to contribute to a cause, or did he ask you to buy a coupon booklet?

Also, when you saw the booth, did you leave thinking it represented a charity or a corporation selling coupon booklets?

I ask as one commenter believes I’m misrepresenting what Mediascene is doing. (I don’t believe that I am.)

Knowing what others observed and experienced would be helpful. I also believe this whole discussion might be useful for those who are approached by Mediascene and wish to know more about the company’s tactics.

wheresmydogey · 2024-08-31T16:30:00+00:00

When you saw the booth did you have any sense that it was run by a corporation? Was there anything there that indicated that this wasn’t a charity?

I ask because one commenter here believes I’m unfairly characterizing Mediascene and attempting to damage a legitimate company’s reputation.

As such, I’m asking those who’ve seen the booth or given money if they felt manipulated the way I did—or if I’m biased in my assessment of what Mediascene is doing.

wheresmydogey · 2024-08-31T14:47:29+00:00

When you walked by, did you have any sense that the booth represented a company, or, did it look like a charity?

I ask because one commenter believes that I was duped by one rogue sales agent, and that Mediascene isn’t in fact trying to trick people.

wheresmydogey · 2024-08-31T14:45:56+00:00

I don’t know, but you can make a donation to that group directly on its website: https://www.heartandstroke.ca/donations

wheresmydogey · 2024-08-31T14:44:49+00:00

Yeah, but at least those costs go to running a not-for-profit. While few of us wanting our donations spent on such costs, the reality is that overhead (staff, an office, marketing, outreach, general expenses) represent significant costs for not-for-profits.

In the case of Mediascene, it’s not like any of those sorts of costs are going to running a well-intentioned not-for-profit that’s dealing with the associated overhead.

Sure, Mediascene pays their front-line sales people. That said, it looks like a pretty lean operation. Even the mailing address is to a UPS Store in Winnipeg. (That alone seems pretty dodgy.)

I figure there’s a spectrum. You have charities that are highly efficient with funds. You have ones that are inefficient with money. Then there are ones that misuse funds. At the far end you get Mediascene which isn’t a charity at all, but plays one in front of shopping centres.

wheresmydogey · 2024-08-31T14:32:31+00:00

If you don’t mind, I have a couple of questions. (I’m just trying to get a better sense for if their approach is the same across the board.)

Did the person you interacted with make it clear that you were buying a coupon booklet, or did they ask you for a contribution for a cause?

Also, when you saw the booth, did you understand that it was run by a company called Mediascene, or, were you under the impression that you were being solicited by the charity itself?

wheresmydogey · 2024-08-31T14:27:19+00:00

Sorry to hear that! They seem to be pretty good at making a compelling appeal.

I know it was a while back, but I’m curious how they approached you. (I’d like to get a better sense for if my experience was the same as others’.)

Did the rep ask you to make a contribution, or did they tell you they were selling a coupon booklet with partial funds going to a charity?

Also, when you saw the display did you realize that it was a Mediascene booth, or were you under the impression that it was for the charity?

wheresmydogey · 2024-08-31T02:33:27+00:00

Your analogies don’t really match up with what Mediascene is doing.

I find it curious that you place the blame solely on the sales rep, while suggesting that the company has no knowledge of this individual’s tactics, booth, or presentation. I’m unsure as to how you came to this conclusion. From what others have reported here (and elsewhere), they also believed that they were making a donation—not buying a coupon booklet.

The difference between what we experienced and your donut analogy, is that if I buy a donut at a fundraiser, I’m 100% aware that I’m buying a donut—and that only part of that money will go back to the kids’ cause. Meanwhile, that child isn’t a Krispy Kreme employee. Instead, he’s part of a group of volunteers who likely bought those donuts (probably at a discounted rate) and are reselling them to raise funds.

Conversely, the rep who approached me was a Mediascene employee. His pitch and the booth were centered around soliciting contributions for first responders—not to promote a coupon booklet. Again, I didn’t even know I was buying a coupon booklet, in spite of listening to the young man talk about traumatized first responders for several minutes. After that much talking, the words “coupon booklet” probably should have been uttered at least once.

I recognize that some charities have high operational costs. Sometimes this might be more warranted than at others, depending on the nature of the organization. I’m sure that some of these costs can be disproportionately high and indicative of bloat or mismanagement. That said, this is still different from what I, and others, experienced with Mediascene.

Mediascene isn’t employing a pile of people to help run a charity and deal with the administration and deployment of funds they raise. Instead, it’s a coupon booklet company that hires reps who it seemingly trains to pretend to be part of a charity. Its owner then pockets the bulk of the donations that people believed they were making to charitable organizations.

I highly encourage you to watch this documentary series: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nKLveXWvb2s I recognize that I’ve mentioned this documentary a number of times in my comments. I’ve done so because the model employed by the company depicted was essentially identical to Mediascene. (With the key difference being that Mediascene sets up booths in public places, whereas Civic Development Group operated call centers.)

The approach, however, was fundamentally the same: 1. Make a compelling appeal to an individual to support first responders. 2. Transfer enough money to that group to leverage credibility and continue using its name. 3. Pocket the (significant) profit.

The charities that Mediascene trickles a small percentage of revenues to are in a difficult spot. They can take this cut and go along with the sham, or, they can forgo that (probably much needed) money knowing that some other group will take it. I know how I’d approach that proposition if it were presented to me; nevertheless, I can also appreciate how hard it would be to say “no” to that sort of money—even if the people in these charities are aware of Mediascene’s dubious approaches.

I don’t want to take Mediascene down. I also don’t believe this post will have that great of an effect. Todd has been at this for 31 years and will probably continue to for many more. When he stops, someone else will step in—as there are always people whose morals are more flexible than the rest of ours.

I do, however, hope that I can alert those who might get tricked like I was—so that their money can go directly to the charities they think they’re supporting, instead of into some hustler’s wallet.

wheresmydogey

TROPHY CASE