A Message To Our Members:

[Sha]

Over the past year, I know that many of you have expressed concern over the direction of Broke Straight Boys and the selection of the models. I wanted to take some time to shed some insight on what Broke Straight Boys has experienced over the past year and what our intentions are moving forward into 2015.

I am aware that it is very rare that companies share information on what is going on behind the curtains of their operation, but you as members, are very important to us. We feel that it is appropriate in this circumstance to shed a little light on the concerns you have expressed. Please understand, that we may not be able to share every single detail, but we hope that this will give everyone a clearer picture of the past year for Broke Straight Boys

In the last part of 2013, we brought on a new director, Johnny. He was doing a great job capturing the vision of Broke Straight Boys but unfortunately due to his health it was necessary for him to take a sudden leave of absence in 2014. Another employee of Blumedia, Damian, did his best to fill in until Johnny could come back. We had hoped that Johnny would rejoin us last month but he contacted us days prior to his scheduled arrival back here to let us know he was still unable to handle the heavy production schedule of 260 scenes a year that Broke Straight Boys and College Dudes require. We continue to wish Johnny the best on a healthier 2015. Additionally, Damian had also just left the company and was no longer available to assist. With the unexpected absence of Johnny and now Damian, you can imagine that we were left in a huge bind. Throughout the later half of last year, we did what we could to continue on with the vision of Broke Straight Boys as we dealt with Johnny’s absence, but it was obvious from our members that we were falling short of that goal for which we apologize. We knew we had to make some big changes to get back on track.

Many of you are aware of who I am from either my posts or from the behind the scenes videos. My business partner, Bryce and I have known Mark for some time and have been consulting for BluMedia, in various areas for the past several years. Bryce and I have continued to successfully run our company in the adult industry for the past 18 years. Mark is not only a friend to us but also someone that we have continued to respect in this industry for his honestly, compassion and ability to always do the right thing. Our working relationship together has and will continue to be one that is built on mutual respect.

In early December, Bryce and I were asked if our company could step in to yet a more prominent role in BluMedia and produce content. You have seen my work on the Broke Straight Boys tour and in behind the scenes videos, and you have seen Bryce’s work as the person who led our team as we retooled the Broke Straight Boys and College Dudes sites to make them compatible with mobile devices and made enormous improvements to the speed and stability of the site technically.

The content that has started showing up on the site in the last couple of weeks with my voice is the result of the change in production that has been made. My business partner, Bryce who has a degree in film production, has been filming the content as I interview the models and collaborate with him to ensure that we capture the mission of Broke Straight Boys as well as provide members a product that they enjoy watching. It had literally been over a decade since Bryce had held a camera so you are going to see some bumps in these first videos as we transition. We are currently welcoming new Broke Straight Boys models into the house this evening and just wrapped a great week of shooting with College Dudes All the technical issues with the new 4K camera we started using last month have been completely resolved and the College Dudes videos are gorgeous, continuity is on point, and all the action is viewable and completely in focus. We know you expect the best from our updates so we apologize for the technical issues but please know that along with Mark, Chuck and the rest of our team we will make Broke Straight Boys a site that you continue to enjoy visiting each day. We have a couple of weeks left of footage shot previously to get out of the pipeline, but the scenes being shot this week will be much improved and will appear starting on Sunday, January 25.

Finally, model recruitment has become increasingly harder in our industry due to a result of various factors. There are certainly less models these days that are interested in working in the industry and the quality of the guys that apply has indeed changed. In spite of these obstacles, it is our main priority to provide fresh faces moving forward as well as bring to you some of the guys that you have grown to love from Broke Straight Boys

Although we may not be able to please each of you all of the time, it is our hope that we please all of you most of the time.

In closing, please know that we do listen to your comments and they are taken into consideration each and every month that we film.

Here is to a great new year in 2015 with Broke Straight Boys!

 

[joeychuck2]

I am privileged to make the first comment. I am sure there will be a minimum of glitches. That said, what ever happens it will be great, and I for one , will bare with it. We will enjoy both of your efforts. If we see things I'm sure we will mention them in a way that is helpful and not destructive. Good Luck in your endeavors. As for me, I look forward to hearing your voice and your ways of direction.
I can't wait for it to begin.

 

[peterh6308]

Thank you Sha. That was well written and very informative. I have seen a lot of changes over the years on Broke Straight Boys, and they usually turn out for the better. You have my continue support as you move ahead to make Broke Straight Boys a better site for all.

 

[louis33705]

Thank you, Sha, for this most informative post. It is an example that Broke Straight Boys does care for its fans and subscribers. I had been a paid subscriber on other sites but dropped those prior to coming to Broke Straight Boys Although I have not been here long, I made the conscious decision to stick it out for the long haul. I am looking forward to a productive and successful relationship with Broke Straight Boys in 2015.

Peace, my Man!
Louis

 

[johnny]

Thank you Sha. That was well written and very informative. I have seen a lot of changes over the years on Broke Straight Boys, and they usually turn out for the better. You have my continue support as you move ahead to make Broke Straight Boys a better site for all.

Peterh doesn't have the greatest vocabulary. But I thought he said this very well. I agree..
So Thank You Sha. I Love BSBs.

 

[tampa24]

Wow Sha,

Thank you! I really do appreciate your candor in all that you've just shared with us. All of this makes much more sense. You are quite right that the majority of sites out there would never give their paying members as much insight into production and hiring issues. But Broke Straight Boys is proudly not just any other site. As you stated so eloquently on the tv show, one of the goals Broke Straight Boys achieves so well is to build at least virtual and often very real and caring relationships, among members/models, members/staff and members/members. So it is in that spirit of the company culture that I'm grateful and appreciative that you felt comfortably led (and safe) in sharing what you have.

Many of us most emotionally invested in the success and continuity of quality of the site have already deduced many of the changes going on at headquarters. Thank you for filling in some of the blanks and giving us more clarity on issues we had already been aware of. I'm sorry to hear officially that Johnny and Damian are longer with us. I certainly wish them both well healthwise, emotionally, spiritually and financially. As we've seen, they are missed and not so easily replaced.

Most of us try to be as respectful as possible in our critiques or negative feedback in regards to the content. It has indeed been frustrating though over the past several months and into the present. I think many of us have felt though that if we didn't complain at least a little bit, (or even abstain from posting as much in the forum) that we might give the impression that the present quality of content/models was acceptable for a site like Broke Straight Boys Since we know for sure through your post that our concerns are getting through to the staff, I think you'll see that it will be easier for just about all of us to take the negative feedback down a few notches as we get closer to the end of the month. Just as you say though with Bryce having some bumps in the road as he perfects his filming techniques, we may still be in for a bumpy road in the forum for a little while longer. Of course as the quality of the content improves, the tone of the forum will also pick up.

I wish there was more that could be done about the pool of models applying to the site. It's been quite frustrating over the last year especially. Guys coming up into their late teens and 20's nowadays are well aware that the internet means forever. Which I know means that fewer are willing to apply. Many of them decide they are not willing to take on all of those unknowns both in the present and going forward decades farther into their lives. I'm hoping that the tv show will bring an influx of new and better applicants. Hopefully Broke Straight Boys will become even more well known and come to be seen as one of the best places to apply to and work for. Internet porn is not going out of style anytime soon. That's for sure. haha And the hot models will all eventually have to come from somewhere.

 

[rickbell19]

Thank you Sha. It is appreciated that you share the battles of running the business and Brad and I both wish you, Bryce, Mark and especially Johnny a healthy and prosperous new year.

I don't know if you guys have an answer to this but I am really wondering why there is a shortage of hot guys willing to model and make some good money?? Is it because there is so much other studio competition for a limited supply of straight or gay guys willing to do gay porn??

Ricky

 

[louis33705]

Thank you Sha. It is appreciated that you share the battles of running the business and Brad and I both wish you, Bryce, Mark and especially Johnny a healthy and prosperous new year.

I don't know if you guys have an answer to this but I am really wondering why there is a shortage of hot guys willing to model and make some good money?? Is it because there is so much other studio competition for a limited supply of straight or gay guys willing to do gay porn??

Ricky

I have a quick thought on this. Accessibility to the Internet and and ability to create personal web pages. I believe that many young men who have had an interest in doing porn, are creating their own web pages and doing shows for pay.

 

[rickbell19]

I have a quick thought on this. Accessibility to the Internet and and ability to create personal web pages. I believe that many young men who have had an interest in doing porn, are creating their own web pages and doing shows for pay.

Good point Louis..

Sites like X-Tube and a half dozen just like it, Chaturbate etc I am sure that detracts some interest but they would make much more money with Broke Straight Boys or other well known web site. But they also have better control of getting off on camera to thousands of people watching and not show their facial identity on these DIY websites

 

[betudidntknow]

Thank you Sha, Bryce, Mark, Chuck..and the entire BluMedia crew! I've always had great admiration for the fact this is the only site of which I've been a member, to share as much with it's members as you do. Obviously, I've seen a lot of changes during my time as a member and continue to remain a member! I really think that's in part, because I feel part of something here! Not only am I a member, but a supporter (as in fan) of what you (and that includes the models and behind the scenes crew) guys do! Keep up the good work and you've got my continued support!
Betudidntknow, well...nowudo!

 

[louis33705]

Peterh doesn't have the greatest vocabulary. But I thought he said this very well. I agree..
So Thank You Sha. I Love BSBs.

No offense to Peter, but they get so much rain in Seattle, his vocabulary might be a bit water-logged. LOL!

 

[rafe59]

Thanks Sha for the informative post.....I really enjoy being a member of Broke Straight Boys, The folks in the Forum are just great....Personally I feel that you can notice an improvement starting with the Damien Kyle / DH scene on Dec 14.....the new crop of models has been great, and the scenes have been a nice mix of new and experienced performers. Thanks to all of you at Broke Straight Boys....

 

[joninliverton]

Thanks Sha for coming clean so to speak, it's been a long time coming.

 

[InspireMePl3as3]

Thankkyou Sha informative and sealing, (Tampa) expressed something that hit it on the head for me, I chose to join Broke Straight Boys to observe a particular model (This has now moved to several) but in joining with the forum interaction and Model interaction both here and social media, it has become a more intriguingly personal connection (For me it was never "all about that Porn"). I wish your team a healthy 2015 as we all move towards producing good entertainment both on screen and in the forum

 

[VULCAN]

This Post is very thoughtful. Thank you very much, Sha. I have been a member of Broke Straight Boys on and off, mostly off, for 5 years. I was skeptical of the reboot, but thought I would give it a change a try last year. I am so glad I did, this is a fantastic site. I never bothered coming to the member boards over the past five years until I joined last November. When I did come, I found something else I'd been missing out on.

Who would have thought the administrators and owner of a porn site would listen to, let alone care so much about, what there subscribers feel, think and say. This site is truly one of a kind. It really goes one step above just porn, it is actually entertainment in several ways, per my opinion. Because of this post, I have a small glimpse of what's going on behind the scene with the administration; I'm assuming being this understaffed, it must be close to chaos. I applaud you all for hanging in there Sha. If I ever said anything that caused angst, I regret it, I'm new here, I had no idea how understaffed you all were. I will keep my opinions in the forms of suggestions, I would prefer you all to have nice models than to have a steady stream of mediocre models. That's just my preference. Also, I would prefer you keep the good models around longer: Just because something is "old", doesn't mean it's not useful. I'm not unrealistic, I know this is Broke Straight Boys, I know guys will "age out" at some point, but until then, really good models don't need to be "pushed out". Just say'in.

Finally Sha, I know your hands are full, but I would like to request more Behind the Scenes, when you can. They are so good, and I miss Ms. Sabrina. The guys in their everyday state, if you will, is really good to see. I know there is the reality T.V. show, but, I just don't do reality T.V., their may be others who feel the same, but I can only speak for me, and I don't want to be negative. I do hope the TV show isn't going to eventually phase out Behind the Scenes.

Thanks,

-Vulcan

 

[mikeyank]

There is an word in Yiddish, "mensch" which literally means man, but according to Wipipedia:

"Mensch (Yiddish: מענטש mentsh, cognate with German: Mensch "human being") means "a person of integrity and honor."[1] The opposite of a "mensch" is an "unmensch" (meaning: an utterly unlikeable or unfriendly person). According to Leo Rosten, the Yiddish maven and author of The Joys of Yiddish, "mensch" is "someone to admire and emulate, someone of noble character. The key to being 'a real mensch' is nothing less than character, rectitude, dignity, a sense of what is right, responsible, decorous."[2] The term is used as a high compliment, expressing the rarity and value of that individual's qualities."

Sha is and always has been a class act. Those of us fortunate enough to have actually met Sha in person know it, but it also comes across in all your dealings with us Sha. Thanks for again doing "the right thing" and coming clean to your loyal audience. Thank you my friend. You know what a loyal fan I am of Broke Straight Boys and of course the forum.

 

[another1]

Thanks, sha! You are a class act. Keep up the good work!

 

[SGVBOB]

Hey, Sha, Im sorry it took so long to correspond. I appeaciate you being candid with us. I MAY be way off in this suggestion, however, what about, in the future, when management is CONSIDERING a 'change' in scenes, or content, for a better word, if you bring it to the forum, and if you have future ideas, putting these 'ideas' into a poll for, say a month, so this gives ALL active and dedicated members enough time to 'cast their vote/s'?

By this, I am not just saying a "Choose A, B, C, or D", but rather maybe (if possible), "A & B", OR "B & C", just for (possible variety, as well, leeway for you and the writers, and actors) for you guys to get the 'feedback', on what we, the subscribers would like to see, in future scenes?

Just a suggestion?

 

[juanjo]

Thanks Sha. The fact is that Broke Straight Boys is the one website I have done my best to stay connected with over the years despite layoffs and business slow downs since I "hung out my own shingle" not to mention a few medical issues like taking care of my father during his last illness and a stroke. But I did so because Broke Straight Boys has always been one place where the dedication to quality and communication stands head and shoulders above the rest. It was and still is worth every penny I pay. I look forward to seeing where you go in the future.

 

[nitefly]

Good luck to Sha and Bryce on being the new producer/director and leading Broke Straight Boys and College Dudes to greater success. My wish is that Sha and Bryce stay active on the forum and chat with us on scenes, etc.