The Magazine

RuPaul gets her own foursquare badge

15

By on January 10th, 2011

RuPaul's Drag Race badgeThe third season of RuPaul’s Drag Race premieres January 24th on Logo TV, and — as has apparently become tradition for bad reality shows desperate for viewers — there’s a foursquare badge for it. Users can earn the RuPaul’s Drag Race badge by following Logo TV and checking in to the places queens “love to shop, sashay and socialize.”

There are two ways to unlock the badge:

  1. Check in on three separate days at gay bars, salons, boutiques, karaoke bars, or beauty/cosmetics shops (the checkins must be in different categories) or
  2. Check in at one of the 24 locations recommended by the queens on the show as listed in the official rules

The unlock text reads:

All hail the Queen! You’ve sashayed with the best of them, earning you this sassy badge to Drag around. Don’t miss the premiere of Logo TV’s Drag Race – January 24 at 10PM.

Unlocking the badge automatically enters you into a contest. The winner will receive a trip for two to New York for the Drag Race finale party.

Despite foursquare’s desire to stick to location checkins only, it seems a lot of their badges are tied to TV shows — and reality shows at that. I don’t have much of a desire to show off these reality show badges on my foursquare profile; that’s a better fit for services like GetGlue or GoMiso that are meant for checking in to TV shows. On foursquare, I want content that makes the real world better, not more of the reality TV drivel I can find sitting on my couch.

What do you think of the Drag Race badge? Is foursquare putting too much emphasis on badges for TV shows?

  • http://www.jonesydesign.com Christopher

    On the bright side, I bet Foursquare is making some money with badges like these. Money is good if it means Foursquare can stay free and awesome, so I guess I’m indirectly in favore of these tie-ups.

  • Joe

    I feel like by doing this, Foursquare is trying to put GetGlue on notice that TV shows aren’t out of Foursquare’s realm. IMO, they’re actually admitting GetGlue could be a threat by partnering with these TV shows – though GetGlue clearly has a much lesser install-base than Foursquare.

  • Katie Coleman

    Apparantely, it also counts from your previous check-ins. Headed over to our local gay bar last night, checked in, and automatically got the badge….but then again; I frequent salons and cosmetic stores on the regular since I’m a professional mak-up artist :0)

    • http://www.welcometojmart.com Josh Martin

      You go girl. ;)

  • Pingback: Nieuwe badge: RuPaul - 4sqNL.net

  • 5square

    I would like to agree with Christopher… Although I think foursquare may be “jumping the shark’ with all these reality show badges… we need not forget that, like the GTL Badge, these television networks are probably paying some good money for these badges. Therein allowing Foursquare to move into their new offices, hire more people, and yes… probably even more non-partnered Foursquare badges!
    With Foursquare’s ever growing popularity… I would imagine these TV badges are just the start. Soon we will be unlocking Windex and Cheetos badges too.
    If you get a badge and dont want it… delete it!!
    But be glad badges are still coming out!!!
    That means money is still coming in… and we can all keep enjoying the service and blogs like this!

  • 5square

    ** I am aware that this blog is not directly affiliated with Foursquare…. but if 4sq went down the tubes… what the heck would Chris Thompson write about?!?

    • Chris Thompson

      That’s a very good question. I’m sure I’d find something :)

  • http://foursquare.com/MCuthbert Matt

    Wow, the latest sponsored badges have really sucked. This one, Jersey Shore, Radio Shack, The Ellen badges… It’s no wonder I’ve found myself checking in on Gowalla more often than Foursquare lately. Foursquare seems to be headed down the path of MySpace.

    • http://www.welcometojmart.com Josh Martin

      I agree, Matt. The latest badges haven’t been that great. I think it’s a creative way for TV Shows to get into the check-in game, but it looks like Foursquare is just accepting any TV show that wants to have a badge (or shows them the money).

      • 5square

        But its free to us!!! You cant expect Foursquare to do without sponsors.. But I also agree that, like this time a year ago… 4sq should keep a badge standard for both aesthetics and content….
        It is my opinion that neither this badge or the GTL should have met those standards.
        Whore yourself out Foursquare….but at least do it with SOME pride!!!

  • http://foursquare.com/bauserdotcom Michael Bauser

    I think you TV-show haters are thinking about this wrong. You’re not being rewarded for watching the TV show; you’re unlocking badges for stuff that the TV shows feel like sponsoring. It’s like NASCAR — that guy with the Ovaltine badge on his uniform isn’t a big fan of Ovaltine, he’s a big fan of driving in circles at life-threatening speeds, and it just so happens that Ovaltine will help pay for that. In NASCAR, you can’t win if you won’t wear a logo.

    Sponsored badges are just the patches on our Foursquare uniforms, as it were. I have badges from shows I’ve never watched, because they sponsored badges for things I do, like eating steak and going to concerts. All it means to me is that those shows are paying for my game-playing.

  • http://charlieholder.com Charlie

    The locations:
    Splash Bar – 50 West 17th Street, New York, NY 10011-5727
    Therapy – 348 West 52nd Street, New York, NY 10019
    Barracuda – 275 W 22nd St # 1, New York, NY 10011
    Therapy – 348 West 52nd Street, New York, NY 10019
    STYXX Nightclub – 3 Spring Street, Portland, ME 04101-3918
    Q Lounge – 1234 Locust Street, Philadelphia, PA 19107-5612
    Mova – 1435 P Street Northwest, Washington D.C, DC 20005
    Escuelita – 303 West 39th Street, New York, NY 10018
    The Cage – 32 Newark Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030
    Alias Night Club – 984 Old McPherson Church RD, Fayettteville NC 28303
    Krash Klub – 1257 Ponce De Leon, San Juan, PR
    Rage Nightclub – 8911 Santa Monica Blvd, West Hollywood, CA 90069
    Ripples Nightclub – 5101 East Ocean Boulevard, Long Beach, California 90803
    Station 4 – 3911 Cedar Springs Road, Dallas, TX 75219
    Micky’s – 8857 Santa Monica Boulevard, West Hollywood, CA 90069
    Blakes on the Park – 227 10th Street, Northeast Atlanta, GA 30309-3706
    Jungle – 2115 Faulkner Road, Northeast Atlanta, GA 30324-4269
    Georgies Alibi – 3100 3rd Avenue North, St. Petersburg, FL 33713-7602
    Hamburger Mary’s – 1600 East 8th Avenue, Tampa, FL 33605
    VIP Nightclub – 3673 Merrill Avenue Riverside, CA 92506-2538
    Ripples Nightclub – 5101 East Ocean Boulevard, Long Beach, California 90803
    Adonis Nightclub – 4601 Kellogg Ave # 1, Cincinnati, OH 45226-2422
    Club Masque – 34 North Jefferson Street Dayton, OH 45402-2008
    Old Street Saloon – 13 Old St # B Monroe, OH 45050-1812

  • Jeremy

    Interesting pronoun switching in the title of the article versus the URL. lol

    The best way to address a person who does drag is as a “she” or “her” (as the title of the article has it) when the person is in drag, then as a “he” or “him” when the person is not.

    • Chris Thompson

      I did that intentionally since RuPaul appears as both a drag queen and himself in the show. Glad someone caught it :)

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