Comments on: Michael Gee on Handling Criticism

By: Siggy

Siggy — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 02:16:39 +0000

I’ve read Gee’s stuff in various places since he left the Herald and it seems better now than before. Liberated? Maybe.

BTW, on Simmons: I read him religiously, until one day I didn’t. He was the perfect guy in the perfect place at the perfect time. And then I got the feeling that I had read everything Bill Simmons had to say. A few weeks ago I saw a tease on ESPN.com for his piece on the USA/Mexico soccer match and I knew what he was going to say and what set pieces he was going to use to say it. No need to click on it at all.

An observation on some in The Media who make it big: You come in as the iconoclast, but nature demands that as you succeed you become the icon. Just as Big O slowly becomes Eddie Andelman, Simmons is inexorably becoming Dan Shaughnessy.

By: Jason Coyote

Jason Coyote — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 14:23:51 +0000

Speaking of columnists, the NY Times has seen several of their sports columnists depart over the years without replacing them. They’ve asked their beat writers to provide more commentary through blogging and the like. Might we soon start seeing more papers going in this direction as another way of cutting costs? Here’s the story discussing it:

http://www.observer.com/2009/media/old-fashioned-sports-columnist-its-game-over

By: James Allen

James Allen — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 02:27:45 +0000

Ditto what Jack Edwards said.

And might Michael Gee find that Simmons’s writing leaves him “cold” because back in the day of Boston Sports Guy, and daily links, he used to regularly crack on Gee?

By: Big Jeff

Big Jeff — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 23:39:06 +0000

By this point in time this is either what these folks know, or what they have prepared for for so long that they have to keep holding on. The internet and new media age have showed demonstrably that the writers and talking heads are not the only ones with access to information, and their previous incarnation as “experts” is unraveling before their very eyes. Felger doesn’t “know” anything more than the fans, probably less than many actually. So he and others cling to what is left of their power and prestige the only way they can, which is to worry about generating clicks or listeners or viewers instead of trying to be informative.

And that’s OK, if it’s entertainment now it’s entertainment now. Just don’t try to force feed the general public about how much more you know or how much more valid your opinion is because you chose a career as a “writer” that involves far less meaningful and challenging writing than any number of other careers.

It’s not a big deal to say you like being around the game or like watching the guys in the locker room or whatever your reasons are for doing what you have chosen to do. But with the widespread access to information that can be used to call you on your opinions or factual inaccuracies, why blame the readers for calling you on it? I think it’s because they know that what they have chosen to do really isn’t that important to most people. You can find out what happened in the game by reading the box score. You can find out who was traded by reading the transactions log. Give your readers something worth reading and they’ll come back. Give your readers something they have to correct you on or argue with you over and they might come back, but they won’t think much of you. To most I suppose the latter doesn’t matter much. Maybe that’s a good thing.

By: Jack Edwards

Jack Edwards — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 23:23:22 +0000

The problem I always had with Gee was that he never really evoked any feelings either way, and to me that is the worst sin a writer can commit. He was boring.

By: mandb97

mandb97 — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 23:18:35 +0000

J.R. and AOB you are both spot on. In this day and age when it is very easy to prove someone wrong, a writer and editor has to be willing to step up and admit they are wrong. I do believe this though that unless people stop buying the particular paper or stop listening to the particular sports station then things wont change.

By: mandb97

mandb97 — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 23:08:50 +0000

“One writing technique I think is really wrong is not to write what you honestly think or feel just to stir people up.”

Ladies and Gentlemen I present to you, Michael Felger. The only difference is that he now speaks and writes very little. It’s a shame because he actually seemed to care now he just blathers on.

By: Michael Gee

Michael Gee — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 22:45:11 +0000

I didn’t mean to say anonymous deranged comment is good in and of itself. I’d rather have comments like the ones here, which are heated but thoughtful. But anonymous and deranged feedback beats no feedback at all.
But feedback has to be earned fairly, I agree. One writing technique I think is really wrong is not to write what you honestly think or feel just to stir people up. You’re right, anybody can do that. It takes no talent.

By: Chris

Chris — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 22:39:30 +0000

I am completely convinced that with the dire state of print media today, many columnists purposely write ‘caustic’ or ‘incendiary’ content simply to lure readers (and comments). In the on-line world, which is pretty much the only world these people will soon know, this means eyeballs. Eyeballs mean clicks, and clicks mean ad revenue (however slight). The ‘caustic and incendiary’ columnist thus has a ‘metric’ that he or she hopes will guarantee future employment: “SEE! Look at all these COMMENTS! I MUST be supremely talented in what I do!” The laughable irony is that many print-media hacks truly set course with that objective in mind. It is a sad time to be in print media.

By: ozzy

ozzy — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 22:25:15 +0000

I disagree strongly that deranged, anonymous feedback is worth anything. In fact, if thats all you seek then it leads to shiitstiring and “stooooorylines”. You can rattle the cages of Wayne’s Fadda and his buddies on the barstools all you want. You’ll get a lot of “commentary”. You’ll make a lot of money and drink Pinkberrys in West Hollywood. Or you can write intelligent and insightful columns. Maybe you wont get to change the channel at Jimmy Kimmel’s every Sunday during football season but you can have a nice career you can be proud of like Joe Posnanski. Self respect counts more than deranged feedback.