Elliotte Friedman on hockey blog/press box controversy

Our fearless mod takes on a blogger/press box story sweeping through the NHL:

http://sports.yahoo.com/nhl/blog/puck_daddy/post/Elliotte-Friedman-Accountability-is-key-in-hock?urn=nhl,116089

It's a reaction to this post, in which an Edmonton Oilers blogger was confronted by media relations folks for a lewd live blog in the press box -- while he was attending the game under another publication's credential.

http://coveredinoil.blogspot.com/2008/10/it-ends.html

 

damn, Ansar Khan's forehead is getting big....


ADD: Good piece Elliotte...

 

Well said, future husband.

 

*sigh*

Him, slappy. I have no interest in fighting Ms. Slappy.

Elliotte's lady? I'll take her DOWN!

 

I said "Well said." Sorry for answering a question.

I was glad Elliotte had the actual posts that were taken down. Because in reading the guy's original post, he just talked about how the content must have been a problem.

My thing is this: Not only should the Oilers be pissed, but so should whomever's pass he was there on. Someone uses time I'm paying him for to spew that? No way.

 

God, why would I want to read that minute-by-minute drivel, anyway?

I understand the point of bloggers, to a degree, and just read an article on the Caps, who have 25 credentialed bloggers according to THN.

But game logs? If I'm on the Internet, I'd prefer to just listen to the game, not reading the words of someone who appears to be a rambling drunk.

Why bother? And certainly, why bother with issuing someone a credential to do so (though I realize that's not the case here)?

The stuff that's posted -- and not just here -- is the moronic stuff that comes from your beer-swilling neighbor's mouth as he's sitting on his sofa, so if he wants to post it, post it from there.

 

Read Elliotte's piece. Also read the blogger's piece. He was there to run quotes, not to do any sort of actual reporting. The Oilers don't allow bloggers in the press box, and yet there he is blogging away. It's almost comical how he's trying to blame the Oilers media relations staff for his own problem. Whiny little pissant.

 

Yeah, I read both. (And Friedman's link to the original blog worked, so I skimmed over the game log itself.)

My comment is more for general game logs. Why bother? I don't understand who'd bother reading them in the first place, since if you're at the Internet, there are other ways to check on the game.

Why do I need a guy or girl to post "It's 7:32. WHEN are we gonna start with the national anthem?" "It's 7:34 and STILL no anthem." "7:35 - STILL waiting."

Who needs this?

That said, when I checked the guy's blog last night (or last night where I am, anyway), he had 113 comments, so obviously people -- including Friedman -- have read his blog.

I'm a little clueless on how the Oilers found him out so quickly. Did someone notice he was blogging and then checked his site to see what he'd posted? Or are media relations reps double-checking what writers write in order to make sure they're doing what they say?

Either would be awesome. I'm sure I'm not the only one who knows of people who work for made-up or no longer existing publications/radio outlets who manage to get credentials for everything that rolls into town. I'd love to see those people called out.

And I don't think anyone who's just at a game to get post-game quotes should be allowed in the press box to begin with. That's not a blog issue.

 

"Please, God, save me from hee-haws pretending to be journalists."

 

I can't believe the guy doesn't understand why this happened. If you really think it's okay to publish things like that, then you don't belong in a professional press box.

 

Good post by Elliotte. Really good blogs could be the future of this profession.

Crap like that could kill it. So it's best to stamp it out.