Another Yahoo hire?

the reporter who punched kevin iole silly on the diego corrales story is the same guy yahoo wanted for the job in the first place. lance pugmire of the los angeles times.

 

I hadn't heard that. Would have been a far better choice. Iole is SOOOOOOO overrated.

 

On that beat... or any beat that requires top-shelf reporting. Pugmire is one of the best in the nation when it comes to ferreting out information. Period.

A fact that Dave Morgan is well-aware of, I assure you.

 

And on any beat that doesn't involve space-for-info deals, Iole is embarrassingly overmatched. And when I say embarrassingly, I mean for the paper, not Iole because he's oblivious. He thinks -- no, he KNOWS -- he's elite.

 

Really, how many big-time boxing writers are there? In the first place, there aren't that many important boxing matches in the US. How many places are there where there are three or four shows a year in major arenas outside of Nevada? It's really not like boxing is a great beat unless you like the sport.

 

Totally ignorant post. Boxing is one of the best beats there is for anyone who wants to write fascinating stories. The material just falls off the tree. But editors don't think the sport is important enough to commit money towards. That's why it rarely gets covered, and when papers do cover boxing, it's generaly an out-to-pasture reporter the editor doesn't know what to do with (a la horse racing).

BUT ... and this is a big BUT ... Yahoo clearly thinks the sport is worthwhile enough to dedicate funds to, and I GUARANTEE that if Yahoo (with all the money it's throwing around and with the allure of living wherever you want) had advertised this opening rather than just go after someone with experience, it would have landed a great sportswriter eager to cover an amazingly easy beat. That's a combo destined to create great material. Instead, it went after a hack who happens to like boxing. That's a recipe for mediocrity.

 

What's up with your Iole fixation?

 

Not a fixation. I just happen to work at the same paper he just left. I have a base of knowledge. If I worked with Scott Ostler or somebody like that, maybe I'd be able to provide insightful posts on somebody I respect. Sadly, what I have is Iole.

Not a fixation. I happen to work at the same paper he just left. I have a base of knowledge. If I worked with Scott Ostler or somebody like that, maybe I'd be able to provide insightful posts on somebody I respect. Sadly, what I have is Iole.

 

Whoops. That's known as a "false conclusion."
Boxing is not a hardcore gambling sport.
There is rarely an upset, and the money return is never good on favorites. For hardcore gambling sports, see College Football or the National Football League.
If boxing was appealing to the hardcore gambler, it would be much more popular.