Doing non-journalism piddling while working

The only thing I'd care about is the result. If the result is good, how the writer arrived at that point is inconsequential. Some very good writers make it look very easy. Some godawful writers make it look pretty hard. Bottom line, it doesn't matter how many colored pens you use, how many notes you take or how many questions you ask.

This thread just seems like another heap of intolerance for people who don't go about their business in the manner in which others go about theirs. The guy might have played solitaire all game long, then written a kick-ass column based on an angle that he was planning around all week long.

 

That's why I made it a point to keep score. That way it kept me in the game, and I could instantly go back to it while doing post-game interviews.

 

To me, this just seems like the standard inability of the journalism world to create and enforce useful standards.

I've seen this time and again: Ignore a problem until something REALLY BAD happens. Then create a draconian rule. Then enforce that rule sporadically, making sure to ignore the career fucktards while nailing the people who actually give a shit about doing a good job.

And since I'm sure there's been at least one post saying this already: Just because "every other profession" does the same thing doesn't make it right.

 

Yeah, I think that's the underlying cause/effect in this entire matter. You can play that solitaire game 999 straight days in the press box, and do your job 100%. But if you miss something you shouldn't have the 1,000th time, then it was wrong not to be concentrating on your job ALL those times.

But the way it is in this business, the offending party can say, "Yup. Fucked up. Shouldn't do that. Won't happen again." And it will be forgotten. And next week, he/she will be back piddling while working.

 

OK, then, I will.

I'm not protecting anyone's "Right" to goof off on the clock, though lord knows I do it as much as anyone. I'm merely in the 'you don't know the whole story, so you shouldn't act high and mighty and like you've never, not even once, done the same thing' camp.

 

Right. I have. And I had somebody tell me that's fine -- as long as I screw up NOTHING. Because if I screw up ANYTHING while working like that, I've lost my excuse, right then and there.

As far as "not knowing the whole story" ... IJAG? Huh? What part of the story could we possibly be missing there?

Next? I can fight this one all night.

 

It's day.

 

Then I guess I need to wait two hours before posting again.

(Yeah. That's gonna happen.)

 

The business also began going to hell when people in it use phrases like "on the clock" in any context except the ironic.
Sounds like we have a new chapter in the forthcoming book:
BEHIND THE T-SQUARE - THE MISUNDERSTOOD GENIUS OF NEWSPAPER DESIGN.

 

DyePack's making sense, and you aren't.

(Looking back to make sure ... yeah, that's what he wrote ...)

 

Really?
"On the clock"?
I didn't get into a business with "a clock."
I got into newspapers, which have deadlines, which people were always allowed to meet in their own damn ways. And when we all start talking like the Harvard B-school drones knew what they were doing, the soul went out of it.

 

Still not with you here, man.

By your premise -- and you probably don't feel like you're saying this, but it sure seems like you are -- a writer or columnist at a 3-hour plus football game has to stare straight ahead taking notes for every minute of action, without fail, because missing a single note might prevent them from doing their job correctly -- even though there's about 500 ways to review every single second of a modern football game.

I'm with F_B -- this is one reason this business is getting worse. Because of Big Companies trying to management-class all of the feel out of it.

Lemme ask you: Do you think Red Smith and Jim Murray and Jimmy Cannon -- or, currently most of the best beat writers -- sat or sit in press boxes with different colored pens using a system to chart every second of action?

Not in my recollection. They sat and kibbitzed and walked around and cracked jokes and made note of things that were worth noting.

I'll tell you the only disturbing part of the behavior described -- that while people are tied up with their e-mail and SportsJournalists.com and solitaire games, there's probably less press box chatter going on. And that part is too bad.