1. Welcome to SportsJournalists.com, a friendly forum for discussing all things sports and journalism.

    Your voice is missing! You will need to register for a free account to get access to the following site features:
    • Reply to discussions and create your own threads.
    • Access to private conversations with other members.
    • Fewer ads.

    We hope to see you as a part of our community soon!

Grantland so far

Discussion in 'Journalism topics only' started by Alma, Jul 14, 2011.

Page 9 of 63
  1. Bubbler

    Bubbler Well-Known Member

    Locker room access isn't all about the on-the-record stuff you get, especially pre-game locker room/clubhouse access when athletes are more open to talk.

    Also, he presents a false equivalency. I've done plenty of what would be considered one-on-ones in a postgame locker room. Not everyone is jumping into the pack media scrum.

    What a maroon.
     
    Bubbler, Jul 20, 2011
    #97
  2. Michael_ Gee

    Michael_ Gee Well-Known Member

    Simmons has fallen into a simple logical trap. All the reporting he sees is from watching TV. Ergo, he assumes sound bites are all the reporting anyone gets from locker rooms.
     
    Michael_ Gee, Jul 20, 2011
    #98
  3. Boom_70

    Boom_70 Well-Known Member

    This thread is more engaging that Grantland.
     
    Boom_70, Jul 20, 2011
    #99
  4. goalmouth

    goalmouth Well-Known Member

    Grantland = Oprah's Club of Sportswriting
     
    goalmouth, Jul 20, 2011
    #100
  5. The Big Ragu

    The Big Ragu Moderator Staff Member

    He doesn't have to apologize. But I'd point out there are types of reporting that don't amount to gangbang lockerroom scrums. I have read that from Simmons before, and I'd just point him toward John McPhee or David Remnick or any other of hundreds of great writers who can delve into a topic, learn a lot about it and gather interview subjects using good, ole journalistic methods.

    If you want to say the sports landscape has changed and that is incredibly difficult nowadays due to access restrictions, I'd offer up what Lance Williams and Mark Fainaru-Wada did on the Barry Bonds steroid story. I'd offer up Duncan Mackay in Great Britain, as another example.

    I know that misses the point to some extent, because Bill Simmons has never sold himself as an investigative reporter and those are unfair comparisons on my part. But I can offer up numerous other examples in which writers have written compelling, great SPORTS stuff that required more than watching a lot of TV and sitting down and typing. Take a John Ed Bradley, for example (one of my favorites). He didn't just write about punters a couple of years ago, for example. He gathered a lot of info, gave a great analysis using factual evidence, and very importantly SPOKE to a lot of punters and others (and let them tell the story as much as him). Then wrote something with a different take on it, and it wowed me because of the work that went into it as much as the writing.
     
    The Big Ragu, Jul 20, 2011
    #101
  6. Della9250

    Della9250 Well-Known Member

    The main page right now has links to 29 stories.

    13 have to do with sports, 15 if you count the one on wrestling and one on poker. If your main audience is coming off ESPN.com, I don't know how you keep their interested if a majority of things won't, or don't interest them.
     
    Della9250, Jul 20, 2011
    #102
  7. Boom_70

    Boom_70 Well-Known Member

    The way it's going they should change the name of the place to Gigli.
     
    Boom_70, Jul 20, 2011
    #103
  8. jr/shotglass

    jr/shotglass Well-Known Member

    I think you may be overstating it just a little bit.
     
    jr/shotglass, Jul 20, 2011
    #104
  9. Double Down

    Double Down Well-Known Member

    This was a beautifully done piece by Colson Whitehead. Very much looking forward to the next two parts.

    http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/6754551/part-1

    I'll read Brian Phillips and Whitehead on just about anything.
     
    Double Down, Jul 20, 2011
    #105
  10. Alma

    Alma Well-Known Member

    4,000 words on WWE entrance songs, 7,000 words so far on a phenomenon (WSOP) that lost its sizzle three years ago, 3,000 on a band whose documentary is in all of 22 theaters, 3,000 words on NBA players who might play in Europe in six months, 1,500 words on the MPAA flap over The King's Speech - a six-month-old story. And a Razzie Watch. That's the top six stories on the site right now.

    I'm sorry, but unless you're just totally in love with folks writing into their own navels, it's really, really hard to defend.
     
    Alma, Jul 22, 2011
    #106
  11. JC

    JC Well-Known Member

    Then skip it for Christs sake. There should be something for everyone there.
     
    JC, Jul 22, 2011
    #107
  12. Della9250

    Della9250 Well-Known Member

    The problem is there isn't something for everyone there, or the stuff in certain categories gets a once every three days treatment so people checking in are more likely to skip everything when there is nothing for them to see.
     
    Della9250, Jul 22, 2011
    #108
Page 9 of 63
Draft saved Draft deleted

Share This Page