How do you feel about Candace Parker's C-cup being referenced in this lede?

I'm quadruply perplexed now. There was nothing about that lede that stood out to me, nothing that looked like writer histrionics, no attention-grabbing. That so many of you thought it was theatrics is oddly more startling to me than the reaction to the words "C cups."

 

Agreed.

 

The best way I can say it, IJAG, is that the writer expends a lot of energy in that lede without getting much done. Coming back to the "flawless skin and C-cups" line a second time, the "saint in high tops" line -- it's just all too cute when all you're really saying is that Parker's an attractive woman and a nice person. It just reads as though she's more interested in showing us how well she writes than in telling us anything interesting about her subject.

 

See, broadway, to me? That's what I've always been told works. If that was written by Posnanski (with different words, but the same idea), everyone would be fawning. Long sentences mixed with short, details, comparisons and contrasts.

I'll admit I'm in the minority here, but nothing's been said to change my opinion.

 

So, I'm guessing you're a big fan of gamers that go something like this....."Joe Schmo scored a dozen points in the fourth quarter to lead Team A past Team B 56-55 on Sunday night." Gets straight to the point, which is what you're looking for, right? Zzzzzzz.

 

That's just stupid.

That is what works, IJAG. And this lede does have a nice flow, a good rhythm, to it. But there also has to be a little substance there, and there really isn't much. You mentioned details, and there aren't many here, other than the size of her bra. If she'd used that writing talent to tell us a story illustrating how Parker is a saint in high tops, for instance, then she'd have something. But this is just a writer riffing, trying to find a pretty way to state the obvious. That's why I think people are saying she made it more about her than about Parker.

 

naw, chief. you just proved the opposite.

nothing HAS to be mentioned in the lede of a flowery feature. you're offended that her cup size was mentioned.

they're only tits. so what?

 

Is it?

My point is.....Glock tried to get a little creative with her feature, like most writers. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't.

The way you put it, it sounds like you'd rather she just said, "Candace Parker is beautiful and talented." Period. Now, that's stupid.

 

Not at all. You say, as have others, that you don't have a problem with it, and that's absolutely fine. Someone who says it like London Calling - "freak-out police" "Get a grip and stop hating" - is basically asking to be called out.

And just to clarify - I don't actually think London Calling is Allison Glock. Like SF Express says, what you consider an SportsJournalists.com conceit, others consider tradition. Each to their own.

 

If you read my posts, you should realize that's not what I'm saying. You tried to oversimplify my point to make it sound absurd.

And yes, sometimes attempts at creativity work and sometimes they don't. This is one of the times that it didn't, IMO.

 

Fair enough.

 

Thanks for checking in, Ryan Sonner.


Anyhoo, to IJAG's point: Each well-running car assembly line is roughly the same. But some cars have a Porsche engine dropped into it, some a Hyundai engine. Uniform format doesn't get uniform results.