Le Batard opines on sports journalism

http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/08/08/1766393/being-real-just-isnt-worth-the.html

 

I thought it was an interesting read. Isiah Thomas made a great point.

 

Sportswriter guilt is born. Ugh.

 

Born? I was under the impression such musings were par for the course for LeBatard.

 

My take:

Let's say you've just finished watching a game, which finished 10 minutes before deadline. You are, essentially, just beginning a brutal day at work. You come running in from the press room in the farthest corner of the arena from the locker rooms, only to be met by a snarling, upset, immature athlete who doesn't put in nearly your hours, thinks he knows everything about newspapers, journalism and the media but he doesn't, and yet, he makes AT LEAST three-quarters of a million dollars a year more than you do, but you have to speak to him, sometimes begging for one minute of his time, while he purposely stands there in his underwear, waiting exasperatedly for you to finish and leave, so that he can stop making excuses/whining/and/or lying about why he failed.

And then, the next day, when you come in to work again, he blames you for all his and his team's problems.

How annoying do you think that would get?

I don't know him, but I guess athletes must love Dan Le Batard.

A couple points: It's interesting that many of the people referenced in the article to talk about the big, bad, dumb, maltreating media are actual current, former or quasi-media members themselves.

Charles Barkley, Stan Van Gundy and Isaiah Thomas have all been working media members who got paid handsomely -- much more than any more formal or traditional newspaper person, I'd wager -- to do exactly what they're criticizing.

So, if you're going to talk about hypocrisy...

Even Mark Cuban, besides being an owner, is essentially a media person, or if he isn't, he is certainly savvy and smart enough to know that he is acting as one much of the time. Ditto for Chad Ochocinco. And again, each has benefited, both individually and professionally, from the media.

And Bill Russell, Jim Brown and Muhammad Ali absolutely would survive in today's media world. In fact, they have. Both Russell and Brown, have been used both as actually media members or in consultant roles to the media about certain things, since they stopped being athletes. Ali also has been nothing but revered for the past 20 years, at least, and if his health were such that he could be used by or in the media, there is little doubt that he would be working in it.

 

Agree totally with Van Gundy. We beg for honesty and crush people when they are. Not saying we shouldn't call a spade a spade when somebody like Iverson starts "talkin 'bout practice" but it's amazing how easily we'll flame somebody one time just to make a splash, an action that usually causes the athlete/coach/source to change their level of candor.

 

How many fans/readers do you suppose a) got through the whole column, and b) cared?

 

This column is a joke. Filled with cliches and sweeping generalizations about the media and sports writers without referencing one specific incident.

Le Batard hasn't been in a locker room in what, 5 years? The media that he describes is the one that exists in Bristol, with non-stop yammering on TV, radio and internet. But 99 percent of the media is here for information -- to wade through the bullshit spewing from athletes and coaches and explain to readers what's really going on with their favorite teams.

But hey, this will help him score some sweet guests for his radio show.

 

I don't know why he would take the seed of a decent column idea and spoil it by including Isiah Thomas, who cannot possibly be taken seriously by anyone except I guess the Dolan family. Was there nobody to quote who isn't a proven liar and con man?

 

Van Gundy quote was pretty good, and mostly on point.

I remember a time -- I'm not kidding, you younger folks -- where I didn't feel it was necessary for I or anybody else to apologize for what we do.

And I remember a Dan Le Batard who wouldn't have considered writing such a "boo-hoo, I apologize for my profession" column either.