'Borrowing' material

there are a gazillion blogs. an overwhelming number. how the hell can anybody know which are "legit and credible"?

 

There are a gazillion reporters. an overwhelming number. how the hell was i supposed to know that peter vecsey is not "legit and credible"?

 

In my opinion, that's not a very good reason for not linking. Don't you think your readers understand that you didn't yourself write "fuck that motherfucker" in Deadspin comment #462? By all means, don't link to graphic or vulgar posts. But I think we've all read enough YouTube comments to understand that people say stupid things on the Internet; I don't think your readers would hold you or your paper in lower esteem for your link to a professional post in which a certain number of commenters responded unprofessionally.

Second: if you really do find some of the comments objectionable, why can't you cite stuff from the post and just say something like, "Hat tip: Deadspin.com (foul language in some of the comments; family paper; no link)"? That way, your blog benefits from the good content, you acknowledge its source, and you haven't aided the Taliban.

But...in general, again, I don't know many people - even parents of young Internet-savvy kids - who are scared that they'll be permanently scarred by Deadspin comments.

 

Also, it just occurred to me that if we weren't allowed to link to sites on which visitors write bad things, we could never link to YouTube ever.

 

man

a one-month suspension with pay closely resembles a ... vacation?

I'm sure that taught him a lesson

 

Should be fired at any shop. Bet SI won't cut the writer loose though.

 

I don't know Thompson and he may be a helluva good guy and a better journalist, but it's my experience that almost no one gets caught the first time.

 

To the guy who refuses to link blogs, despite the fact that he uses blogs...

Why not throw up a disclaimer when you link? ("This blog's content may contain objectionable pictures or language...")

 

I'm in a similar situation with the blog I write for my paper's site...there are huge swathes of the Web I just can't link to because of profanity. (To say nothing of the even huger swathes I can't link to because of nudity.)

Even ESPN.com restricts its writers from linking to certain kinds of content.

 

The larger point is this:

Even if you can't link to a blog, you at least have to give that blogger credit if you're going to rip off his information. A better idea might be just to not rip off his information at all.

 

I wouldn't call linking to a story I see on another blog ripping off information. I'm not using that blog's thoughts, and the source of the original content is credited. A hat tip is a courtesy and perhaps an issue I ought to discuss further with my bosses. If I used a quote from a blog, attribution would be a must.

Unauthorized and uncredited use of photos, which is illegal but the norm in the non-MSM blogosphere, would fall under the category of ripping off content.

 

Thought this board might be interested. No, I'm not Ian. But I'm an admirer of his work.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/writers/ian_thomsen/07/11/sonics/index.html