Deadspin interviews Doyel (SJ mentioned)

Inky_Wretch · Nov 25, 2008

Straighten the place up, we're going to get some extra visitors ...

DS: Do you think the critiques of certain journalists by other journalists are racist/sexist or unfair?

The possible racism I see is in the critiques of our business, not in the actual hiring (as if) or the execution of our business. Go to SportsJournalists.com, for example, and you'll see certain writers get ripped over and over and over. I'm thinking Scoop Jackson and Jason Whitlock and a handful of others. And while I can't say for sure who's ripping them — the brave posters are mostly anonymous — I have a general idea. It's a bunch of white guys, people who by definition don't have the perspective or voice that Jackson or Whitlock or, to name a woman, Karen Crouse has. So that ignorance of an unusual perspective/voice breeds dislike of that perspective/voice. I'm not sure racism or sexism is the exact word for the whole thing, but it's bad, whatever it is.

DS: Do you think anonymous message board posters bring out both the good and bad in writers? Everybody reads them, yet they say they ignore them, yet there are always a few that seem to force the writer to confront some harsh truths about themselves.

GD: Anonymous message boards serve a purpose, and for the most part, it's a great thing — really. It's a place to exchange ideas or blow off steam or swap stories. But when anonymous assholes start ripping media members it makes me queasy. Mariotti gets hammered for not going into clubhouses or locker rooms, and that does strike me as a bad way to do his job, but message board heroes feel all big and bad for ripping him, or someone else, behind some clever (not) nickname. It's pathetic. At least Mariotti, or whoever, puts a name on the rip job. The cowards who do it facelessly ... I cannot respect. And that includes anyone reading this who counts me as a friend. I do not respect you. I just wish I knew who you were so I could tell you to your face.

Oh, and I read that thing [Sportsjournalists.com] four times a day. Not saying I don't. But there's not a single truth I'm ever going to believe about myself — even if it IS a truth — if it's offered by some anonymous asshole.

DS: What would you have done if you were in the Adrian Wonjnarowski situation? Would you have reacted similarly? Or, at least, wanted to?

GD: Well, here's a true story: I'd already read that post earlier today, and as soon as I finished, I sent Adrian a text message to congratulate him on the way he handled it. That doesn't mean I'd have handled it the same way, because I'm not sure I'm generous enough to offer the guy a plane ticket. (This is where I say something dumb like, "I prefer to give out my ass whippings for free.") But I'll tell you something I HAVE done: I've been irritated enough by certain anonymous SportsJournalists.com posters that I tracked every post they'd written, took notes and figured out who they were. Then I confronted them, both of them, next time I saw each of them in a press box. Didn't challenge them to a fight or anything, but let them know I knew who they were, and if they had anything else to say about the way I do my job, to feel free to say it right there. Of course they said nothing. Clowns. I got both of their ID's correct, by the way. (That story is sad enough as it is, but imagine if I'd confronted the wrong guy. Next time, maybe.)

Oh, there was the time last year when a West Virginia football beat writer, don't know who he is, was cursing at the college students who were bringing him postgame stats on deadline. Apparently they weren't bringing them fast enough. Anyway, I told him to knock it off. He cursed me, so I told him I'd be waiting for him outside the press box when we were done writing. The guy finished before me and was gone. Crap.
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http://deadspin.com/5098641/gregg-doyel-anger-is-a-gift

Ace · Nov 25, 2008

I gotta give it to Doyel. He might be a swell guy in person, but in his writing, he is an unanonymous asshole.

TheSportsPredictor · Nov 25, 2008

Someone's gonna come in here and anonymously bash him, you watch!

Angola! · Nov 25, 2008

Well, he guessed wrong when he tried to confront me. He thought I was Jason Whitlock.

Oh, and what is the Wonjnarowski situation?

Inky_Wretch · Nov 25, 2008

Ace said:

I gotta give it to Doyel. He might be a swell guy in person, but in his writing, he is an unanonymous asshole.
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He is so going to track you down.

da man · Nov 25, 2008

Ace said:

I gotta give it to Doyel. He might be a swell guy in person, but in his writing, he is an unanonymous asshole.
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From reading that, it sounds like he's a dick in person, too.

Oh, and apparently, he hasn't seen the criticism on this board about Albom, Lupica, Mariotti, et al. Guess that doesn't fit into the racist/sexist angle.

friend of a friend · Nov 25, 2008

wow, doyel's quite the tough guy.

Angola! · Nov 25, 2008

friend of a friend said:

wow, doyel's quite the tough guy.
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And he apparently has a lot of time on his hands, what with the going through people's posts and taking notes to figure out who they are.

PopeDirkBenedict · Nov 25, 2008

Greg Doyle is nothing more than an attention whore with a keyboard.

Angola! · Nov 25, 2008

PopeDirkBenedict said:

Greg Doyle is nothing more than an attention whore with a keyboard.
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Oh boy, you better watch yourself in press boxes from now on.

Ben_Hecht · Nov 25, 2008

da man said:

Ace said:

I gotta give it to Doyel. He might be a swell guy in person, but in his writing, he is an unanonymous asshole.
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He does mention Mariotti, in passing . . .

I still like Whitlock's broad body of work. No two ways about it.

In my view, Scoop continues to essentially sell out to gain favored access to his favored subjects.

Those are my legitimate feelings. Tell me where I'm wrong.

From reading that, it sounds like he's a dick in person, too.

Oh, and apparently, he hasn't seen the criticism on this board about Albom, Lupica, Mariotti, et al. Guess that doesn't fit into the racist/sexist angle.
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Ace · Nov 25, 2008

Inky_Wretch said:

Ace said:

I gotta give it to Doyel. He might be a swell guy in person, but in his writing, he is an unanonymous asshole.
Click to expand...

He is so going to track you down.
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Weird. I am getting phone calls with nothing but heavy breathing on the other end.

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Deadspin interviews Doyel (SJ mentioned)

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Deadspin interviews Doyel (SJ mentioned)

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