Deadspin interviews Doyel (SJ mentioned)

Evil ... Thy name is Orville Redenbacher!! · Nov 30, 2008

Inky_Wretch said:

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
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I would like to know who the WVU beat writer was? I could probably guess.

Tom Petty · Nov 30, 2008

Mizzougrad96 said:

What is the AWoj situation? That went over my head as well...

I've always liked Doyel.
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who's doyel?

I Digress · Nov 30, 2008

Me izz not knowing Doyel.. who uzez cat speling of nayme!

Killick · Dec 1, 2008

I've run across Gregg a couple of times at U. of Cincinnati events -- and I have to say I agree with Jeff. I thought he was a pretty good guy. Don't know why he was all aggro for this interview. I've seen some Whitlock hounding that I disagreed with, but not a plethora. Scoop's illiterate ass deserves everything he gets here, IMHO. All that aside, Gregg's certainly not an imposing physical specimen.

I'd slow your roll, Gregg.

And, FWIW, whenever I've had a serious beef with people on the board here, I've had no problem PMing them with my name, addy, email and cell -- not in a LET'S GET READY TO RUMBLE! way, but that's how civilized people should disagree.

Double J · Dec 1, 2008

Ah, there's the rub.

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Deadspin interviews Doyel (SJ mentioned)

Evil ... Thy name is Orville Redenbacher!! Well-Known Member

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Deadspin interviews Doyel (SJ mentioned)

Evil ... Thy name is Orville Redenbacher!! Well-Known Member

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Double J Active Member

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