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Just when you thought ESPN couldn't get any bigger ... Jason Whitlock returns

Discussion in 'Journalism topics only' started by Versatile, Aug 14, 2013.

  1. Mizzougrad96

    Mizzougrad96 Active Member

    I'm surprised it happened, especially since Whitlock has gone out of his way to trash ESPN and

     
  2. Mizzougrad96

    Mizzougrad96 Active Member

    I love almost all of the writers you listed. But a lot of times it's not about writing talent, it's about fame, and Whitlock is one of the most famous sports columnists out there. That's why he got this job, not because he's a better writer than those guys. He's more famous and that's why ESPN hired him.
     
  3. SixToe

    SixToe Well-Known Member

    I'd rather read and enjoy a solid writer who has consistency and a humble attitude than a pompous gasbag who has a 'wow' column now and then. But this hire has served ESPN's purpose - getting people to talk about them and one of their writers.
     
  4. Boom_70

    Boom_70 Well-Known Member

     
  5. Steak Snabler

    Steak Snabler Well-Known Member

    Speaking of Whitlock, the obit for his father (which I assume Jason wrote), is pretty awesome:

    http://www.crownhill.org/obits/obituaries.php/obitID/89711/obit/James-Jimmy-Whitlock
     
  6. Versatile

    Versatile Active Member

    None of what you said explains why you think he's a must-read or a great hire. I know what you said is correct. It's a logical hire, given the direction ESPN has been headed basically since its inception. But it's not a great hire. And Whitlock certainly is not a must-read. There are no must-reads these days, anyway.
     
  7. Mizzougrad96

    Mizzougrad96 Active Member

    That's your opinion. You're entitled to it...
     
  8. Versatile

    Versatile Active Member

    I suppose.
     
  9. Mizzougrad96

    Mizzougrad96 Active Member

    I look at it this way. There are five columnists who I try to always read who don't work for sites that I visit on a daily basis. I can list them, and everybody can tell me how much they all suck, that's fine... Whitlock is one of them. Now that he's not at Fox, I will visit the Fox Sports site less and I will read ESPN.com more often. If he's on ATH or Sports Reporters, I'll probably be more likely to watch both shows more often than I already do.

    If I'm not the only person on the planet who feels that way, then this is a win for ESPN. They get more traffic, Fox Sports gets less traffic.
     
  10. Versatile

    Versatile Active Member

    My question: Why do you go out of your way to read him?

    Not my question: Do people go out of their way to read him?

    Not my question: Why do people go out of their way to read him?

    I know he will generate clicks. I know he will succeed for as long as ESPN allows him to continue his rants and ravings. I also don't understand why a man of your intelligence would subject himself to hunks of crap like most of Whitlock's columns. Sure, he occasionally has an intelligent take on something. But he then fails to write it well, as with the Riley Cooper column, because he's obsessed with himself. And he also fills in the wide gaps between those intelligent takes with tripe like that Jay Z column.

    He will succeed at ESPN as long unless they shackle him, which seems likely. The split (again) will be messy when it happens (again). Do you watch all the TV shows that get the best ratings, too?
     
  11. Mizzougrad96

    Mizzougrad96 Active Member

    I've read Whitlock for what seems like ages... I used to read the KC Star every day and while I thought Posnanski was the much more talented columnist, I always enjoyed reading Whitlock. He and Simers are two of the guys I would always read as often as possible.
     
  12. Boom_70

    Boom_70 Well-Known Member

    Ditto
     
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