ESPN exec John Walsh on B.S. Report

[bostonbred]

quite a scathing take on the newspaper industry.

opinions?

http://sports.espn.go.com/espnradio/podcast/archive?id=2864045

 

[Joe Williams]

Do you know how slow my life has to be, or how completely bored, or more likely how captive without other entertaining or distracting options I would have to be to listen to a B.S. Report?

Reading might be dead and audio/video might be all the rage going forward, but I'm 100 times more likely to open up a Simmons column to read -- which I then can skim or dip into while doing something else or whatever -- than I am to sit and pipe his chats and interviews and voice into my room. If I could get it in my car, fine, but I'm not iPod-dock equipped.

 

[slappy4428]

Why would I want to know what a guy who couldn't make it in newspapers thinks about the newspaper industry?

 

[bostonbred]

Why would I want to know what a guy who couldn't make it in newspapers thinks about the newspaper industry?

I was talking more about Walsh's opinion on the matter. We all know that Simmons will ***** and moan about newspapers every chance he gets.

It's a pretty decent listen, with Simmons listing some of his complaints about ESPN and Walsh trying to defend the company.

 

[sportsed]

[quote ]
Face Time With The Boss
Bill Simmons shares five gripes about ESPN with his boss, John A. Walsh.
[/quote]
Maybe Simmons is angling to become ESPN's new ombudsman.

I'm guessing that'd make Le Anne Schrieber throw up in her mouth.

 

[bostonbred]

[quote ]
Face Time With The Boss
Bill Simmons shares five gripes about ESPN with his boss, John A. Walsh.

Maybe Simmons is angling to become ESPN's new ombudsman.

I'm guessing that'd make Le Anne Schrieber throw up in her mouth.


[/quote]
He actually jokes about that at the end of the podcast when Walsh brings up how critically acclaimed she is.

 

[clutchcargo]

Oh, yeah, right, I"m going to listen or read what some jerk in some other medium has to say about the state of newspapers. I did that with Time magazine last week with its own form of B.S. and it was a total load of crap.

 

[TheSportsPredictor]

quite a scathing take on the newspaper industry.

opinions?

http://sports.espn.go.com/espnradio/podcast/archive?id=2864045

How many reasons did Walsh list for the problems causing newspapers' demise without actually coming within home-run distance of being right? I lost track.

 

[stix]

Just a question, and I know I'm probably gonna grilled for this: Why does everyone on here seem to hate Bill Simmons so much?

Look, the guy was like a lot of us: He spent his early-career years after college driving all over the place covering high school sports and started to feel he would never move up the chain because of politics and because the guys covering the major beats in front of him would never retire because they couldn't afford to. So he quit the newspaper business, started his own Web site writing about whatever the hell he wanted whenever he wanted, developed a nice cult following and was eventually hired by ESPN. He's gone on to become very successful, but everyone here resents him because he's not a REAL sports reporter.

So what? He's never claimed to be. He's a fan, and he writes like a fan. Sometimes his columns are long and rambling and filled with too much pop culture and too much whining about Boston teams, but oftentimes I find his stuff funny and thought-provoking. He's a good writer with a very humorous side. He's not a reporter, and he never claimed to be. But he always raises the question, How come you can only write about sports and be considered knowledgeable about them if you're "in the locker room?" Don't fans know a lot about sports, too? Aren't fans' opinions valuable? Hell, I know sports reporters that pretty much hate their jobs and are so cynical that they just mail it in. I wouldn't exactly regard their "inside information" as too enlightening considering they could give two ****s about what they write. I'd rather have a conversation with a dedicated fan who cares and follows the team every chance he gets any day.

That's not to say all sports reporters are like that, of course. And, I agree, I wouldn't be too inclined to take Simmons' take on newspapers as gospel considering he doesn't work in them. But that doesn't mean he doesn't know about them. I'm sure he knows plenty of people in the industry.

At any rate, Simmons is what he is. He's a fan with a sports column. And sue me if I find it entertaining. It doesn't mean he's a bad guy or a disservice to the industry.

 

[stix]

Release the ...

I know, I know. I understand that most people don't see eye-to-eye with me when it comes to Simmons.

I guess I have a different opinion of him, and that's fine if most people disagree. Believe me, there are times when I read about two paragraphs into his column and decide I don't want to read it anymore. He is kind of hit-or-miss. But many times I find him funny and entertaining.

I guess I regard him as a sportswriter, not a sports reporter, if that makes sense.

 

[stix]

quite a scathing take on the newspaper industry.

opinions?

http://sports.espn.go.com/espnradio/podcast/archive?id=2864045

How many reasons did Walsh list for the problems causing newspapers' demise without actually coming within home-run distance of being right? I lost track.

I don't know, I thought his take on newspapers being unwilling to change their methods until they were close to death was pretty spot-on and major papers not hiring the right people to head-up Internet operations and guide the industry into a changing medium was also accurate.

I know these were the two massive problems the paper I worked at had. They wanted to do things the way they've always done them until it was apparent that wouldn't work anymore, and they hired a 60-something guy who had no defined role in the company because he was basically useless anywhere else to head-up Internet operations. Nevermind the fact that the guy probably didn't hear of the Internet until 5 years ago.

Also, I like how Simmons mentioned that newspapers could've beat the Internet with better writing and reporting instead of just delving down into the mindless blogs and snippets of information that the Internet had developed into. I totally agree.

 

[buckweaver]

Release the ...

I know, I know. I understand that most people don't see eye-to-eye with me when it comes to Simmons.

I guess I have a different opinion of him, and that's fine if most people disagree. Believe me, there are times when I read about two paragraphs into his column and decide I don't want to read it anymore. He is kind of hit-or-miss. But many times I find him funny and entertaining.

I guess I regard him as a sportswriter, not a sports reporter, if that makes sense.

Well, and your synopsis of his "early career" is a bit off, IIRC. He quit newspapers because he 1) thought he was too good for phoners and prep roundups and agate; and 2) he wanted to be a columnist and they "wouldn't let him." Also, IIRC, he couldn't hit a deadline or write to a hole to save his life. You might notice the dude's still not, uhh, very concise.

Now, he spends a portion of every interview bitterly ripping his old employers even though he's quite successful at the niche he's created for himself. It smacks of insecurity, and to tell the truth, it's a little off-putting for me as a reader -- and, especially, as someone who has worked for a number of years in newspapers. His writing is just not that entertaining to me, and it's mostly because of his attitude.

 

[TheSportsPredictor]

quite a scathing take on the newspaper industry.

opinions?

http://sports.espn.go.com/espnradio/podcast/archive?id=2864045

How many reasons did Walsh list for the problems causing newspapers' demise without actually coming within home-run distance of being right? I lost track.

I don't know, I thought his take on newspapers being unwilling to change their methods until they were close to death was pretty spot-on and major papers not hiring the right people to head-up Internet operations and guide the industry into a changing medium was also accurate.

It's the economy, stupid!

 

[stix]

Release the ...

I know, I know. I understand that most people don't see eye-to-eye with me when it comes to Simmons.

I guess I have a different opinion of him, and that's fine if most people disagree. Believe me, there are times when I read about two paragraphs into his column and decide I don't want to read it anymore. He is kind of hit-or-miss. But many times I find him funny and entertaining.

I guess I regard him as a sportswriter, not a sports reporter, if that makes sense.

Well, and your synopsis of his "early career" is a bit off, IIRC. He quit newspapers because he 1) thought he was too good for phoners and prep roundups and agate; and 2) he wanted to be a columnist and they "wouldn't let him." Also, IIRC, he couldn't hit a deadline or write to a hole to save his life. You might notice the dude's still not, uhh, very concise.

Now, he spends a portion of every interview bitterly ripping his old employers even though he's quite successful at the niche he's created for himself. It smacks of insecurity, and to tell the truth, it's a little off-putting for me as a reader -- and, especially, as someone who has worked for a number of years in newspapers. His writing is just not that entertaining to me, and it's mostly because of his attitude.

Buck, I can see your point.

It's obvious by reading his 15-million word columns that writing concisely isn't exactly a strength of his. I can see where his skills are ill-fitted for newspapers and writing on deadline.

But now he writes in a venue that's much better-suited for his skills. What's wrong with that? I understand where ripping his former employers for things that were his own shortcomings is off-putting, but I think he does have some points.

Like when he says he pitched a fantasy column for the Herald in 1994 and they shot it down. Clearly, with the way fantasy sports have exploded, maybe it would've been a decent idea for sports sections to pay a little more attention to fantasy matters than they ever did. Most newspaper people think fantasy sports aren't "legit," but considering it's turned into a massive industry, I think a lot of papers really missed the boat with their customers by totally disregarding fantasy sports.

That's one good point Simmons made here. Again, buck, I realize he's prone to ripping newspapers because he's bitter and because he's blaming them for his own shortcomings as a sportswriter. But he's obviously in a position now that's perfect for his writing style, and I happen to find his stuff entertaining, funny and occasionally even enlightening.

If we have to agree to disagree, that's fine. But I do think the thing that stands out in this chat more than anything is that sports media outlets need to continue to always think ahead and to always be more creative, and I just think most newspapers failed to do this. That's why they're in such big trouble, because of a massive lack of creative and forward-thinking leaders who were obsessed only with quarterly profit margins and nothing else.

 

[stix]

quite a scathing take on the newspaper industry.

opinions?

http://sports.espn.go.com/espnradio/podcast/archive?id=2864045

How many reasons did Walsh list for the problems causing newspapers' demise without actually coming within home-run distance of being right? I lost track.

I don't know, I thought his take on newspapers being unwilling to change their methods until they were close to death was pretty spot-on and major papers not hiring the right people to head-up Internet operations and guide the industry into a changing medium was also accurate.

It's the economy, stupid!

Then why was newspaper circulation declining massively long before we hit this current economic recession?

Of course the declining economy has hurt the newspaper industry, just like it's hit every industry. But this bothers me. This is the excuse that all MEs use when they fire off another round of lay-offs. "Well, the economy sucks, so we have no choice." In part that's true, but in part it's a bull**** excuse.

If more newspaper leaders would've thought how they could adapt and improve their products in the face of an exploding new medium (the Internet) instead of obsessing over short-term profit margins, maybe newspapers would be a little better equipped to get through this economic nosedive.

It's no coincidence that businesses that get through these recessions are ones with forward-thinking leaders who aren't short-sighted and are always hellbent on asking how they can improve their business and how they can do better. Too many newspaper leaders were apathetic and short-sighted (and many CEOs in other industries, especially the auto industry) over the years that now the economic recession has absolutely murdered them because they were totally ill-equipped to navigate through tough times.

 

[TheSportsPredictor]

quite a scathing take on the newspaper industry.

opinions?

http://sports.espn.go.com/espnradio/podcast/archive?id=2864045

How many reasons did Walsh list for the problems causing newspapers' demise without actually coming within home-run distance of being right? I lost track.

I don't know, I thought his take on newspapers being unwilling to change their methods until they were close to death was pretty spot-on and major papers not hiring the right people to head-up Internet operations and guide the industry into a changing medium was also accurate.

It's the economy, stupid!

Then why was newspaper circulation declining massively long before we hit this current economic recession?

The circ declines didn't cause the newspapers to start folding. Circ was dropping for years and years, and this just suddenly caused many newspapers to cut people or fold? No.

 

[anonymousprick]

Just a question, and I know I'm probably gonna grilled for this: Why does everyone on here seem to hate Bill Simmons so much?

Because he acts like a douchebag at every conceivable turn. Simple as that.

 

[stix]

quite a scathing take on the newspaper industry.

opinions?

http://sports.espn.go.com/espnradio/podcast/archive?id=2864045

How many reasons did Walsh list for the problems causing newspapers' demise without actually coming within home-run distance of being right? I lost track.

I don't know, I thought his take on newspapers being unwilling to change their methods until they were close to death was pretty spot-on and major papers not hiring the right people to head-up Internet operations and guide the industry into a changing medium was also accurate.

It's the economy, stupid!

Then why was newspaper circulation declining massively long before we hit this current economic recession?

The circ declines didn't cause the newspapers to start folding. Circ was dropping for years and years, and this just suddenly caused many newspapers to cut people or fold? No.

But shouldn't years of declining circulation have forced newspapers to examine the way they operate and present their product? To maybe start wondering why circulation was declining and how to deal with it?

There's no doubt the economy has been the tipping point to cause massive job cuts. I won't disagree with that. But I find it unfathomable that so many newspapers could sit there and watch circulation decline and not change the way they operate.

The newspaper industry was struggling well before the economy went to ****.

 

[Frank_Ridgeway]

Like when he says he pitched a fantasy column for the Herald in 1994 and they shot it down. Clearly, with the way fantasy sports have exploded, maybe it would've been a decent idea for sports sections to pay a little more attention to fantasy matters than they ever did. Most newspaper people think fantasy sports aren't "legit," but considering it's turned into a massive industry, I think a lot of papers really missed the boat with their customers by totally disregarding fantasy sports.

Each newspaper could open a car wash and a doughnut shop in the parking lot, too. They are legitimate businesses that could be profitable.

Actual sports = news
Fantasy sports = not news

Lots of people play Bingo as well. But unless there's a scam going on, there's no news in it.

 

[TheSportsPredictor]

But shouldn't years of declining circulation have forced newspapers to examine the way they operate and present their product? To maybe start wondering why circulation was declining and how to deal with it?

There's no doubt the economy has been the tipping point to cause massive job cuts. I won't disagree with that. But I find it unfathomable that so many newspapers could sit there and watch circulation decline and not change the way they operate.

The newspaper industry was struggling well before the economy went to ****.

Why are you assuming they didn't? They just didn't go about it in successful ways.

It's actually laughable that Simmons thinks rejecting fantasy sports columns is one way where newspapers failed. Fantasy sports are built for the web. Live scoring, chatting with foes, offering trades, looking up stats, etc. -- newspapers have no chance against this. That's not to say they shouldn't bother with them. But I'm fairly certain newspapers were making a hell of a lot of money until the web cannibalized half their revenues.