AB apologizes to ESPN writer

[AtlantaDan]

Antonio Brown learns it is one thing to trash a local P-G writer who is dependent on access to the Steelers and cannot fire back but quite another matter to go after a ESPN writer who does not need to deal with the Steelers on a regular basis

Last week Jesse Washington of The Undefeated published a story about Antonio Brown of the Steelers. It’s at once an especially 2018 kind of profile—the word “Instagram” appears 24 times, there are another three “’Grams,” and a further seven embedded Instagram posts—and a weirdly dissonant, pearl-clutchy story, in that its big scandal seems to be that a millennial uses Instagram to paint an unrealistically rosy picture of their life....

But once you get past Washington’s fixation on his discovery that Instagram is an unreliable source of biographical information, there are juicy details in there to suggest that Antonio Brown might be a dick. Washington has him as a disloyal lover, and possibly a deadbeat dad, and certainly as someone who has burned former business associates and made his share of enemies. Brown, who is here depicted as image-obsessed and Extremely Online, of course was not real happy about it.

"@jessewashington wait to I see you bro we gone see what your jaw like."

That was Brown tweeting a threat at Washington on the day the story was published. The tweet was, of course, deleted, but not before Washington grabbed a screenshot and tweeted it out to his 10,000 or so followers (also now deleted), because he is himself an online being and this is just the way it goes in our hell dimension.

https://deadspin.com/antonio-brown-a...n-w-1829016947

Jacob Klinger of pennlive.com asked Tomlin for his reaction to Brown’s tweet....

Tomlin basically blew off the question, saying, in part, “We could talk all day about things that are online or on the Internet or on social media. I just choose to stay away from it because it's a waste of my time."....

A few hours later, team president Art Rooney II and Brown issued statements to the Post-Gazette.

Rooney’s went like this: “It is never OK for any employee of the Steelers organization – player, coach or front office staff – to threaten a member of the media or anyone else for that matter. I appreciate that Antonio is apologizing for his inappropriate comments.”

Indeed, Brown was apologizing, via this statement: “I made a mistake in judgment with my tweet last week, and I apologize for that. It is not OK to threaten anyone and I need to be better spiritually and professionally. Though I do not agree with the negative parts of the story about my personal life, I need to have better control over my actions to use social media as a way to engage with my fans, rather than use it improperly.”

http://www.post-gazette.com/sports/j...s/201809120241

So much for less drama in 2018 - AJR II has to be getting tired of this and presumably is not pleased he had to step up (following a call with the league office asking WTF?) after Tomlin botched his response.

Props to AB for drawing page hits and additional coverage of a story that he did not like by acting out on twitter about it - well played.

I miss the good old days of 70s media coverage when all I knew about the Steelers off the field activities was another Bradshaw marriage crashing while Ernie Holmes got arrested for shooting at a police helicopter or possessing cocaine.

[tube517]

Antonio Brown learns it is one thing to trash a local P-G writer who is dependent on access to the Steelers and cannot fire back but quite another matter to go after a ESPN writer who does not need to deal with the Steelers on a regular basis

Last week Jesse Washington of The Undefeated published a story about Antonio Brown of the Steelers. It’s at once an especially 2018 kind of profile—the word “Instagram” appears 24 times, there are another three “’Grams,” and a further seven embedded Instagram posts—and a weirdly dissonant, pearl-clutchy story, in that its big scandal seems to be that a millennial uses Instagram to paint an unrealistically rosy picture of their life....

But once you get past Washington’s fixation on his discovery that Instagram is an unreliable source of biographical information, there are juicy details in there to suggest that Antonio Brown might be a dick. Washington has him as a disloyal lover, and possibly a deadbeat dad, and certainly as someone who has burned former business associates and made his share of enemies. Brown, who is here depicted as image-obsessed and Extremely Online, of course was not real happy about it.

"@jessewashington wait to I see you bro we gone see what your jaw like."

That was Brown tweeting a threat at Washington on the day the story was published. The tweet was, of course, deleted, but not before Washington grabbed a screenshot and tweeted it out to his 10,000 or so followers (also now deleted), because he is himself an online being and this is just the way it goes in our hell dimension.

https://deadspin.com/antonio-brown-a...n-w-1829016947

Jacob Klinger of pennlive.com asked Tomlin for his reaction to Brown’s tweet....

Tomlin basically blew off the question, saying, in part, “We could talk all day about things that are online or on the Internet or on social media. I just choose to stay away from it because it's a waste of my time."....

A few hours later, team president Art Rooney II and Brown issued statements to the Post-Gazette.

Rooney’s went like this: “It is never OK for any employee of the Steelers organization – player, coach or front office staff – to threaten a member of the media or anyone else for that matter. I appreciate that Antonio is apologizing for his inappropriate comments.”

Indeed, Brown was apologizing, via this statement: “I made a mistake in judgment with my tweet last week, and I apologize for that. It is not OK to threaten anyone and I need to be better spiritually and professionally. Though I do not agree with the negative parts of the story about my personal life, I need to have better control over my actions to use social media as a way to engage with my fans, rather than use it improperly.”

http://www.post-gazette.com/sports/j...s/201809120241

So much for less drama in 2018 - AJR II has to be getting tired of this and presumably is not pleased he had to step up (presumably following a call with the league office asking WTF?) after Tomlin botched his response. Props to AB for drawing page hits to a story that he did not like by acting out on twitter about it.I miss the good old days of 70s media coverage when all I knew about the Steelers off the field activities was another Bradshaw marriage crashing while Ernie Holmes got arrested for shooting at a police helicopter or possessing cocaine.

I didn't know about that (Ernie Holmes and the helicopter) until the 2000s when I was able to read the local Pittsburgh websites. I had no clue.

I saw that tweet from AB and surprised nothing had happened until now.

[AtlantaDan]

I didn't know about that (Ernie Holmes and the helicopter) until the 2000s when I was able to read the local Pittsburgh websites. I had no clue.

It was a more forgiving time

Mr. Rooney said yesterday that Mr. Holmes was out of sorts during the incident in Ohio because he took high doses of caffeine.

"He was hallucinating,'' Mr. Rooney said. "He was taking those No Doze pills and didn't even know where he was. He was released in my custody. I got him into a hospital, and he spent a number of weeks there. He came out OK."

http://www.post-gazette.com/sports/2...s/200801190132

[DesertSteel]

Steelers org becoming a laughingstock of sorts - like a 3-ring circus. It saddens me.

Tomlin talks a tough talk but I think he’s afraid of confrontation.

[teegre]

Remember the good ol’ days... when Jack Lambert would sneak out the night before games, get drunk, and play hung over. Of course, Noll had way, way more discipline than Tomlin... you know, because Noll gave Lambert a breath mint.

An analogy:
Crime is down, statistically. But, the reporting of any & all crime is way, way up.

[DesertSteel]

Remember the good ol’ days... when Jack Lambert would sneak out the night before games, get drunk, and play hung over. Of course, Noll had way, way more discipline than Tomlin... you know, because Noll gave Lambert a breath mint.

An analogy:
Crime is down, statistically. But, the reporting of any & all crime is way, way up.

You're correct. But things used to be very different. Things were acceptable 30-40 years ago that aren't today. My junior high had a smoking section for the students. We didn't wear seat belts. People said the 'N' word and didn't resign from their position. I don't know that stories from the good old days excuse the behavior of modern day players.

[teegre]

You're correct. But things used to be very different. Things were acceptable 30-40 years ago that aren't today. My junior high had a smoking section for the students. We didn't wear seat belts. People said the 'N' word and didn't resign from their position. I don't know that stories from the good old days excuse the behavior of modern day players.

I guess I equate it with the drunk pointing at the guy smoking weed and calling him an “addict”.

#pot #kettle #black

[DesertSteel]

I guess I equate it with the drunk pointing at the guy smoking weed and calling him an “addict”.

#pot #kettle #black

Right... certain things were wrong then and they are wrong now. They just come with more visibility now. But it's always OK to admit your fault and learn from it.

[fansince'76]

I don't know that stories from the good old days excuse the behavior of modern day players.

They don't. But suggesting things were more disciplined back in the day just because the 24x7 news cycle and 1500-or-so cable news channels didn't exist (nor smartphones with cameras that turn every Tom, Dick and Harry into an instant "journalist") to shine a light on them is ludicrous.

[DesertSteel]

They don't. But suggesting things were more disciplined back in the day just because the 24x7 news cycle and 1500-or-so cable news channels didn't exist (nor smartphones with cameras that turn every Tom, Dick and Harry into an instant "journalist") to shine a light on them is ludicrous.

We might add that those guys weren't getting paid tens of millions of dollars either... to whom much is given, much is required.

[T&B fan]

You're correct. But things used to be very different. Things were acceptable 30-40 years ago that aren't today. My junior high had a smoking section for the students. We didn't wear seat belts. People said the 'N' word and didn't resign from their position. I don't know that stories from the good old days excuse the behavior of modern day players.

we also had a smoking section , we also had a gun club you would bring long guns on the bus to school..

[fansince'76]

Remember the good ol’ days... when Jack Lambert would sneak out the night before games, get drunk, and play hung over. Of course, Noll had way, way more discipline than Tomlin... you know, because Noll gave Lambert a breath mint.

An analogy:
Crime is down, statistically. But, the reporting of any & all crime is way, way up.

Indeed. Not to mention Madden's Raiders from the same era.

"Hey, as long as the guy was out of jail by gametime on Sunday was all I cared about." - John Madden (paraphrased)

[AtlantaDan]

Remember the good ol’ days... when Jack Lambert would sneak out the night before games, get drunk, and play hung over. Of course, Noll had way, way more discipline than Tomlin... you know, because Noll gave Lambert a breath mint.

An analogy:
Crime is down, statistically. But, the reporting of any & all crime is way, way up.

Agreed - you have to adjust your behavior to how it is going to be covered in a 24/7 media environment - as was the case with politicians being able to screw around on the side and be falling down drunk without the press reporting it back then but not now, players who want to develop their online brand today have to accept they are not in sole control of their image

Lambert & Noll only had to worry about what the P-G, Press (RIP), and Myron reported

[steelreserve]

Remember the good ol’ days... when Jack Lambert would sneak out the night before games, get drunk, and play hung over. Of course, Noll had way, way more discipline than Tomlin... you know, because Noll gave Lambert a breath mint.

An analogy:
Crime is down, statistically. But, the reporting of any & all crime is way, way up.

One could make the same argument about racism and poverty, but that sure doesn't stop people from losing their shit over it.

OK, that was a total tangent that was too good to pass up, but your main point is right on ... people are just under a microscope like never before, and on top of that everyone watching wants to make a huge deal out of everything even if it's really not.

Now, there's the additional question of whether rhat really applies to people who are voluntarily seeking out attention by posting on social media ... seems lots of people really like the attention-getting part of it but don't understand you are also voluntarily asking for extra scrutiny, even if you are not a public figure.

[teegre]

One could make the same argument about racism and poverty, but that sure doesn't stop people from losing their shit over it.

OK, that was a total tangent that was too good to pass up, but your main point is right on ... people are just under a microscope like never before, and on top of that everyone watching wants to make a huge deal out of everything even if it's really not.

Now, there's the additional question of whether rhat really applies to people who are voluntarily seeking out attention by posting on social media ... seems lots of people really like the attention-getting part of it but don't understand you are also voluntarily asking for extra scrutiny, even if you are not a public figure.

Great post.

My response is simple... millennials.

[steelreserve]

Great post.

My response is simple... millennials.

... and that response is pretty much a 600-foot walk-off home run.

[Mojouw]

Shocking. A professional athlete is an egotistical self centered jerk who acts one way when it is about the brand and another when they think the cameras are off.

Why does this still surprise people?

And because most people like who they think AB is this story will gain little traction. If it was about Bell or Bryant or Dupree it would go crazy in Steelers focused media.

[AtlantaDan]

Shocking. A professional athlete is an egotistical self centered jerk who acts one way when it is about the brand and another when they think the cameras are off.

Why does this still surprise people?

And because most people like who they think AB is this story will gain little traction. If it was about Bell or Bryant or Dupree it would go crazy in Steelers focused media.

If AB had not tweeted his displeasure it would get no coverage at all - now AJRII had to step in

Keep acting out like this and those Pepsi endorsements will go away quickly

One week later, Ed Bouchette, who has covered the Steelers for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette since 1985 and been honored by the Pro Football Hall of Fame, watched Brown at practice and tweeted: “Antonio Brown limps off practice after some early individual work.” It got 141 retweets and 246 likes.

Bouchette told me that shortly after his tweet, Brown confronted him in person and said, “You a racist, you a racist.”

https://theundefeated.com/features/s...-full-picture/

No surprise the Pittsburgh media is not running with this statement - local Steelers reporters have to swallow a lot of crap or avoid being frozen out - ESPN, Deadspin & other national sites do not

PFT posted today on AB calling Ed B. a racist - highly doubtful that happens if AB had not responded to the article

https://profootballtalk.nbcsports.co...o-espn-writer/

[GoSlash27]

Social media has seriously ruined our so-called "journalism". There is literally zero incentive to report accurately and fairly. The goal is to generate clickbait, so all they do is generate controversy. They're like that a**hole kid in the schoolyard who was always instigating fights between other kids. They have very little signal and an intolerable amount of noise, so I just tune them out.

[AtlantaDan]

Social media has seriously ruined our so-called "journalism". There is literally zero incentive to report accurately and fairly. The goal is to generate clickbait, so all they do is generate controversy. They're like that a**hole kid in the schoolyard who was always instigating fights between other kids. They have very little signal and an intolerable amount of noise, so I just tune them out.

The article was not a tweet or Facebook post but the lengthy type of profile that Frank Deford used to write back in the glory days of SI in the 70s and 80s long before the internet was available to the general public. If you want to read something that generated controversy read the take down of Bobby Knight by Deford or check out John Feinstein on Knight in A Season On The Brink. Unflattering sports profiles and books were not invented this decade.

I am sick of sports personalities and politicians simply screaming "fake news" in response to any unfavorable story and that presumably being sufficient to deem the story false.

FWIW I am more offended by Brown calling Bouchette a racist (or do you think Bouchette made that up?), which I never would have known about until Brown being forced to apologize generated publicity for the ESPN article, than some rhetorical twitter threat to punch a reporter. This is how you actually threaten a reporter

Once I saw Ernie Holmes pick up a sportswriter by the shirt and hold him, with one hand, against the wall while he lectured the poor guy on the finer points of covering the Steelers.

https://www.si.com/more-sports/2008/01/18/holmes

Since Brown was stupid enough to make this a story and generate publicity for the article with his faux tough guy posturing on twitter he deserves getting slammed for it.

I know I am only supposed to care about what happens on the field and that athletes are not role models, but some of the biggest stars on the post-Polamalu version of the Steelers are undermining the image of the franchise that the Rooneys and their players have built since the 70s. Amazing that the most media savvy player on the team is a 21 year old wide receiver

[43Hitman]

The article was not a tweet or Facebook post but the lengthy type of profile that Frank Deford used to write back in the glory days of SI in the 70s and 80s long before the internet was available to the general public. If you want to read something that generated controversy read the take down of Bobby Knight by Deford or check out John Feinstein on Knight in A Season On The Brink. Unflattering sports profiles and books were not invented this decade.

I am sick of sports personalities and politicians simply screaming "fake news" in response to any unfavorable story and that presumably being sufficient to deem the story false.

FWIW I am more offended by Brown calling Bouchette a racist (or do you think Bouchette made that up?), which I never would have known about until Brown being forced to apologize generated publicity for the ESPN article, than some rhetorical twitter threat to punch a reporter. This is how you actually threaten a reporter

Once I saw Ernie Holmes pick up a sportswriter by the shirt and hold him, with one hand, against the wall while he lectured the poor guy on the finer points of covering the Steelers.

https://www.si.com/more-sports/2008/01/18/holmes

Since Brown was stupid enough to make this a story and generate publicity for the article with his faux tough guy posturing on twitter he deserves getting slammed for it.

I know I am only supposed to care about what happens on the field and that athletes are not role models, but some of the biggest stars on the post-Polamalu version of the Steelers are undermining the image of the franchise that the Rooneys and their players have built since the 70s. Amazing that the most media savvy player on the team is a 21 year old wide receiver

I agree completely and to be honest it's all getting a bit tiresome. Drama with politicians, now drama everyday in the NFL. I watch to get away from all the crap life throws at me, I don't want to my favorite team throwing crap at me too. Maybe I'm being whinny, but what's going with this locker room has me concerned.

[GoSlash27]

The article was not a tweet or Facebook post but the lengthy type of profile that Frank Deford used to write back in the glory days of SI in the 70s and 80s long before the internet was available to the general public.

I don't know or care who Frank Deford or John Feinstein are. Kinda my point.

If you want to read something that generated controversy read the take down of Bobby Knight by Deford or check out John Feinstein on Knight in A Season On The Brink. Unflattering sports profiles and books were not invented this decade.

That's just it: I *don't* want to read something that generates controversy. I want to read news. It used to be I could avoid the drama and still get news, but these days it's everywhere because 99% of today's "journalism" is just shi*posting for clicks.

I am sick of sports personalities and politicians simply screaming "fake news" in response to any unfavorable story and that presumably being sufficient to deem the story false.

Likewise, I'm sick of he-said-she-said drama BS masquerading as "news".

FWIW I am more offended by Brown calling Bouchette a racist (or do you think Bouchette made that up?), which I never would have known about until Brown being forced to apologize generated publicity for the ESPN article, than some rhetorical twitter threat to punch a reporter. This is how you actually threaten a reporter

Once I saw Ernie Holmes pick up a sportswriter by the shirt and hold him, with one hand, against the wall while he lectured the poor guy on the finer points of covering the Steelers.

https://www.si.com/more-sports/2008/01/18/holmes

Since Brown was stupid enough to make this a story and generate publicity for the article with his faux tough guy posturing on twitter he deserves getting slammed for it.

It's all drama; sh$t-stirring. I don't care about it, I'm not interested. I'm certainly not "offended" by any of it.

I know I am only supposed to care about what happens on the field and that athletes are not role models, but some of the biggest stars on the post-Polamalu version of the Steelers are undermining the image of the franchise that the Rooneys and their players have built since the 70s.

You are free to care about whatever you want I'm just pointing out that *I* don't care about any of this. It's not news to me, it's tabloid garbage. And AFA it "undermining the image of the franchise", it wouldn't even be an issue if "journalists" did their actual job instead of generating clickbait. And for that matter, we wouldn't even be discussing it if you hadn't posted it here.
This sort of crap has been going on in football (including the Steelers) the entire time, including under Rooney back in the '70s. We didn't hear about it back then, not because they were somehow better people, but because sportswriters considered this style of tabloid crap beneath them. Something has changed alright, but it's the media, not the players.

[AtlantaDan]

I don't know or care who Frank Deford or John Feinstein are. Kinda my point.

That's just it: I *don't* want to read something that generates controversy. I want to read news. It used to be I could avoid the drama and still get news, but these days it's everywhere because 99% of today's "journalism" is just shi*posting for clicks.



Likewise, I'm sick of he-said-she-said drama BS masquerading as "news".



It's all drama; sh$t-stirring. I don't care about it, I'm not interested. I'm certainly not "offended" by any of it.



You are free to care about whatever you want .

As are you

Not saying you should give a damn about sportswriters before your time, but these sorts of stories are not a consequence of 21st century social media - they have been written at least since a book called Ball Four (you do not have to care about that either - just trying to provide some perspective) written by a baseball pitcher in the early 70s popped the myth that professional athletes are all great guys who have milk & cookies after going to church. And they are written because enough people read them that it makes money

As far as writing “fact based” stories, with every game on television and teams walling off access (no way a writer gets access today like Roy Blount did for his classic on the 73 Steelers Three Bricks Shy Of A Load) most sportwriting these days is superfluous since writing a description of the game itself is redundant for most fans.

But my main point is this article sinks like a stone if Brown does not go off on Twitter - now it is just one more self-inflicted distraction for a team that does not need it. Since the owner was forced to issue an apology it impacts the team, which the Steelers have to care about regardless of what the cause is.

[GoSlash27]

As are you

Not saying you should give a damn about sportswriters before your time, but these sorts of stories are not a consequence of 21st century social media - they have been written at least since a book called Ball Four (you do not have to care about that either - just trying to provide some perspective) written by a baseball pitcher in the early 70s popped the myth that professional athletes are all great guys who have milk & cookies after going to church. And they are written because enough people read them that it makes money

Oh, I hear ya. I'm well- aware that this form of tabloid journalism has been around forever because there is a market for it. I'm saying that almost *all* "journalism" has devolved into that, and it's not something that interests me. Back in the day, I might've picked one of those books up, scanned it, and decided "this is childish tripe" and moved on to something worth buying. These days, the mere act of clicking the link is enough to reward them so they all do it.

As far as writing “fact based” stories, with every game on television and teams walling off access (no way a writer gets access today like Roy Blount did for his classic on the 73 Steelers Three Bricks Shy Of A Load) most sportwriting these days is superfluous since writing a description of the game itself is redundant for most fans.

Understand, I'm not disputing the facts in these stories... I just don't care because these "earth-shattering controversies" are literally much ado about nothing.

But my main point is this article sinks like a stone if Brown does not go off on Twitter - now it is just one more self-inflicted distraction for a team that does not need it. Since the owner was forced to issue an apology it impacts the team, which the Steelers have to care about regardless of what the cause is.

That is true. It's also true that this story would sink like a stone if we would all just simply ignore it, not click on it, and not post links to it for others to click on.

And for the record, I really don't believe any of these manufactured "scandals" are a distraction to the team. I think "distraction" is a concept the media made up to make their noise seem more important than it really is. The players still study, practice, and play the same as they always do. The concept of players thinking "man... I can't even concentrate on this film knowing that AB popped off at that reporter on Twitter"... it's kinda absurd. The media really flatters themselves if they think their drama actually has an impact on how teams prepare and play. The only thing distracting about these distractions is all the reporters constantly asking them if the distraction is a distraction. And even *that* isn't distracting, it's just obnoxious.

Best,
-Slashy

[Mojouw]

You guys are kinda hitting on my points. Is anyone really shocked to hear or read that AB is not a great overall human being? He apparently treats women and anyone who doesn't help further his brand/image very poorly.

Oh. Well. Why should anyone care? I mean I guess if he is actively physical harming people, running a pyramid scheme, or some other ongoing criminal enterprise - then sure who he is as a person matters. To the best of knowledge he isn't and hasn't done those things. He has blustered on social media, pissed people off, turned on friends, etc. I.Don't.Care. And it isn't because he is a Steeler and he is good. I just can not muster up the mental bandwith to care about this kinda stuff. Know what, Tyreek Hill is a domestic abuser, multiple times I believe. Anyone still give a crap about that? Tom Brady is loco power crystal raving loon about health and exercise. So what? Remember when Rae Carruth tried to hire a contract killer -- now there is an "off-field" story that matters.

The NFL is like any other random cross section of the population. You are going to find all kinds of folks. If we can not recognize that simple fact as other adult human beings, then seriously WTF?

Other posters have raised the fact that in bygone days this stuff didn't get reported on. It is so true. Read about Mickey Mantle. Basically anything that came out after he passed away. All the traveling reporters knew that he drank, smoked, partied, and had affairs whenever he was on the road. No one reported on it because no one was interested in piercing the legend of Mickey Mantle. Because it was judged that that did little good for anyone.

Now we are on the other side of that spectrum. Our instinct is to tear anyone and everyone down as soon as they gain any notoriety. Then we all cry in our beers and clutch our pearls about how the heroes and role models of yesteryear were so much better. Bullshit. They did the same things, or worse, you just didn't hear about it until after they died.

Same for politics. LBJ apparently named little LBJ "Jumbo" and was well known for whipping it out during meetings and the course of the day at the White House. He apparently loved to tell people all about "Jumbo". Can you imagine if that happened this day and age?

- - - Updated - - -

Also, I hate to break it to you all, but the idea that the Steelers are some unique exceptional franchise that is squeaky clean and full of choir boys and solid citizens -- well that is what we call mythology.

[Fire Goodell]

AB being a womanizer and not so nice to people? If only he were a great guy like Tom Brady, you know, someone who dumps his pregnant girlfriend for a supermodel

[Mojouw]

AB being a womanizer and not so nice to people? If only he were a great guy like Tom Brady, you know, someone who dumps his pregnant girlfriend for a supermodel

Right? People are so full of crap. They want these guys to go out every Sunday and engage in the violent physical destruction of their bodies and sacrifice all as "warriors" on the "field of battle". Then they want them to be like some teary eyed version of some perfect point in the past (that didn't exist) where everyone was always polite, said "aw shucks" and "gosh" alot and were just generally really swell fellas!

I like talking to all you folks, but I might just have to swear off the rest of the internet. It is getting just ridiculous.

[GoSlash27]

And it isn't because he is a Steeler and he is good. I just can not muster up the mental bandwith to care about this kinda stuff.

^ This. And it used to be that reporters were evaluated by their ability to get stories that mattered, their journalistic integrity, etc. People bought their papers or watched their broadcasts because they knew they would get pertinent, reliable, accurate *news*. These days, the only yardstick is clicks... and that changes the game entirely. The best way to get clicks is through controversy, and so that's what they do now. They'll instigate a controversy if they don't have one, then report on how controversial the controversy is, and on, and on. And of course, everything is a "scandal".

It's all so childish. The real tragedy is that I can't seem to get away from it...

[Mojouw]

^ This. And it used to be that reporters were evaluated by their ability to get stories that mattered, their journalistic integrity, etc. People bought their papers or watched their broadcasts because they knew they would get pertinent, reliable, accurate *news*. These days, the only yardstick is clicks... and that changes the game entirely. The best way to get clicks is through controversy, and so that's what they do now. They'll instigate a controversy if they don't have one, then report on how controversial the controversy is, and on, and on. And of course, everything is a "scandal".

It's all so childish. The real tragedy is that I can't seem to get away from it...

Yes! I think it all started when the began measuring the ratings for TV news. Once you start quantifying the importance of information by how many people see it -- you are just going right down the slippery slope.

On top of that so much of politics and sports has adopted things from radio. Some faceless guy behind a microphone has to fill 3+ hours of talk radio. The easiest thing he can do is say something so hyperbolic and controversial that Dave, from Topeka (first time long time) is just going to have to call in and yell about it. Now we just do that everywhere, about everything.

[DesertSteel]

It's all so childish. The real tragedy is that I can't seem to get away from it...

That's a truly great quote, bro!