Tuesday, August 28, 2012

Petaluma Little-Leaguers Bay Media Phoniness, Part 2



Let me get it straight: I'm happy for Petaluma and its celebrated little-league heroes. It's a great story--what's not to like?

I made a point on Monday, (or at least tried to), that I found a whole lot of insincere gushiness among some of the local media for their less-than-sincere cheerleading. I wasn't suggesting anything sinister nor pooh-poohing the fact that these kids didn't deserve all the chest-thumping and fame--quite the contrary.

I was ripping into the mass state of "Let's go team!" disingenuous behavior, via Twitter and Facebook, by reporters and a few anchors who reeked of taking advantage of a local feel-good story for their own benefit. Most of it intentional, some of it, not the case. It's a case of false enthusiasm and the viewers can see right through it. And for that, I get called a grouch? Then so be it.

Wayne Freedman of KGO-TV chimed in to suggest I was picking on him, in particular. Wrong Wayne, if you had actually read the post and not acted so sensitive, you'd have understood my gripe. I wasn't alluding to one account in particular. And I didn't even see your report.

Petaluma and its world-famous little league team deserves all the attention. There's no bitching about that here. The bandwagon media crowd that used these kids moment in the spotlight? There's my gripe and I stand by what I said. It's fake. It's not genuine. Too many newbies, especially the one's wearing Petaluma caps in particular, please give me a break. Like I said, phony, phony, phony. And Phoniness.

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38 comments:

  1. It seems like Rich reflexively objects to whatever the "bandwagon media crowd" does.

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  2. It must be a SLOW day for you Rich.....surely you have better things to comment on and write about that this garbage

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  3. Rich, did you play little league? Is your athletic background watching and reading about sports? The LLWS is the holy grail of athletic experience for any little leaguer. Even though Cal. teams have gone far, other than Campbell in the 1960's, no other bay area team has done what Petaluma has done.If you played Little League, that was you in Williamsport, soaking up every moment. That was the closest I've been. Thanks Petaluma for taking us on such a wonderful ride.

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    1. Aptos went pretty far recently

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    2. San Ramon Valley (Danville) advanced to the little league championship games in 1991 and 1978, losing both times to Taiwan

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  4. They're KIDS playing a GAME, much as you'd see at any park throughout the spring and summer months. If it wasn't for ESPN pimping the hell out of this event, it could all be pleasantly ignored and relegated to the back pages.

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  5. To the person who mentioned Campbell, San Ramon Valley reached WS finals in 90s

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  6. Rich...
    In a town that's becoming well known for pot holes in the streets please give these real "Boys of Summer" the kudos they not only deserved but more importantly earned.

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  7. There are only three ways Little League gets mentioned in a Bay Area newscast. Make it to the Little League world series, someone rips off their equipment or money or a coach gets arrested for abusing a kid.

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    1. Or, the abusive coach who led the team to the world series is arrested for stealing the equipment.

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  8. And for that, I get called a grouch? that and many, many, many others things!

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    1. Rich, you are a grouch!

      You are the old guy sitting around complaining about the way things are today, constantly harkening back to the "good old days."

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  9. And what does it say that its the "better off areas" who do get teams to the LLWS or playoffs?. It says baseball is almost elitist...you never see urban kids on a city park diamond..never. Bats,balls,gloves,and a whole bunch of friends are expensive. No urban kids can go to their driveway and play baseball. wow-Baseball in the bay area for kids is getting to be near Hockey exclusiveness.

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    1. Boo Hoo!

      If you are bothered by the exclusiveness of LL baseball, I suggest you distance yourself from Major League Baseball which is so closely connected to the same exclusive sport.

      Also Major League Baseball is played by men generally earning millions of dollars a year which reeks of exclusivity and worse of all, almost all professional sports teams are owned by mufti-millionaires, if not billionaires; again an ultra exclusive undertaking.

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    2. Like all your posts you write like you get it..when you actually make my point by bringing up the exclusiveness of the wealthy pro's.
      Boo-hoo? Boo hoo to the wealthy getting more while the poor get poorer.

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    3. @6:37 So you don't think professional sports should be on television or covered by the media either? What are you suggesting as an alternative?

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  10. Amen Rich, amen ! I thought I was one of the few to notice it too.

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  11. "I was ripping into the mass state of "Let's go team!" disingenuous behavior, via Twitter and Facebook, by reporters and a few anchors who reeked of taking advantage of a local feel-good story for their own benefit. "

    And judging from some of the comments, it seems that more than a couple of commenters have zero reading comprehension, don't read your posts, or just simply find it convenient to shit on a random blog because they can

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    1. A few anchors "reeked of taking advantage of a local feel good story for their own benefit."

      They took advantage of a feel-good story for their own benefit? How did they take advantage and how did they benefit? Perhaps in the future they should be prohibited for reporting feel-good stories

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  12. Noticed the over reporting of this story as well.
    This was especially the case at KCBS. Steve Biker, Susan Taylor were too eager to promote this story.
    How do you spell front-runner? Bay Area Media.

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    1. Steve Bitker and Susan Taylor were too eager to promote this story?

      This was the local team from a small town competing for a national championship of a major national institution and on the verge of competing for the world championship and you're disturbed that reporters were too eager?

      Front-runners, no. The media follows who's on top, that's the story.

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    2. "The bandwagon media crowd that used these kids moment in the spotlight? There's my gripe "

      Yes, that is always Rich's gripe. He gripes about everything the current popular media does these days.

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  13. Fully expected Barbieri there complaining his kid didn't get to go. You know the kind of dad I'm writing about.

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  14. And how is the hubbub over the Petaluma little leaguers any different than the media bandwagoners who got all hot & bothered over the Giants in 2010? Or the 49ers this past January? Or any other local amateur, college or pro team who makes it to a final? The media loves a feel-good story because it means more people will be tuned in to hear all about it.

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  15. Agree with the other posters here.
    Bay Area Media = Bandwagon.
    Look for the next story and display some uncontrollable enthusiasm.

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  16. Actually, you are the phony on this. In your earlier post you said Sports anchors were leading with a "Go Petaluma". Since you didn't see Wayne's reports, I'm going to guess you didn't catch Larry Beil or Shu either. Don't worry, I can assure you they never said "Go Petaluma". So then who did?

    Either name names or quit throwing shit against the wall.

    I'll give you credit when you're right, but you're wrong this time. Stick to radio.

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  17. I know it's the Little League World Series, but kids who are playing at ages 12 and 13 shouldn't be overexposed on national TV. Having ESPN carry the games is just a little over the top. They shouldn't be exploiting kids who are just enjoying their moment of
    excitement in competition, turning them into stars for 15 minutes. They're just kids, for crying out loud!

    And, no other sport outside of little league baseball is shown on national TV that has kids at that age competing.
    Not hoops, hockey, basketball, track and field, etc.

    Why should they do it for little league baseball? This is not a story that should be on national TV. There are also onlya small core of people (family and friends) in those areas where the teams come from that are truly interested.

    You think most people in the bay area who follow sports really care what a bunch of 12 and 13 year old kids from Petaluma do in the Little League World Series? Now suddenly everyone is mezmerized? I have to agree with my friend Ritchie on this one!

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    1. This is not a story that should be on national TV. There are also onlya small core of people (family and friends) in those areas where the teams come from that are truly interested.

      Hello, WE ARE FROM ONE OF THOSE AREAS WHERE THE TEAMS COME FROM. That's why we are truly "interested."

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  18. Yeah, Good Old Days Rich bitching about what's wrong with the media these days.

    Seriously, roll back the clock 20 years, and all Rich's beloved good old days guys would have reported this story in the same, sappy, feel-good story way.

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  19. Way to go Petaluma lil leaguers! Awesome 6th inning. The story is about you guys...not the quality of the coverage.

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  20. Rich defines himself by objecting to whatever is popular.

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  21. Mitt Romney is a dork! The idea that this guy could possibly become president doesn't say a whole lot about the intelligence of the Republican Party, which unfortunately is well known for pimping some ridiculously absurd candidates in the past: (Ford, Reagan,
    both Bushes, McCain, Dole, and now Romney).

    The Republican party is way out of step with what the rest of this country is all about. They're for the ' 1 percenters,' and don't represent the interests of our youth, our minorities, our women, and our handicapped folks among others.

    Their philosophy is all about Social Darwinism; only the strong
    should survive and let the weak ones fade, let American business do whatever it wants, after all, making money is more important than the quality of life for our individual citizens.

    The Republican Party has also been on the wrong side of so many key issues in recent years that it staggers the imagination;
    plundering the environment, arguing vehemently against any oversight of our financial institutions (and we saw what that led us to!), trying to overturn hard fought civil rights that took years to win, gun control ("guns don't kill people, people do!" what a line a hogwash!), abortion, and immigration issues.

    In short, the Republican Party of the 21st century has been hijacked by the extreme right wing which DOES NOT represent the interests of the American people. As much as I didn't like Ronald Reagan and Richard Nixon, they at least moderated their positions and reached across the aisle to work with the Democrats, a far cry from what George Bush and his minions did in recent years. And 'The Tea Party?' Give me a break! Those clowns have no idea of what the Constitution is all about and they have no historical prespective on what has gone on in this country over the last 250 plus years. Have they ever heard of the 'Gilded Age?' of the 'Blacklists' of the 1950s, or the Communist Witchhunts of the 1920s? These were all shameful episodes that I'm sure today's
    extreme Republican party would probably think were high points of our country's history, rather than times of shame.

    A Mama for Obama!

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  22. Get a life Rich...

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  23. Oh yes, let's coddle these kids a little more and make them feel like the world owes them something...congratulations for coming from 10 runs down - and losing. YOU ARE ALL HEROES.

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    1. Discouraging remarks from a former mathlete? :/
      Sounds like someone is still ruminating over one too many childhood wedgies.

      Competition, goals, struggles, accepting wins and loses ...all foolish lessons that serve no purpose in child development? Hmmm.

      Obama and Biden are counting on the support of folks like yourself this fall(dismissive head shake with pursed lips while typing).

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    2. No - nothing like that. Just tired of seeing kids put on a national TV pedestal with media fawning all over them, when nobody but their parents or friends would give a sh*t about watching them play the other 50 or so games they participated in before getting to the LLWS.

      If Little League baseball is so awesome, how come it isn't broadcast the rest of the season?

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  24. Here here! Couldn't agree more with 1:02pm. Too much adulation for a bunch of kids in a small town that most of America has never heard of. What warrants those games being shown on National TV? It's obscene, absurd, but typical of our "15 minutes of fame" oriented media, which loves to create little stories such as this one.

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  25. " Too much adulation for a bunch of kids in a small town that most of America has never heard of"

    Welcome to the grouchy old man club. Now go outside and yell at the kids playing on your lawn!

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