One of the constant themes I've picked up in writing this blog for the better part of five years is the unadulterated bullshit and over-ego blowhards I've encountered. That's not entirely shocking given the subject matter; nevertheless, our so-called industry leaders in this city are borderline boobs and need to evaluate their own persona.
A few are decent people and generally know how to act, (and react); they checked their egos at the door and remembered basic principles of being cool, showing deference, and understanding that they don't have to give off some false identity when the camera isn't on or the mic is cold. Keep in mind I'm not picking out a certain person; believe me when I tell you that that there's too many to count.
They have massive egos. They sit in restaurants and blabber on how great they are. There's nothing wrong with that--ego, after all, is one of the biggest reasons and conduits that exists for them to succeed. Which is fine, only they seem intent on extending that persona ad nauseum and that only further maintains their holier-than-thou image.
Image. Let's talk about image. They're are those that thrive on being perceived as one thing and are quite the polar opposite. The common reaction from someone would be, "who cares?" how they are off stage. All they owe us is their best performance and what they do in their private life is no one's business. Fair response.
The difference is that some of those of what I'll refer to as the "main players" are complete fakers. Posers too. They are disingenuous at best and utter boorish assholes at worst. They profess to want to kiss up to you and then go sideways. You would be surprised how many of these players reside here.
A popular radio guy--several of them, actually, have gone to great lengths to discredit me. Largely, they've belittled me, this site, the readers, etc and have only further ignited my desire to expose them and their false personas. One in particular has had interns, various enablers, write me deeply personal attacks, (anonymously, of course), and threaten me legally. It didn't work largely because what I wrote was the truth and the truth is the greatest defence. I'm purposely not going to ID the guy because I have my own reasons; ultimately, you'll see down the reason why I chose to take this approach and you'll understand.
Several of you have written and delighted in me taking some of these people on; for that, I thank you and hope this is a place where some of these characters, the "major players" can be held accountable. A few of you, too, have scolded me, from time to time, as to what you view as me having an agenda and using this site to inject a vendetta, which is the furthest from the truth. There is no agenda here--not a one. And using this forum to wage a vendetta serves no purpose and only de-legitimizes the purpose of 415 Media.
We're getting bigger here. And I'm thrilled with that. I'm thrilled that other major on-line sites have picked up my stories and published my opinions, my takes, my accounts. The scoops too....oh sure, and the misses too. As I have said too numerous times nobody's perfect and while I have strived to get it right here, sometimes I've missed, and for that, I'm sorry. Fortunately, for the most part, I got it right and that's the only thing that counts.
We'll continue to do what we do here. And we'll only go further to expose the posers, the main players that, up until now, have had no one to keep them accountable. The bullshit card is longer effective. Time's up. Sunrise is beckoning and the whole world is watching.
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Rich, you keep promising that: "we'll only go further to expose the posers, the main players that, up until now, have had no one to keep them accountable."
ReplyDeleteYou keep promising to expose posers but you never really do. You keep saying that it's coming but it never does. How about actually "exposing posers" instead of pretending you have and will.
This person makes a good point...unless you are counting the occasional "list" of people who you deem worthwhile or less so, or the shots against the big companies that own some local entities, there is not a lot of "exposing going on...better to underpromise and overdeliver, IMO.
DeleteYeah, now that I think about it, RICH, could you remind us who you've exposed?
DeleteInteresting,because this blog allowed me to point out the Pleasanton police and their revenue enhancing ways. Interesting,because in today's paper one of those "pullovers" was by a Pleasanton PD officer who abused his powers and did all manner of sordid illegal acts getting revenge on his wife's former husband. Despite that the PD admitted the charges are true..that officer works happily on patrol..no,penalties,no action taken against him.
ReplyDeleteIts what happens when a wealthy community allows too many offices too much idle time...they play games like create the speedtrap..and pullover the visitors to town in their mini pickups and working people's cars..while the mega dollar Cobra can blast around town with those endless big black SUV's..those blonds just love in the other lanes.
That city needs a real shakeup..
This shake up will never happen. Not when you have a community newspaper (The Pleasanton Weekly) which caters to city hall and the mayor in particular.
DeleteNeed a posivite spin on a hot story? Go ask the Weekly.
....and only Chnl 7 reporting about the Police Chief at Camp Parks being on Admin Leave for not reporting his time in custody for a second DUI
DeleteNow back to regular commentary
Anyone who gets in front of a mike or camera knows how different your life is once you get yourself established. It's not just an ordinary 'job' that you trudge to each morning to make enough to pay your bills and help support your family.
ReplyDeleteMany of us got into this profession because we loved the vitality, the excitement of being able to report or explain a good story, and the opportunity to meet interesting people. I have found that the best media folks are those that have a lot of interests who are fascinated and curious about many things.
While I believe the majority of folks who get into radio/TVwriting all have to have st least a modicum of curiosity about the
world, Rich has hit on a good point here.
There are plenty of folks (and not just in the bay area) who work in radio and TV, and let their ego rule the way. An ego is important. You have to feel sure of yourself in the media profession, because you're going to get chewed up a few times
(only a few times if you're lucky!), and you need to bounce back from that kind of adversity and learn something.
Generally speaking, the media these days is a 'brutal' business.
And it's very hard to tell which direction it is headed, what with the advent of the internet. There are limitless possibilities, but there are also great dangers because there seem to be fewer and fewer TV and radio stations that are owned by 'broadcasters' anymore. The majority are owned by 'bean counters.'
That means that they sometimes don't make responsible choices in who they are hiring. A whole new generation of responsible and
clear thinking journalists is entering our field, and unfortunately, I don't see nearly as much talent or intelligence being showcased.
Why should we care if Media Person X has an over-sized ego (or under-sized ego, for that matter), when they are not on the air? What difference does it make what these people are like in private, when they are not on stage? Is that anything more than mere gossip ?
DeleteEveryone loved good old Andy Griffith, but by many accounts, in person he was something of a jerk. We judge him by his public personae. Ultimately he's only a performer. Does it really matter what he was like in private?
Rich makes a great deal of promising to expose the posers. Why? How is that important or even relevant? Let's say Joe Fonzi, (just as an example, have no real reason to pick on him) isn't really as upbeat and friendly in real life as he appears to be when he's performing on-air.) That doesn't make any difference to me. Why should I care?
Is exposing "posers" journalism or gossip?
I'm not like 1202. I don't want my media people that pass ego as an excuse for being liars and phonies. There's a big difference between schtick and out right lies.
Delete@4:13, Are there typos in your comment or is English your second language? Don't know what "media people that pass ego as an excuse for being liars and phonies" mean?
Delete