First things first, I do not work for Rich nor do I even know the man. However, I have been an avid reader of his blog for a few years and I try to donate a few bucks from time to time because I think his blog is both entertaining as well as the last of its kind.
I imagine if this gets posted I’ll get ripped for being a shill for Rich, but hopefully some of you will hear me out.
What makes this blog (really, any blog for that matter) is its content. What makes the content of this blog better than others, it’s basically the last living, breathing piece of Bay Area media that is still around.
I’m mid-forties and remember the “good old days” of not knowing what was happening in the NL West until I got my hands on the Sporting Green. I remember waiting patiently for Dennis Richmond to give me the straight scoop on what was happening in the world. I fondly look back at Ralph using his massive (and unnecessary) vocabulary on my drive home from work. I remember Pete Franklin coming to KNBR and making waves as he refused to acknowledge a caller’s name - he was basically “get on with it, what do you have to say!”. I remember Gary sitting up in those terrible orange bleachers on KRON and getting the Bay’s biggest athletes to come on and talk sports each Sunday night. Gary would set those guys up right, get them picked up in a limo, send them to a steakhouse. I remember looking forward to Saturday’s Chronicle sports section as Bruce Jenkins 3 dot lounge would sit right above Tim Keon’s Saturday column. I remember Gary getting a gig on KNBR and taking the airwaves by storm.
I couldn’t pull my phone out of my pocket, or go to a website to see every stat known to man real-time, I had to wait. Same with the news, you watched local news because they did a fantastic job of covering local and national news.
I enjoy the digital age, but it’s basically killed off all the other media outlets that mattered. You come to 415 media and Rich not only talks about the current state of local media, but he also has some good gossip. Hey, sometimes it can be a bit invasive, but good gossip is pretty damn fun. It cracks me up that the local media people reach out to Rich with tips and he posts them. He also puts photos and stories up of those broadcasters and publications that made an impression on me growing up.
I see a lot of people commenting that they won’t pay because Rich censors some of the comments. You know what, just let Rich be Rich. His blog isn’t updated with fancy graphics or plugins, he doesn’t try to make this site something more than it is (think of all those crappy blogs who has one person behind the scenes but try to make themselves look like they are legit news outfits). Rich is a man who does things his way and entertains and informs a lot of people.
He’s put the numbers up before, if you threw the guy $25 bucks a year, if enough of us did, he’d be doing a lot better and be able to keep this site up! Times are tough for many people, but I bet most of the people who come here come on a regular basis. Ask yourselves this, did you get $25 worth of content over the last week, month, year, or years? I bet the answer is yes.
I would never give a dime to the Washington Post, or Wall Street Journal, or any of these old school papers who think their content is so vastly superior that it’s worth a digital subscription. It’s not.
But if Rich can’t afford to keep this site up, all this info is going to vanish. Gary will throw a party as he’ll know he has no one watching over him. Couple that with the fun in hearing what some of these media folks make, the pissed off reaction he gets from management who cannot stand him spreading the truth. Hell, it’s worth a subscription.
Well said John. I fondly share your memories of the media scenes pre internet. Great fondness for those days. Rich is a throwback to those times, albeit in blog format, but his readers I believe do share kindred spirits with him.
B well Rich..Hope all is good..
ReplyDeleteActually, some news directors could take a cue from you and just to be honest instead of typing to hype a nothing story into breaking news.
ReplyDeleteCome on man...I paid $25 and I expect big items every day!
ReplyDeleteFirst things first, I do not work for Rich nor do I even know the man. However, I have been an avid reader of his blog for a few years and I try to donate a few bucks from time to time because I think his blog is both entertaining as well as the last of its kind.
ReplyDeleteI imagine if this gets posted I’ll get ripped for being a shill for Rich, but hopefully some of you will hear me out.
What makes this blog (really, any blog for that matter) is its content. What makes the content of this blog better than others, it’s basically the last living, breathing piece of Bay Area media that is still around.
I’m mid-forties and remember the “good old days” of not knowing what was happening in the NL West until I got my hands on the Sporting Green. I remember waiting patiently for Dennis Richmond to give me the straight scoop on what was happening in the world. I fondly look back at Ralph using his massive (and unnecessary) vocabulary on my drive home from work. I remember Pete Franklin coming to KNBR and making waves as he refused to acknowledge a caller’s name - he was basically “get on with it, what do you have to say!”. I remember Gary sitting up in those terrible orange bleachers on KRON and getting the Bay’s biggest athletes to come on and talk sports each Sunday night. Gary would set those guys up right, get them picked up in a limo, send them to a steakhouse. I remember looking forward to Saturday’s Chronicle sports section as Bruce Jenkins 3 dot lounge would sit right above Tim Keon’s Saturday column. I remember Gary getting a gig on KNBR and taking the airwaves by storm.
I couldn’t pull my phone out of my pocket, or go to a website to see every stat known to man real-time, I had to wait. Same with the news, you watched local news because they did a fantastic job of covering local and national news.
I enjoy the digital age, but it’s basically killed off all the other media outlets that mattered. You come to 415 media and Rich not only talks about the current state of local media, but he also has some good gossip. Hey, sometimes it can be a bit invasive, but good gossip is pretty damn fun. It cracks me up that the local media people reach out to Rich with tips and he posts them. He also puts photos and stories up of those broadcasters and publications that made an impression on me growing up.
I see a lot of people commenting that they won’t pay because Rich censors some of the comments. You know what, just let Rich be Rich. His blog isn’t updated with fancy graphics or plugins, he doesn’t try to make this site something more than it is (think of all those crappy blogs who has one person behind the scenes but try to make themselves look like they are legit news outfits). Rich is a man who does things his way and entertains and informs a lot of people.
He’s put the numbers up before, if you threw the guy $25 bucks a year, if enough of us did, he’d be doing a lot better and be able to keep this site up! Times are tough for many people, but I bet most of the people who come here come on a regular basis. Ask yourselves this, did you get $25 worth of content over the last week, month, year, or years? I bet the answer is yes.
I would never give a dime to the Washington Post, or Wall Street Journal, or any of these old school papers who think their content is so vastly superior that it’s worth a digital subscription. It’s not.
But if Rich can’t afford to keep this site up, all this info is going to vanish. Gary will throw a party as he’ll know he has no one watching over him. Couple that with the fun in hearing what some of these media folks make, the pissed off reaction he gets from management who cannot stand him spreading the truth. Hell, it’s worth a subscription.
Chip in I say.
Well said John. I fondly share your memories of the media scenes pre internet. Great fondness for those days. Rich is a throwback to those times, albeit in blog format, but his readers I believe do share kindred spirits with him.
DeleteThankful to your blog Rich. You help expose all the phonies
ReplyDeleteI hope the issues aren't big ones!
ReplyDeleteTake care and hope to see you back soon.
We all have those days...
ReplyDeleteLarry Baer with a baseball bat. The look of incongruity.
ReplyDelete