If you want to write a gossip column, fine. If you are a journalist, then check sources and when you contemplate writing anything controversial about a person, call them up to get their take. That's responsible. It's what we do. And you will also get better stories that way.
I've been exchanging a few e-mails with a friend in the biz. He took me to task for publishing some of the local talent salaries. He says I was "way off" on some of the chosen ones. Fine, I'll stick with the story.
He also refers to me as a "journalist." I'm not a journalist and don't pretend to be one. I'm a blogger. Journalists are reporters trained and schooled to do things journalistic. Bloggers, at least some of them, post. Journalists write. I openly admit that I can't write worth a shit. That's for the professionals.
He also refers to me as a "journalist." I'm not a journalist and don't pretend to be one. I'm a blogger. Journalists are reporters trained and schooled to do things journalistic. Bloggers, at least some of them, post. Journalists write. I openly admit that I can't write worth a shit. That's for the professionals.
This isn't the NY Times and I've said as much. This is a local media site for the sole purpose of trying to be entertaining and informative. Occasionally, I hit paydirt. I don't pretend to be right all the time. Who is?
The more I look and listen, observe all the shit out on the airwaves and here on the net, the more I realize that the so-called "professionals" aren't that much better than the "bloggers." Have you seen local TV? Can you fathom what the local paper looks like lately? Shit, what a bunch of shit out there.
So, friend, take a deep breath. No one is forcing you to come here. You don't like the food? Then don't come here to eat. All of you. This is 7-11. You want French Laundry, get up off your ass and whip out a grand and nosh away. How much did it cost you to come over to my place? Precisely my point.
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Rich,
ReplyDeleteWell Blogged!
408er
Am I reading this correctly? Someone asks you to check your source and get both sides of something controversial, and your answer is "I don't have to"?
ReplyDeleteyou should take your own advice and prob stop watching KRON, KNBR, KGO and anything else you dont like, cause your opinion is worth about as much as you pay to see this wretched site
ReplyDeleteYour close enough. Its not like Darya or Kristy are the opposite in the newsroom of what you tell us-beloved.
ReplyDeleteWhat's that other experts idea of who makes what?.
Well done, Rich; you clearly and concisely described the difference between bloggers and journalists. Keep up your great blogging!
ReplyDeleteWhy exactly is it that you were taken to task for publishing the salaries? Is it because they were inaccurate or simply because it is not "Kosher" to publish what the gas bags make? In my opinion newscasters and talk show hosts are entertainers just like athletes. They are there to entertain, why are their salaries off limits?
ReplyDeleteYour bi-weekly tantrums are more predictable than a woman's menstrual cycle (and less interesting). Are you gonna bark all day little doggie? Or are ya gonna bite.
ReplyDeleteI would say most who hate what you do are...Birthers,Tea party,NRA types,and neocons as a rule. So,you must be doing something right!
ReplyDeleteJournalists are reporters trained and schooled to do things journalistic.
ReplyDeleteYes....and these days it....journalism is usually done badly.
Bloggers, at least some of them, post. Journalists write. I openly admit that I can't write worth a shit. That's for the professionals.
You need to spend more time at better blogs....the larger ones that have survived are all as good and in many cases better than established news/journal sites...at least in the interpretation of events. The "professionals" that you defer to probably wouldn't have cut it 30 years ago....I don't see much real professionalism at all in journalism these days!
That said Rich, you write pretty well when you're not pissed off.
I would say most who hate what you do are...Birthers,Tea party,NRA types,and neocons as a rule. So,you must be doing something right!
Why would you make this claim? Most of the posters post as "Anonymous" anyway so until you start seeing some repetition from regulars I wouldn't try to justify your prejudices.
The difference between journalism and blogging is not 'writing' and 'posting' as you claim it to be. The Huffington Post started out as a blog and has evolved into a jouristic news site. The difference is that journalists credit people with facts and give both sides of a story. Bloggers bloviate their opinion, repurpose other people's work and generally offer up false facts that can easily spread through across the Internet.
ReplyDelete....and generally offer up false facts that can easily spread through across the Internet.
ReplyDeleteGood point....did you hear that they've changed the spelling of "gullible" in the dictionary.
Rich, I think you write pretty well for a guy who didn't go to Lowell.
ReplyDeleteFunny how the "Journalists" get all huffy about the lack of Journalism today. But what's the FIRST thing these "Journalists" do when covering the much-loved "breaking news?" They use phrases like "sources tell me"...or the go for the crying widow/momma/girlfriend. They'll stand in front of an empty building, or at a place where something happened eight hours ago. And they'll go for the much-loved "Man-on-the-Street/Person-on-the-Street" for reaction.
ReplyDelete11:04..because those who hate truth tellers and most vocal about it are on the right. Liberals in general turn the other cheek...a rare one is fiesty enough to throw down some.
ReplyDeleteLiberals in general turn the other cheek...a rare one is fiesty enough to throw down some.
ReplyDeleteYawn.
Feisty enough to throw down but not feisty enough to post other than as "anonymous". More keyboard heroics from the "anonymous" blogosphere.
1:54..you think I would trust tea baggers ,NRA gun nuts,Birthers,and FOX news watchers?..They would shoot a man in the back if you give them a chance.
ReplyDeleteWhat did you say your name was and address?