There's been some uproar on the Internets today about bloggers and sports journalism. Most of it unfounded. Most of it true. How bloggers distort and dumb-down sports journalism with their ridiculous accusations and opinions and at-the-same-time-lack-of-access. But that point is not for here; I am unequipped at the argument.
What remains the demarcation point for this is the "education" of those bloggers. Have they even read W.C. Heinz? Admittedly, I had not. But, being the erudite Internets searcher I am, I quickly "Googled" him and just as quickly read "Death of a Race Horse"-- apparently his seminal work. And... It. Is. Good. Very. Very. Good. No one writes like that these days -- not daily sports "journalists" anyway. Not journalists for the most part.
One can argue if this is an unfortunate occurrence. A product of our growing curiosity for facts and not the "story". When the story is the facts and the facts are the story, is there much room for notions on the weather? On the murmurs of onlookers? Probably not. But truthfully, how many of these pieces could you read? Sometimes I just want the box score, the injury report, the statement on the game. Sometimes I just want bloviated nonsense to put sports in perspective. And sometimes I want "Death of a Race Horse" to put sports in perspective.
But what I want (aside from "dog and a beer"; obligatory reference there)... what I want is good writing. And that's the issue. Good. Writing. Death of a Race Horse is that. Most of what is sports journalism and/or blogging, is not that.
The thing of it is: Sports, however bad her commentators may be or however good they may be, sports is good writing.
2 comments:
Amen.
As I sit here watching the Indians pregame show, I'm horribly disappointed with the way the season has started. But I know that no matter what happens from here, whether the team loses 100 games or wins it all, there will be suspense, comedy, drama, tragedy*, heroes, villains, and everything else that makes a wonderful story. It's why I watch even when it's a lost cause.
* - in the literary sense, not necessarily in the "people died" sense that the term seems to have taken on.
With only two comments, your comment is prophetic!
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