New site to offer way for fans to get content from athletes without media filter.
http://www.theplayerstribune.com
http://www.theplayerstribune.com
Derek Jeter Launches "Players' Tribune"
- Thread starter Shawn O'Leary
- Start date
"I'll get to the stories you want to know about, just as well as I'd get to those routine groundballs that would be just out of reach of my dramatic dives."
There is no possible way this will work, right?
This seems primed to have a subscription fee at some point.
This seems primed to have a subscription fee at some point.
Monbo Jumbo said:
Well, it will have a conservative tone, that's for sure. We know Jeets can't go to the left...
Michael Jordan did something like this in the mid-1990s. I sat on a plane next to a guy who ghost-wrote stuff for Jordan's corporation. So this isn't original.
We can all understand how athletes do not trust the mainstream media. This is an interesting way to bypass the mainstream. Hire your own writers to write what you want. In Jeter's case, it's about harmless stuff, like "The Contract" that his parents made him sign. Nothing wrong with that. It's just the idea that Jeter gets his own piece of the news cycle for financial endeavors. Like 10 minutes, I hope.
We can all understand how athletes do not trust the mainstream media. This is an interesting way to bypass the mainstream. Hire your own writers to write what you want. In Jeter's case, it's about harmless stuff, like "The Contract" that his parents made him sign. Nothing wrong with that. It's just the idea that Jeter gets his own piece of the news cycle for financial endeavors. Like 10 minutes, I hope.
Putting aside Jeter's participation, I've thought for a while that if the major leagues and players associations came together to launch an all-sports twitter clone they might be able to make a little money. Sports accounts for a sizable percentage of twitter traffic and nobody's getting paid except twitter. Barriers to entry aren't all that high and the leagues have built-in sponsors through their official sponsor relationships. I don't think Jeter's venture is entirely crazy.
Considering that press release reads like a buzzword bingo card, nor will it be "interesting", "informative", or "entertaining"terrynever said:
Given Jeter's recent comments that he didn't want to be a commentator because he didn't want to "say anything bad about players", I think it's a fair guess that "without media filter" simply means: "putting players in the best light possible."
In short, it's going to be bullshit. Propaganda for the BPA.
In short, it's going to be bullshit. Propaganda for the BPA.
“We want to have a way to connect directly with our fans, with no filter.”
So says the man who needed a ghostwriter for his farewell letter to NY .....
So says the man who needed a ghostwriter for his farewell letter to NY .....
When Derek was giving countless interviews all season on live tv, such as nonstop during the ASG, where was the filter that was distorting his words? This sounds like he's basically saying, I don't trust the media so I'm going to provide you with the real info instead of letting these guys constantly twist my words.
I don't get it.
I don't get it.
Average Reds said:
So says the guy who needs a ghost writer to launch his "...with no media filter" website.
I just have this feeling we'll literally never hear about this site again. You'll get what, 10 - 15 computer literate athletes who want to actually devote the time to doing stuff they would normally just punt to their PR person/ agent, all of whom will just give you an extremely sanitized look at life as a pro, along with a neverending stream of boring PR. No one will care.
The underlying hostility this website shows is really hilarious to me, though. "Yeah, its been 20 years and I've essentially said nothing because these guys are evil and lie. So we're going to actually say something of substance now because we got those meanies out of the way, so lucky you." ASSHOLE--you're a modern mythological creature in the eyes of nearly everyone BECAUSE OF THE FUCKING MEDIA. You had 29 teams giving you gifts upon your retirement and grown men waxing into full-blown worship mode primarily because of the atmosphere around your name CREATED BY THE MEDIA.
He comes off as a complete simpleton, which is kind of interesting at least.
edit--or alternately, the idea that anyone actually wants reality/ the truth about Derek Jeter is hilarious. His strategy of offering nothing as a persona worked out as well as anything could possibly work out for a human being in any endeavor, and his response? "Now I'm going to show you the real me!" which is either profoundly stupid or just the kind of lie the website will tell you everytime you visit it.
M
MentalDisabldLst
Guest
JohntheBaptist said:
The longer he stays in the public eye, the longer he'll get
Yes, I know. I was saying there's a means to ubiquity that doesn't involve slowly chipping away at an element of what gave you a monolithic kind of fame and adulation above and beyond your peers, especially considering the better part of it--being a baseball player--is over.MentalDisabldLst said:
Honestly this seems less like the sort of thing you'd do if you wanted to become a big success in sports journalism, and more like what you'd do if you want to become an agent. Building connections and offering clients an additional platform to make them look good isn't a bad idea for an agent, and Jeter is obviously well-positioned to attract a lot of clients since he's so well known and respected among other players.
If he actually believes that he's going to be the next Bill Simmons or whatever, then he's in for a rude awakening
If he actually believes that he's going to be the next Bill Simmons or whatever, then he's in for a rude awakening
Russell Wilson first contributor to Players' Tribune. Not boring. Story on ESPN.com
http://m.espn.go.com/nfl/story?storyId=11628596
http://m.espn.go.com/nfl/story?storyId=11628596
terrynever said:
There's something about this story that really pisses me off. I cannot put my finger on it. Facially, it seems like he's doing a good thing, but it's really rubbing me the wrong way.
I'm looking forward to SOSH sussing it out and then I can present that opinion as my own.
Maybe Jeter will provide some additional insight about this venture when he's on Fallon later. I'm sure it'll be a riveting interview.
DennyDoyle'sBoil said:
Because he is selling his own redemption story. It's 100% self serving. Instead of merely being "Superbowl Winning Russel Wilson", he's now added the contrived human interest angle of " Hardscrabble, Street Tough, Former Punk, Saved by Christ, Superbowl Winning Russel Wilson: What an Incredible Story!"
Not only is it calculated, it's not even that notable. Lots of talented athletes were fucking assholes growing up. Anybody who wasn't a star athlete in high school has at least one story of a star athlete being a raging prick. It's like he went down the checklist of "Human Interest Story" cliches ("Hmmm, was I exceptionally poor? No. Was I an immigrant who didn't know the language? No. Was I deformed as a child? No. Was I a drug dealer, at least? No. Umm...Well, I WAS a fucking bully...")
Russel Wilson: you were an asshole until you achieved a dream that 99.999% of kids don't have a chance at. Congrats on not being an asshole anymore, I guess?
EDIT: I just noticed that he was *saved* (at 14!) by his faith. What a wonderful story!
Yeah, football player writes a column, "I was a bully as a kid." Rest of the world: "wow a football player bully. No shit."
And he wants credit for admitting it.
And he wants credit for admitting it.
What I most dislike about these kinds of ventures - football on football, or whatever it's called, is the same basic idea - is that they kind of presuppose that the writing profession has apparently sunk so low that people no longer see value in it.
Just imagine if Ted Williams was the one telling the story of his last game at Fenway instead of John Updike: "It was great, and those cocksucker writers can't tell ya any different."
There are people who are actually good at writing, and I would hope that people still value the stories that they can suss out of athletes and contribute to the experience of enjoying sports. Of course, some players may be good writers, but it's absurd to think most of them are, or that the most interesting among them happen to be.
I know athletes get frustrated by feeling they're misrepresented, etc., but most of the time, isn't "misrepresented" just a form of regret?
Just imagine if Ted Williams was the one telling the story of his last game at Fenway instead of John Updike: "It was great, and those cocksucker writers can't tell ya any different."
There are people who are actually good at writing, and I would hope that people still value the stories that they can suss out of athletes and contribute to the experience of enjoying sports. Of course, some players may be good writers, but it's absurd to think most of them are, or that the most interesting among them happen to be.
I know athletes get frustrated by feeling they're misrepresented, etc., but most of the time, isn't "misrepresented" just a form of regret?
MyDaughterLovesTomGordon said:
Not only this, but there are writers/ media present to give an ostensibly objective take on what's happening. You'd never get to the bottom of anything and no one would actually be accountable for anything if this were the model. It's a little like Kim Kardashian whining about the way tabloids treat her to me. "Fuck these guys, they're mean and getting in between us." I get it can sting, but it doesn't take a rocket surgeon to figure out that the media representation as a whole--laudatory and critical--is a large part of their fame and notoriety and why anyone actually cares about who they were as kids, for example, at all. It comes off as disingenuous and a bit ridiculous--"I want to be famous AND have control over what everyone says and thinks about me."
What will be funny is when someone starts telling those guys participating, "hey, guess who's part of the sports MEDIA now."
When does the Derek Jeter Reality Bus Tour kick off (free bite sized "2" Musketeers w/ ticket purchase).
MyDaughterLovesTomGordon said:
"Jack Fisher. Jack Fucking Fisher. Does that cocksucker think he's going to get me out with that horseshit stuff that he throws up to the plate?
"Yeah, I know that I'm 42 - that's FORTY-FUCKING TWO YOU ASSHOLES! - and I can't get around on it like I used to. And I knew that the sonofabitch thought I was spent. Because I fucking killed him earlier in the game and only the shit-ass weather kept it in the park. JUST FUCKING KILLED HIM! THAT BALL WAS GONE! Except it didn't go.
"So there's Jack Fisher, full of shit with himself on the mound trying to sneak that weak-ass shit by me one more time, but IT WILL BE A COLD DAY IN HELL WHEN JACK FUCKING FISHER PUTS IT BY TEDDY FUCKING BALLGAME ALL FUCKING DAY LONG!!!"
You know, I'm glad that Updike captured the moment for Williams, but I would have paid top dollar to read a paragraph or two of unexpurgated Williams ...
Isn't one of the top criticism of beat writers that they "protect the team and protect the players" and give a "filtered view to suit their own professional gains"
We see this all the time in pro-sports, why dot the players now need some sort of unfiltered voice? They have had that option for years and when it's unfiltered and they don't like it, that reporter gets cut out of access.
Players can't contain themselves in 140 characters on twitter without getting themselves in trouble.
The biggest problem in sports reporting isn't the reporters exposing the players, it's them for being fucking morons about everything outside their bubble. Now we have a long form venue for them to appear completely out of touch.
Also if this is unfiltered, why are they appointing a number of editors?
We see this all the time in pro-sports, why dot the players now need some sort of unfiltered voice? They have had that option for years and when it's unfiltered and they don't like it, that reporter gets cut out of access.
Players can't contain themselves in 140 characters on twitter without getting themselves in trouble.
The biggest problem in sports reporting isn't the reporters exposing the players, it's them for being fucking morons about everything outside their bubble. Now we have a long form venue for them to appear completely out of touch.
Also if this is unfiltered, why are they appointing a number of editors?
The game of baseball really only provided the narrowest of glimpses into the man: The lens of this team game - where the focus occasionally strayed to his teammates - greatly filtered his inborn annoyances while the constant media and fan attention to his onfield performance forced an extremely conservative public persona.
There are no such barriers now.
We are embarking upon an absolute shitshow featuring "The Brand of 2." This "Tribune?" Its merely the first act in a long saga of carefully selected ventures, endorsements, appearances and staged events designed by paid professionals to elevate The Brand into the stratosphere.
Imagine the douchebaggery we will endure over the next 40 years, when he doesn't have to prepare for a game every night.
Senator Jeter, anyone?
There are no such barriers now.
We are embarking upon an absolute shitshow featuring "The Brand of 2." This "Tribune?" Its merely the first act in a long saga of carefully selected ventures, endorsements, appearances and staged events designed by paid professionals to elevate The Brand into the stratosphere.
Imagine the douchebaggery we will endure over the next 40 years, when he doesn't have to prepare for a game every night.
Senator Jeter, anyone?
Exactly. The big guns all think of themselves as mini-corporations with brands to be maintained. Mainstream media might make sense to us and bring us clarity, but they're just in the way of market positioning and brand-control and all that other stuff. That's what this was created for.