Blog: Newsday on MetsBlog and SNY Deal
In a post to his outstanding blog for Newsday, media-watchdog Neil Best wrote about the partnership between this site, MetsBlog.com, and SNY, the regional sports television network.
For more on MetsBlog’s relationship with SNY, click here.
Best concludes by writing…
“It’s another variation on a recent theme of ‘mainstream’ outlets bringing popular independent blogs and message boards into the fold.”
…as i have said before, it’s a natural fit in the sense that we are all in the business of creating dialogue, expressing opinion and covering sports in a fun, professional and informative way…i alluded to this while speaking at BlogWorld and New Media Expo in Las Vegas last month, alongside Will Leitch from Deadspin, Rob Neyer from ESPN, and Jamie Mottram from Yahoo! Sports, among others…to me, unlike politics and pop culture, it makes far more sense for sports bloggers, like myself, and mottram, and Henry Abbott of True Hoops, etc, to align with these larger outlets in an effort to expand our reach and product, while never adjusting our voice and fan point-of-view…
…as such, being that SNY is partly owned by the Mets, i know people are concerned that i will be more likely to side with the team, or not be overtly critical…nevertheless, in a recent survey of more than 7,000 readers of this site, less than 10 percent of participants said that i appear to be afraid of what the team will think of me…additionally, roughly 70 percent believe i am fair in my criticism, while 75 percent believe i am well-informed and do not rush to judgment…
…and that’s the thing, i have always been slow-to-judge, passive and optimistic – and that goes for all of my opinions in life, not just those pertaining to the Mets…as i have said a million times before, i am a fairly pragmatic person by nature, and i try to be understanding and optimistic in life, especially with a subject like sports, which is supposed to be ‘fun,’ and so i spend far more time looking forward than looking back – especially with regards to things i have no control over, like who Omar Minaya traded away two years ago, or why Willie Randolph didn’t bunt on a random cloudy day in June…since i never assume to have every bit of information, i find it very unfair to speak in absolutes…
…my critics have a fair point, in that if i spend too much time socializing with team officials and players, subconsciously i may not be honest in my criticism because i will not want to criticize a friend…this is a great point, and i promise to be mindful of this going forward…but, the fact is, i don’t really want to be that close to those people, at least not on a regular basis…as i have said before, i like being a baseball fan…i don’t want to care about these people personally, because i don’t want to lose the ability to get emotional while watching a game…i like the passion and energy, and the brainstorming and constructive criticism i do from the stands, or from my sofa, or in a bar or on this site arguing and thinking with fellow fans – to me, that’s what being a baseball fan is all about…and, again, i don’t want to stop that…however, i appreciate the advice, and always welcome your feedback and guidance…
