The Anti-Media Media

Joe,

I just wanted to say I'm sorry things didn't work out better for you. I have always promoted your work. When we were able to become part of the Redskins I even engaged in discussions to bring you on board as we needed experience and local guys to help us out since we're missing out on a lot of stuff we could be doing by being short-staffed.

Unfortunately, you developed something of a negative reaction with many at Redskins Park who felt you were obtrusive and self-serving. I have heard stories about how uncomfortable you made some people with your self-promotion to them and that you were absolutely not going to be part of our efforts. I was surprised to hear this and think no less of you for having heard it.

I just think it's unfortunate you have developed a negative view of us for accomplishing something you wanted to accomplish but were unable to. One thing going for us, to be fair, is the team was never looking for "fan journalists". It had all the journalists it could handle and it had all the fans it could handle. It didn't need fans acting like reporters. It wanted fans acting like fans.

As you know, the "press" box is not just for "press". It's for PR folks, scouts, writers from team sites, etc. There are lots of people who are not in the professional media, with strong team ties, who are in every press box there is. The media has rules it is responsible for abiding by. A team scout isn't bound by the same. I think you know this. I hope you do.

I'm sorry you feel as upset with us. We've always considered you a friend who we've promoted. We will continue to do so. With hope, you'll come to forgive us.
Well if anyone really felt this way about Joe then they are a dumb shit! He gets his passes pulled for no damn reason like the day before camp and they expected him to be like "well that's life". WTF?
Joe is about being a responsible journalist (wheteher they want it or not) and not about being a fan who writes fluff articles. The difference is he can write fair and balanced articles from the perspective of a journalist all the while holding a loyalty to the team. Maybe that loyalty would hold him in check when barraged by the anti-Snder crowd. Seems to me that maybe that is EXACTLY what the skins should want.
And it is contradictory to say they want a fan's prespective not a fan journalists' and then group them together when handing out passes. He is either a journalist or a fan to them and in the former case he should have gotten passes like other journalists and in the other he got screwed for no good damn reason.

I don't get why I would be jealous of them. I was doing the whole "hanging out with the players and coaches" thing a long time before they came around, and I'm sure I'll be a doing a lot more of that in the future, regardless of whether I'm directly affiliated with the team or not.

My beef is, in fact, with the manner in which the Redskins have conducted their entire anti-med... err... "media relations" operation. The ExtremeSkins situation is a prime example of why the media and the Redskins have been at odds for so long now. The behavior or those fans in the pressbox isn't unlike the behavior of Snyder and Swanson towards the press corps. In fact, it's quite representative.

Apparently, Messrs Snyder and Swanson aren't familiar with the old adage, "kill them with kindness." They're taking the 21st century craze of media-bashing to new, unexplored heights.

I'm sure that will win them a lot of fans in the press. I'm sure Redskins fans won't care. I'm sure and everyone will stop reading all news sources other than those directly from the team, and will chuckle happily right along with Larry Michael as he feeds them the "unfiltered" daily scoop of fluff straight from Redskins Park. I'm sure they'll grin smugly along with good Ol' Art Mills as he boisterously details his latest anti-media antics. I'm sure nobody will know anything other than this: the Redskins are a great, wonderful and beneficent franchise, with only the most marvelous of owners, whose sole raison d'etre is to make the fans happy. Ignorance truly is bliss, isn't it, Redskins fans?

If any member of the media allows Dan Snyder's general contempt for the journalists to alter the way they report or represent their opinions, then they're doing a shitty job and shouldn't be in the journalism business. If Snyder takes away their press box space and they change their reporting as a result of that, then they're not very objective now are they?

It's a journalist's job to report objectively, without bias, no matter how much of a war Snyder wages on them. I suspect that not all journalists are petty, I suspect some will still report objectively. They're the ones I'll read.

And if they do in fact report objectively, Snyder's contempt will wane.

I honestly wish Joe hadn't been dicked over like he was. It was wrong, ham-handed and pisses me off to no end. The guy does a commendable job year in and year out and gets nothing for it all the while hacks like DeMasio get SI jobs based on their 'hard hitting' journalism. I am pissed at Snyder and crew for this but I am not pissed that they put extremeskins reps in the press box. If Joe was there I would want him to feel as free as he pleased to cheer or not. The press shouldn't own the press box. Why do they get to decide how one acts in there? It's not theirs. It's provided to them by the team to allow them to cover the team. This arrangement is in everyone's best interest for sure since the team gets coverage (=money) and the journalists sell their product(=money) but in the end the Skins can boot their butts. They cover the team from the press box at the Skins' leisure.

Well if anyone really felt this way about Joe then they are a dumb shit! He gets his passes pulled for no damn reason like the day before camp and they expected him to be like "well that's life". WTF?
Joe is about being a responsible journalist (wheteher they want it or not) and not about being a fan who writes fluff articles. The difference is he can write fair and balanced articles from the perspective of a journalist all the while holding a loyalty to the team. Maybe that loyalty would hold him in check when barraged by the anti-Snder crowd. Seems to me that maybe that is EXACTLY what the skins should want.
And it is contradictory to say they want a fan's prespective not a fan journalists' and then group them together when handing out passes. He is either a journalist or a fan to them and in the former case he should have gotten passes like other journalists and in the other he got screwed for no good damn reason.

As I said, I'm a fan of Joe's work and we featured it prominently on our site during mini-camp. I think the problem is also the strength you attribute to him, and it's something too few running fan sites recognize. Joe is, absolutely, able to write fair and balanced articles from the perspective of a journalist all the while holding a loyalty to the team. As am I.

The difference is, I don't want to, because, more important to me than being a journalist is being a fan. More important to Joe is being a journalist. And, the team, in seeking fans to associate with, looked for those who actually seemed to BE fans. They had all the journalists capable of being journalists they needed. They didn't need fans being the same.

Unfortunately, you developed something of a negative reaction with many at Redskins Park who felt you were obtrusive and self-serving. I have heard stories about how uncomfortable you made some people with your self-promotion to them and that you were absolutely not going to be part of our efforts. I was surprised to hear this and think no less of you for having heard it...

Wow, Art. That's news to me. I don't recall ever promoting MYSELF to anyone at Redskins Park. I quite frequently promoted The Warpath around Redskins Park, as I'm sure you have promoted ExtremeSkins. I'd be interested to know who in particular was put off by my presence there and why. As I've said, I always tried to conduct myself as professionally as possible. There were some players with whom I tried to develop a better rapport in order to benefit The Warpath, but that's no different than anything any other representative would do to benefit their constituents. If they were put off by that, then someone should have told me.

You see, I was there, by myself, with no one there to guide me as to how things are supposed to work. I didn't have the benefit of a guinea pig who went before me to let me know what I should and should not do. I did my best to pass on what I had learned to TK and Tarhog, as well as the guys from TheHogs.net, when they arrived for minicamp in the spring. I really wish someone had told me to back off, if that's what was necessary. I truly thought I was being as nice and polite to everyone as I could possibly be.

Wow, Art. That's news to me. I don't recall ever promoting MYSELF to anyone at Redskins Park. I quite frequently promoted The Warpath around Redskins Park, as I'm sure you have promoted ExtremeSkins. I'd be interested to know who in particular was put off by my presence there and why. As I've said, I always tried to conduct myself as professionally as possible. There were some players with whom I tried to develop a better rapport in order to benefit The Warpath, but that's no different than anything any other representative would do to benefit their constituents. If they were put off by that, then someone should have told me.

You see, I was there, by myself, with no one there to guide me as to how things are supposed to work. I didn't have the benefit of a guinea pig who went before me to let me know what I should and should not do. I did my best to pass on what I had learned to TK and Tarhog, as well as the guys from TheHogs.net, when they arrived for minicamp in the spring. I really wish someone had told me to back off, if that's what was necessary. I truly thought I was being as nice and polite to everyone as I could possibly be.

I can't really go into details due to personal trusts I've developed, but, I have been working to rehabilitate your image with those who would help me bring you into a coverage role -- had you had an interest in such -- as a primary "beat" reporter for the site given you are closer and have the experience.

I won't do that any longer, obviously, given your position as to who we are in your mind, but, I thought you should know.

They had all the journalists capable of being journalists they needed. They didn't need fans being the same.
Isn't that the big problem? That they don't have journalists capable of being journalists? Isn't this one reason Extereskins was brought on? To offer an 'unfilitered' fan's view?

I did my best to pass on what I had learned to TK and Tarhog, as well as the guys from TheHogs.net, when they arrived for minicamp in the spring.

Thats absolutely true, and Joe, we really appreciated it.

Man we all saw these types of discussions coming when this whole deal went down didn't we?

And Exteremskins guys. I think we all appreciate you all for coming here to actually discuss this.

Isn't that the big problem? That they don't have journalists capable of being journalists? Isn't this one reason Extereskins was brought on? To offer an 'unfilitered' fan's view?

No, not really.

ES was brought on to provide fans a place to talk about the team so they wouldn't have to build it themselves :). It was our idea to bring a Fan View column where we'd attempt to put forth areas fans were discussing while at the same time taking a position on those views.

The Arrington column which many did not like because it distinctly taunted some fans, was very controversial at the Park just for the reasons I saw in this thread. Do they really want to divide fans on their official site. I actually credit them for having the guts to publish it and thank them for it.

One thing I can promise anyone who wonders, no one has sold out or altered positions based on the relationship. If the team tries to make everyone go to a single MasterCard for all payment while I have voice, you can bet they'll get absolutely hammered :). So far my natural inclination as a fan is to believe in experienced, proven coaches who set direction rather than individual players I may love. That's why I didn't weep a whole lot when we lost Smoot, who was my favorite.