I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about it on many levels – the ferocity in which news spread, the venom with which some opinion was delivered, the obvious agendas of some and how those were promoted, the nastiness of Twitter at times — and in a moment of reflection this is a thought that is important for me to share:
There was a time when a reader could go to a certain place on the Web and know they were getting my take on the Patriots. The name of the blog actually included my last name, which further reinforced the personal aspect of it.
That personal feel (without the name) continued for a short period of time during a time of professional transition in 2009, but it’s important to me that followers know that has no longer been the case for a few years now. (emphasis mine).
My work now appears as part of a more general feed that pulls in stories and opinions (some that trend quite negative) from various sources within the company.
I would say that I’m still the primary driver of the space, with my work probably consisting of anywhere between 50-to-75 percent of what is on the feed, depending on the time of year. But at a time like this, when the Patriots are in a Super Bowl, the number drops a bit and there is an influx of voices.
Any writer wants to be judged on their own work, and with that in mind, these are the three reaction/analysis pieces I wrote over the last week when it came to the Patriots and underinflated footballs.