OT: Another good writer hanging it up

[Ian]

Spotted this and figured I'd share it since there are quite a few who follow news from various outlets around the country and McClain has always been one of the better ones:

John McClain

News and analysis on the Texans, Rockets, Astros and other Houston sports teams from John McClain, Texas Sports Nation and the Houston Chronicle.

www.houstonchronicle.com

Best wishes to him as he heads toward retirement. I know it's been mentioned a bunch in here but it's unfortunate when we lose people from that generation of writers. There just doesn't feel like there's a lot of young people coming up to fill their shoes and with the current state of newspapers - primarily because the written medium is taking the bigger hit since the industry is favoring videos/podcasts, etc. - I'm sure kids don't want to pay for college for an industry that still has a fairly uncertain future.

 

[jah]

I think it's less that people would rather watch/listen than read, and more that people would rather read a ****ty listicle on NFL.com for free than pay for an online newspaper.

 

[captain stone]

He was already an established Oilers beat writer when we arrived in Galveston TX in 1995... Good luck in his retirement, and I hope he concentrates on his health with his extra time; dude can afford to lose a couple of pounds... and chins...

 

[Fixit]

Yippee-ki-yay, ************.

 

[slifersd]

Die Hard became a writer?!

 

[Deus Irae]

I was surprised by the announcement yesterday, not so much because a man of his age was retiring, but by the lack of a time period between announcement and retirement. He'll be tough to replace, and I wish him well in his limited retirement.

 

[Hyped]

Yeah, Will McDonough, R.I.P., was the best I ever read for NFL news.

The closest we have today to McDonough is Peter King...

Great sportswriters are a dying breed...and McClain did it for 50 years...amazing....

 

[captain stone]

Yeah, Will McDonough, R.I.P., was the best I ever read for NFL news.

The closest we have today to McDonough is Peter King...

Great sportswriters are a dying breed...and McClain did it for 50 years...amazing....

Uhhh...

 

[Patriot Missile]

Used to love waking up to the globe and herald with a cup of coffee back in the day. I know what we got now is better and more interactive in so many ways but I have to admit, miss the accountability and pride in their writing. Now we got a whole lot of unnamed sources and opinion pieces. Sifting through the trash has become commonplace. Those guys used to double and triple check their sources and their facts were usually straight. Very in depth which we just dont see anymore.

 

[Patsfanin Philly]

Die Hard became a writer?!

Actually they both hung it up this week, though Willis did it for health reasons...

 

[captain stone]

Used to love waking up to the globe and herald with a cup of coffee back in the day. I know what we got now is better and more interactive in so many ways but I have to admit, miss the accountability and pride in their writing. Now we got a whole lot of unnamed sources and opinion pieces. Sifting through the trash has become commonplace. Those guys used to double and triple check their sources and their facts were usually straight. Very in depth which we just dont see anymore.

I used to sell the papers in downtown Boston after school during the early-mid 1970s, so I had the pleasure of reading the bylines of some pretty heavy dudes from that era: Joe Fitzgerald, Larry Claflin, Cliff Keane, Peter Gammons, Will McDonough, Kevin Mannix, Bob Ryan, John Powers, Tim Horgan, Leigh Montville et. al... Good times, good times...

 

[maust]

McClain was always a good read, wish him nothing but the best in his retirement. Every time one of the long time quality writers passes away or retires it gets a bit dimmer on the sports landscape. Too many of the folks coming up behind them don't seem to appreciate what real 'writing' is and most of the stuff they pump out is more akin to a listicle than an actual piece of writing.

 

[Hyped]

Uhhh...

Yup. Not a huge fan of all of King's opinions all the time....I think he has peppered a tad bit too much righteous indignation into his columns, but he's required reading on Mondays. But I have been reading him for close to quarter a century....and he "sets the stage" for the week ahead every week except for when he is on vacation. But I love his travel stuff...how he times how long he gets from point A to B....and also love his 10 things I think along with links to cool articles and stuff. In addition, he was one of the few media people that questioned Deflategate....albeit not at first, but later on.

 

[Actual Pats Fan]

In related news,

Bruce Willis Diagnosed With Frontotemporal Dementia

The star’s family announces Willis’ disease has progressed, and we honor his career

www.aarp.org

 

[BradytoMosstoGronk]

Seemed like all class. Kudos to a great career.

 

[Brotherblues]

I think it's less that people would rather watch/listen than read, and more that people would rather read a ****ty listicle on NFL.com for free than pay for an online newspaper.

What's the best paid service for pats reading? I have The Athletic for general Pats and NFL.

 

[Vindicate]

Spotted this and figured I'd share it since there are quite a few who follow news from various outlets around the country and McClain has always been one of the better ones:

John McClain

News and analysis on the Texans, Rockets, Astros and other Houston sports teams from John McClain, Texas Sports Nation and the Houston Chronicle.

www.houstonchronicle.com

Best wishes to him as he heads toward retirement. I know it's been mentioned a bunch in here but it's unfortunate when we lose people from that generation of writers. There just doesn't feel like there's a lot of young people coming up to fill their shoes and with the current state of newspapers - primarily because the written medium is taking the bigger hit since the industry is favoring videos/podcasts, etc. - I'm sure kids don't want to pay for college for an industry that still has a fairly uncertain future.

I did!




Wouldn't recommend it!

 

[Ian]

What's the best paid service for pats reading? I have The Athletic for general Pats and NFL.

I've got a subscription to BostonSportsJournal.com, Greg does a solid job there and I definitely recommend it. I know some people on here don't like him and he gets a little sucked in and gets a little crazy thanks to F&M, but his written stuff is always a good read. And I do have a subscription to the Athletic as well and enjoy reading stuff from around the league. They have some excellent writers on there.

 

[reflexblue]

Yippee-ki-yay, ************.

I clicked on this just to see how long it would take before someone brought up die hard.

 

[oldrover]

He's just retiring so he can get the editor fired, then he'll unretire, and write exactly what he wants.





Too soon?