I never so much worried or cared about where they got their stories. I gave Lee a little shit because his "fan vs. supporter" article was nearly verbatim from a post I made every year on the site, but sometimes things we say can innocently influence other's thoughts and words. I didn't feel like he was direct ripping from me, just that when "fan vs. supporter" came to mind, whether or not he remembered my post, it influenced his article significantly. Which in a way is sort of a compliment.
Never really had a problem with Babb. Don't know if he's paid or not, but he was one of the few who put out articles for the non-subscribers. Even when I was a subscriber, I felt like that was a good thing. I think he's an example of a poster that they just turned into a "writer". Which is to say that yes, that's how his works read as well, and no question they're influenced by things on the forums.
Not defending him or them, just saying that I'd never have had a problem if all BNuts was doing was leeching content from their forums for the front page, it was the taking of less-than-objective stances and using their front page as a platform for their own bias and rhetoric. Even then that wouldn't have been too bad, had they the integrity to come out after and admit that they were wrong. I value that in people, everyone screws up, it's all about who can own up to that and try to improve based on the mistake. BNuts route was to cover up, not own up, and that's why it was turned into an issue.
But, lest this end up in Inter-Forum BS (and I don't want it to, because it's a good issue, and only in the loosest sense related to Bucknuts), I submit that the big issue here, and the one that more people should be talking about, is something you have indeed mentioned before. And something I agree with entirely. There is a hostile atmosphere in Columbus and the whole of Ohio, that other schools do not have to endure. I wouldn't want the media to cover shit up, but it would be nice if they wouldn't go to extremes to try and dig shit up either. Digging to the point of fabrication, or running with unconfirmed slop as fact...
If some of those same writers and reporters moved to LA, Lincoln, Tallahassee, Ann Arbor, etc., and tried the same shit, they'd be strung up on flag poles by their underwear and people would throw flaming feces at them.
In OH, it's the status quo.
So, message to Doug Harris, Steve Helwagen, Bruce Hooley and the rest of the beyond reproachables in OH -- just report the facts, fuckwits. If you want to write an editorial, then do so and label it as such. But stop blending news with your opinion, because I want the former, and care as much about the latter as I do the stuff I blow from my nose.
DiHard said:
spot on clarity......
and that is why i got banned from that hell-hole.....i told them that we wrote their stories for them.....they were inaccurate and we (the now bpers) had the real information....
and after steve ...im a goofy fuck... and others stole our ideas and presented them as "new" information it was over.....
now they are left inspecting each others dingleberry's instead of having real information.....
now i feel better too......babbs fucking bits were becoming a compilation of my opinions the past week....