Re: FWD: Peter Vecsey: Calipari Pissed Off & More

[j.hironaka@unesco.org]

Hi Mark
You're post was a good eye-opener for me. Even if what Vecsey says is
true (hey, I kind of bought it), it still is bad journalism because of
the dropped innuendos and twisted/unsupported claims. In the eyes of
many readers, I think it would be a toss up who is more egomaniacal and
self-absorbed, the writer or his subject. But getting to my point, let's
remember that Vecsey is not pretending to be anything he's not
(objective and fair-minded). It's all part of what makes the New York
tabloid style of sports journalism fun to follow, against our more noble
sensibilities. I actually prefer Vecsey to the New York Times
sportswriters, whom I find way too bland in style and shallow in
substance for any but the most casual, pseudo sports fan. On a few
occasions, I've bought the NYT and not even bothered to glance at the
sports section - something I'd personally NEVER do with even a small
town newspaper in, say, Bulgaria.  I have to assume that all those aging
Pulitzer Prize winning sports writers at NYT are merely resting on their
laurels from the 1960s-70s. I guess they have the equivalence of a
tenure position.

Joe

****

Mark Berry wrote:

>           I don't know if I've ever read a more miserable excuse for
>           journalism in my life than the Vecsey piece on Calipari.
>
>           Read it carefully. Does he back up anything he says with any
>
>           hard facts? Nothing. It's a terrible hatchet job on a guy he
>
>           obviously dislikes, for whatever reason. He takes Jayson
>           Williams' public support for Calipari and discards it as
>           phony without a trace of evidence.
>
>           Libel is a tough case to win, but I'm not sure that
>           Calipari doesn't have a chance on this one. There certainly
>           is malice involved in Vecsey's column.
>
>           Anyway, as a sports journalist myself, let me say that this
>           is the kind of garbage that gives those in our profession a
>           bad name.
>
>           Mark