“He got to it by being a blogger, one who happened to be in thrall to America’s favorite power. “
“[I]n thrall” might be overstating it. I would say he genuinely liked and found meaning in professional football in the way most dedicated fans do, which made reading him pleasant. (And informative, because it’s that positive disposition towards the sport that pushed him to collect and “empty his notebook” of the things people who like the game/league find interesting.)
The Deadspin people who hold many views/feelings antagonistic to the NFL are abnormal and irrational. We have lots of entertainment options. If you have a negative reaction to something you can easily ignore it/check out/emotionally engage with something else. That’s what most people do. The people who decide to stay and whine are therefore typically a minority and also come across as annoying to many (most?). It’s akin to a form of entryism (Please let us in your club! Wow, all these things you like are awful. Now change all those things immediately!).
It’s no shock that the writer that appealed to the majority of people who like a popular league succeeded, while writers who did not failed.
I read "Fun With Peter King" regularly and can't say I was ever a big fan of his but on balance he comes across as a far more decent human being than the talented but clearly spiteful Drew Magary, and I'm glad King has had a much more successful career than the latter.
I got SI in the mailbox every week, and read King's work all the time. He reported on the NFL. He didn't do "truth to power" or harp on "the dark side" of the sport.
Quoting sources, writing sports, getting information, distilling it into an article. More people should take into account that he lasted a long time, in different eras, and retired when he wanted.
I enjoyed this piece on many levels. Peter King does strike me as a milk-toast kind of dude.
I can’t say I religiously read Peter King's stuff. If anything, I kind of equate him to Zach Lowe and his basketball coverage. Kind of the geeky guy who does all his HW and is obsessed with the sport and just outworks everyone. There’s also just a dorky likeability factor. Non-threatening, and non confrontational.
I guess Deadspin would have found Peter King a convenient spoof. I guess, maybe the NBA isn’t big enough and Zach Lowe isn’t famous enough to be ragged on like that. And maybe the NBA is considered “a cooler sport”. At least it was.
As for your write-up Ethan, I honestly miss pieces like this, where I bookmark your hyperlinks for future reading. All your pieces lately have seemed to be quick hits. Your longform stuff is just so good. I wish the market for longform pieces actually supported writers like you more. I remember my grandmother reading “THE NEW YORKER” Religiously. But, now when I go to my aunt’s house the magazine is literally a pamphlet you can fit in your back pocket.
As for people saber-rattling against "DeadSpin", all I can think is, I kind of miss the cultural relevance of DeadSpin. Was it bad for society? I mean...it can't be any worse then some of the hot garbage influencing our culture now. I'm not the morality police or into shaming.
But, it just seems really ironic to me how people like to interpret "free speech" as something that should be limited to their own personal liking, instead of actually having a conversation about what the parameters of free speech in this country actually is or should be.
“He got to it by being a blogger, one who happened to be in thrall to America’s favorite power. “
“[I]n thrall” might be overstating it. I would say he genuinely liked and found meaning in professional football in the way most dedicated fans do, which made reading him pleasant. (And informative, because it’s that positive disposition towards the sport that pushed him to collect and “empty his notebook” of the things people who like the game/league find interesting.)
The Deadspin people who hold many views/feelings antagonistic to the NFL are abnormal and irrational. We have lots of entertainment options. If you have a negative reaction to something you can easily ignore it/check out/emotionally engage with something else. That’s what most people do. The people who decide to stay and whine are therefore typically a minority and also come across as annoying to many (most?). It’s akin to a form of entryism (Please let us in your club! Wow, all these things you like are awful. Now change all those things immediately!).
It’s no shock that the writer that appealed to the majority of people who like a popular league succeeded, while writers who did not failed.
Am I the only one who reads ‘MMQB’ and still remembers being sad when Easterbrook went away? Yeah, probably just me.
You’re not the only one
I enjoyed Easterbrook too! He as a good long follow-up to King's good long columns the day before.
Though I remember being annoyed at the weird format of SI's website. Page 2 was so much easier to navigate. Good times...
MMQB / Easterbrook / Dr. Z were my "killing time at work" triad
I read "Fun With Peter King" regularly and can't say I was ever a big fan of his but on balance he comes across as a far more decent human being than the talented but clearly spiteful Drew Magary, and I'm glad King has had a much more successful career than the latter.
Drew Magary is unequivocally one of the most despicable people in media. And boy, is that saying something.
The entire Deadspin/Gawker cabal was a festering sore of spiteful, jealous arsonists that has had a wholly negative impact on culture.
Drew Magary is an absolute bozo
I got SI in the mailbox every week, and read King's work all the time. He reported on the NFL. He didn't do "truth to power" or harp on "the dark side" of the sport.
Quoting sources, writing sports, getting information, distilling it into an article. More people should take into account that he lasted a long time, in different eras, and retired when he wanted.
I enjoyed this piece on many levels. Peter King does strike me as a milk-toast kind of dude.
I can’t say I religiously read Peter King's stuff. If anything, I kind of equate him to Zach Lowe and his basketball coverage. Kind of the geeky guy who does all his HW and is obsessed with the sport and just outworks everyone. There’s also just a dorky likeability factor. Non-threatening, and non confrontational.
I guess Deadspin would have found Peter King a convenient spoof. I guess, maybe the NBA isn’t big enough and Zach Lowe isn’t famous enough to be ragged on like that. And maybe the NBA is considered “a cooler sport”. At least it was.
As for your write-up Ethan, I honestly miss pieces like this, where I bookmark your hyperlinks for future reading. All your pieces lately have seemed to be quick hits. Your longform stuff is just so good. I wish the market for longform pieces actually supported writers like you more. I remember my grandmother reading “THE NEW YORKER” Religiously. But, now when I go to my aunt’s house the magazine is literally a pamphlet you can fit in your back pocket.
As for people saber-rattling against "DeadSpin", all I can think is, I kind of miss the cultural relevance of DeadSpin. Was it bad for society? I mean...it can't be any worse then some of the hot garbage influencing our culture now. I'm not the morality police or into shaming.
But, it just seems really ironic to me how people like to interpret "free speech" as something that should be limited to their own personal liking, instead of actually having a conversation about what the parameters of free speech in this country actually is or should be.
Honestly the only thing I found insufferable was when he complained about the the price of parking in NYC 😂