So, if you were reviewing my site, you could be critical in several areas:
• It's wildly inconsistent, and lacks focus
• It can't decide if it's wants to be personal, political or entertaining
• It's left-leaning (hey wait, those italics are right-leaning!)
All valid, and I no longer care. You know why? Because I have happened upon two very narrowly focused sites, that have showed me what can happen if your site gets too obsessive about it's target. It also showed me that however left-leaning my POV might be, it is nowhere, not even close to as tilted as these sites. In fact, my site comes off as downright "fair and balanced" by comparison!
First up: OlbermannWatch.com. This a site that focuses on the minutiae of Countdown with Keith Olbermann, and anything Olbermann does. Now, it is no secret that I'm a fan of the show. But don't assume that being a "lefty" is the reason I watch. I didn't even know Olbermann's political leanings when I first became a fan (I'm not sure they've been evident until recently). No, I like the show because it presents stories (in its first 45 minutes) that are glossed over or ignored on other news/commentary programs. Is it slanted? Yes, I'd say it is. But it is alone in the wilderness, even on MSNBC.Anyway, OlbermannWatch picks apart every detail of every episode, down to eyebrow-raising and camera angles. It does so with insults ("Fat Ass," and the like), and a deeply partisan bent--more than Olbermann displays by my estimation. The site also takes great delight with Countdown's ratings vs. The O'Reilly Factor, as well as the sales volume of Olbermann's vs. O'Reilly's books. Yes sir, popularity is the deciding factor between gold and dreck, didn't you know? The author of this site is obsessed with Olbermann, to the point of inanity, and it shows in this site. If you don't believe me check it out: OlbermannWatch.com
SIDEBAR: I'd like to point out that I was recently an unwilling guest at the Hallmark Keepsake Ornament collector's club banquet (I went as a favor to a friend). I was alarmed that anybody could be so devoted to a corporate entity, whatever product they produced. These people were obsessed with Hallmark. This was before I came across. . .
The second site that made me stop worrying about mine is Johnny Dollar's Place. This site is even more obsessive than the last one. Johnny Dollar is a FOX "News" über-fan. His logo is "J$P" in the classic FOX searchlight logo. He fawns over every talking head on the network, features their picture in rotating positions on his site, and also gloats over ratings. Johnny goes one step further, and takes on "FOX haters," Newshounds.us in particular.His favorite FOX "News" personality would seem to be John Gibson, which should frighten anybody. He even calls him "Gibby" and appropriates his slurs (calling Olbermann "Bathtub Boy," whatever that means, so that he doesn't have to type his name--the horror!).
I point out these sites at the risk of giving them more traffic, because. . .well, I'm not sure why. Maybe to look good by comparison? Heh-heh. No, it's more like the traffic accident scenario. . .sometimes you can't help looking at unpleasant things: Johnny Dollar's Place.
FYI, Johnny Dollar (aka Johnny Penny, Johnny Devalued Dollar, etc.) is one of the biggest contributors to Olbermann Watch and it is no mistake. His blind fandom of the Fixed Noise Network has made him a devoted enemy of anyone who attempts to show them for what they really are, which means he hates Keith Olbermann with the white hot heat of a thousand suns. You won't find more devoted right-wing Kool-Aid drinkers than this bunch.
ReplyDeleteI won't bother to repeat here the vapid, apocryphal, entirely uncredited story behind why they insist on calling Olbermann "Bathtub Boy." Why clue anyone else in to their sorry inside jokes? Just know that, unlike them, you are using your brain to analyze the news, and be happy.
Thanks! Weird that I happened upon two sites that are somehow related. I found Johnny through Newshounds, and OlbermannWatch by accident through a google search for a "special comment."
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment, and keep reading!
I've debated Johnny Dollar (J$) a couple of times. Smart, clever guy but wrapped up pretty tightly in hypocrisy.
ReplyDeleteHe bans "juvinilia" at J$P when applied to Fox News personalities, his heroes, then runs around calling Olbermann "Bathtub Boy," his fans "Olbyloons," News Hounds bloggers "news pups," etc. He obsesses over liberal Olbermann's spin but does his best to dodge engaging Fox News' conservative bias. Fox News critics, such as myself, are driven by "hate" but his Olbermann bashing is reasoned and justified. Yada. Yada. Yada.
Is J$ obsessed? How else explain a guy who's active posting nearly daily on two blogs?
Thank you for your comments. I'm glad you found my work blog-worthy. I'm disappointed that you don't like the insults on Olbermann Watch ("Fat Ass", and the like) since they are the same insults that Olbermann himself uses on his "enemies". (See The Olbersaurus). Yet you're a fan of Olby. Odd. And you ridicule the comparisons of ratings and book sales, yet Olbermann himself started that game by comparing his ratings and book sales to O'Reilly's. Yet you're a fan of Olby. Odd.
ReplyDeleteAs for my own site, you claim I "fawn over every talking head on the network", yet do not provide a single quote to document this "fawning". And yes, I do take on the "Fox haters", by exposing their falsehoods and lies. You make no mention of the hundreds of such smears the site has proved false using transcripts and video clips. If you think rebutting lies with the truth is a bad thing, then I would see why you would not care for the site.
Oh, and don't worry about giving us more traffic. I didn't see a single hit that came from this page. Thank you so much.
Johnny,
ReplyDeleteThanks for visiting my site as well. I stand by my post. There isn't anything there that can't be verified by simply clicking the link, and visiting your site.
And yes, I am a fan of Countdown with Keith Olbermann. I am not a disciple. There is no need for me to defend KO's every word, action or eyebrow gesture.
Are you that black or white? You have no shades of gray? If you like a show or personality, you have to agree with them 100%? I like Bill Maher too. I don't agree with everything he says. Crazy.
And yeah, my traffic is low, I've only been around since June 2. I actually don't think 3,000 visitors is so bad in that time, but if you do, whatever. You never know though, my review may have scared any visitor away from clicking through to your site!
Take care, Johnny.
> my review may have scared any visitor away from clicking through to your site!
ReplyDeletePerish the thought!
"Bathtub Boy": Keith Olbermann had a head injury and does not drive. So when he did his original MSNBC gig, a company limo picked him up. KO also has said that reporting on the Clinton-Lewinsky scandal made him physically sick. That's all in the past.
ReplyDeleteRather recently, KO has claimed that when he did (some number) of consecutive broadcasts about the Lewinsky scandal, no one called him a liberal. This rankled John Gibson, a coworker back then at MSNBC who had to cover for KO in his absences.
The limo driver arrived at MSNBC without KO one day, and told Gibson that KO would not come to work, would not come to the door, would not even leave his bathtub. It became a running joke when KO would not come to work that he was in his bathtub. According to Gibson, he wondered why MSNBC execs allowed KO so many absences back then.
Again, what brought this up was KO's comment about so many consecutive broadcasts he claimed to have done proving he was not a liberal.
Thanks for the explanation for "Bathtub Boy." It seems like an awfully lengthy explanation for an opaque nick-name though. Most nick-names (especially disparaging ones) are a little easier to figure out!
ReplyDelete