Well if that's the case, then what's it too them if they don't get media credentials?
If they can get the views/audience by being more TMZ than New York Times (something they owned up to some time ago), then it really makes this whole whining about not getting credentials kind of silly. It's what RD said, they seem to not be able to decide what exactly they want to be...
And by the way, I do believe you can be a legitimate curator/news source and still have a voice (i.e. Drudge; Jim Romenesko (
http://jimromenesko.com/; popular site for media types); Upworthy (
http://www.upworthy.com).
I too think that TSL's whining in public about denial of credentials was unprofessional (ironically so, when they are trying to insist that they are professionals).
And I agree about Romenesko.
The reason I compared TSL to Drudge is that he is capable of driving/manipulating the news cycle among mainstream journalists, but AFAIK is not necessarily respected by them. Or at least not
openly respected. (No question that at the same time that many mainstream journalists feel superior to him, a lot of them hypocritically are glued to his site to jump on story ideas that they find there. Yikes, do I sound like Palin?
Not my intention at all.
)
Methinks (and this is strictly my opinion) that USFSA wants to tightly control what the media (IN, NBC) puts out.
Exactly. But in wanting to control its message, USFS is no worse and no better than any corporation, governmental agency, not-for-profit organization, politician, celebrity, etc., etc.
Hiring a coach to teach you to "fake" genuine emotion is the wrong approach IMO.
My theory is that Gracie Gold unwittingly goes overboard -- both on ice and off ice -- in applying the discipline and self-control that generally are important to an elite athlete. I hope that the point of the mime coach is to encourage her to share her authentic emotion on the outside instead of keeping it bottled up inside her. I would not call it fakery.
The off-ice equivalent of what I mean:
In the interviews I have seen, GG always seems to aim to please and to say the right things, but she seems to limit her range of facial expressions and body language. One look is an attentive and neutral face; practically the only other one is a smile [which is preferable to a frown, of course
] of a fixed size. She also keeps the tone of her voice almost perfectly consistent. I find myself wishing that she would relax and let her natural personality flow more freely.
Example from the local TV interview that was the original source for NBC's item about the mime coach:
The anchorman asked a question that likened the SLC Classic to the Daytona 500. The quick-witted GG calmly replied (I'm paraphrasing), " If I knew something about other activities, I would say, 'Yes.' " It was a savvy answer to a question that might have thrown someone else (such as me) whose knowledge of auto racing is basically nil. But someone else might also have instinctively shrugged her shoulders and/or made a mock grimace as a lighthearted way of showing self-deprecation, whereas GG did not permit herself to do so. She did not allow herself to chuckle either, and the even tone of her voice belied the charming humor of her words.
