In this country, no level of stupidity ever surprises me. But today I was actually shocked by stupidity. Pioneer Press/TwinCities.com sportswriter Don Seeholzer actually reported that Sir Charles in Charge is Charles Barkley’s blog (post has been removed after the fact, but here’s a PDF…Update: nevermind, they’ve made the same mistake twice!), despite all the signs to the contrary. Forget the SCIC About page which lists the names of five bloggers — zero with the initials C.B. Forget the disclaimer at the bottom of the same page, which reads…
“This site is also not affiliated with Charles Barkley in any way.”
Forget that the referenced post was titled “Uncontested Shots – NBA News, Notes, and Observations From a Self-Described B-Ball Geek,” with “By Andrew Ungvari” listed right underneath the post title in bold font. Forget that Barkley himself has talked about being a caveman technologically. Forget how much money it would take for the FanSided.com Sports Network to get the Chuckster to blog.
Throw all of that out the window, baby. If the site is named after Sir Charles, it must be Sir Charles’ site! Simple logic.
Sorry, Don Seeholzer, but I see holes in your journalism. Sorry, couldn’t resist. But, seriously, how did you miss all of those signs? Furthermore, why not drop the owners of the site an e-mail just to cover your ass and do a little fact-checking? And what about the editors? Does Pioneer Press/TwinCities.com even have editors? Are they working today? If so, are they sober?
I am just blown away that this monumental eff-up got as far as it did. Check it out for yourself (we’ve grabbed a snapshot because we knew they’d take it down after our post)…
Say what you will about bloggers, but I’ve never seen a reputable blogger make a mistake like this one. In fact, it’s been my experience that bloggers go the extra mile when it comes to research. Most bloggers also do a great job of identifying and linking sources, which was obviously not the case here. All this is worth noting because the mainstream media blasts the practices and standards of bloggers on a regular basis.
If Barkely did blog for this site, he’d only have one word to say about your journalism, Seeholzer — “turrible.”
FanSided
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Well, at least he got your name right…
Awesome! I’ve never been prouder of Charles Barkley’s official basketball blog. Errrr, Sir Charles In Charge.
Un. Believable.
I’m actually a little offended that anyone would think that Barkley is as articulate as I am.
I guess you can fool some of the idiots all of the time….or something like that….
Nice work there Seeholzer! Good thing nobody is paying you to write this stuff. God forbid you should actually do a little digging. I mean honestly, couldn’t you stop for one second and ask,”I wonder why Kenny and Ernie never said anything about this blog on TNT?”
Well seriously it doesnt get much more obvious than the Posted by: which is located directly under the title.
Also I think a fair deal of common sense has to come into play here. I would think any sports writer would be able to discern if a blog was written by Charles Barkley or not.
That made my morning
This is just another glaring example of why the St. Paul Pioneer Press gets spanked by the Minneapolis Star Tribune. The Pioneer Press is the JV of Minnesota print media. Based on the above, it doesn’t look like that is about to change anytime soon. Seeholzer is a clown, but his mistake further helps to legitimize sports blogging. I thank Mr Seeholzer for a job poorly done.
That’s unbelievable – but I would like to say that you are my favorite basketball player turned broadcaster ever!
Sounds like Charles Barkley called Don Seeholzer to explain why he was killing the city’s homeless after reading the story Seeholzer did about the kid in the wheelchair who couldn’t get into a baseball game.
So wait…this isn’t Charles Barkley’s Blog? This is a great thing for all Sports Bloggers. It’s not hard to check sources Seeholzer! Pathetic!
Michael,
Solid Wire reference.
Wally Fish,
Second the comment on the Strib vs PP. It’s only 2009, you’d think the Pioneer Press could find someone who can make a website that’s at least somewhat navigable.
Awesome. Someone needs to tell Seeholzer about Joe Morgan’s blog, and fast!
Mr. Seeholzer,
There are always two sides to every story and while I’m very tight with Sir Charles (wink, wink) I would certainly be willing to conduct a fair and balanced interview with you at your convenience.
Please let me know if you are interested. Thanks