In a Way, I Hate Myself

Technically speaking, I am part of the media.

No, not because I operate this here blog o'goodness, but because someone pays me to write things that are accessible to millions, though only about 47 people ever read them.

Over this weekend, listening to and reading all the coverage of The Masters has made me very,very angry with the media.

Therefore, I was very, very angry with myself, in a way. See how that works?

Now, the truth of the matter is that I called my peers out on this yesterday over at Epic Carnival and have done so again today with a follow up piece reminding everyone that Trevor Immelman won, as opposed to Tiger losing.

But this isn't confined to golf. Or sports. It's an all-encompassing epidemic and it's taken over mass media.

The biggest names get the biggest coverage even when their story is of the least significance. I know this is because the biggest names draw the most attention and yield the most dollars for the companies and conglomerates who produce the product, but that doesn't mean I have to accept it.

This is the same kind of machine I was raging against earlier this year when I started my Press Coverage series at Epic; drawing attention to the stories that are worthy of our attention, instead of just the arrested athletes and boozy trainwrecks of the world.

What happened to that segment? It fell by the wayside because (a) there just aren't enough great stories in sports over a week that you can find coverage of and (b) readership wasn't that strong because none of the articles involved sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll. Pushing positive is a precarious position.

Don't get me wrong - I love my Pop Culture and know all the scoops and all the stoies; it's just that I also know about the shady electoral results in Zimbawae and the Seal Hunting Scandal back East, which makes Pop Culture the junk food in my information diet, not the main course.

The big names may sell the most issues, but when the big names aren't doing big things, why not focus on the little people who are?

At least Esquire called themselves on it with their current cover - the picture may be Jello For Brains Jessica, but the words tell you they "used this picture to get your attention" so you read the story of an American soldier in Iraq that is outstanding. For now, I'll take these little victories.

For now...