Deadspin is Burning

[John Marzano Olympic Hero]

On one hand, I greatly admire what they're doing. I really do. But--and this might be because I'm 45--I truly hope that they have a Plan B in place (like maybe a new sports site?), because losing your job for a principle, while admirable, won't pay the mortgage.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Landlord, I don't have any cash on me; but I have some integrity!"

And I realize that this might say more about me, then it does about them.

 

[CarolinaBeerGuy]

https://splinterrip.kinja.com/mornings-are-tough-1839441116

 

[TFP]

Wait, so let me get this straight:

• Company buys website that has been losing money since forever (and is directly responsible for demise of original owners)
• New bosses expect them to make money and implement rules to do so (soundness of said plan is debatable)
• Employees throw a tantrum and publicly mock/disobey new bosses
• Employees get fired/punished

And I'm supposed to feel bad for them? Whether you like or dislike their content, how is it acceptable behavior on their part to basically sabotage their new bosses? Where do they think their salaries are going to come from? Even if they disagree with the new mission statement (which is totally understandable), how does acting this way help anything?

In my opinion, they couldn't be coming off as more entitled if they tried...but I'll admit I'm certainly biased against them. To me, they're acting like they're on the frontlines of democracy doing important investigative reporting and are being shut down by the man, when they're actually a declining pop culture/sports site that appears to be a money pit for the owners but has enough brand recognition to potentially be profitable.

 

[Devizier]

weird, the post that I responded to is gone.

 

[CarolinaBeerGuy]

Where did the post from @TFP go? Anyway, I believe they had a lot of this stuff collectively bargained into their contracts, so they have every right to be upset.

 

[Spacemans Bong]

Petchesky, Roth (who is the best writer on Trump's complexes, bar none), and Magary are gonna land on their feet. Maybe they'll take some people with them. Who knows.

 

[CarolinaBeerGuy]

weird, the post that I responded to is gone.

Yep

 

[Smiling Joe Hesketh]

On one hand, I greatly admire what they're doing. I really do. But--and this might be because I'm 45--I truly hope that they have a Plan B in place (like maybe a new sports site?), because losing your job for a principle, while admirable, won't pay the mortgage.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Landlord, I don't have any cash on me; but I have some integrity!"

And I realize that this might say more about me, then it does about them.

This is probably a generalization but it seems to me that most of the writers that have been previously let go have landed on their feet. Hannah Keyser, Emma Baccaleri, Lindsay Adler have all landed other writing jobs. I don't know about Marchman but fuck that guy, he was the worst.

 

[Spacemans Bong]

Marchman's an editor at VICE so yeah, he's fine. Couldn't stand him either. Or Greenwell (who also landed on her feet).

 

[Smiling Joe Hesketh]

View: https://twitter.com/gmgunion/status/1189232634880286721?s=20

 

[Smiling Joe Hesketh]

Marchman's an editor at VICE so yeah, he's fine. Couldn't stand him either. Or Greenwell (who also landed on her feet).

Greenwell was AWFUL. Terrible hire on their part.

 

[Rusty13]

Portnoy is having a field day on Twitter over this.

View: https://twitter.com/stoolpresidente/status/1189231883927916544

 

[TFP]

weird, the post that I responded to is gone.

Where did the post from @TFP go? Anyway, I believe they had a lot of this stuff collectively bargained into their contracts, so they have every right to be upset.

Yep

My bad - I self deleted/unposted, thought I got it quick enough. I'll unhide it to be transparent.

If this is violating their CBA, then obviously that is wrong and I can understand their anger/frustration, but still a terrible way to handle it. If they have the CBA on their side, throwing a tantrum isn't the way to stick it to the bosses.

I'm not even defending the parent company, they sound shitty too (not sure why they bought it). Just a horrible look for the Deadspin employees in my eyes when they could have come across very sympathetically.

 

[Smiling Joe Hesketh]

Portnoy as always is a predictable piece of shit. Very glad I blocked him on Twitter. He's a horrible human being.

 

[TFP]

I mean give me a break with this. If I tweeted/said this to my CEO I'd be fired on the spot. How do they think the world works?

View: https://twitter.com/laurawags/status/1189230723955380224

 

[thebtskink]

Barry was second in running to the Editor job when they hired Greenwell. He'll get hired somewhere.

 

[Smiling Joe Hesketh]

I mean give me a break with this. If I tweeted/said this to my CEO I'd be fired on the spot. How do they think the world works?

View: https://twitter.com/laurawags/status/1189230723955380224

They were bought and I guess they have a contract/CBA that allows them to do this? She's not going to get fired for that.

Without knowing their union protections we have no ability to look at that situation and say they're being stupid.

 

[phrenile]

I mean give me a break with this. If I tweeted/said this to my CEO I'd be fired on the spot. How do they think the world works?

A primary objective of unionization is to make the world work differently from how it might.

 

[kenneycb]

If that's the case, then I can say it's a stupid if someone is able to be protected while actively creating a hostile working environment.

 

[Cellar-Door]

I mean give me a break with this. If I tweeted/said this to my CEO I'd be fired on the spot. How do they think the world works?

View: https://twitter.com/laurawags/status/1189230723955380224

They see the writing on the wall, they're all getting fired eventually especially someone like her, who if you look at her stories, writes predominately about politics, also, they expect to file grievances because G/O is violating the CBA left and right. Honestly the site will probably either be on life-support with a new staff or sold on to another conglomerate before the end of the year.

 

[DeJesus Built My Hotrod]

I mean give me a break with this. If I tweeted/said this to my CEO I'd be fired on the spot. How do they think the world works?

View: https://twitter.com/laurawags/status/1189230723955380224

I get their frustration but the very reason we are here is because finding people who will pay for content isn't easy. These people are taking a stand but the cost may be steeper than they think.

Its all well and good until you are stuck creating listicles for Croosh or whatever White Whale is calling that property these days just so you can pay the rent.

 

[Cellar-Door]

If that's the case, then I can say it's a stupid if someone is able to be protected while actively creating a hostile working environment.

is that really more hostile than violating a CBA, firing everyone who objects to it, and completely changing every employee's job description, as well as what the company produces?

 

[jose melendez]

When the bosses wants to turn your work in to bland mush suitable only for the vegetative, there is something to be said for telling them to fuck off and letting the chips fall where they may.

 

[Spacemans Bong]

Greenwell was AWFUL. Terrible hire on their part.

The Deadcast (which is pretty good) really showed up Marchman and Greenwell for how irritating they must be in person. I came to detest Greenwell after a while, just a classic example of an insufferable rich kid who thinks her politics make her a good person.

 

[kenneycb]

is that really more hostile than violating a CBA, firing everyone who objects to it, and completely changing every employee's job description, as well as what the company produces?

Multiple parties can be in the wrong here. Also, did they violate the CBA? Legitimate question. From what SJH said, I assumed we didn't really know.

 

[Smiling Joe Hesketh]

When the bosses wants to turn your work in to bland mush suitable only for the vegetative, there is something to be said for telling them to fuck off and letting the chips fall where they may.

And the media industry, though vastly shrinking, is still a good ally to have in this situation. I doubt Barry and Laura will have trouble finding new jobs given the stands they've taken. Everyone knows who they are.

If Magary bails then the site is deader than Abe Lincoln.

 

[kenneycb]

Its all well and good until you are stuck creating listicles for Croosh or whatever White Whale is calling that property these days just so you can pay the rent.

I love this sentence.

 

[jose melendez]

I get their frustration but the very reason we are here is because finding people who will pay for content isn't easy. These people are taking a stand but the cost may be steeper than they think.

Its all well and good until you are stuck creating listicles for Croosh or whatever White Whale is calling that property these days just so you can pay the rent.

Isn't that what makes it heroic? It's easy to speak the truth when there are no consequences.

Honestly, the absolutely clamoring among certain sections of the American public for everyone to swallow their pride and their principles and live in fear of unemployability is bizarre. It's almost like some people root for others to be cowards.

Good for them for going down swinging.

 

[Smiling Joe Hesketh]

The Deadcast (which is pretty good) really showed up Marchman and Greenwell for how irritating they must be in person. I came to detest Greenwell after a while, just a classic example of an insufferable rich kid who thinks her politics make her a good person.

Her quote on the 3rd party article on the Deadspin/Barstool feud was fucking gross in its tokenism: "We live in Brooklyn, but we have some Hispanic neighbors too." Fuck allllllll the way off with that. She was absolutely awful.

 

[jose melendez]

I've not been a reader until recently, when I decided, that I really like Magary. I will continue to read him. The rest, whatever. But the people who want to pretend everything in the world is fine and call for people with audiences to stay in their lane can go to hell.

 

[kenneycb]

Isn't that what makes it heroic? It's easy to speak the truth when there are no consequences.

Honestly, the absolutely clamoring among certain sections of the American public for everyone to swallow their pride and their principles and live in fear of unemployability is bizarre. It's almost like some people root for others to be cowards.

Good for them for going down swinging.

Oh bullshit. It's not an either/or option. It's a spectrum.

 

[Bozo Texino]

Her quote on the 3rd party article on the Deadspin/Barstool feud was fucking gross in its tokenism: "We live in Brooklyn, but we have some Hispanic neighbors too." Fuck allllllll the way off with that. She was absolutely awful.

This is the only thing I will remember about her.

She's a completely out-of-touch dumbfuck.

 

[HomeBrew1901]

They were bought and I guess they have a contract/CBA that allows them to do this? She's not going to get fired for that.

Without knowing their union protections we have no ability to look at that situation and say they're being stupid.

Maybe it's like MadMen where they needed to get fired in order to keep their stock and start their own firm?

 

[TFP]

Her quote on the 3rd party article on the Deadspin/Barstool feud was fucking gross in its tokenism: "We live in Brooklyn, but we have some Hispanic neighbors too." Fuck allllllll the way off with that. She was absolutely awful.

Careful, you're starting to sound like Portnoy

Some of the points here are fairly taken. Standing up to the man can be a virtue, especially if there is real good to come of doing so. And sticking to your principles even in the face of real-life consequences is admirable. But my POV is that this isn't like what happened at SI (which really was shitty). Yet look how the people at SI handled it vs how this is happening. SI folks correctly pointed out how shitty it was, how good the people working there are, and then the ones remaining are still doing their best to put out a good product. I don't see the corporate overloads at Deadspin aren't some bigger picture threat to society here - they're trying to make money off a declining pop culture/sports mashup site. And it looks like they're going about it in a dumb way. Yet that led to a tantrum from a bunch of people who come across as incredibly entitled with a seemingly inflated sense of self-importance.

Maybe I'm just getting old and cranky. Shit...maybe I'm turning into SJH.

 

[jose melendez]

Careful, you're starting to sound like Portnoy

Some of the points here are fairly taken. Standing up to the man can be a virtue, especially if there is real good to come of doing so. And sticking to your principles even in the face of real-life consequences is admirable. But my POV is that this isn't like what happened at SI (which really was shitty). Yet look how the people at SI handled it vs how this is happening. SI folks correctly pointed out how shitty it was, how good the people working there are, and then the ones remaining are still doing their best to put out a good product. I don't see the corporate overloads at Deadspin aren't some bigger picture threat to society here - they're trying to make money off a declining pop culture/sports mashup site. And it looks like they're going about it in a dumb way. Yet that led to a tantrum from a bunch of people who come across as incredibly entitled with a seemingly inflated sense of self-importance.

Maybe I'm just getting old and cranky. Shit...maybe I'm turning into SJH.

This is a much better post than your earlier responses. The other stuff was so damn cranky. This is thoughtful and interesting. I appreciate it.

 

[Smiling Joe Hesketh]

Portnoy would never call someone out for racial tokenism as he's a notoriously self-absorbed fugu fish in search only of making people sick.

Maybe I'm just getting old and cranky. Shit...maybe I'm turning into SJH.

First of all, how dare you. I'm old, cranky AND physically declining.

 

[Seven Costanza]

Petchesky, Roth (who is the best writer on Trump's complexes, bar none), and Magary are gonna land on their feet. Maybe they'll take some people with them. Who knows.

I have yet to come across anyone who more accurately captures Trump's id than Roth. I'd follow him and Magary anywhere.

 

[Smiling Joe Hesketh]

I have yet to come across anyone who more accurately captures Trump's id than Roth. I'd follow him and Magary anywhere.

Very well put. Roth's writing on Trump is even better than his writing on the Mets and the self-loathing that comes with being a fan of them. He's very, very good.

 

[John Marzano Olympic Hero]

Roth's "Remember Some Guys" is fantastic. I could literally watch him talk about shitty commons from 1988-1992 all day, every day. The ones he did with Greenwell were death.

 

[TFP]

This is a much better post than your earlier responses. The other stuff was so damn cranky. This is thoughtful and interesting. I appreciate it.

FWIW I'm having a really shitty day so that's probably shining through. Trying to approach this honestly and with the idea that I may be in the wrong here, so appreciate the note as well.

First of all, how dare you. I'm old, cranky AND physically declining.

I've got the physically declining part down too.

 

[TFP]

I have yet to come across anyone who more accurately captures Trump's id than Roth. I'd follow him and Magary anywhere.

Very well put. Roth's writing on Trump is even better than his writing on the Mets and the self-loathing that comes with being a fan of them. He's very, very good.

Is there a link to a couple of these? Would be interested in checking them out for myself as well. I've never really read his stuff so I'd like to give it a whirl.

 

[Spacemans Bong]

This is the only thing I will remember about her.

She's a completely out-of-touch dumbfuck.

I think the quote was specifically "I live in Williamsburg, but in the part with lots of Puerto Rican families." Eesh.

Hyperlocal bone of contention here, but one I've raised before: she gave a real snotty, high schooler "Ew!" when Dom Cosentino (who is also very good) suggested the option of rooting for the 49ers after the Raiders leave. It was just too easy to peg her as what she probably really is: a rich kid from Berkeley who thinks rooting for the A's and Raiders makes her cool and ghetto rather than just somebody who picked a different team than, well, the majority of the Bay Area. Possibly the majority of A's fans when it comes to the Niners, which particularly irked me -- it really wasn't an unreasonable suggestion at all.

You get that in the UK with soccer, a lot of people who choose the smaller, shitty club 1.4 miles away than the big club 1.6 miles away and act like they're a better person for doing so.

 

[DeJesus Built My Hotrod]

Isn't that what makes it heroic? It's easy to speak the truth when there are no consequences.

Honestly, the absolutely clamoring among certain sections of the American public for everyone to swallow their pride and their principles and live in fear of unemployability is bizarre. It's almost like some people root for others to be cowards.

Good for them for going down swinging.

I think standing up for your beliefs is all well and good however this is something different.

If I joined my employer to do X its entirely within their right to change direction and no longer do that thing anymore. As an at-will employee, I can choose to do what they want or vote with my feet. Lashing out at the people who have invested in this business, even if they are making bad decisions, isn't really taking a real stand for anything other than a disagreement over strategy. I can't imagine that will sit well with prospective employers.

In short, taking a stand over a social/cultural/human rights issue is laudable. Taking one because you don't agree with the strategic plan of those who pay the bills is just a business decision and not a smart one imho

 

[phrenile]

Is there a link to a couple of these? Would be interested in checking them out for myself as well. I've never really read his stuff so I'd like to give it a whirl.

Here's nine of them:
https://deadspin.com/tag/the-big-wet-boy

 

[Smiling Joe Hesketh]

Is there a link to a couple of these? Would be interested in checking them out for myself as well. I've never really read his stuff so I'd like to give it a whirl.

It's Absolutely Fine that Donald Trump Got Booed At The World Series.

Consider the Possibility that the Mets Will Never Lose Again.

 

[Bozo Texino]

I think the quote was specifically "I live in Williamsburg, but in the part with lots of Puerto Rican families." Eesh.

Hyperlocal bone of contention here, but one I've raised before: she gave a real snotty, high schooler "Ew!" when Dom Cosentino (who is also very good) suggested the option of rooting for the 49ers after the Raiders leave. It was just too easy to peg her as what she probably really is: a rich kid from Berkeley who thinks rooting for the A's and Raiders makes her cool and ghetto rather than just somebody who picked a different team than, well, the majority of the Bay Area. Possibly the majority of A's fans when it comes to the Niners, which particularly irked me -- it really wasn't an unreasonable suggestion at all.

You get that in the UK with soccer, a lot of people who choose the smaller, shitty club 1.4 miles away than the big club 1.6 miles away and act like they're a better person for doing so.

I could totally buy this.

 

[Cellar-Door]

Careful, you're starting to sound like Portnoy

Some of the points here are fairly taken. Standing up to the man can be a virtue, especially if there is real good to come of doing so. And sticking to your principles even in the face of real-life consequences is admirable. But my POV is that this isn't like what happened at SI (which really was shitty). Yet look how the people at SI handled it vs how this is happening. SI folks correctly pointed out how shitty it was, how good the people working there are, and then the ones remaining are still doing their best to put out a good product. I don't see the corporate overloads at Deadspin aren't some bigger picture threat to society here - they're trying to make money off a declining pop culture/sports mashup site. And it looks like they're going about it in a dumb way. Yet that led to a tantrum from a bunch of people who come across as incredibly entitled with a seemingly inflated sense of self-importance.

Maybe I'm just getting old and cranky. Shit...maybe I'm turning into SJH.

I will say, there isn't really any indication of decline before it was bought. Univision saddled it with debt before flipping it, but it actually pulls decent numbers allegedly. The new ownership seems to not know anything about running the business they decided to get into, they are years/maybe decades out of date on what sites profit from (seem big on page views, when engagement time has been the metric advertisers want for many years, are trying to kill non-sports, when that has generally been the biggest audience articles). this seems like another case of a company buying for cheap because they see underlying profit potential under the debt, not knowing how the business is bought worked, and instead of realizing the profit instead killing the underlying structure that was attractive. Then it gets flipped or folded for the tax writeoff.

I also wouldn't call it a tantrum, the new ownership has been there for some time, and while former employees and other writers have been highly critical of their work, the employees haven't been publicly. Yesterday set off a firestorm in part because it seemed a clear violation of the CBA, and also a mistake that was basically sure to kill the company as currently comprised.

 

[Spacemans Bong]

I think standing up for your beliefs is all well and good however this is something different.

If I joined my employer to do X its entirely within their right to change direction and no longer do that thing anymore. As an at-will employee, I can choose to do what they want or vote with my feet. Lashing out at the people who have invested in this business, even if they are making bad decisions, isn't really taking a real stand for anything other than a disagreement over strategy. I can't imagine that will sit well with prospective employers.

In short, taking a stand over a social/cultural/human rights issue is laudable. Taking one because you don't agree with the strategic plan of those who pay the bills is just a business decision and not a smart one imho

two things.

1) At-will employment sucks. It is not a coincidence that unions, which by definition are made up of people who want better working conditions, hate it, and neoliberal deregulation zealots love it. America’s love of at-will employment is an anomaly in the developed world, probably due to the boot on the neck of labour for the last 40 years, and really isn’t worth defending IMO.

2) Laura Wagner is not some 22 year old rookie who has to go along to get along. She walks out the door tomorrow, she’s gonna be fielding calls from employers all day. That’s what a track record of good stories with good engagement at a well known media brand will bring her. No one is going to care that she told some equity ghoul to fuck off.

 

[SeanBerry]

But the people who want to pretend everything in the world is fine and call for people with audiences to stay in their lane can go to hell.

But some people SHOULD stick to sports. Or whatever it is they were hired to do.

Just because someone is good at writing about sports (and let's face it, few are), doesn't mean you have a quality opinion on politics. Or that I care to read it. I think it's funny when the media gets so insulted at the prospect of sticking to sports. If my butcher was always talking about carpet and rugs and flooring stuff when I was in the butcher shop, I'd eventually tell him to stick to cutting meat.

The internet has made everything muddy so everyone from your next door neighbor to your grandmother thinks they have valuable opinions on everything. But just because you have a voice, doesn't mean you should open your fucking mouth.

 

[Seven Costanza]

But some people SHOULD stick to sports. Or whatever it is they were hired to do.

Just because someone is good at writing about sports (and let's face it, few are), doesn't mean you have a quality opinion on politics. Or that I care to read it. I think it's funny when the media gets so insulted at the prospect of sticking to sports. If my butcher was always talking about carpet and rugs and flooring stuff when I was in the butcher shop, I'd eventually tell him to stick to cutting meat.

The internet has made everything muddy so everyone from your next door neighbor to your grandmother thinks they have valuable opinions on everything. But just because you have a voice, doesn't mean you should open your fucking mouth.

Is anyone forcing you to consume Deadspin content? I appreciate their nuanced takes on the intersectionality between sports and broader culture, and I know many here do. Different strokes for different folks.