John Clay suggested in a piece yesterday that some folks out there are suffering from Calipari Fatigue Syndrome. John also suggested that the drama surrounding Calipari is only a small part of what is an even bigger problem. And folks, he is right. But this is not John Calipari’s fault. John Calipari does more to create an aura around a program of positive thinking, caring for others, and harmony among the group than anyone I have ever seen in my forty years of watching and following everything sports related I can find. All he does is work to make the world a better place than how he found it. Ask Haiti, ask Mitch Barnhart, ask the fans.
In the 1960’s I can name you maybe 5 or 6 worthwhile events that would have brought the kind of attention to the sports world as Eric Bledsoe’s report card has. In the whole decade. The Maris/Mantle home run duo, the Celtics and their championship runs, UCLA and their miraculous stretch. Those were stories. Big time things happening to big time names. And now we have the Internet and every Tom, Dick and Harry have an outlet for their egos. Myself included. I read columns from 20 different sportswriters a day now, and I do it for free in about 45 minutes from the comfort of my easy chair. It just was not possible in those days.
Not even TV kept up with things at the pace we have today. I get 3-4 messages from Cal a week, just by having a cell phone. I have streaming video that I can get inside my car on an I-Pad, 24/7, or better yet, my wife and kids can watch the same while I am driving down the road. I went to get a stereo put in an old 1989 Chevy Van I am restoring the other day. The guy offered me a 12″ display, net connected, cd/mp3/I-pod connected stereo for the van. Says I can watch anything I want going down the road as long as I get the wi–fi package for it. I thought Sirius Radio was a big deal. All I really wanted was CD capabilities to go with the cassette player that was still in there.
The point being that I am never disconnected from Cal or the Cats. And don’t leave out Joker, Matthew Mitchell, Baseball, Softball, Soccer, Volleyball or anyone else either. As a sports fan I absolutely love it. As a Kentucky fan I adore it. I want to see replays on my DVD of last year’s SEC Championship. I want to see John Wall hit that jumper over and over in his first game. And in spite of Billy Gillispie’s mistakes, I want to know about that 13 yr old who is 6’7″ and dunks. I want my I-phone buzzing at 1AM with an e-mail from a buddy who just found out that Cal has nailed down another recruit, no matter how much my wife scoffs at it.
Even as little as 20 years ago before Al Gore invented the Internet, people were screaming to get more than rumors or he said, she said about all things UK from yelling out over the back fence to their neighbor across the holler. To be honest, I think there were a few UK fans in on Al’s creation who knew that the net was going to be an amazing way to get information on the Cats. It just makes sense.
So is this a problem? Are we headed down the wrong road when it comes to the instant gratification express of what is now the Big Blue Nation? I don’t think so. I think all things taken in moderation are good for you. What you have to find out is what you level of tolerance for all of this information is. Can you process three articles at once? Can you look for proof that you are right while still responding to some numb skull in a thread? John Calipari has made it possible to be as close as your fingertips to practically everything that is UK related. The only thing that man has not done is to turn his home into one of those reality shows where you see everything from sunup to sundown and then some. And I would say that the only reason he avoids that is because the NCAA would be on him with a microscope trying to catch the first recruit who was somewhere they were not supposed to be, even if it was a mistake. But we must face the fact that it is a microscope we live under now.
If we could only get everyone to act responsibly. Only put out what is true and don’t try and wedge your personal thoughts into a story that is supposed to be facts. If someone wants to put out opinions and editorials, then that’s great, but make sure people understand that is what is being done, instead of reporting. So many people blur the lines now. Everyone wants to be the next Woodward and Bernstein and make a name for themselves. Even the established guys who have been in the business in print, TV and radio are using the net to make their word the one that’s on every one’s lips. We need to understand that we cannot just create a story where there is not one. Our opinions are not facts and should not be treated as such. The ability to turn a phrase, or to write something catchy is wonderful. It makes for some great stories at the neighborhood pub, or sitting around a campfire, or while you’re putting the new brake pads on your buddy’s Chevy. But reporting needs to be done responsibly.
I had an e-mail exchange with Gary Parrish the other day from CBSSports.com. I took him to task for slanting things in a particular direction against Kentucky, concerning the Pete Thamel article that was written. Here is the exchange with Gary( remember that this is in a backwards order since it was e-mailed, so it starts down at the bottom of this quoted section.):
"I didn’t say it was the truth.I said the New York Times reported thekid is being called a pro.Which is true.You’re reaching, man.Have a nice day.I’m moving on.garySo now,because Pete Thamel says so, you hold it to be the truth? Or is the mere factthat Thamel wrote the story enough to meet your criteria? I really thought thatreporters had higher standards for repeating things? And being a fan, which Iwill readily admit that I am, does not change the situation. I don’t think it isbeing overly sensitive to expect the truth to be told by a reporter such asyourself, do you? I mean no disrespect here, and I have written enough piecesand posted them that I too have taken license with the facts in pieces that Iwould assume you would call op-ed stories. But you wrote this piece as apurportion of truth, not opinion. That, to me is where the lines have beenblurred. Again, thanks for respondingGregI included a numberof other schools in that column, lumped them right in with UK and UT, and not asingle school’s fan base has sent an email complaining about it … except forUK’s.Perhaps you’re just sensitive.If you can find somethingthat is factually wrong with what I wrote, by all means, please point it out.Otherwise, you’re just being a fan.garyOn Mon, Sep 13, 2010 at1:46 PM, Greg Edwards wrote:Assuming that is thetruth, and I won’t dispute you, it still does not answer the question as to whythe Pearl story was not enough to stand on it’s own. You write some good stuffGary. And I know you have been on both sides of the Calipari and UK situationwith stories you have done, and this is not just taking a shot at you. But itmakes me wonder in light of the Thamel story and some things that came out of itafterward, why you guys don’t either put all of the facts in a story and tellwhere they came from, or simply leave them out. You know that Kentucky is notbeing accused by the NCAA of any wrongdoing. And you also know that Caliparionly tried to bring Kanter in because of the rule change. I know you have a jobto do, and that job depends on a following to do it. And I am not naive enoughto think one email is going to change things either. But reporting is supposedto be about facts. It just seems they get lost in the shuffle in today’s media.Thanks for your response. Good talking to you.Greg Alan EdwardsSent from my iPhoneOn Sep 13, 2010, at 2:34 PM, Gary Parrish wrote:Known and reported.Itwas known and it was reported.GaryOn Mon, Sep 13, 2010 at 1:07 PM, Greg Edwards wrote:Known ties??Or reported ties??There seems to be a bit of a blur to the lines these days.GregIunderstand your angle, but you used an inference to make a point instead ofstating plain facts. I just wish all reporters would take their places in thisworld seriously enough that they would rather miss a scoop on writing a story,than use innuendo and half truths to make names for themselves. That wasprobably not your intent, but it was the way it came across.Sent frommy iPhoneOn Sep 13, 2010, at 2:02 PM, Gary Parrish wrote:Would you have rather me pointedout that they enrolled a freshman last year with known ties to an agent?I could’ve.Either way, the point is the same.garyOn Mon, Sep 13, 2010 at 12:41 PM, wrote:SUBJECT:Writer feedbacks: Gary ParrishFROM:Greg AlanEdwardsE-MAIL:gakedw@yahoo.comFEEDBACK:That was acheap shot throwing the Kanter situation into the 5 for Friday, there Gary.Youknow good and well, that the only reason Kentucky recruited Kanter was becausethey were led to believe he was eligible under the NCAA’s new ruling and stillmay be. Yet you make us out to be in the middle of these existing investigationsand insinuate we are guilty of something. Kentucky is not under investigationhere. They have done nothing wrong in this Kanter recruitment and made all oftheir findings available to the NCAA as soon as they were available. Taking potshots at UK and Calipari to get hits is sad. What’s the matter? Can’t you make awhole story out of the Tennessee situation without dragging UK into it?"
I am going to continue to do what it is I do. I will continue to take these guys to task when I think it is necessary, I am still going to get messages sent to my phone, my e-mail, or wherever I can get them so I can keep up. So if I am suffering from Calipari Fatigue Syndrome, I have no one to blame but myself. I know where the Red Bull is at the store, or the 5 hour energy stuff. But you know what else, I also know where the off switch is on every toy I have. I don’t plan to use it mind you, but I know where it is.
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