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Mass Layoffs, Chaos At 'Sports Illustrated'

RPM

By RPM
in Business and Markets

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Skipper

Skipper 6209

Posted
Posted
28 minutes ago, conVINCEd said:

For the few of you that cite The Athletic as an alternative, are you aware that they have engaged texags to provide them content?  Real journalistic integrity there.

I don't really give a shit if they make a little money off those dumbasses as long as there is quality content for sports/teams I follow.   

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Reagan1k

Reagan1k 3024

Posted
Posted

I'm old.....so I fondly remember going to the library on campus and catching up via Sports Illustrated and The Sporting News, followed by reading columns and looking at box scores and standings from various newspapers. 

If only I had stayed in the library afterward and actually studied ......

 

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MaybeACoordinator

MaybeACoordinator 8349

Posted
Posted
2 hours ago, Deej said:

Don't have to pay a bot and there's enough idiots out there to click on anything?

But how do the clicks translate to money? Seems like there is a neverending supply of olds with money who slightly less olds are able to convinced that clicks equal cash when they just don't when the content is literally gibberish. 

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texasjacket

texasjacket 289

Posted
Posted (edited)
7 hours ago, MaybeACoordinator said:

But how do the clicks translate to money? Seems like there is a neverending supply of olds with money who slightly less olds are able to convinced that clicks equal cash when they just don't when the content is literally gibberish. 

Click are pitched to companies as potential advertising views. Whether or not you agree, plenty of companies will pay to get their ads on sites with high 'clicks' totals

Edited by texasjacket
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Nice Guy Eddie

Nice Guy Eddie 13528

Posted
Posted

And paying freelance contractors $50 to write stories like “top 9 underrated college players” or “you won’t believe what Lebron said” is highly profitable when enough people click on it.  

And they’re giving people what they want. Most people don’t want 6 page stories. They want 3-4 paragraphs or 20 second videos.

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Asithappens

Asithappens 974

Posted
Posted
12 hours ago, MaybeACoordinator said:

I just don't understand how these money-losing ideas keep getting recycled. How does bot-generated "content" actually make money for anybody?

True, but it sounds like what SI was doing wasn't making much money, either. 

Who really buys magazines anymore?

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Asithappens

Asithappens 974

Posted
Posted
50 minutes ago, Nice Guy Eddie said:

And paying freelance contractors $50 to write stories like “top 9 underrated college players” or “you won’t believe what Lebron said” is highly profitable when enough people click on it.  

And they’re giving people what they want. Most people don’t want 6 page stories. They want 3-4 paragraphs or 20 second videos.

Don't leave me hanging. What did Lebron say?

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TwiceHorn

TwiceHorn 31573

Posted
Posted
On 10/3/2019 at 8:13 PM, TwiceHorn said:

Man, I don't like to see print media turning into Vaulter.

It's leaving news and information to fucking twitter.  Say all you want about convenience, something about print media made it better:  more ethical, more credible.

I should clarify on this.  It seems that most print media has maintained decent standards in its online offerings so that the product is electronic rather than paper, for the most part.

Very few organically online publications maintain too much in the way of standards and longer form reporting and essays.  There are some, like the Athletic apparently, but many never seem to make it much past twitter-level content.  See above.

Perhaps SI had fallen off so much that it needed some type of killing, but it seems like I have been referred a couple of old-school SI quality pieces lately (the Minister of Culture?).

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Nice Guy Eddie

Nice Guy Eddie 13528

Posted
Posted

The source of the bad journalism problem all sits with the readers or lack of them. All of us want free content so we gravitate towards free even if it’s just ok. Some may subscribe to one or two news sources but most don’t. 

That leads to clickbait articles and journalists that are expected to write 3-4 stories and 10 tweets per day.  And if they’re struggling to get eyes, the incentive is to write even more outrageous clickbait headlines. 

Everyone should subscribe to at least 1 news source to further better content. I subscribe to 1, nytimes.   For the group here, what news sites do you support or have a subscription?  

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bluto

bluto 4943

Posted
Posted

Seems like a self perpetuating downward spiral... idiocracy/ADHD/‘too busy’ culture wants short and surface level, media conforms, culture never(?) gets meaningful content so there’s less demand for the few remaining in depth media sources in general

 

 

Not to say SI was some end all be all, but they damn well had their moments/writers over the years

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C-Man

C-Man 27285

Posted
Posted
I should clarify on this.  It seems that most print media has maintained decent standards in its online offerings so that the product is electronic rather than paper, for the most part.
Very few organically online publications maintain too much in the way of standards and longer form reporting and essays.  There are some, like the Athletic apparently, but many never seem to make it much past twitter-level content.  See above.
Perhaps SI had fallen off so much that it needed some type of killing, but it seems like I have been referred a couple of old-school SI quality pieces lately (the Minister of Culture?).


Minister of Culture article was ESPN.com
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TwiceHorn

TwiceHorn 31573

Posted
Posted
23 hours ago, Nice Guy Eddie said:

The source of the bad journalism problem all sits with the readers or lack of them. All of us want free content so we gravitate towards free even if it’s just ok. Some may subscribe to one or two news sources but most don’t. 

That leads to clickbait articles and journalists that are expected to write 3-4 stories and 10 tweets per day.  And if they’re struggling to get eyes, the incentive is to write even more outrageous clickbait headlines. 

Everyone should subscribe to at least 1 news source to further better content. I subscribe to 1, nytimes.   For the group here, what news sites do you support or have a subscription?  

 

21 hours ago, bluto said:

Seems like a self perpetuating downward spiral... idiocracy/ADHD/‘too busy’ culture wants short and surface level, media conforms, culture never(?) gets meaningful content so there’s less demand for the few remaining in depth media sources in general

 

 

Not to say SI was some end all be all, but they damn well had their moments/writers over the years

Yep, lotta truth in both of these.  

The internet has fostered a "culture" of free.  It has also destroyed most people's attention span, including mine.

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BabaYaga

BabaYaga 15330

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, TwiceHorn said:

 

Yep, lotta truth in both of these.  

The internet has fostered a "culture" of free.  It has also destroyed most people's attention span, including mine.

Maybe?  Possibly?  Kind of - I also think, at the end of the day we just want to know basic information about the team we support.  SI tried to thread the needle between engaging material sports enthusiasts wanted to read and advertisers trying to connect with them.  Hey SI, not EVERY article has to be sad and redemptive.  You geniuses painted yourselves into an emotional corner.  

SI never really faced a printed-based competitor before either.  SI was to sports-print as US manufacturing was to post-WWII production.  They were the only game in town.  Of course they succeeded.  Then the model changed...and they didn't.  

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C-Man

C-Man 27285

Posted
Posted (edited)
3 hours ago, Machinator said:

 

That was The Athletic

Thanks for correction. I don't have sub to Athletic so didn't think that's where I'd read the story.

2 hours ago, BabaYaga said:

Maybe?  Possibly?  Kind of - I also think, at the end of the day we just want to know basic information about the team we support.  SI tried to thread the needle between engaging material sports enthusiasts wanted to read and advertisers trying to connect with them.  Hey SI, not EVERY article has to be sad and redemptive.  You geniuses painted yourselves into an emotional corner.  

SI never really faced a printed-based competitor before either.  SI was to sports-print as US manufacturing was to post-WWII production.  They were the only game in town.  Of course they succeeded.  Then the model changed...and they didn't.  

SI was a different animal. It was high-quality writing on events that were in most cases at least a week old. It dug deeper. Reporters were basically embedded and had far greater access than the beat guys who were rushing to beat daily deadlines. It was a fantastic publication forever. I was a long-time subscriber that finally gave it up when a stack would collect of issues I wanted to get to but never could. Rather than stare at the pile get bigger and bigger, I dropped it. That was probably a decade ago. Sad to see it going this route though. I wish they'd change the name but that's what they're buying. Nobody worth a shit is going to stick around.

Edited by C-Man
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BabaYaga

BabaYaga 15330

Posted
Posted
2 minutes ago, C-Man said:

Thanks for correction. I don't have sub to Athletic so didn't think that's where I'd read the story.

SI was a different animal. It was high-quality writing on events that were in most cases at least a week old. It dug deeper. Reporters were basically embedded and had far greater access than the beat guys who were rushing to beat daily deadlines. It was a fantastic publication forever. I was a long-time subscriber that finally gave it up when a stack would collect of issues I wanted to get to but never could. Rather than stare at the pile get bigger and bigger, I dropped it. That was probably a decade ago. Sad to see it going this route though. I wish they'd change the name but that's what they're buying. Nobody worth a shit is going to stick around.

Raise your hand if you had one of these....and I have a whole room full of 2005 MNC SI crap.  That I will keep forever

rs-214564-football-phone.jpg?resize=900,

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C-Man

C-Man 27285

Posted
Posted
14 minutes ago, BabaYaga said:

Raise your hand if you had one of these....and I have a whole room full of 2005 MNC SI crap.  That I will keep forever

rs-214564-football-phone.jpg?resize=900,

We were such long-time subscribers -- my dad had it long before me -- that we never got shit. I *think* we got a golf shoes bag or small duffle and the occasional windbreaker. When the Spurs won the NBA champ, I called them and said just give me the champ package with my renewal and that was a non-starter.

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Continental Op

Continental Op 3934

Posted
Posted
The source of the bad journalism problem all sits with the readers or lack of them. All of us want free content so we gravitate towards free even if it’s just ok. Some may subscribe to one or two news sources but most don’t. 
That leads to clickbait articles and journalists that are expected to write 3-4 stories and 10 tweets per day.  And if they’re struggling to get eyes, the incentive is to write even more outrageous clickbait headlines. 
Everyone should subscribe to at least 1 news source to further better content. I subscribe to 1, nytimes.   For the group here, what news sites do you support or have a subscription?  
Athletic
Dallas Morning News
Sometimes The Economist and NYT.
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Sandman

Sandman 3417

Posted
Posted (edited)

I remember when I got my renewal notice in 1995. They offered me the "1994 Video Yearbook" for my favorite NFL team. Seeing as I am a 49er fan and they won the super bowl for the 94-95 season, I was stoked to get a recap video. So I paid the money. Then I got the video. It was the 1994 yearbook alright - that detailed the fucking 1993 season. It was 2 years behind! I called and complained, so they sent me a free hat. The hat sucked too. For some stupid reason, I didn't cancel for another 5 years. 

Edited by Sandman
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Huckleberry

Huckleberry 33115

Posted
Posted
On 10/6/2019 at 8:40 AM, Nice Guy Eddie said:

The source of the bad journalism problem all sits with the readers or lack of them. All of us want free content so we gravitate towards free even if it’s just ok. Some may subscribe to one or two news sources but most don’t. 

That leads to clickbait articles and journalists that are expected to write 3-4 stories and 10 tweets per day.  And if they’re struggling to get eyes, the incentive is to write even more outrageous clickbait headlines. 

Everyone should subscribe to at least 1 news source to further better content. I subscribe to 1, nytimes.   For the group here, what news sites do you support or have a subscription?  

I have a subscription to surlyhorns.com, thank you very much.

And I actually was going to subscribe to The Athletic for this season but then they got in bed with TexAgs, so nope.

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NeverMarryAStripper

NeverMarryAStripper 21948

Posted
Posted (edited)

SI was worth it just for the collectible covers.  Speaking of SI covers, I wonder if the curse goes away too.  I have yet to see an online "journalist" that knew the barest minimum with respect to spelling and grammar.  It's like they all write English as a second or third language.  It makes that shit unreadable to me, just like every newspaper website is unreadable because of all the fucking popup ads and shit.  A part of me will die when I can no longer get ink on my fingers from reading my morning paper while drinking my coffee.  Of course, I just recently had to give up coffee anyway, so maybe life just isn't worth living anymore.

Edited by NeverMarryAStripper
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Lhorn

Lhorn 4970

Posted
Posted
Yep, lotta truth in both of these.  

The internet has fostered a "culture" of free.  It has also destroyed most people's attention span, including mine.

TLDR

 

If they eventually go under will they be spinning off their overweight swim suit issue? Asking for Vic.

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ImissWallyPryor

ImissWallyPryor 9046

Posted
Posted (edited)
On 10/4/2019 at 10:19 PM, mulletpelini said:

whoa, upper right banner potentially foreboding for OSU tomorrow

That article on HS dying was a decent read, and I still remember some of the arguments they were making. 
 

However, I cancelled my subscription after this 2001 cover.  It pissed me off because it’s as though Texas players and coaches were claiming publicly that they would thrash OU.

!B9u(OOw!mk~$(KGrHqF,!g8EzeNlEHFqBM6o1T3

I purchased a 2006 BCSCG edition off the stands so I could frame the VY Superman cover. Other than that, it’s just been an occasional, only half-finished look in the doctor’s office 

Edited by ImissWallyPryor
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Nice Guy Eddie

Nice Guy Eddie 13528

Posted
Posted

in many ways, SI died a long time ago. I think people are mourning the nostalgia about what SI was at some point in the past and not what it was 2 weeks ago.

News organizations like SI aren't necessarily required any more. There is a still a need for long form journalism but there's nothing stopping a writer from pursuing it independently .

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SwanderedTalent

SwanderedTalent 5761

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, ImissWallyPryor said:

However, I cancelled my subscription after this 2001 cover.  It pissed me off because it’s as though Texas players and coaches were claiming publicly that they would thrash OU.

they loved them some TX-OU back when OU was winning the game every fucking year. It was the cover story in 2001, 2002, and 2003, and then 2004 had a cover story preview with Adrian Peterson. 2005, 2006? Nah brah. We finally got one in 2008. 

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Jameslaw121

Jameslaw121 4448

Posted
Posted
On 10/6/2019 at 8:40 AM, Nice Guy Eddie said:

The source of the bad journalism problem all sits with the readers or lack of them. All of us want free content so we gravitate towards free even if it’s just ok. Some may subscribe to one or two news sources but most don’t. 

That leads to clickbait articles and journalists that are expected to write 3-4 stories and 10 tweets per day.  And if they’re struggling to get eyes, the incentive is to write even more outrageous clickbait headlines. 

Everyone should subscribe to at least 1 news source to further better content. I subscribe to 1, nytimes.   For the group here, what news sites do you support or have a subscription?  

The Athletic is excellent for Texas Ranger's. I also subscribe to the Dallas Morning News & Ft. Worth Star Telegram.

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RexWilson

RexWilson 1348

Posted
Posted

SI was a must read for me in the teen years in the early 90s.

A random article I remember to this day was a reporter covering the midwest NFL training camps in small college towns. Driving between locations he meets an old man who was a train hopping hobo. Old man is a Joe Montana fan. It was Joe's first year with the Chiefs so he lets the writer let the old man tag along with him to the Chiefs camp.

I've always wondered if it was a made up story.

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