Enough with the headlines. Stop believing everything you click.

[mef730]

(I haven't decided if I'm going to post this or if it's just cathartic to write it. Please excuse the stream of consciousness.)

First, I want to say how happy I am to have this forum. IRL, there are very few people who spend as much time thinking about the Celtics as I do.

Having said that, I saw this post in the Stevens/Ainge blame thread:

This forum is getting tough to read.  People still not understanding that the media lays out whatever they want and everyone buys right into it.

Everyone looks at what’s going on this second and not the big picture.  Keep on keepin on Boston Celtics, there’s a bump in the road but I’m glad we have good leadership with a long term plan.

Bingo. Whether we like it or not, the sports news exists to gather clicks. That's it. I'm not saying that there aren't good and honest sportswriters out there. There are, and we all know who they are. But the institutions that they work for demand headlines, and if they don't deliver, somebody else gets to do it. A simple look at the proliferation of sports sites on the web is a demonstration.

Here's the deal: Just because it's on the internet doesn't make it true. Every time Kyrie's words get twisted, or Jaylen and Marcus get in a shouting match because they are both intense players, or Brad fails to call a timeout, there's a new article for us to read. The irony of the situation is that it may be all the articles about whether Kyrie leaving is what gets him to leave, i.e., he had planned on staying but says something that gets misinterpreted, spends the next six months telling reporters to stop asking him about his plans and finally gets so sick of it that it isn't worth it. The sense of anger caused by every little article that comes out reinforces itself.

We have a good team. We're going to be fine. I'm not saying that we don't have some issues, since we clearly do. There are going to be conflicts when you get 12 highly competitive people in a room. And I'm not calling "fake news." Most reporters at major papers have far more access to knowledge of the team than any of us ever will.

But let's stop buying into every single headline that we see. Yes, it's fun to discuss and debate, but it also makes that same discussion and debate less fun at times. We're feeding the monster (and yes, I include myself in the "we."). Boston is a tough enough town to be an athlete in already.

Anyway, thanks for listening.

Mike

[BlackCeltic]

I make my own headlines:

Marcus Morris is the WEAKEST link.

Goodbye.

[CptZoogs]

Does this mean I get to ignore the headlines saying we are on a 4 game losing streak?

[mef730]

Does this mean I get to ignore the headlines saying we are on a 4 game losing streak?

You can ignore or click on whatever you like. Personally, I believe facts and question opinions.

Mike

[ozgod]

(I haven't decided if I'm going to post this or if it's just cathartic to write it. Please excuse the stream of consciousness.)

First, I want to say how happy I am to have this forum. IRL, there are very few people who spend as much time thinking about the Celtics as I do.

Having said that, I saw this post in the Stevens/Ainge blame thread:

This forum is getting tough to read.  People still not understanding that the media lays out whatever they want and everyone buys right into it.

Everyone looks at what’s going on this second and not the big picture.  Keep on keepin on Boston Celtics, there’s a bump in the road but I’m glad we have good leadership with a long term plan.

Bingo. Whether we like it or not, the sports news exists to gather clicks. That's it. I'm not saying that there aren't good and honest sportswriters out there. There are, and we all know who they are. But the institutions that they work for demand headlines, and if they don't deliver, somebody else gets to do it. A simple look at the proliferation of sports sites on the web is a demonstration.

Here's the deal: Just because it's on the internet doesn't make it true. Every time Kyrie's words get twisted, or Jaylen and Marcus get in a shouting match because they are both intense players, or Brad fails to call a timeout, there's a new article for us to read. The irony of the situation is that it may be all the articles about whether Kyrie leaving is what gets him to leave, i.e., he had planned on staying but says something that gets misinterpreted, spends the next six months telling reporters to stop asking him about his plans and finally gets so sick of it that it isn't worth it. The sense of anger caused by every little article that comes out reinforces itself.

We have a good team. We're going to be fine. I'm not saying that we don't have some issues, since we clearly do. There are going to be conflicts when you get 12 highly competitive people in a room. And I'm not calling "fake news." Most reporters at major papers have far more access to knowledge of the team than any of us ever will.

But let's stop buying into every single headline that we see. Yes, it's fun to discuss and debate, but it also makes that same discussion and debate less fun at times. We're feeding the monster (and yes, I include myself in the "we."). Boston is a tough enough town to be an athlete in already.

Anyway, thanks for listening.

Mike

TP. My sentiments exactly.

[gpap]

My headline is I like chicken lo mein.

[CptZoogs]

I think there are two distinct things that should be considered here.  The post that was quoted was in a thread discussing the culpability of Ainge and Stevens for the issues we have had this year.  With that and mind, I don't know what complaints the quote was trying to address.  There are some here that are concerned about Kyrie's future here, and that may or may not be influenced by media coverage.  At the same time, there are things we are seeing on the court that have very little to do with how the team is being covered in the media.  I think it is perfectly reasonable for people to form opinions about what is affecting the on court performance of the team.  I also think that many of the folks here who have issues with Danny or Brad have been pretty consistent with those issues, so it is unlikely these opinions are being based off of what we are reading in the headlines.

[liam]

HEADLINES TO STOP!

[SHAQATTACK]

HEADLINES TO STOP!

IMMEDIATELY!