Thanks to the National Center for Education Statistics.
CHART – What Are You Reading About Soccer When You Should Be Working?
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Category Archives: What?
Papal Indiscretions – Evaluating Pope Francis’s BsAs Club Selection
There are some excellent scribes who write about Argentine Soccer. Sam Kelly. Dan Colasimone. Ed Malyon. Most of them live in Buenos Aires, whereas my own tenure there was an all too brief six months (several years ago). However, there’s just one problem: none of the aforementioned writers are pricks.
Thus, as your resident prick (and soccer hipster in waiting) with a basic knowledge of Argentine soccer, allow me to analyze and ultimately applaud Pope Francis’s local club selection of San Lorenzo. Continue reading “Papal Indiscretions – Evaluating Pope Francis’s BsAs Club Selection” »
Bloglines Is Your New RSS Feed Reader
As mentioned a few weeks ago, Google Reader is dead and dying. The interwebs filled with articles about replacements. I lamented the death of a few good blogs and hastily concluded that I didn’t need an RSS reader. However, upon further retrospection, enough great sites still around do make an RSS migration potentially worthwhile. At least if I could find the right reader, that is.
I have. It’s Bloglines. And here’s why. Continue reading “Bloglines Is Your New RSS Feed Reader” »
A Sad State of Sports Journalism?
Is the sky falling? Well, the times are changing. At least in the world of sports media. After a delicious scoop on USMNT angst, AOL fired Brian Straus. In another corner of the internet, CNN axed its relationship with Sports Illustrated and now links to Bleacher Report. Other sites have taken aim at Bleacher Report, criticizing the obvious SEO tactics and abundance of slideshows. The derogatory term is “clickbait.” The positive spin is “SEO optimization.”
The simple analysis to point the finger at the elephant in the room: Google. Google’s dominance of search ensures that it controls the flow of information with its algorithm. This fact, combined with Google’s dominance in online advertising, means that any media entity looking to earn cash off the web must speak the currency of pageviews and keywords. You could DNS attack and melt a million Bleacher Reports, but new ones would spring up in a heartbeat. Or so the theory goes.
This analysis is reassuring in its simplicity – let’s blame a billion-dollar corporation that promised not to be evil. However, the criticisms of Bleacher Report and “SEO” mirror early 20th century criticisms of the “yellow press.” Since humankind has printed and sold pockets of text, folks have complained about poorly-researched articles with eye-catching headlines. It’s Pulitzer vs. Hearst.
Or is it? Continue reading “A Sad State of Sports Journalism?” »
A Note to Futfanatico Shareholders, Business Partners, and Customers
Dear Shareholders,.
It’s that time of the year again: deals season. Something about Spring turns a young man’s fancy into a merger & acquisition. Two years ago, the Puffington Host attempted a hostile takeover of this fine media company. Last year, we attempted a strategic partnership with For Profit college FutSail Onlne University. Neither worked out. And this year? With the NYSE near record highs and many private companies going public (and vice versa), one would expect a similar deal. However, the current US presidential administration has created a maze of regulatory uncertainty.
Thus, the only deal we can count on is a raw deal for business partners and customers. Here’s why.
Continue reading “A Note to Futfanatico Shareholders, Business Partners, and Customers” »
Racism, Nativism, and Nationality, Inside, Outside, and Around Soccer
Ever since Suarez-Evra gate, I’ve grappled with the issue of racism and soccer. Of course, the larger problem is getting a firm grip on “racism.” If we define racism as irrational prejudices – preferring one race to another – then we get stuck in a rut as to solutions. Affirmative action to remedy historical injustice requires such preferences. More recently, folks have said that “race matters” and embraced minority identities and cultures as adding value. However, this also walks a slippery slope – if a minority group possess a culture that adds value, then can’t that same culture contain unsavory elements that decrease value? Uh oh.
In the world of soccer, some clubs (private business entities) have embraced identities based on a concept similar to race: nationality. This is even trickier. What’s the difference between nativism and national pride? Can you lift yourself up without putting others down? More recently, the 21st centuries’ wave of immigration tossed a wrench in the mono-national identity wrench.
Here are some lovely links for further reading. Continue reading “Racism, Nativism, and Nationality, Inside, Outside, and Around Soccer” »
Soccer Bloggers Never Die, We Just……
Get around. Most of you don’t know about the short-lived but excellent soccer blog Footsmoke. Like Pinpoint me, Pirlo, the site offered keen observations, uncanny wit, and some amusing pop culture references. Like Pinpoint me, Pirlo, both sites ended too early. Posts stopped appearing. Google Readers felt empty. We feared (and fear) the worst.
Luckily, I’m happy to have found FootSmoke II. Cy’s writing is sharp as ever, and super enjoyable. Check it out here. Of course, he may just break our hearts all over again. Sale vi.
The Truly Big Fix: How Law Enforcement & the News Let Us Down
Newsflash! Corruption exists! So does organized crime! If you’ve read The Fix by Declan Hill, published way back in 2010, then you know that gambling-addicts in Asia like to bet on (and rig) games in poor countries. Thus, Europol’s recent announcement of “widespread” match-fixing did not rock your boat.
In fact, some aspects of the Europol announcement are more troubling than the actual content. Continue reading “The Truly Big Fix: How Law Enforcement & the News Let Us Down” »
Inflation Rears Its Ugly Head in the Soccer Media Economic Sphere
Going by Amazon publication date, this is actually a case of the much feared “deflation” (ie, a drop in prices for goods). On December 18, a Surreal Football magazine was worth $8. Two days later, the price dropped to $2.99. Obviously, deflation of more than 50% is a terrifying prospect for the global economy. Luckily, there’s a technical explanation – the SF crew only recently published the first magazine to Amazon, but it’s been around for awhile.
As for the second one – ‘zine, grab it while it’s hot. Yes, $8 is a bit pricy. My own (cough cough) eBooks are and will cost around six dollars. Think of that additional $2 as a “spite premium.” And snag your copy here.
In other news, I penned some thoughts on the Sporting KC stadium renaming. That’s right – Sporting KC shall no longer live strong. To catch up on local political gossip and a bit of an anti-corporate rant, click here.
I also wrote for TheClassical about the Real Madrid man you love to hate to love: Pepe. Check it out here.
The Long Kiss Until Later…
Happy holidays to everybody from the award-winning yet still vindictive Futfanatico. It’s been a great year for the site, from the failed FutSail University takeover to the shareholder-targeted ramblings of MBA Baracus to Rafa Benitez’s dollar ebook-to-Chelsea manager turnaround. Only one thing could make for a better year – Chelsea firing Benitez, and then immediately re-hiring him. Could it happen? Our fingers are crossed, our breath held, our face a deep blue, and our hearts full of optimism and wonder.
Until then, here’s the low-down on next year. Continue reading “The Long Kiss Until Later…” »