Editorial Odds and Ends
Yesterday we began a discussion about the ways the media has changed since 2008 when 48 Minutes of Hell was founded and how we intend to respond to those changes. I ended with a rallying cry: “never settle down” — a reference to the pitfall critic and novelist Renata Adler believes journalists are most likely to stumble into. I said there are going to be a lot of changes, but beyond mentioning that we were going to move away from traditional game recaps, I didn’t provide much detail. I wanted to take the opportunity, before the Spurs’ season begins in Oklahoma City this evening, to give some further examples of what “never settling down” means to us.
We’re going to publish less frequently. That doesn’t mean we are going to be working less hard. But we’re going to be challenging one another to explore complex topics, and to do so with real depth. Our goal is to publish pieces that have lasting value (as opposed to, say, game recaps, the value of which expires in a matter of days if not hours). We will always prioritize quality and thoughtfulness over speed and frequency.
Our approach to covering the team will be a bit different from much of contemporary sportswriting. Every piece will begin (at least implicitly) with a question. Our goal will be to explore ideas, not win arguments. My dream is that every topic we publish on would be examined with such thoroughness and transparency that a reader could both respect our conclusion and yet come to a completely separate conclusion of his or her own. In reality, that’s very challenging to achieve, but that’s no reason not to strive for it. If you feel we are failing to live up to that standard, please call us out.
Over time original research and reporting will play an increasingly bigger role in our work. And in the spirit of transparency I just mentioned, we’ll share as much source material as possible with our readers. We want you to know the full context behind the stories we tell. Despite that commitment to original reporting, we have not requested a Spurs media credential for this upcoming season. Because of the changing nature of access at the AT&T Center, we felt it would be best to do our reporting elsewhere.
Does that mean we’re not going to be sharing our thoughts on Spurs games? No, of course not. We’ll be sharing thoughts on most every game, but we’ll be doing so in formats that are at times unfamiliar. And we’re going to push one another to provide real insights. Comments like “Kawhi Leonard is off to a great start this season” don’t help any of us think more critically about the organization’s personnel, processes or culture. We’re not going to be needlessly contrarian either. We’re just going to work hard to ensure that the ideas we offer were worth your time.
And of course we’ll also be sharing thoughts on social before, during and after games. If you don’t follow 48 Minutes of Hell on Twitter, you should. We’re going to have a lot of fun this season although, yes, things may get weird from time to time.
Speaking of fun: Oftentimes terms like “thoughtful” are code for self-serious and self-indulgent. That is not our intention. We take our jobs as critics of the game seriously, but let’s not forget that it is exactly that: a game. If we’re not having fun writing and you’re not having fun reading, what is the point of any of this.
There’s lots of other awesome stuff on the horizon: A new website, a revamped podcast, and a newsletter that you definitely should subscribe to. But more than anything there is a renewed commitment to doing work that is worth your time.
Tip-off is in a few hours. We’ll be watching. I hope you’ll join us.
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