Bill Conlin’s Internet Hell
So, for those of you not doing anything with family or friends the past few days, you may have noticed an online mano-a-mano between notoriously cantankerous Daily News sports columnist Bill Conlin and the Phillies-crazed blogger at Crashburn Alley.
What started out as an innocent you suck/you’re old!-type e-mail pissing contest about Jimmy Rollins’s MVP award suddenly turned ugly when Conlin made the unfortunate decision to write this in one of his e-mail responses: “The only positive thing I can think of about Hitler’s time on earth — I’m sure he would have eliminated all bloggers.”
In context, it’s kind of funny, actually, but once Conlin — already an easy target for the online attack dogs due to his propensity to wear his Old Media badge with pride — started name-dropping Hitler coupled with the word “eliminate” to a blogger who’s already pissed off at him, well, he was asking for a pillorying. Headlines talking about how touchy he was instantly morphed into “Sportswriter Praises Hitler in Attack on Bloggers.” Yikes.
Conlin (perhaps wisely) chose not to comment on the still-percolating incident — we’ve been told there will even be more of the collected works of Bill Conlin’s sent folder later this afternoon at another popular internet sports location — but he did seem genuinely concerned and regretful of his choice of words. In fact, the Crashburn Alley folks published multiple followups in which Conlin stated, “Quite obviously, the Hitler line was used in a satiric response to what has turned into a concerted assault on my Jimmy Rollins column and on my career. It was quite obviously used in a personal e-mail. I did not publish the insulting things said about me.”
Quite obviously, indeed. Conlin’s email mea culpa also name-dropped his buddy Ralph Bernstein’s funeral (See! A Jew!) and he even referenced an column he wrote for the Temple News in, ahem, 1960 denouncing anti-Semitism in newspapers (See! I love Jews!). Regardless, it’s a shame that Conlin has to go to these lengths to prove he’s not a Jew-hating monster. Most people who know him are probably well aware of that fact.
Daily News Sports editor Pat McLoone said any kind of blowback or punishment levied against Conlin would be a personnel matter that he wouldn’t comment on. But he did say Conlin was in the wrong, and that he has responded to “10 or 12 e-mailers” upset by the comments. “I told them Bill was out of bounds. I’m sure Bill knows that,” McLoone tells the Daily Examiner.
Hopefully, this will fade away without angry rabbis protesting outside the Daily News (or punishment against Conlin), but it does bring to the forefront a very important lesson: When e-mailing with a blogger, assume everything you write is on the record.
Conlin’ Losing Numbers [Crashburn Alley]
November 26th, 2007 at 5:19 pm
He could have avoided this controversy by resorting to one of his most hackneyed ledes:
“When I’m king of the world… all bloggers will be eliminated.”
Mr. Conlin? Mike Royko on line one. He says to remind you it isn’t 1975 anymore.
November 26th, 2007 at 5:52 pm
if he gets fired because of some hack blogger
HEADS WILL ROLL
November 26th, 2007 at 6:01 pm
Thomas Paine was a pamphleteer. Is Bill Conlin more important or a better writer than Thomas Paine?
November 26th, 2007 at 9:46 pm
I’m 55 and agree with Conlin and say so all the time on my radio show. Bloggers are the equivilant of Jim Rome “clones”. Lost souls with very little clout or credibility who amuse each other while failing miserably at being significant. While newspapers are dying, bloggers are just as insignificant except to those of you clever fellows whom no one really cares about.
November 26th, 2007 at 10:31 pm
What the hell is a tony bruno?
November 26th, 2007 at 10:39 pm
Tony Bruno is a total hack and I love that HE is telling someone else that nobody cares about THEM. Is that show still on the radio? I guess with the other terrible talent on that station he’s a perfect fit.
November 26th, 2007 at 11:42 pm
“Lost souls with very little clout or credibility who amuse each other while failing miserably at being significant.”
And so that’s why you come to a blog and address us directly? It would seem then we can’t be THAT insignificant, Tony.
P.S. Love the show.
November 27th, 2007 at 12:49 am
As the author of the E-mails, I believe you have (perhaps understandably) misinterpreted my intent. First of all, I never told him he “sucked” or that he was “old” (though several commenters did say that) and I was never pissed off at him. To this second, I still have not been mad at nor offended by him.
I originally posted his comments publicly for a laugh — you know, “Ha ha, this guy thinks Hitler would’ve wiped me out” sarcastic thing. I was not looking for trouble, nor did I post them publicly as revenge. Despite my ideological differences with Conlin concerning baseball, I have the utmost respect for his long tenure as a journalist, and he’s much more of a writer than I’ll ever be.
In retrospect, there are a few things I could have done differently, but hindsight is 20/20.
Anyway, just thought I’d stop over and clarify the ordeal.
Thanks.
– Bill B. (Crashburn Alley)
November 27th, 2007 at 1:57 am
I’m 55 and agree with Conlin and say so all the time on my radio show.
Are you a little old to be playing “radio” in your mom’s basement. I look forward to the show where you defend Conlin’s decision to leave Nolan Ryan off his HOF ballot.
November 27th, 2007 at 8:31 am
Hey Tony,
The fact that you’re commenting on a blog makes you equally as insignificant and, in essence, a walking contradiction.
By the way, I loved your work in Madden 2007.
–Mike
November 27th, 2007 at 9:20 am
I will always look up to Bill Conlin as an overachiever. How he made it in Philly with Pittsburgh or Newark level talent should be admired.
November 27th, 2007 at 10:35 am
crashburn=UMAD
November 27th, 2007 at 11:48 am
Is that a college, like UMASS, digs?
November 27th, 2007 at 1:24 pm
Bill B. is sexy
November 27th, 2007 at 1:59 pm
Holy crap … this can’t be real. I mean, who else out there thought Tony Bruno was just a fake character in the Madden games?
He’s real? People actually tune into that douchebag? Really?
Hey Tony, nice job defending a guy who thinks there’s “good things about Hitler”. That’s solid. You vote for David Duke too?
And as for Conlin escaping punishment, I sure hope not. If anybody else with a public forum such as his and a six-figure income such as his said anything similar they’d be roasted for it.
November 27th, 2007 at 2:17 pm
yea bill b, its the school of hard knocks
this whole situation is WACK…
it stinks of crazy ex-girlfriend tactics
November 27th, 2007 at 2:46 pm
Ryan, even as the recipient of Conlin’s harsh words, I don’t think Conlin was embracing Hitler’s actions, nor did his comment reek of any anti-Semitism. He was implying that bloggers weren’t worthy of having the Internet as a platform nor of having the freedom of speech that everyone else enjoys.
Even so, you can still admire a trait in your enemy without supporting him, so to speak. Hitler had some excellent qualities (he was an excellent public speaker, for one) that would have really benefited society had he opted for good instead of evil. He was like the anti-MLK.
November 27th, 2007 at 6:04 pm
Bloggers are often incredibly jealous that newspaper writers, esp older and well-paid ones, that have a wider audience and better salary and higher skill level than they do.
The fact that 10% or 20% of their columns are dull or wrong or uninteresting is still a big, big improvement over the blogger with a 90-99.999% miss rate.
Also, the fact you guys think that’s the real Tony Bruno is hilarious. Get over yourselves.
November 27th, 2007 at 7:28 pm
So…you guys make fun of Conlin for being old and not understanding this complex world of blogging.
And then you actually believe that because someone uses “Tony Bruno” as a name in a comment board that it’s the actual Tony Bruno (who no doubt makes more money than all of you combined)?
Now *that* is funny.