a newspaper man adjusts his pen

Monday, May 18, 2009

More of Amanda's musings


me and mark madden, originally uploaded by ybtc.

Dear Mark Madden,

On long drives home from work, 105.9 WXDX is number five on my car radio's presets. So I have the pleasure of listening to you do your thing for a few minutes each day. Granted, I don’t know – or care – much about the Pittsburgh Penguins. But I can tell you do.

With the voice of a Yinzer angel, you let both your fans and those who cheer on the Pens in on the news and gossip. And I really hate to bust on a brother when he is clearly in his heyday what with the Stanley Cup playoffs underway and all.

Now, MM, if I may call you that, my problem isn’t Penguins-related at all. It’s your spouting off about the Stillers that has me red.

As a media professional, I’m calling you on the one thing that irks me the most about on-air personalities and others who have the privilege of pontificating to the public: Come on, dude, enough with the Contraryism.

It’s not a real word. I just made it up. But this is what I mean: I think your distaste for Super Bowl XL MVP Hines Ward and All-Pro defensive linebacker James Harrison has more to do with being a dissenting voice in a land of fans more than anything.

You’ve called them both overrated. You called them loudmouths. You can’t be serious, can you? With the likes of Chad “Ocho Cinco” Johnson and T.O., how can a Pittsburgh boy compete?

Over-rated is a more relative term. I won’t get on you on that other than to say Mr. Ward might not be leading the league in receptions and scoring, but he is undeniably one of the best blocking receivers in the league. I don’t think I need to have years in the sports analysis booth to see the hits he lays out to corners or linebackers that get in his way. Remember Keith Rivers?

Hey, I’m just one woman talking. And I am telling you that trumping up any emotion (like hate of the Steelers or the love of porn stars and area strippers) just to get your ratings up is pretty poor.

So enjoy the Pens while you can. Pretty soon you’ll have angrier, more football-savvy Black-and Gold fans to deal with.

Warmest Regards,

Amanda “keeping it real” Gillooly



(Note: That photo was found in a search of Mark Madden at Flickr.com)

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