Jon Fay.... WOW!

[RedEye]

I sense this more with Doc than Fay, but I see your point. With Doc, it seems like it's a struggle for him to write about the Reds. I'm pretty sure he recently wrote something about how little he cares about baseball on a day-to-day basis, preferring to talk about seasons as a whole, I guess.

I linked to that Doc post earlier in this thread, FYI.

[NebraskaRed]

I linked to that Doc post earlier in this thread, FYI.

Missed that somehow!

[Blitz Dorsey]

Have you seen Reds fans on twitter? THey deserve to be criticized.

Uh, did you miss the part about Fay should ignore the idiots and only respond to Reds fans who ask lucid questions? Yes, it seems you did.

[Blitz Dorsey]

People, in general, are "on the clock" 24/7 when it comes to the private conduct. If there was some special rule for reporters, you wouldn't see people getting sacked for insensitive remarks online, teachers getting fired for provocative photos being posted on Facebook, or college kids getting passed over for jobs because of their online lives.

But there is a world of difference between being "on the clock" in terms of not being insensitive, not being a racist/bigot, not engaging in conduct unbecoming to your employer, and offering opinions or being snarky the way Fay is on twitter.

And, the fact of the matter is this: The internet is a noisy place and there are dozens of ways to get the news you need. It's in everyone's best interest to have reporters that stand out, report news, offer snap analysis, and engage with their readers. No one likes to follow the guy who reports only headlines, links to his work, and never interacts with people. Even Peter King, demigod of NFL reporting, offers analysis / opinion, and interacts with regular fans (often sarcastically) on twitter.

Professionalism is an evolving ideal. The days of Perry White in the newsroom are over.

Extremely well said. Completely on point.