Stampede Blue Interviews Peter King

by Chris Pokorny on Feb 6, 2010 4:15 PM EST in General News

Brad Wells, who runs Stampede Blue (our Indianapolis Colts blog), has been in Miami with press credentials for the Super Bowl event. He has scored so many interviews this week that it is unbelievable. The one I want to specifically point out is the one he just ran with Sports Illustrated's Peter King.

The interview, which has been transcribed by Stampede Blue, was very entertaining to read, touching more so on topics related to sports media than the actual Super Bowl itself.

Brad: In the two days I've seen you work, you're just a regular guy. You work with precision. I'm wanting to know what you think of how bloggers think of you? Does it bother you? Does it baffle you? What?

Peter takes another sip of his Pilsner Urquell and thinks. It's a long pause before he answers.

King: When I did a bunch of these [online] chats [like the Deadspin one several months ago]…

Brad: Some negative things were said.

King: Yeah. "You’re a know-nothing, fat, piece of shit. You don’t know football. You're totally out of touch with reality. You’re an idiot. You’re gay for Favre." I… I don’t know what to say. I don’t know, I mean, all I can do is try and do my job, and do the best I can.

Wells, who has always been a Peter King-basher in all the years I've been here at SB Nation, came away from his 30-minute interview with King with the following thoughts:

I think back on all the harsh, nasty, hateful words I’ve used to describe Peter King, and I cannot help but feel the bitter tingle of shame. Do I regret writing them? No. I believe in writing as a fan, and a fan’s voice is best written unfiltered and raw. No editing. No holding back; first thoughts in your mind pushed out into the digital world. And, quite frankly, many of the other media people I’ve taken shots at over the years deserve the harsh words. Hell, some of them write their crap to solicit those words. And in meeting several of them here, it has actually made me feel better about bashing them. They deserve it because they are lazy, stuck-up, entitled douchebags.

Not Peter King.

I recommend that everyone read the transcript of the interview (links below). I've always been a big fan of King's and have always wished that he'd get more credit for the work he does.

Stampede Blue Interviews Peter King (Part 1)

Stampede Blue Interviews Peter King (Part 2)

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No. I believe in writing as a fan, and a fan’s voice is best written unfiltered and raw. No editing. No holding back; first thoughts in your mind pushed out into the digital world. And, quite frankly, many of the other media people I’ve taken shots at over the years deserve the harsh words. Hell, some of them write their crap to solicit those words. And in meeting several of them here, it has actually made me feel better about bashing them.

And that is the biggest strength and weakness in blogging rolled up in one. Wells wants to be treated like a professional without acting like one.

by gahnki on Feb 6, 2010 5:51 PM EST reply actions

It’s pretty cool though that the Colts guy was accountable to his face, admitted calling his things.

by Roger Dorn on Feb 7, 2010 1:39 PM EST up reply actions

Yes, but meeting someone in person and spending time with them usually has that effect on people. It is easy to criticize when there is a wall of internet between you.

by gahnki on Feb 7, 2010 3:50 PM EST up reply actions

I guess my point is, he didn’t have to admit it to King’s face. He could have chickened out and sucked up to him.

by Roger Dorn on Feb 7, 2010 10:53 PM EST up reply actions

Peter King may be a nice person, but that doesn’t mean he’s good at his job and it doesn’t mean he knows football.

I hate the steelers the way a mother loves a child.

by notthatnoise on Feb 6, 2010 6:27 PM EST reply actions

Why doesn’t he know football? I mean, he certainly doesn’t have the knowledge of a coach, but I’ve been reading him for years and I’ve never thought that he lacked knowledge of football. And I think he’s very good at his job, which is reporting the news about the NFL.

by Buckeye Brad on Feb 6, 2010 9:51 PM EST up reply actions

I concure. I spent a lot of time reading his weekly column last summer and I got a healthy respect for his opinions. He’s the reason I picked up Percy Harvin in my fantasy league (good pick, btw).

I was ticked off when he picked us to finish dead last in the league, but who wasn’t? As a fellow writer, I look up to this guy.

by BrownDawg1409 on Feb 7, 2010 1:03 AM EST up reply actions

I never understood why some people don’t like Peter King. Believe me, there are plenty of sportswriters who I think are idiots but he’s certainly not one of them. His writing is mostly interesting and knowledgable. Sure, his MMQB is long and there are parts that aren’t football-related, but it’s a free internet article so it’s hard to complain. If you don’t want to read about his coffee habits or traveling problems then it’s very easy to skip that part (I do). But he also has very nice features, such as his long-running updates on his friend in the Army. I think he’s got very good insight on what’s going on in the NFL and I enjoy reading most of his writing.

Sure, he’s wrong with a lot of his predictions, but you know what . . . everybody is. The NFL is so hard to predict that not a single writer or fan is going to pick every team right before the season, so I never understood why so many fans took joy in pointing out when King (or anyone else) is wrong. Are they jealous that he has a job where he writes about football and they think they can do better? Or do they just enjoy pointing out when someone else is wrong? Stewart Mandel, the great college football writer for SI, posted once some comments he got about his poor record picking bowl games, and people were calling him an idiot and all sorts of names. That’s just stupid.

Now, some writers are truly idiots who write drivel like Shaw, Livingston, Grossi, all the idiots who yell at each other on Around the Horn, and many other sportswriters. King isn’t like any of those guys. You may not always like his writing and he does talk about Favre too much (but, on the other hand, people want to read about him so he’s just giving them what they want) but that doesn’t make him an idiot or bad at his job. Most people who knock King couldn’t do any better.

by Buckeye Brad on Feb 6, 2010 10:07 PM EST reply actions

I read MMQB every week. Like yourself, I skip the dumb crap.

I crapped on King in my last draft recap because of his comments on William Green. Anyone with two brain cells could see the writing in the wall with Green.

I think King is a good writer, but he is “meh” as a football reporter. He has a Rolodex of football contacts but never seems to break stories.

by Bernie19Kosar on Feb 7, 2010 12:14 AM EST up reply actions

As far as the magazine goes, sure. But with the speed of the internet and all that (which PK alluded to in his interview), he can get some stuff first but end up not breaking them at all. That stuff’s usually for the AP.

I started liking PK more after his assesment that Mangini was about a 60/40 percent chance of staying or leaving when everyone else was saying that Mangini getting fired was a done deal.

by BrownDawg1409 on Feb 7, 2010 1:07 AM EST up reply actions

But, in fairness, is breaking stories really part of his job? Maybe it is, and he’s just not good at it, but I never saw him as a Morentson- or Clayton-type of reporter who is reporting rumors and breaking news. He does more articles with analysis and inside information from talking to coaches and players, much like his writings for the magazine only more frequent.

by Buckeye Brad on Feb 7, 2010 8:21 AM EST up reply actions