Buzz Bissinger, the brilliant and talented writer who appeared on Costas Now earlier this week, where he took the opportunity to attack Deadspin's Will Leitch (and essentially every blog of any kind), was a guest of Philadelphia 950 ESPN's Mike Missanelli Friday afternoon. Missanelli and Bissinger have both worked in the Philadelphia print media biz, but have moved on to other genres since that time.
In the interview, which can be found after the jump, Bissinger begins by expressing regret at the way he behaved toward Leitch. This was probably a wise (and somewhat respectable) choice considering the absurdity of all the accusations he had made toward Leitch and literally all blogs, which he called "profane," while cursing like a sailor on national television (this is not to say all sailors curse; I wouldn't want to paint with too wide a brush). However, he did not regret the message of his invective, which he elaborated on in the interview.
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He also indicates that the bloggers who focus too much on the particulars of the game, such as the stat heads among us, should instead read a book or go have sex (ya know, these things being equal). We'd like to think there's time for it all, and we'd certainly not like to think of Bissinger in the latter context. Again though, Bissinger's pomposity supersedes the validity of whatever point it is he is trying to make. There is certainly a debate to be waged over the role of blogging, and both sides have strong arguments. However, Bissinger's self-aggrandizing tones and invectives serve mostly to push the two sides further apart, without chronicling the event in the manner we have come to expect from him. In a sure sign that Bissinger is off his game in this argument, during the Costas segment, Bissinger quizzed Will Leitch on literary figures, and Leitch, a proven scribe with several published works of his own, answered the call better than most of us could have (and surely better than Buzz had anticipated). But could Bissinger do the same if questioned regarding modern sports blogs? Clearly, he is taking aim at a topic he knows very little about. I expected more from a man of his proven ability.
It was also interesting to hear Buzz weigh in on the validity of mainstream media reporting on the extramarital affairs of Roger Clemens. Missanelli seems somewhat disapproving of trying to dig through Clemens' indiscretions, but Bissinger arbitrarily makes a case for doing so. Yet by his accounts of the transgressions of blogging, if a Web site were to do the same, he would most likely take exception. I found his use of the term "holier than thou" to be particularly ironic.
With a somber tone, Bissinger did muse that his star may have fallen this week, and I would have to agree (hold for the fact that a large audience of people had no idea who he was on Saturday, but are now keenly aware of his presence). I wonder if he now thinks, as I do, that his tirade has only drawn more attention (and hits) to that which he hopes would just go away. Bissinger does seem quite certain that sports blogging will not disappear any time soon, and that appears to be what bothers him the most.
When all is said and done, I still respect Bissinger, and I would definitely like to sit down for a few beers with him.