E-Wrestling Nexus Blogroll

[Shawn FX]

One Word I Thought I'd Never Say
Posted December 29, 2009

Yesterday, I received a surprising e-mail from the owner of http://www.wrestlecell.com. In this e-mail, I was asked if I would like to be a staff member on his site. I was taken aback. "Me?" I thought to myself. Does this person know my track record when it comes to volunteering to help other websites? Sure, I do a great job for a couple of weeks but inevitably real life calls or I spread myself so thin I'm of no use to the site in question.

Therefore, I said something I never thought I'd be able to tell anyone with little to no hesitation. I said point blank, "No." My explanation was quite simple I have a girlfriend, a daughter, a full-time job, and only enough free time available to keep the E-Wrestling Nexus firing on all cylinders. In a way, I feel selfish but then again after past ambitious endeavors gone awry, I've been reminded of my limitations.

As much as I'd like to dedicate more time to the online world, real life will always take precedence. Insuring this balance will mean passing up opportunities I would have otherwise jumped all over back in the day. At this stage in my life, I have to be more selective. I'm content to do the very best I can do with one project at one time and nothing beyond that.

Focusing on the E-Wrestling Nexus is hardly a limiting proposition anyway. There are so many e-feds out there that can be helped, promoted, recognized, propped up, encouraged, and rewarded. Adding a new dynamic to e-feds such as "REAL" up-to-the-minute news has been long overdue. I'd like to have a hand in breaking the trend of the cut and pasted site to site rehashed garbage we've been inundated with and accepted as the norm for far too long now.

So was "No" the word I thought I'd never say?

No.

Actually the word was "Commitment" to make sure I consistently put in the hard work and effort needed to make the E-Wrestling Nexus the very best it can possibly be.

*sigh*

Tempting offers to utilize my skills elsewhere, be damned.

"Commitment" - Sometimes, I just hate you.

[Shawn FX]

Generating Your Own Press
Posted January 5, 2009

It's amazing how good an e-federation can sound when that e-fed writes its own news stories. I'm not talking about distributing a professional looking press release. We've all seen those and been impressed by how they read. I'm talking more along the lines of blatant front page shills. I see some very poorly written hype pieces from site to site pawned off as legitimate news. What's worse is the individuals typing up this self promoting garbage actually start believing their own hype. They want you to believe they're something special, just like everyone else.

They (the shill artists) want you to share their opinion of them without actually doing something newsworthy to support their public dick waving. They come up quite short actually compared to others. There's nothing more polarizing than someone proclaiming they're the best of the best, forcing you to decide, right then and there whether or not they actually are El Numero Ono, King of all Kings, and Lord of all Lords, and the REAL kicker - BETTER THAN YOU. It's pathetic.

The untrained eye may not catch or discern what is a shill versus what is a factually based news article. The media itself could be to blame for this inherit dumbing down of media obsessed (yet knowledge starved) society. Do any of you want to be characterized as a mindless sheep? Then why are you getting your news from only one or a select few "news" sources? Why are you allowing someone else tell you what to think, how to feel, and who to "bah" to when he decides to raise his shepherd's staff on your magic entertainment box? Don't be someone's puppet on a string either ladies and gentlemen.

Depending on which news source you go to on television you may love or you may hate our President, Barack Obama. Keep in mind, the "news" being broadcast is helping you form that opinion of him. That's all some pretty deep, thought provoking subject matter to take into consideration, huh? What's this rant really all about? Get to the point already, Dave! Bare with me, I'll get to how all of this ties into e-wrestling in a minute. There's some relevance here. Just indulge me a little longer, allow an extra thought or two to develop in your head for a moment so you can comment later.

For now....

Listen to your radio. No, I mean really listen to it. You'll go from hearing blatant advertising, to infomercials, to some big mouthed nut job doing his damnedest to convince you his product or his political ideology (or both) should be the only political view to believe or only product worth using. In the midst of all this agenda seeking drivel where is the actual news? It goes without saying endorsements (i.e. public blow jobs) are not news no matter how well they are cleverly disguised. Deep down, they are advertisements!

Why is everything you see on TV labeled as "news" slanted? Why does every published or spoken statement in the media today have to involve spin? You read a news article. It's supported by the selective news anchor dolled up on your television set. The teleprompter goes on and what someone else wants that reporter to say is echoed and erroneously labeled "Late Breaking News". Sure, you may find some "news" in the report but that's only after having to listen to a carefully orchestrated manipulation of facts. Are they really "facts" once all the whoring happens?

Don't even get me started on how much crap there is to wade through on various internet websites that call themselves "news" sites. 90% of what you browse through today is a compellation of distorted and doctored stats, this statement included. That brings me back to the e-wrestling world. We have somehow allowed ourselves to participate in the "monkey see", "monkey do" game of selectively propping up who we like and digging up all the dirt on those we don't.

I say it's time to change the way the news is reported and distributed. I say it's time to put opinions where opinions belong in the blogosphere. It will be much more beneficial to e-wrestling promotions, handlers, and staff members alike if we take more pride in our work and observe more journalist integrity. I'd like to see this across the board - starting here, starting now. It's a lofty goal but optimistically it could happen. Every trend, every new culture, begins with someone bold enough to say, "Enough is enough!"

Have you had enough of the self serving press? Maybe it's time you as an individual generated your own press, the right way. Do something newsworthy. That action will echo louder than any self promoting shill or hype ever will. I know there are many within the e-wrestling community capable of accomplishing great things in 2010 and beyond. Those are the people you will read, see, and hear about the most. All the rest will find themselves left behind once they're exposed for the fakes they are.

All comments, questions, and concerns regarding this subject matter are welcome.