Comments on: Critics: What are They Good For? II

By: Where Worlds Collide » Blog Archive » Karnataka, Crewe Limelight, 26 Oct 2008

Sun, 02 Nov 2008 19:45:34 +0000

[...] and Gonzalo Carrera on keys. Some people seemed to object to the mere existence of this band, some hack scribblers dismiss them as ‘a glorified tribute band’, which I feel is a bit [...]

By: Tim Hall

Tim Hall — Sun, 08 Jul 2007 18:36:42 +0000

Some people seem to compartmentalise things and believe that internet personas are somehow not real people. I can’t do that, especially with people I’ve actually met face to face. They’re definitely not anonymous people hiding behind keyboards to me.

By: Michael Orton

Michael Orton — Fri, 06 Jul 2007 16:40:58 +0000

To answer your question, yes professional critis do still have a useful purpose, but this particualr instance of one has ceased to act in a professional manner.

The useful purpose is to be a repository and clearing house for knowledge of current events in their subject area. To make a living at this you have to know your subject area very well and have excelent communication skills to keep that information moving.

A true professional in any field does not need to slag off the amateurs because the superior quality of his observations justify his superior status. Behavior such as related here justifies his being ranked at an inferior status by those who know what they are talking about.

The “dead tree media” can only survive by providing quality output from respected journlists. That respect has to be earned, and can be lost very quickly. I doubt people insulted in this way will buy “dead trees” of his particular brand for a while.

Another thing this journalist has to learn is that on blogs and the like, everyone is hidden behind their keyboard – including himself.