Much talk of late about the notion of baseball teams refusing press passes to sports bloggers; currently MLB won't give passes to anyone outside "the mainstream press." Many bloggers are up in arms and taking offense, and as much as we appreciate outrage and righteous indignation, we will confess: We don't understand why any blogger would ever want a press pass.
Trust us: It's more fun to watch the game at home. You don't want to be in a press box; it's depressing and reeks of back sweat and pit stains. The freedom that's unique to blogging is diametrically opposed, in our view, to the typical paradigm of Apply For Press Pass / Mingle With Public Relations Drones / Eat Free Buffet / Slowly Realize That Sports Isn't Fun Anymore. MLB doesn't want to credential bloggers because they think they can't control them, which, ironically, is the exact opposite of the truth. Credentialing them is the best way to control them. It's only a matter of time until they realize that's true, at which time bloggers will enter the press box and immediately become the most hated people there, derided by reporters, flacks and players alike. Once you're in the press box, you're just a beat reporter, subject to the same organizational whims everyone else in there is. Trust us: It's not worth it. The view's better from the couch.
They don't want us. We shouldn't want them either.
Off soapbox now, promise.
The Movement Starts [Micro Persuasion]
Bloggers With Credentials [True Hoop]