Mainstream Media for the Loss

When I see a title like “Will EA Deliver on the PS3” I’m thinking that I’m going to be treated to some sort of market analysis, or at the very least a commentary on the current trends and potholes in the gaming industry and how EA’s PS3 offerings stack up. Even a shallow gloss-over. A whiff of research…anything really.

But no.

The ‘breaking news’ article, if you want to call it that, doesn’t even examine the pros and cons of EA’s launch line up, nor does it look at the recent backlash (and ongoing complaining) by player groups( NBA 2007 in particular) over the lack of originality in the year-to-year releases, leading to a sense of cut and paste game play with new packaging. Instead, it merely lists some of the games EA will be releasing, mashes in a few rah-rah quotes from EA execs, and sends us on our merry way.

People wonder about the explosion of blogs and blogging and the popularity of feed readers that allows folks to read their individually customized news over morning coffee. Why is it so useful? Why are there so many? Why don’t people just read the paper?

Here’s a prime example of why I personally avoid the mainstream media when I’m reading up on the latest happenings in a niche area like gaming. Claim, if you so choose, that all mainstream stuff is watered down, superficial and useless, but I think that description fits particularly well with hobby areas. The reporters and their media vehicles are so out of tune with the various conflicts, issues, and up to the minute happenings that when the articles come out, they come across as stale, hollow, or somewhat misleading. Read a blog = get by the second (for you obsessive game bloggers out there) news and the hottest rumours. Read MSN? Get Gerber.