topcenter





WRESTLING COLUMNS

The Information Superhighway Has Potholes
May 26, 2005 by Serafin Santiago Jr.


I love information. I can't get enough of it. That goes for a lot of things but I am like a sponge. I suck up as much info as possible so that when I spew out these great articles, I give the impression that I know what I'm talking about. Everyone has a way of gathering the info that they need. From going to the library and checking out books like most of the older folks do, or going online to find what you need with just a click of the mouse. Now that we've established the good about information and how to access it via the internet, let's look at how bad the internet is and the information that ruins it for the average mark...oops, I mean fan.

Since the internet became the center of the universe, people like me have used it to its full potential. Yet there have been some of YOU that have really messed up the net by putting in info about wrestling that kills the fun. FOR EXAMPLE....do we really need to know about the cheating that goes on between two grown people" Or for that matter, do we care as to what plans the WWE has for some of its employees" Of course no matter what they do, we always come out a bit disappointed at their decisions anyway. Why is any information like that so important that people have automatically decided that the general public needs to know all of this" That is doing more harm than good. Obviously we can trace this all back to the newsletters that we subscribed to that do the same thing.

Ok maybe all the blame shouldn't go to the public and the behind the scene guys. There are a few wrestlers themselves that have added to this whole problem. Why do they do it, you may ask" Well it could be for a number of reasons. Maybe for a little extra cash" Was it displeasure with the company that they work for, or maybe just because this will give them a strange sense of power. Regardless of the reason, it is clear as day that people that do such things have no idea how much damage the are inflicting. Amazingly enough, these offenders have no idea, or even a clue as to what's being done.

Now I must admit, not all columnists are performing these evil deeds. There are a few that are doing what entertainment reporters do best, give you a heads up about the industry and what's going on with wrestlers we may or may not like. For the most part, they do a pretty good job. Yet just as much info they give is regulated by their responsibility to give you only what you need to know, not what would you have to get your grubby little hands on to make you seem like you're in the know. Hmmmm....now that I say that, it makes me wonder. Is that really what this is all about" Is it about looking more knowledgeable than you really are" That could be up for debate at some time but really it almost seems like a conversation worth having.

Look at how all this has made the average fan into the wrestling know-it-all. One day they love the entertainment value that wrestling brings and then the next day, they know everything about the ins and outs of the match and its original finish. Now I don't mean to toot my own horn but I will just to make a point. I started out in the wrestling business back when I was 16 just as something to do. I honestly got so into it that I just was happy to go about busting my backside for miniscule gains. As time went by I realized that it wasn't inside the ring that I wanted to be, it was outside of it, doing pre and post production. I began learning the trade and understanding kayfabe better than I ever had before. I had some good teachers (in actuality, I had one good teacher but everyone good and bad deserves credit for my brains about this biz) that showed me many things. It was 10 years worth of that learning and know how that gives me the edge over guys that go on to spoilsthefun.com or whatever site they wish to go to get their fill of needless info.

I'm not here to chastise anyone for their need to know things. You want to know something, fine. Go on and find out what you need to. When it comes to wrestling, the incessant need to gravitate towards the dirt on the inner dealings of big sports entertainment companies makes the need cease and it becomes almost like an addiction. What I won't do also is go on and say how all of these leaks and such should be stopped. In reality, no one has the answer to that or for that matter no one has even attempted to stop it. I'm sure that there is some measure of good that the WWE can get from it but not much. How many countless memos have tracked the offices of WWE headquarters and told everyone of the evils of leaking information to the general public" I know that Vince McMahon has even had huge arguments with many people about this subject. Yet what can he or anyone do"

If I could make a suggestion, it would be this: To everyone who loves this business and all the great things that it has to offer, butt out!!! Don't stick your nose where it doesn't belong. Keep this info indoors and don't let it out. It ruins the show for so many of us that it becomes monotonous and just plain old weak. Does anyone remember what it was like to wake up early on the weekends and turn on the TV to watch WWF Superstars" Or wait until late at night when you had to go to bed but begged and pleaded with mom and dad to watch Saturday Night Main Event" You know that it was all done because you wanted to see what happened next. But with this whole thing with the internet being the information superhighway and the uncontrollable amount of details the public really doesn't need to know, it will be a wonder as to when people will wake up and say "OK, that's Enough!". I have a feeling that that wont happen anytime within my lifetime. We are so infatuated with these things that to take that away from us will seem like a violation of our rights as humans and citizens of this country. I would hope to see such things curb themselves before it becomes so huge that it will be too late to stop it. That, I realize, can almost be considered a fool's dream.

Now that I have pointed these things out, I'm sure nothing will come of it. Yet I know it will make you think more about clicking on the link to give you the spoilers for the next edition of Smackdown!. Go on and test yourself. See if you can live at least an entire month without having to read any insider info on anything pertaining to this sport. You'll have a hell of a time trying to find out what's gonna happen next. Strangely enough I can almost guarantee that you will have more fun watching wrestling that way, when you're not in the know.

by Serafin Santiago Jr. --- [View Serafin Santiago Jr's Column Index]..


Strafro wrote:
Dude man. I totally agree with you that I am one of those people who reads all the insider stuff but it really irritates me and I also believe that it should be stopped. I am going to take you up on the offer of the one month without reading the insider stuff and just go and see how much more I actually do enjoy watching wrestling without being "in the know". Like I was a few years back during the late 90s and early 2000s. Now that I think of it, my love for wrestling has decreased since I began reading insider reports and leaks, they are bad for the business and ruin the shock value of returns and big swerve angles.
Johnny LaRue wrote:
I wrote about the same thing a few months ago so it's good to see people on the same wavelength. Though you asked if "do we care as to what plans the WWE has for some of its employees"" as a former WWE shareholder I say YES! Investing around $2,500 in a company should give me the right to know what goes on. If the WWE plans to lay off a top wrestler I should know about it. My gripe is I should NOT have to depend on internet columnists to find out what goes on.
USC0Dave wrote:
I totally agree with this. When I wrote my article on why Randy Orton should have beaten the Undertaker at wrestlemania, a large amount of the arguments people made against me were based upon what they had read or heard that Undertaker and Orton are like backstage. Everyone was going, "oh, Randy's this huge asshole backstage, he doesn't deserve anything." Who the hell watches wrestling because of these people's real life personalities" Or any entertainment medium for that matter" And how the hell can anyone be an authority on the real-life personalities of people they've never met" I for one completely agree with this article, and I hate all the "You Screwed Matt" chants that go up whenever Lita and Edge come out, which totally messes with the storyline. I don't know any of the involved parties personally, and I really don't care! I come here to watch matches and stories! It's their business and we have no place coming to an entertainment venue and actually CHANTING derogatory remarks about the performers off-camera lives! Are all you people gonna now go see the upcoming movie Mr And Mrs Smith and chant "YOU SCREWED JEN!!!" everytime Brad Pitt is on-screen" Please, get a life, people. And, on a side note, is it just me or did Matt never get this much chanting of his name while he was actually employed at WWE as a singles wrestler"
wrote:

wrote:

wrote:

If you have any comments, reactions, rebuttles or thoughts on this column, feel free to send them to the email below,
If your email is intelligently written, they will be posted underneath this messege..
We at OnlineWorldofWrestling want to promote all points of view, and that includes YOURS.




© 2015, Black Pants, Inc. All other trademarks are property of their respective holders.

[ CHAT ROOM | FLASH | SEARCH | FORUMS | DOWNLOADS | TAPES | WRESTLINKS | GUESTBOOK | THANK YOU | CONTACT ]