Yardbarker Is Classy. Misinformed?

Classy move by Yardbarker, wishing former Deadspin editor Will Leitch (still sounds a bit weird saying that) luck with the above image. It's the newest Yardbarker ad, which you'll see on pretty much any blog with Yardbarker ads gracing the layout. And that's the last time you'll hear me say "Yardbarker" that many times in an opening paragraph.

What intrigued me most was the quote attached to Leitch. "Sports bloggers...they're all on Yardbarker." Now, I read Deadspin, and I don't remember that quote. So I did some research (from my mom and dad's basement) and checked out Deadspin on the given date of June 23, 2008. Looks like Yardbarker was way outta context, and actually re-published a dig at them.

YB (I'm sick of saying the full name) used this post, the now famous "What the...?" post Leitch wrote in response to The Big Lead's participation in this L.A. Times article about MSMers vs. bloggers. Here's the quote YB used (bracketed text mine):


We've never had an issue with the way [Buzz] Bissinger handled himself on the show [Costas Now]; the man has a right to his beliefs, and hey, his screaming just played into our hands anyway. That doesn't change the fact that his "argument" was incoherent and, for a writer we've always respected, shockingly wrong-headed. We have literally not met a single sports blogger who said, "Well, jeez, the screaming man on television made me re-evaluate what I do. Perhaps I should apply for that editorial assistant position I'd been hearing about." Jason [McIntyre of TBL] must know an entirely different set of sports bloggers than we do. Maybe they're all on Yardbarker.


Um, if I comprehend correctly, it seems like Will threw a playful dig at the sportsblog community rather than lauding their network. He hadn't heard of said sportsbloggers, so they must be somewhere that he, and certainly others, don't read. Enter Yardbarker.

I have nothing against YB, and their well-wishes were a nice gesture. Hell, I even joined their community a while back, and you can "Bark Me Up" from the bottom of each post, whatever that means. I decided against full-fledged membership, which means I would have to put huge ads at the top of my page. PSaMP is ad-free. It wasn't gonna happen.

So yeah, classy move by YB, but they should probably research their quotes a little next time.