Meta OT - "Michigan" and Freep.com hits...
At 1:30 p.m. on a Wednesday, these are the top stories at Freep.com based on page views, comments, "recommendations," most-forwarded, etc.
In order:
1. Star cornerback Dorsey unlikely to play for Michigan
2. Confession deal backfires and serial killer goes free
3. 2 teens dead, 2 hurt in Detroit wreck
4. Kwame Kilpatrick sent to Manistee prison
5. Michigan State coach Tom Izzo would be nuts to take Cavaliers job without LeBron James
6. Report: Nebraska could join Big Ten as early as Friday
7. Tigers hook two big pitching arms from Texas
8. Lions tight end Tony Scheffler thrilled to be back home
9. Armando Galarraga not perfect but Tigers rally for win
10. Bing: Layoffs for police, firefighters next for Detroit
There is almost nothing that sells for Freep.com, quite like "Michigan." The Free Press is making a living off of Michigan. A story about a Michigan recruit who appears to not be coming to Michigan beats out a serial killer, a double-fatality auto wreck, a former Detroit mayor in prison, a detailed column on the backgroung of negotiations that might result in Tom Izzo's leaving Michigan State. What the Tigers did in majot league baseball play last night (in Gallaraga's first post-erfect game start). Oh, and hard news about layoffs for police and firefighters in Detroit, from Mayor Dave Bing.
This meta-story, in an of itself, is not much news. We all knew it. It is just nice to have a quantitative reminder of how the Free Press operations depend on Michigan football muckraking.
Check out the Spartans section in sports, and you can't find articles about anything but Izzo and the Cavs.
Giving him attention bothers me as much as Michigan getting negative attention in the freep does.
...I certainly won't be "indulging" in any of their columns on the subject. If I want to read shittily-written, anti-UM rhetoric, I can always go to an MSU or OSU site. As if....
If they manage to pull off the double-switcheroo:
February: "Michigan to admit Demar Dorsey. This reflects badly on Michigan."
June: "Michigan DOESN'T admit Demar Dorsey. This reflects badly on Michigan."
Someone let me know how that works out. I don't read the Free Press, so I won't know if they manage to do so.
they're playing "Heads: we win, Tails: you lose." Screw the freep, detnews.com gets my page views.
.. the additional hits they'd have if all of us protesting the Yellow Press were visiting their site as well.