The Los Angeles Times columnist was interviewed by the Daily Bruin:
DB: Do you follow sports blogs?
Simers: Are you kidding me? Why would I follow a sports blog? That’s some guy in his basement who has never interviewed an athlete. … That person can’t offer me anything. You have got to go out in the field. … Bloggers are never held accountable. I don’t trust them. Accountability is a big deal. When I call someone a name in the paper, I’m there the next day, and they can let me have it. I have to stand by what I wrote.
T.J. smacked around his own paper’s Laker blog:
I would’ve thought if The Times were going to try something innovative such as that, it would want to focus on the best basketball team in Los Angeles — the Clippers.
I looked closer at the Lakers Blog, and it read: "Adam and Brian Kamenetzky have the dirt on what’s going on with the Lakers." No wonder people think newspapers always dwell on the negative, hiring two extra guys just to make sure everyone knows how crummy the Lakers are going to be this season.
Latimes.com also has the "Gold Derby Blog," the "Oscar Beat Blog," and "The Movable Buffet Blog." But no Clippers Blog.
From what I know about blogs, it doesn’t appear you need much more than someone who likes to hear themselves talk, who knows how to type and who also owns a computer. It’s not as if you have to interview anyone, or even attend a game, so long as you sound as if you know what you’re talking about — you know, kind of like sports talk radio.
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But if that’s what it takes to put together a Clippers Blog on Latimes.com — repeating what has already been written in the Daily News, I guess the Daily News is going to have to start doing more on the Clippers. I’ll have to speak to their editors.
I found a picture and profile of T.J.’s daughter and radio co-host Tracy:
As the oldest daughter of T.J. Simers, born on his birthday, Tracy has an opinion about everything.
She was born in Wisconsin, lived in New Jersey, Tennessee, Colorado and finally California, enjoying every opportunity to match wits with her father along the way. She went to high school in San Diego, college at the University of Notre Dame, and chose to be an accountant, which makes it very difficult to explain why she’s now doing a radio show.
Tracy began attending the Denver Broncos training camp before first grade, later getting a first-hand look at John Elway as he developed into a great quarterback. She also got a good look at Ron Powlus while attending Notre Dame, so she’s known both ups and downs.
She’s obviously a risk-taker, agreeing to do a weekly Sunday morning radio show with no experience whatsoever. She stayed on the air for two years, but obviously wanted to talk more.
Now she’s put aside accounting to go on the air five mornings a week to let everyone know each time her father says something stupid. She plans on being very busy.
