Media thread 2022/23

[TravisBickle]

Fans of the red shirt clubs are a lost cause. Jesus, I can understand that. United haven't been a threat for a decade but I still hate them with a passion, and, what's more, I have done my best to pass that down to the next generation.

More fans of other clubs are seeing what is happening with City all the time, which is good, but the real change will come when the next generation takes over. They will be saying Charlton, Best, Beckham? Who the fuck are they? Ri-who? They will have grown up with Haaland, de Bruyne and hopefully Foden. This is a long-term war, imho, forget the minor skirmishes.

There are now teenagers alive who can’t ever remember seeing utd win the title.
The “Not in my lifetime“ quote gets funnier with each passing year.

 

[Nicholas van Whatsisface]

If you think it really that significant a swing, surely then blues tuning into talksport, and talking about whag they heard on talksport, are just as 'guilty' of 'feeding the agenda'. I don't see how you can argue about link posting in blue moon while people listen to talksport.

I didn’t mention Talksport, so that really wasn’t part of my argument.

Of course people posting endlessly on here about Talksport gives their editors the affirmation they need to carry on creating reactionary content. On that we are in complete agreement!

Again - I’m not really sure what point you’re making here. That you aren’t able to talk about posting links unless you also mention Talksport?

What about Sky Sports News? Neither of us mentioned them, so does that invalidate both our points?

But look - I said I’d leave it there in my last post. We don’t agree on this, and that’s cool.

Happy to pick up the conversation later if you’re interested.

 

[nmc]

I don't need convincing, I know.

10am every morning conference. Data and theme teams asking what is hitting the mark and how to build further narrative.

City fans are doing their jobs for them.

Make them accountable, sure, but don't make them relevant.

United sell newspapers, it's certainly not because they play brilliant football.

I've walked away from this shit. 30 years working in an industry which is now dictated by algorithms and people sat reading forums and Twitter.

City fans being socially conditioned to think everyone hates us, based on the lazy tropes and bitterness of self-important spunk bubbles.

I am sure this is bang on… in a wider sense we have a responsibility to look after ourselves. Listen to TalkSport, read the Daily Mail etc and I absolutely guarantee you’ll be depressed in no time. Enjoy being a blue and don’t let the bitter supporters of other clubs who can’t handle our success drag you down. Who really gives a shit what Harris, Delaney, Conn et al think… they are inflicting their mental insecurity on others and are best starved of the oxygen they desperately crave.

If Saturday (or this season) stood for anything it was that City stand for something, we don’t need to justify our existence, we are Champions of England and Champions of Europe and if a few sad Dippers or Rags have an issue with that - well fuck em it’s there problem and not ours. Stand tall blues we have earned this and we don’t need to apologise or explain ourselves… we are the best team in England, Europe and probably the world.

 

[The perfect fumble]

Do you mean they're a bunch of Canutes?

They're going to need a bigger boat....

 

[SebastianBlue]

Then you will be aware of the mathematics of it, and that you are effectively arguing about how much of a difference recycling your plastic bottle made to the environment in which factories across the country pollute at a rate you can't even quantify.

I think you are overestimating the reach of the likes of Delaney specifically, who I was referring to in my post. I think many blues do.

Obviously I cannot prove my theory that most of the engagement of his anti-City articles comes from rage-sharing by blues, and I could of course be wrong, but I think the way in which they are written, how he distributes links (often via Twitter diatribe threads), and the headlines used for them points specifically to trap-clickbait for City fans. Of course rival fans who hate us will read it, as it confirms their worldview, but I assert they are far less likely to share the articles across their networks than blues; they simply comment about how right Delaney is and how more people should speak this “truth”.

Rage-sharing is where the real money is, hence why so much of media now is about angering the right group to get something to go viral.

And the likes of Delaney have become a master of it with City fans.

 

[Ducado]

I don't need convincing, I know.

10am every morning conference. Data and theme teams asking what is hitting the mark and how to build further narrative.

City fans are doing their jobs for them.

Make them accountable, sure, but don't make them relevant.

United sell newspapers, it's certainly not because they play brilliant football.

I've walked away from this shit. 30 years working in an industry which is now dictated by algorithms and people sat reading forums and Twitter.

City fans being socially conditioned to think everyone hates us, based on the lazy tropes and bitterness of self-important spunk bubbles.

Spot on, I have been saying it for years

 

[nmc]

Is anyone listening to Jim & Jordan on Talk Shite this morning? Should be interesting.

I’d sooner stick pins in my eyes….

 

[JPAMCR]

Every report I’ve seen on the game references the PL charges. Now even if we were bang to rights then it’s still got fuck all to do with winning the CL as we’ve been proven not to have broken their rules.

Can’t wait until we’re proven innocent of the PL witch hunt, then they can caveat everything with ‘despite being unable to ensure a 216 to Ashton after home matches…..’

 

[nmc]

Maybe we should have a banner made that simply lists all the media outlets that despise us, BT, Sky, TalkSport, The DM,The Guardian etc and with the words underneath…. This Treble is for you…. Write what you like we ain’t interested. Display that across the North Stand behind the goal and let MOTD show it to the world…. No doubt that’ll make the charges 215.

 

[BringBackSwales]

Long drive back from Edinburgh yesterday, listened to several bbc 5 live news and sports bulletins, not one mention of City winning the CL the previous night. No offence to West Ham (great club) but I was driving a lot last Thursday and every sports bulletin was West Ham this, Moyes that, Rice the other. Our treble wasn’t news worthy 18 hours after it happened. BBC, Bloody Bastard Cunts

 

[inbetween]

Maybe we should have a banner made that simply lists all the media outlets that despise us, BT, Sky, TalkSport, The DM,The Guardian etc and with the words underneath…. This Treble is for you…. Write what you like we ain’t interested. Display that across the North Stand behind the goal and let MOTD show it to the world…. No doubt that’ll make the charges 215.

To be fair BT were really fair and good on Saturday night, they definitely wanted us to win. That's probably though because they have football people on and not journo hacks.

 

[nmc]

"No region outside western Europe has ever had such a grip on football’s shiniest baubles"

...how many US owned clubs are there now in the PL?

They make out that G14 clubs are somehow well run and respect the game etc… a complete bunch of crooks for the most part whom you certainly wouldn’t buy a second hand car off. These articles are almost certainly racially motivated… Do these clowns live in a cave, capitalism is a global business and football isn’t exempt from wider geopolitical changes, the US is largely bankrupt, all industries are seeing their major investment coming from the Middle East or China. European football plays on a global stage and if anyone thinks the tide is going to turn back they are deluding themselves.

 

[eastlandsblue]

I don't need convincing, I know.

10am every morning conference. Data and theme teams asking what is hitting the mark and how to build further narrative.

City fans are doing their jobs for them.

Make them accountable, sure, but don't make them relevant.

United sell newspapers, it's certainly not because they play brilliant football.

I've walked away from this shit. 30 years working in an industry which is now dictated by algorithms and people sat reading forums and Twitter.

City fans being socially conditioned to think everyone hates us, based on the lazy tropes and bitterness of self-important spunk bubbles.

I've been saying the same for years. But now it's more relevant. Does anyone below the age of 60 actually buy a newspaper. If papers are around in 5 years, I'll be amazed.

A local shop near me stopped selling them 3 years ago, because of the delivery cost. And considering its got a lot of pensioners living around it, that says it all.

Online football stories, are dramatised, to get your full attention. And most of them are primed at United and Liverpool their biggest fan bases. We all know most City related stories are negative, and aimed at those imbeciles who click on them. Personally I can't click on any.

 

[BlueMojito]

Had the misfortune to hear the opening few minutes of White and Jordan this morning. Talked about shite tennis and insignificant events at Villa. No mention of Manchester City being champions of Europe and treble winners. Maybe they are too sad to talk about it through their salty tears. What kind of sports journalist doesn't talk about it? We all know the answer.

 

[Coatigan]

Wife told her childhood friend to get her head out of her arse this morning, she just couldn't be happy for her because apparently city are just cheating cunts.

After telling her that her club has spent more than city and are sucking Qatari cock she told her to fuck off and put the phone down on the poisonous bitch.

To sidestep the current Trevor's Axium discussions for a minute, this is one of the unfortunate parts of it for me.

I can get general prevalent opinion and dislike amongst large groups of other supporters, directed at really nothing more than the clouds in many cases. But the individual ones like that are a bit of a shame. And I'm sure many sadly have similar friends and experiences.

I have on a good number of occasions gone with my mates to watch big games of their teams they support, just because they are my bloody mates. In pubs, at their house, even a cup game or final if they had a spare ticket and just wanted my company. Even if I didn't want the team to win, I got the odd joke in early, then put it aside and was then there to pat my mates on the back if they did win, have a few drinks and be there as they stress and then celebrate. And for the best part, be happy for them being happy. Or if they lost, get a couple quick jokes in there, then pat them on the back, and have a few drinks and commiserate. But now, you can't be happy for me being happy? Can't be around and have a pint so I can celebrate, can't resist finding ways to either try belittle it, or openly actively wanting to see a loss to a team that has no significance to anything.

 

[Scottyboi]

I don't understand why people listen to talksport lmao it is owned by the Sun their whole purpose is to cause outrage and generate calls. Rather listen to Susan Boyle farting her greatest hits on repeat.

 

[VOOMER]

Its gone quiet on the charges front, because they are kicking themselves for bringing them. As an organisation they are akin to the the moment in Schindler list where Itzhak says "You've haven't got money?"
And Oskar says "No, I've got money, just not that kind of money!"
The only thing I read, or should I say subscribe to is "Private Eye".
Price and date, the only true things you'll find in a paper.

 

[SebastianBlue]

What happens is we post screenshots of headlines, peole google the article, click on it, and the same clicks happen (if that really matters), but with now an additional percentage of google searches registered. I get it is from a good place, but the obsession with not posting links is at best misplaced. Don't post them, don't click them, ignore the lot if it pleases you or you think it makes a difference. Others will though, don't let that upset you more than the articles themselves.

I suggested this in a follow up post, but the click-through and sharing rate would far, far reduced with screenshots compared to direct link posting. This is a case of simple friction/less interaction design: make something more difficult to do and fewer people will do it. It also introduces a point of friction that can cause the user to ask “why was the direct link not posted; is it worth me taking the extra step to find this media; what are the consequences of me doing that?”

I encourage everyone to look in to exactly how your online behaviour is tracked, measured, and used to generate content (and revenue), as it is actually a pretty important concept to understand beyond this discussion. That is especially the case given it contributes to the quickening degradation of all manner of things we care about beyond football, including the very real and dangerous slow destruction of “truth” and the widespread social engineering that is taking place across the political and socioeconomic spectrum. Football tribalism is just one of the easier battlegrounds.

And—to be clear—I am actually more bothered about posting the links than the articles themselves. That’s because I don’t respect the people behind the articles, so they can fuck off with their carefully crafted rage-baiting drivel. But I do respect most of the people sharing them on here—many of them doing so to bemoan the media’s negative coverage of City—and don’t want them unwittingly aiding and abetting the very entities they despise.

And that is exactly what you are doing when you rage-share the negative media, whether on here or Twitter or Reddit or Facebook or wherever.

Posting the direct link—in however a small way (though, as I argue in my other post, with certain extreme, but fairly isolated City detractors, I think blues do it in a big way)—makes it incredibly easy for blues to contribute to helping justify the existence of the negative media and incentivise the creation of more of it.

And that is something all blues should want to avoid.

 

[Manc Born & Bred]

I don't need convincing, I know.

10am every morning conference. Data and theme teams asking what is hitting the mark and how to build further narrative.

City fans are doing their jobs for them.

Make them accountable, sure, but don't make them relevant.

United sell newspapers, it's certainly not because they play brilliant football.

I've walked away from this shit. 30 years working in an industry which is now dictated by algorithms and people sat reading forums and Twitter.

City fans being socially conditioned to think everyone hates us, based on the lazy tropes and bitterness of self-important spunk bubbles.

'Love the phrase 'bitterness of self-important spunk bubbles'' however please don't use it in your new role :-) as you may be looking for a new career quicker than you anticipated.

 

[wolviedinho]

Dipped into talksport and the only reason city won the treble is because Arsenal, Spurs, United, Chelsea, Madrid, Munich, Liverpool all let us win lol.

Now onto the charges lol.

They look like little lost sheep in the studio. Wonder how long it took this ‘illustrious think tink’ to cook up this new angle?

We won the war.

Love watching this boiling piss now.

Thank you city for lifting all 3 cups.