IPB Blogging Questionnaire: Kevin Edition

We’ve received a few more responses to the IPB Blogging Questionnaire. This response comes to us from Kevin of BfloBlog. We were very pleased that Kevin took the time to look at these questions; we’ve long admired how mindful he is of the importance of the community that is formed by fandom, and also by blogging. He’s also a kick-ass iconoclast, and we like those at IPB! You can read his answers here, but be sure to check out his blog, which is a must read.

1. What was your motivation for starting blogging? Has that changed at all in the time you’ve been blogging?

Originally, the main reason BfloBlog started was to provide an outlet for intelligent conversations about Buffalo’s sports teams, mostly the Sabres. The Buffalo News was, and for the most part still is, a bunch of writers who love to be negative. The sports talk radio station in town thrived on negative coverage, especially when it involved the Bills, and treated the Sabres as second-class citizens. And message boards? Yuck. In addition, nobody on the station knew diddly about the CBA and it’s rules, and that became my niche. The Sabres were up tight against the cap, and the radio types were falling back on “who can figure this out? I’m no lawyer! Who has time?” I thought Sabres fans weren’t being given a resource they could turn to for reliable salary cap information.

Today, I think the mission is still the same. Although my site has become more newsy, I think it’s still the sports blog in Buffalo to which people turn for intelligent sports talk. And now, other blogs have sprouted up with proprietors who also want smart talk, expanding the conversation.

2. What do you think your blog contributes to the hockey conversation?

My contribution to the national hockey scene is minimal. There are lots of solid blogs out there who cover the NHL on a macro level, or even focus on one team but with plenty of national coverage mixed in. My site has stayed focused on Buffalo, for better or worse. However, I would like to think that other bloggers can turn to BfloBlog when they need to get a feel for the team or the mood of the fans.

3. What do you want to get out of the blogs you read?

A perspective or information I can’t get elsewhere. I can read any newspaper and find out who is hurt, who is playing well or playing poorly, what coach is in danger of being fired. But I want to hear what the rational-type fan has to say. What’s the mood of the fanbase? How are the folks who are shelling out money to watch the team reacting to their play? Also, there are some bloggers out there today like Dirk Hoag and James Mirtle who bring numbers out to support their arguments. Or who use numbers to show you something new. You usually don’t get that from the mainstream media.

4. What determines which blogs you read and which you don’t?

Intelligence, humor, and the occasional well-placed F-Bomb. And no, those are not mutually exclusive.

5. How important is the issue of gaining press access to you as a blogger?

Not important at all. I realize that to some bloggers, this is a big issue. But to me, I prefer the view from the seats. Plus, I am often critical of the media. If I were to end up hanging out with these guys, I might hesitate to call them out when needed out of friendship.

6. To what extent do you feel accountable for the content of your blog?

Completely. It’s my site, and I can’t blame anyone else for anything that appears on it.

How concerned do you think readers should be about the authority and accountability of your blog?

That’s up to them to determine. If they read BfloBlog for any length of time, then they know I am completely accountable to my readers. They’re the ones who make me that way, by calling me out when I say something wrong or over-the-top.

7. How concerned are you about the authority and accountability of the blogs you read?

I’m not. Good blogs get read, bad blogs don’t. It’s a small circle in the sports blog world, and bad blogs are exposed as such very quickly.

Do you find it difficult to judge the authority and accountability of the blogs you read?

No. If you know sports it’s usually pretty easy to spot a blog that’s full of, um, “it”.

8. What value, if any, do you think blogging brings to the NHL?

Well, it can’t hurt! The lack of media coverage in many NHL cities in the States has certainly suppressed the potential fan base. While blogging is certainly a fairly new medium, it is accepted and embraced by the demographics the NHL has to want. Young, tech-savvy, with (hopefully) money to spend.

[Originally sent via an email written 12/14/07 by Kevin]