Letter I Penned to Kevin Blackistone After PTI Wrestling Comments

  Mr. Blackistone,

(First portion not included as it was irrelevant to this discussion - basic introduction.)

Your comments concerning Bart Scott forced me to write just so I can clear a few things up for you, since I am not sure you fully understand what you were talking about.  My former life, between 2000-2009, was as a creative lead, play by play announcer, and on screen performer in professional wrestling across the southeast.  I worked for several different organizations, many nationally televised in syndication, and I feel I have the credentials to compose this quick letter.

When you referred to wrestling as "fake," you were correct in the main sense, but I believe you harbor erroneous misconceptions outside of your baseline statement.  What is "fake" about professional wrestling is the outcome.  We know when we send guys and girls out there who is going to leave that ring victorious.  Sometimes we know a good bit about the action to take place inside the ring, but not once have I known every single moment of a match before it was executed.  The participants figure out what they think will work and bring that to the audience.  This process usually demands incredible vocal communication for hours before the match and a very unique brainstorming session.  In the past, wrestling was often much more ad-lib, which is something I personally hoped it would return to, as the participants worked on the "feel" of the crowd and let the audience tell them what in-ring story would give them the most for their dollar and lead to the most success for that respective promotion.  So yes, the outcomes are predetermined, but that is truly where it ends.

Not once has someone fallen to a wrestling canvas and not felt it.  These athletes are not landing on clouds.  The statement that led me to this letter was the comment you made about "fake chairs."  This concept is one hundred percent wrong.  Fake chairs do not exist.  Every chair shot you've seen is from a real chair, and it sincerely hurts.  I have personally taken several performers to medical centers or hospitals after chair shots that went wrong and could have caused death from blood loss.  Even at the highest level, you can find plenty of footage of WWE performers being put in mortal danger from falling on a chair the wrong way or having the chair back connect with the back of their forehead.  While there is a right way to hit someone with a chair and a wrong way, it ALWAYS hurts.  Those in the industry hate when onlookers assume or state things like "fake chair" and state it as fact.  If you need more proof of the existence of real chairs, watch how often a chair shot comes after the wrestler asks the person sitting in it to stand up.  Chair shots are completely and totally real.  It undermines the intense pain that often accompanies these people for the rest of their lives to make a claim that would lead those that treat it factually to assume these shots are safe, do not hurt, or deserve an eye roll.

It's simply something to think about and hopefully something you may not have known.  Remember, wrestling is fake in terms of who wins and who loses, but except for the most over the top, obviously scripted segments of special effects or the like, everything the fans see is absolutely real.  The sheer level of concussions I have witnessed from chair shots is staggering.  Think about Chris Nowinski, the hero of the concussion world, who has done tremendous work and has been one of the catalysts of the new NFL and NHL policies and thought-processes.  He performed for the WWF(E) and that work, along with his college football, were what drove him towards his cause.  Nowinski is terrified for the health and future well-being of professional wrestlers, and deservedly so.
 
Jason Martin
Western Kentucky University
School of Journalism and Broadcasting

  Mr. Blackistone,

(First portion not included as it was irrelevant to this discussion - basic introduction.)

Your comments concerning Bart Scott forced me to write just so I can clear a few things up for you, since I am not sure you fully understand what you were talking about.  My former life, between 2000-2009, was as a creative lead, play by play announcer, and on screen performer in professional wrestling across the southeast.  I worked for several different organizations, many nationally televised in syndication, and I feel I have the credentials to compose this quick letter.

When you referred to wrestling as "fake," you were correct in the main sense, but I believe you harbor erroneous misconceptions outside of your baseline statement.  What is "fake" about professional wrestling is the outcome.  We know when we send guys and girls out there who is going to leave that ring victorious.  Sometimes we know a good bit about the action to take place inside the ring, but not once have I known every single moment of a match before it was executed.  The participants figure out what they think will work and bring that to the audience.  This process usually demands incredible vocal communication for hours before the match and a very unique brainstorming session.  In the past, wrestling was often much more ad-lib, which is something I personally hoped it would return to, as the participants worked on the "feel" of the crowd and let the audience tell them what in-ring story would give them the most for their dollar and lead to the most success for that respective promotion.  So yes, the outcomes are predetermined, but that is truly where it ends.

Not once has someone fallen to a wrestling canvas and not felt it.  These athletes are not landing on clouds.  The statement that led me to this letter was the comment you made about "fake chairs."  This concept is one hundred percent wrong.  Fake chairs do not exist.  Every chair shot you've seen is from a real chair, and it sincerely hurts.  I have personally taken several performers to medical centers or hospitals after chair shots that went wrong and could have caused death from blood loss.  Even at the highest level, you can find plenty of footage of WWE performers being put in mortal danger from falling on a chair the wrong way or having the chair back connect with the back of their forehead.  While there is a right way to hit someone with a chair and a wrong way, it ALWAYS hurts.  Those in the industry hate when onlookers assume or state things like "fake chair" and state it as fact.  If you need more proof of the existence of real chairs, watch how often a chair shot comes after the wrestler asks the person sitting in it to stand up.  Chair shots are completely and totally real.  It undermines the intense pain that often accompanies these people for the rest of their lives to make a claim that would lead those that treat it factually to assume these shots are safe, do not hurt, or deserve an eye roll.

It's simply something to think about and hopefully something you may not have known.  Remember, wrestling is fake in terms of who wins and who loses, but except for the most over the top, obviously scripted segments of special effects or the like, everything the fans see is absolutely real.  The sheer level of concussions I have witnessed from chair shots is staggering.  Think about Chris Nowinski, the hero of the concussion world, who has done tremendous work and has been one of the catalysts of the new NFL and NHL policies and thought-processes.  He performed for the WWF(E) and that work, along with his college football, were what drove him towards his cause.  Nowinski is terrified for the health and future well-being of professional wrestlers, and deservedly so.
 
Jason Martin
Western Kentucky University
School of Journalism and Broadcasting

As a recommendation, trying to argue about any semblance of legitimacy in pro wrestling is an exceedingly poor strategy

If this were 4chan;
 
Inb4 "It's still real to me dammit".

You care way too much about this.

So what did he say?  That professional wrestling was fake?  You admit to that yourself.  The outcome, which in sports is what matters, is what most people think about when they describe it as fake.  Sure, they're great athletes, but if you know who's going to win already it's not a sport, it's a performance.  If you knew who was going to win the NCAA basketball tournament before game one, then while it might be great theater, it wouldn't be a competitive sport. 

He's not arguing about whether or not its real or not.  He's arguing that the wrestlers put a lot of time, sweat, effort and blooshed into their craft and simply writing it off as fake undermines what they do.  In essence, it isnt respectful.

Well said Whatif... I have no idea what your BS comment accomplishes for you except making you out to be a scumbag to the GB readers who might happen on my blog.  I thought I would clarify what Mr. Blackistone said, though a few of you understood my point to some extent.  Also, let me update the situation quickly as he sent me a very professional response today conceding my point and speaking of his own twenty year tenure reporting in Dallas and dealing with the Von Erichs and WCCW among others.   He linked me to an article he wrote for Politico a few years ago about the wrestling business and hoped I would enjoy it.
 
What Kevin Blackistone said was in reference to New York Jets linebacker Bart Scott, who during the NFL lockout, is moonlighting and taking side work on TNA Wrestling.  He was in a list of NFL stars doing other work (such as Chad Johnson trying out for MLS, etc) and a question was asked as to who was in the most danger of injury or getting hurt.  Blackistone said that Scott was one hundred percent safe because the "fake chairs" that are used in Professional Wrestling don't hurt and that there is basically zero true danger in the business.  Tony Kornheiser, an admitted wrestling fan in the 80s, said "They have fake chairs?  I didn't know that."  That undermined the many injuries I have personally witnessed over the years from real chairs... as fake chairs do not and have never existed... and it was flat out a false statement remaining unchallenged in front of a multi million person audience.  The comment made in reply to my letter that used, "It's disrespectful" is absolutely right.  I have basically retired from the wrestling business, moving back to school and going for my broadcasting degree, something I postponed as a junior for that previous career, but the statement was disrespectful to the industry because of how uninformed it truly was.  
 
I know just about everybody in the business, some better than others, but to illustrate on television that painful shots from a steel chair really don't hurt, will cause a potential audience to disregard those shots in the future.  Mentally, they will harbor an attitude towards the danger and the realism that will not just undermine the performers and staff, but will propagate a false reality that basically makes all that pain both past and present worthless in the annals of time to those who care.  Also, when someone with credibility, who you greatly respect or admire, makes a comment about something you have vast experience as well as still a lot of love for, someone needed to inform the speaker of his mistake.  Hopefully my five minutes writing will help out a great deal of my friends and former coworkers when Blackistone is in a position to comment again.  It's a similar argument to someone taking a shot at video games (to be relative to the site) and claiming they aren't art (Roger Ebert for example) or that there are no games that aren't poor influences or don't feature guns prominently.  It's not only wrong, it's also destructive to something that at one time at least was of the utmost importance to you.
 
So in that regard, yes, I do care about it quite a bit.  But Kevin wrote and thanked me for taking the time to let him know that something he always believed... was wrong.  It was classy, friendly, and proved that my time was not wasted in sending the initial letter. 

I'm sure he'll read your letter, have a good laugh, and use it to wipe himself afterward.

This is like the third thread in a row I've clicked on and left completely baffled.  What is up with Giant Bomb today?

Thanks for clearing up the argument.  I thought he just said it was fake as in who wins and such.  I read what you said about the chair in your original post but didn't understand the context.  Now, I can see what the fuss was about.   
 
Oh, and video games are not art but they have artistic elements, however that's an argument for another post...no, wait. On second thought, let's not have that discussion again. ;-)

Butthurt much?

" @MikeinSC:  Really? You have to go there? Pro Wrestling is not a sport, that much I can agree upon. Yet pro wrestling is just as much an athletic endeavor as anything else out there. Imagine jumping up and falling on the floor, picking up two hundred and fifty pound men then dropping them in a controlled manner, or somersaulting your two hundred and fifty pounds from five feet up only to land on your back. Now imagine having to do that for thirty minutes,  three hundred days plus a year while keeping yourself in peak physical condition to minimize injury. Combined with everything else the OP mentioned, and you see why I have to disagree with your statement. "

" Well said Whatif... I have no idea what your BS comment accomplishes for you except making you out to be a scumbag to the GB readers who might happen on my blog.  I thought I would clarify what Mr. Blackistone said, though a few of you understood my point to some extent.  Also, let me update the situation quickly as he sent me a very professional response today conceding my point and speaking of his own twenty year tenure reporting in Dallas and dealing with the Von Erichs and WCCW among others.   He linked me to an article he wrote for Politico a few years ago about the wrestling business and hoped I would enjoy it. What Kevin Blackistone said was in reference to New York Jets linebacker Bart Scott, who during the NFL lockout, is moonlighting and taking side work on TNA Wrestling.  He was in a list of NFL stars doing other work (such as Chad Johnson trying out for MLS, etc) and a question was asked as to who was in the most danger of injury or getting hurt.  Blackistone said that Scott was one hundred percent safe because the "fake chairs" that are used in Professional Wrestling don't hurt and that there is basically zero true danger in the business.  Tony Kornheiser, an admitted wrestling fan in the 80s, said "They have fake chairs?  I didn't know that."  That undermined the many injuries I have personally witnessed over the years from real chairs... as fake chairs do not and have never existed... and it was flat out a false statement remaining unchallenged in front of a multi million person audience.  The comment made in reply to my letter that used, "It's disrespectful" is absolutely right.  I have basically retired from the wrestling business, moving back to school and going for my broadcasting degree, something I postponed as a junior for that previous career, but the statement was disrespectful to the industry because of how uninformed it truly was.    I know just about everybody in the business, some better than others, but to illustrate on television that painful shots from a steel chair really don't hurt, will cause a potential audience to disregard those shots in the future.  Mentally, they will harbor an attitude towards the danger and the realism that will not just undermine the performers and staff, but will propagate a false reality that basically makes all that pain both past and present worthless in the annals of time to those who care.  Also, when someone with credibility, who you greatly respect or admire, makes a comment about something you have vast experience as well as still a lot of love for, someone needed to inform the speaker of his mistake.  Hopefully my five minutes writing will help out a great deal of my friends and former coworkers when Blackistone is in a position to comment again.  It's a similar argument to someone taking a shot at video games (to be relative to the site) and claiming they aren't art (Roger Ebert for example) or that there are no games that aren't poor influences or don't feature guns prominently.  It's not only wrong, it's also destructive to something that at one time at least was of the utmost importance to you.  So in that regard, yes, I do care about it quite a bit.  But Kevin wrote and thanked me for taking the time to let him know that something he always believed... was wrong.  It was classy, friendly, and proved that my time was not wasted in sending the initial letter.  "

 
general rule of thumb: even if you're in the right on a subject, unless it's going to save lives or feed children or something significant like that, it's best for you and everyone else on things like this to just let it go

Wrestling's a weird business, there's really nothing like it anymore. The closest thing I could liken it to would be a travelling circus. So I suppose if we follow that metaphor to its logical conclusion: you wouldn't disrespect a high-wire acrobat by telling them what they do is "fake" just because the outcome of what they do is predetermined and they've got a safety net (most of the time).

Bart Scott isn't going to be a full time thing, he just did some guest crap.  
 The Raven's dude (can't remember his name) actually won a fucking BOXING fight. 
 
Also, Kornheiser was being sarcastic with the fake chair comment. 

How do you survive on the internet if comments like that force you to write essay emails that won't be read?

" Bart Scott isn't going to be a full time thing, he just did some guest crap.   The Raven's dude (can't remember his name) actually won a fucking BOXING fight. "

Just shake it off. Kevin is great on Around The Horn but can be close minded on some topics. So what, aren't we all...