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Chris Rose: Why did the Indiana Pacers writer slime Metairie?
by Chris Rose, Columnist, The Times-Picayune
Wednesday January 28, 2009, 5:30 AM
Courtesy of Indianapolis Star
Indianapolis Star sports columnist Bob Kravitz described Metairie as, "one of the most miserable, hopeless, dangerous places in this country."One of the treasured rituals of sports is for local newspapers to send a scribe to a rival city to rattle cages and lob a few grenades before a Big Game.
Gratuitous mockery of indigenous traditions follows. Paint the opposing fans as dullards and rubes. New Orleans has always been rich fodder for such journalistic lo-jinks; you know, something like telling the folks back home in Indiana that we eat things they would probably hire an exterminator to remove from their yard.
Always good for a few yuks.
But when the local tradition being mocked is murder, or something close to it, well that's apparently a whole 'nuther kettle of crawfish.
Thus, when Indianapolis Star sports columnist Bob Kravitz penned a story on Jan. 18 prior to the Indiana Pacers game against the Hornets, it appears that his senses took leave when he wrote:
"Metairie, La., just outside New Orleans... is by almost every account one of the most miserable, hopeless, dangerous places in this country."
Metairie? Our Metairie? By whose account?
Admittedly, when I first read the sentence, I didn't think it was high treason, nor a call to arms. When he said "miserable, hopeless and dangerous," several intersections on Veterans Memorial Boulevard came to mind.
But no, when Kravitz said "miserable, hopeless and dangerous," he actually meant "miserable, hopeless and dangerous" as in: miserable, hopeless and dangerous.
As in a bad place. A really bad place.
A no-joke bad place.
It needs to be noted at this point that the rest of Kravitz's story is a long and lovingly told profile of the Pacers' star swingman, Danny Granger, and even more so his father, who stood down neighborhood toughs and doled out discipline with the vigor of a drill sergeant and saved his son from, yes, those mean streets of Metairie.
Got Comments?
• Post your thoughts on Bob Kravitz's column on Metairie
The story is told largely through Granger's eyes and his view of his Metairie -- back o' town and over the railroad tracks behind Providence Memorial Park Cemetery -- isn't a pretty picture.
"Wherever you've been, our neighborhood was worse," Granger told Kravitz. "We had train tracks that ran through the neighborhood, maybe 200 yards from my house, a small grassy area, and people were always finding bodies there."
Hmm. Did he mean in the cemetery? Hard to say.
Well, suffice it to say that once Kravitz's story reached the folks in Jefferson Parish via the newspaper's Web site, much -- well, almost all of Kravitz's tale of family bonds and overcoming circumstances was lost on eyes and ears stinging from that assessment so high up in the story.
Miserable. Hopeless. Dangerous. Ouch.
The comments following his story have run amok this past week, a war of words between Metairie's defenders and those who take no issue with Kravitz and, in fact, think he was on the mark.
A reader named Metairieite wrote: "Kravitz's job is to report and he is not reporting the truth. He takes one family's experience and assumes that it's the same way of life for the rest of Metairie. It bothers me that he is getting paid for his lazy work."
Common replied: "It amazes me that so many of you are posting about the neighborhood and not how positive a story this is. So often, all we read about is athletes getting in trouble. Finally, we have a positive article about a father-son relationship and people want to debate about how bad his home town is. Seriously?"
John McCusker / The Times-Picayune
Jefferson Parish President Aaron Broussard responded to Bob Kravitz's column with his own words about Metairie, "This guy's quote is grossly off the mark of reality. Grossly off the mark."Et cetera and so on, for many, many pages, day after day. The story has also been posted on Hornets' fan Web sites and they are equally alight with civic discourse.
Even Jefferson Parish President Aaron Broussard weighed in this week with this comment to The Times-Picayune:
"This guy's quote is grossly off the mark of reality. Grossly off the mark. I would tell you that Metairie, La., since its inception in Jefferson Parish, has been one of the more desirable places to live in greater New Orleans. And as opposed to being miserable, hopeless and dangerous, it is wonderful, hopeful and safe. I don't know what the crime statistics are in Indianapolis, but I would compare the crime statistics in Metairie against most communities of its size anywhere in America."
Smack-down!
Everybody's got an opinion. In fact, I tried to contact Kravitz this week to get his take on the kerfuffle that followed his story. But I did not hear back from him, presumably because the appearance of the numbers 504 on his caller ID now send him running to the nearest bar or therapist's couch.
He has learned another hallowed tradition of print journalism: No matter how beautifully crafted your story is, there's always going to be a gotcha.
And woe upon he who smites Metry. A pox upon his pen! May all his crawfish be too salty.
Columnist Chris Rose can be reached at chris.rose@timespicayune.com, or 504.826.3309, or 504.352.2535.
by Chris Rose, Columnist, The Times-Picayune
Wednesday January 28, 2009, 5:30 AM
Courtesy of Indianapolis Star
Indianapolis Star sports columnist Bob Kravitz described Metairie as, "one of the most miserable, hopeless, dangerous places in this country."One of the treasured rituals of sports is for local newspapers to send a scribe to a rival city to rattle cages and lob a few grenades before a Big Game.
Gratuitous mockery of indigenous traditions follows. Paint the opposing fans as dullards and rubes. New Orleans has always been rich fodder for such journalistic lo-jinks; you know, something like telling the folks back home in Indiana that we eat things they would probably hire an exterminator to remove from their yard.
Always good for a few yuks.
But when the local tradition being mocked is murder, or something close to it, well that's apparently a whole 'nuther kettle of crawfish.
Thus, when Indianapolis Star sports columnist Bob Kravitz penned a story on Jan. 18 prior to the Indiana Pacers game against the Hornets, it appears that his senses took leave when he wrote:
"Metairie, La., just outside New Orleans... is by almost every account one of the most miserable, hopeless, dangerous places in this country."
Metairie? Our Metairie? By whose account?
Admittedly, when I first read the sentence, I didn't think it was high treason, nor a call to arms. When he said "miserable, hopeless and dangerous," several intersections on Veterans Memorial Boulevard came to mind.
But no, when Kravitz said "miserable, hopeless and dangerous," he actually meant "miserable, hopeless and dangerous" as in: miserable, hopeless and dangerous.
As in a bad place. A really bad place.
A no-joke bad place.
It needs to be noted at this point that the rest of Kravitz's story is a long and lovingly told profile of the Pacers' star swingman, Danny Granger, and even more so his father, who stood down neighborhood toughs and doled out discipline with the vigor of a drill sergeant and saved his son from, yes, those mean streets of Metairie.
Got Comments?
• Post your thoughts on Bob Kravitz's column on Metairie
The story is told largely through Granger's eyes and his view of his Metairie -- back o' town and over the railroad tracks behind Providence Memorial Park Cemetery -- isn't a pretty picture.
"Wherever you've been, our neighborhood was worse," Granger told Kravitz. "We had train tracks that ran through the neighborhood, maybe 200 yards from my house, a small grassy area, and people were always finding bodies there."
Hmm. Did he mean in the cemetery? Hard to say.
Well, suffice it to say that once Kravitz's story reached the folks in Jefferson Parish via the newspaper's Web site, much -- well, almost all of Kravitz's tale of family bonds and overcoming circumstances was lost on eyes and ears stinging from that assessment so high up in the story.
Miserable. Hopeless. Dangerous. Ouch.
The comments following his story have run amok this past week, a war of words between Metairie's defenders and those who take no issue with Kravitz and, in fact, think he was on the mark.
A reader named Metairieite wrote: "Kravitz's job is to report and he is not reporting the truth. He takes one family's experience and assumes that it's the same way of life for the rest of Metairie. It bothers me that he is getting paid for his lazy work."
Common replied: "It amazes me that so many of you are posting about the neighborhood and not how positive a story this is. So often, all we read about is athletes getting in trouble. Finally, we have a positive article about a father-son relationship and people want to debate about how bad his home town is. Seriously?"
John McCusker / The Times-Picayune
Jefferson Parish President Aaron Broussard responded to Bob Kravitz's column with his own words about Metairie, "This guy's quote is grossly off the mark of reality. Grossly off the mark."Et cetera and so on, for many, many pages, day after day. The story has also been posted on Hornets' fan Web sites and they are equally alight with civic discourse.
Even Jefferson Parish President Aaron Broussard weighed in this week with this comment to The Times-Picayune:
"This guy's quote is grossly off the mark of reality. Grossly off the mark. I would tell you that Metairie, La., since its inception in Jefferson Parish, has been one of the more desirable places to live in greater New Orleans. And as opposed to being miserable, hopeless and dangerous, it is wonderful, hopeful and safe. I don't know what the crime statistics are in Indianapolis, but I would compare the crime statistics in Metairie against most communities of its size anywhere in America."
Smack-down!
Everybody's got an opinion. In fact, I tried to contact Kravitz this week to get his take on the kerfuffle that followed his story. But I did not hear back from him, presumably because the appearance of the numbers 504 on his caller ID now send him running to the nearest bar or therapist's couch.
He has learned another hallowed tradition of print journalism: No matter how beautifully crafted your story is, there's always going to be a gotcha.
And woe upon he who smites Metry. A pox upon his pen! May all his crawfish be too salty.
Columnist Chris Rose can be reached at chris.rose@timespicayune.com, or 504.826.3309, or 504.352.2535.
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