Congratulations Jimbo! FoxSportsWest 9 teams Represented!

Jimbo accomplishes a lofty task and gets representatives from each of the 9 FoxSportsWest teams to participate in the project. Thanks to all who spent the time to help me accomplish this goal. BLOG ON! Here are some of my favorite quotes from your West Coast Bloggers

“Sometimes I post under Matt Lienart is my baby daddy!” Gridiron Goddess

“I was going to name my kid after the King who scores next. My wife said, what if Yorislav Hosev scores next?” Hipcheck, Kings

“I bleed blue and gold. I haven’t missed a UCLA home game in 40 years…except for that funeral.” Dave, BeatSC

“My wife wanted to name our son Jack. I asked if I could have the middle name. She said, o.k. so I gave him the middle name Robinson. Jack Robinson Timm, after the one and only Dodger Great Jackie Robinson.” Robert Timm, Dodgers

Joey Kaufman- USC "Conquest Chronicles" SB Nation

Jim,

Here are my answers to your questions. Thanks.

1) Talk about your blog, how it started, what was your inspiration to blog?

Initially, I started the Los Angeles-based sports blog SoCal Sports Hub.com back when I was in high school due to the simple fact that as a big Southern California sports fan, I wanted more places for the locals to talk about their favorite teams. As a result, the blogosphere seemed like a natural place to turn to for discussion. However, in December of last year, ParagonSC from Conquest Chronicles asked if I’d like to come on staff and help him out. With SB Nation providing a much bigger platform, I jumped at the chance. So for the past few months, I’ve been serving as an editor for the site while writing about USC basketball and other topics related to Trojan athletics.

2) Talk about the misconceptions people have about blogs/bloggers

The old cliché is that bloggers are a bunch of 30-somethings writing from their mother’s basements, but fortunately, I think that kind of talk has sort of subsided in recent years. However, I do still think there are too many people out there, especially in the traditional media world that continue to insist that the blogosphere is run by a bunch of unprofessional, ill-informed, ranting lunatics. While there are certainly, nonprofessionals who maintain blogs, that only accounts for a small majority. A high-percentage of blogs nowadays are run by traditional media outlets and professional, paid journalists. So you’re clearly seeing some of the professional, mainstream guys out there blogging away like Andy Katz of ESPN, Stewart Mandel of Sports Illustrated, and Steve Bishop of the Los Angeles Times.

Jen- LA GALAXY!!!!!!!

Talk about your blog, how it started, what was your inspiration to blog?
I’ve been a Los Angeles Galaxy fan since the league’s inception in 2006. At the time I was a grad student living in Pasadena and playing lower level club soccer (I had played in college as well). I lived just a mile and a half from the Rose Bowl and I bought season tickets with“leftover” money from my student loans. (shhhh.)
When the team moved to the Home Depot Center I continued to catch the occasional game in person, but my husband and I decided to move our family back East to Virginia in 2003. I made sure we had the right satellite sports packages and continued to follow the team closely. The Galaxy blog originated with Laurie, who now writes the Seattle Sounders blog as well as others for theoffside.com. I became a reader and frequent commenter in early 2007. Laurie asked me to fill in for her from time to time and eventually asked me to take over the blog with the help ofNathanHJ. He and I share writing responsibilities, although he has been unable to post during the offseason.

2)Talk about the misconceptions people have about blogs/bloggers.
Bloggers are not given enough credit as journalists. No, we aren’t (usually) paid, or in a big building with the usual trappings of the journalistic world. But we are, for the most part, extremely knowledgeable about our subject matter, passionate about our subject matter, and we have the freedom to write about it in a more casual and humorous tone that your local paper wouldn’t touch with a ten-foot pole.

Connie Kim- LA KINGS

Hi Jim,
Thank you for including me in this group of bloggers you've chosen to do a piece on. Here are my answers with the exception of #3 since I couldn't think of a real response to give you. No reason to try and make something up.

1) Talk about your blog, how it started, what was your inspiration to blog?
I began blogging in 2007 as a way to voice my thoughts about the Los Angeles Kings. I couldn't just go to a local bar and chat up someone about how the Kings were going to pick in the top five at next year's draft. That doesn't mean anything to non-hockey die-hards. Since there was no one to really converse with verbally, I had to seek out that specific community through the web, which I found was present and thriving for the NHL in general. The Kings had a pretty small web presence so with the help from another blogger, I started my own blog called A Queen Among Kings during the summer before the 2007-08 NHL season. Since my start I have been writing and building my name among the Kings community, and back in December 2009 I was asked to be the Kings blogger for SB Nation. I accepted the offer and moved to join the SB Nation community where I am now operating under the blog name Jewels From The Crown.

2) Talk about the misconceptions people have about blogs/bloggers.
Some misconceptions people have are that bloggers live in a basement and they don't get out into social settings, which is why they try and find those circles online. Another one is that they only spread unsubstantiated rumors. This last one is problematic because bloggers are not sports reporters nor journalists (and they should not claim to be), but some bloggers don't bother to cite sources, which results in shoddy writing among other sticky issues. For the most part, everyone is aware that a blogger is first, and foremost, a fan.

Steve Perrin- CLIPPER Blogger!!!!

Jim -
Below are my answers. I don't really do pictures. Here's one that one of my members took of me at Staples Center in press row at a Clippers game. I guess that does a decent job of representing me and my blog.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/cultureshlock/4056559113/

1) Talk about your blog, how it started, what was your inspiration to blog?
How did ClipsNation start? Basically, I was a huge Clippers fan, with a penchant for analysis, strong opinions, and a lot of time on my hands. Which, if you think about it, is why blogs were invented - just for me. For years, I would send novel-length basketball emails to an ever-dwindling circle of friends - draft analysis, trade analysis, and the always unpopular "here's why the Clippers aren't going to suck this year" email. When they made the playoffs in 2006, I got motivated to find a better dissemination vehicle for my brilliance, and started clippernation.blogspot.com in May of 2006. To my own surprise, I kept writing daily through the off-season, which got the attention of the overlords at SBNation, I guess plenty of NBA blogs start during playoff runs, but the guy who is still writing in July is the guy who's just unstable enough to join your network. I was invited to join SBNation, ClipsNation.com was born in September 2006, and the rest, as they say, is history.

2) Talk about the misconceptions people have about blogs/bloggers
One of the main misconceptions about bloggers is that bloggers can talk about the misconceptions about bloggers. Bloggers are a pretty diverse group. I don't think I can speak for them. For instance, of the bloggers I know, relatively few of them live in their parent's basements and play Dungeons and Dragons - I'd say fewer than 50%, but don't hold me to that number. I will say this - the good bloggers are good for a reason. The web is a meritocracy, and if you can write well, people will read, and it doesn't matter whether you write on blogger or for the New York Times.

Robert-VinScullyismyHomeboy.com

VinScullyismyHomeboy.com, originally uploaded by foxsports.

Hello Jim,

1. I started to blog a couple of years ago to write about my passion on the Los Angeles Dodgers. At first, I started to blog to share my stories on meeting ballplayers. I've had great opportunities on meeting some of the best players of today and yesterday. Today, I blog about that and much more. I like looking for the latest news and things that are not really talked about on other blogs.
2. I don't. They know who is writing the blog. It's nice meeting readers at Dodger Stadium or at other events.
3. At first, people would laugh or think it's a joke to have a blog. I think now people realize that there are some really good blogs out there with great information.

Mike Petriello- Mike Scioscia's Tragic Illness

MIKE PETRIELLO- MPETRIELLO@GMAIL.COM

Thanks for the email, Jim. This sounds like an interesting project, I'd love to know more about it if you can share some details. My answers:
1) Mike Scioscia's tragic illness started in the summer of 2007. I've been a Dodger fan since the 80s and got away from it in the late 90s once they got sold to FOX and traded away Mike Piazza (and I had better things to worry about, having gone away to college). In 2004 or so I really got back into the team, getting MLB Extra Innings for the first time (I'm not an LA native) and through posting on various Dodger message boards.

2) Not sure I understand the question. Do you mean about writing under the MSTI moniker? I'm not fiercely protective of my "secret identity", though I know some are.