So I don’t know that much about sports. Compared to Jason Whitlock, I mean. But I know a lot about publishing and editing and supervising and that whole part of the business. Maybe more than Jason, maybe not as — let’s just say I know enough. And, like I said, I know what it’s like to have people in your business all the time, talking to you and telling you things all the time. But, again, it’s not like I know more than Jason. Calling what I’m writing here “advice” sounds like I’m giving him needed counsel, and that’s not — Jason is doing just fine. He’s in a great position to succeed. He has the backing of a great company, his upper management has his back the whole way, and he knows what he wants to accomplish with his website, and despite some setbacks, he’s off to a great start. I’m just writing this to share my experiences and expertise with you all. And with Jason, who’s been going through a lot of stuff recently.
So I’m just going to try and write this like a friendly open letter to Jason, because that’s what this is, really. I’m not trying to lecture him or presuppose anything. We’re just talking, like a real honest dialogue about our careers. A couple of colleagues shooting the breeze over some quality banquet beers. Because this is — as the editor-in-chief of BuzzFeed, Jason, I have a lot on my plate, just like you. And these things on this plate are coming from all over the place, just like you. I’ve got writers doing their thing over here, I’ve got our really great creative team over there, there’s the higher ups and our advertisers to answer to, there’s the past, there’s the present, I’ve got the internet, I’ve got — I mean, those guys over at Gawker. I don’t need to tell you about them, right? Don’t get me wrong, they’re great people. Really great people. They keep folks like us right on our toes, right on the edge, right where we need to be. Because this is what we do. Because this is where we are. Our careers have taken us to these moments where anything can happen, if we allow that to be something. And it can be spectacular. So, with all that in mind, here are (no pun intended):
5 Pieces Of Expert Advice That Will Keep “Big Sexy” Big And Sexy
1. Be the best you that you can be!
So, first of all, you have to stay true to yourself. As if I need to tell you that, Jason. That’s who you are. That’s who you’ve always been. That is your brand. And where I work is all about brands, so I know a little something about that. You just have to stay rigorous and consistent with your message. You can’t equivocate about this and that, or say one thing and then — your word is you, and you are your word. Just like Scarface. You have to stay true to that. And, sure, you’re going to make some people unhappy, even some people you hired. That’s OK. That’s just the cost of doing business. Collateral damage is unavoidable What’s important is the message you want to share with people, and keeping the people you have to answer to happy, and never selling yourself or what you stand for short.
2. Listen to Captain Jean-Luc Picard of the USS Enterprise.
Sometimes, you have to get off the internet. I know that sounds crazy — after all, it’s where we make our living! Seriously, though, it’s a godsend, just stepping away from all those computers and phones and e-mails and just taking a moment to capital-L live. Let me tell you a little secret: On a regular work day, I give myself at least five minutes every four hours. I get up from my desk, lock my phone in my drawer, go into the bathroom, grab a seat in a stall — I like the handicapped ones, personally, for all that room — and just take a minute to simply exist. Breathe it out, let that cool toilet seat work out all those tensions, and just take a lookg and assess yourself and your life. Sometimes I can’t even believe, when I look at — if you told me at the 2008 Democratic National Convention that seven years later I’d be getting excited about publishing a listicle that included a dog meme hiding under the hat of that guy from The Neptunes, I couldn’t even begin. That’s what makes life so interesting!
3. Guess where all the haters can go?
Nuff said.
4. This is just an excuse for me to ask you for advice & include some doge.
Seriously, though. I can’t get enough doge. Such clever. Much insight. Wow.
Honestly, I should probably be the one asking you for advice. That “elements necessary for a good story” breakdown is — I wish I had thought of that. You’ve got a real grasp on how to manage people and situations, Jason. That example of your hands-on involvement in that Deadspin piece, where you’re really fact-checking that piece, making sure — I mean, the writer of that piece (like any good Nick Dentonite) wants the reader to think you’re a flip-flopping lazy paranoid megalomaniac that doesn’t know the basics of managing a publication. See, but that’s not what I read. I see a pioneer on the verge of discovering a new country, or a captain steering a ship into uncharted waters. I see someone that won’t accept the truth unless it’s explained to his satisfaction, that won’t let a lack of experience get in his way, and that wants to make sure that every T is crossed the right way. That’s the kind of attitude you need to run a potentially great publication. (Funny thing — I must’ve typed “ruin” instead of “run” at least 3 times before I got it right. Sometimes, these fingers, you know?)
5. Profit!
You said it, Ryan Gosling! You got this, Jason! Success is right there, waiting for you to grab that brass ring and take it all the way! Just trust yourself and your instincts and your team! And know when you can’t trust yourself or your instincts or your team! And just keep on keeping on!
Prior to becoming editor-in-chief of BuzzFeed, Ben Smith wrote for Politico, where he covered controversies including then-Senator Barack Obama’s contacts with former Weatherman Bill Ayers, conspiracy theories about Obama’s citizenship, and Barack Obama religion conspiracy theories. He interviewed President Obama for BuzzFeed in 2015.