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Post by Vice honcho room temperature on Mar 4, 2014 11:46:12 GMT -5
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Post by Citizen Snips on Mar 4, 2014 11:57:17 GMT -5
It reminds me of something I heard during the last NHL lockout. Neither the owners or players have any fear about the long-term consequences of shutting the league down, cancelling Stanley Cups, etc because there will always be a base of hardcore hockey fans that will never abandon them. They will scream the loudest when the league shuts down, but they will be the first people back in line when it returns.
Seems Vince has long figured out that he can operate the same exact way.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Mar 4, 2014 12:02:02 GMT -5
Yeah, some people will never walk away from WWE and pleasing those people is WWE's lowest priority. Sounds cold, but its true.
It is very much like a psychologically abusive relationship.
Though, to be fair - WWE does a lot of things right, its usually the big things they get so wrong.
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Post by American Dolphin on Mar 4, 2014 12:24:33 GMT -5
Very interesting and something I'm sure deep down we all know.
That said his line about Batista isn't totally accurate, its not just the diehard bitter core who are raging against Dave. I have never heard such intense shoot heat from a crowd than when he is in the ring. Even Cena at his most reviled always has a solid minority cheering for him.
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Post by The Dark Order Inferno on Mar 4, 2014 12:37:57 GMT -5
It reminds me of something I heard during the last NHL lockout. Neither the owners or players have any fear about the long-term consequences of shutting the league down, cancelling Stanley Cups, etc because there will always be a base of hardcore hockey fans that will never abandon them. They will scream the loudest when the league shuts down, but they will be the first people back in line when it returns. Seems Vince has long figured out that he can operate the same exact way. Vince seemed to be operating under that delusion when WCW folded, that he could book the product to appeal to him and him alone and they would watch and turn up to live events, after all they stuck with WCW through the Russo period and he's the only game in town... He was wrong, they took one look at what they were being offered, switched off and didn't come back, and eventually, the attitude era WWF/E fanbase dwindled too thanks to the reign of terror so they can't work under the assumption that they can just do what they want and the fans will keep on coming and that the voices of complaint are those who'll keep on watching whatever. The WWE isn't the NHL, there are no WWE teams scattered throughout North America with their own distinct brand, loyal fans and decades of tradition, it's more like WCW, In early 99, there was a growing sense of dissatisfaction with what was being offered for the main event scene, but the company didn't seem to think that people would turn off... Then came the tipping point, ratings and attendances plummeted and there was no plan B to get them back. Eventually, those boos, those chants for people who aren't in the main event are going to start to turn into empty seats if they keep being ignored. |
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Post by American Dolphin on Mar 4, 2014 12:54:08 GMT -5
It reminds me of something I heard during the last NHL lockout. Neither the owners or players have any fear about the long-term consequences of shutting the league down, cancelling Stanley Cups, etc because there will always be a base of hardcore hockey fans that will never abandon them. They will scream the loudest when the league shuts down, but they will be the first people back in line when it returns. Seems Vince has long figured out that he can operate the same exact way. Vince seemed to be operating under that delusion when WCW folded, that he could book the product to appeal to him and him alone and they would watch and turn up to live events, after all they stuck with WCW through the Russo period and he's the only game in town... He was wrong, they took one look at what they were being offered, switched off and didn't come back, and eventually, the attitude era WWF/E fanbase dwindled too thanks to the reign of terror so they can't work under the assumption that they can just do what they want and the fans will keep on coming and that the voices of complaint are those who'll keep on watching whatever. Well we obviously live in bizarro world because its worked out pretty well for Vince. Also a reason often touted for WCW's relatively sudden implosion was its lack of hardcore fans. It had pop culture icons like Hogan, Turner's wealth to advertise and bring in celebrities like Robocop etc. but once the product turned shitty the viewers just went away, they had no real investment. WWE on the other hand has no competition (TNA ha ha ha), no problems with creative control (TNA ha ha ha) and a hardcore fanbase. The smarks are loyal in a Stockholm Syndrome way, buy disproportionate amounts of merchandise and are signing up to the Network in droves. If this was the 90s with the only real indicators of fan reaction being buys, Vince would have no reason to think he was pissing people off. And in a business sense that still applies. |
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Post by lemonyellowson on Mar 4, 2014 13:05:17 GMT -5
"That's tough man, but if we lose the bra and panties it really takes away from the layering of that storyline. We're trying to build a narrative here."
amazing.
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paywindah
Dennis Stamp
He's goin' to da paywindah here on da muddaship TBS.
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Post by paywindah on Mar 4, 2014 13:53:20 GMT -5
Rock having the title didn't help much because he rarely was seen with the belt and barely ever mentioned WWE to the mainstream media. What makes them think Batista, a guy nowhere near the Rock's level of fame, would get them much mainstream publicity during his summer Guardians PR tour?
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Lancers
El Dandy
Oh you
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Post by Lancers on Mar 4, 2014 14:02:12 GMT -5
Who's this Chris guy he's referring to? I'm honestly drawing a blank on him.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Mar 4, 2014 14:06:26 GMT -5
None of this is anything I needed to be told.
I think it's faulty to assume people are guaranteed to stick around though. Particularly if they're counting on the sales of an internet tool like the network which is only going to slowly raise the % of people that can say they're "Part of the IWC"
They aren't invincible and pro wrestling isn't going to be around forever.
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Post by Baldobomb-22-OH-MAN!!! on Mar 4, 2014 14:10:51 GMT -5
Who's this Chris guy he's referring to? I'm honestly drawing a blank on him. I think it was in one of the developmental territories. I would've remembered a crying guy in a diaper (I mean, who could forget Big Show doing it?) he's not wrong, though. if you really hate what's going on, stop watching. it helps no-one to complain but still tune in every week. same goes for people who keep buying the more objectively terrible output from Marvel/DC just to complain about it instead of buying something that's actually worth reading. |
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Dub H
Crow T. Robot
Captain Pixel: the Game Master
I ❤ Aniki
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Post by Dub H on Mar 4, 2014 14:11:07 GMT -5
"That's tough man, but if we lose the bra and panties it really takes away from the layering of that storyline. We're trying to build a narrative here." amazing. Yeh.I know the points of the interview was another but that line is HILARIOUS. I can't imagine anyone saying that with a straight face |
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Post by sunnytaker on Mar 4, 2014 14:11:18 GMT -5
in the comments section someone brought up Chris Sabin's name and using a diaper to make fun of Jerry Lynn but dunno if that's the chris in question
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Dragonfly
Unicron
...is no Barry Windham.
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Post by Dragonfly on Mar 4, 2014 14:23:24 GMT -5
in the comments section someone brought up Chris Sabin's name and using a diaper to make fun of Jerry Lynn but dunno if that's the chris in question I thought of that as well, but that's TNA. As for the article... I guess I agree, but there's something about it that just rubs me the wrong way. I'm not sure what it is, but after reading it, I found myself wanting to side with the WWE just to spite him. |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Mar 4, 2014 14:24:40 GMT -5
in the comments section someone brought up Chris Sabin's name and using a diaper to make fun of Jerry Lynn but dunno if that's the chris in question That's who it appears to be from a google search where apparently Sabin was mocking Jerry Lynn for being old in early '07, and because the writer said "A few of us used to call these comments "Truman Show Shit" because our coping mechanisms for working in minor league pro wrestling had been reduced to the half-belief we were trapped in our own reality TV show. |
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Post by JTG Fan on Mar 4, 2014 14:28:17 GMT -5
Yeah, it's Chris Sabin, and the guy worked in TNA.
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Post by angryfan on Mar 4, 2014 14:29:31 GMT -5
None of this is anything I needed to be told. I think it's faulty to assume people are guaranteed to stick around though. Particularly if they're counting on the sales of an internet tool like the network which is only going to slowly raise the % of people that can say they're "Part of the IWC" They aren't invincible and pro wrestling isn't going to be around forever. We can prove that people aren't "guaranteed" by merely examining the recent past. If Vince's audience was as set in stone, the hardcore fans, then the business wouldn't have tanked during New Generation. Yes he industry was in a down spell, but if we are to assume that the audience is not going anywhere no matter what, then down periods will not have an effect. The company, by their own admission, was far closer to going under than they should have been if we accept their theory of an absolute audience as true. |
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Post by Error on Mar 4, 2014 14:38:03 GMT -5
Steven Godfrey, the man never worked in WWE, he was a PR guy in TNA. The "Chris" in question is Chris Sabin and the booker was one Vince Russo. So the man knows shit all about how WWE operates.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Mar 4, 2014 14:50:50 GMT -5
Here's the problem: the smarks are becoming the WWE casual audience. Because WWE has so incessantly pushed social media, they're making regular viewers mingle with smarter fans and the result is this really big group of semi-smart people who have a better grasp of backstage politics and storylines and whatever else.
And here's the caveat: it's not just in Chicago. The SHIELD, Wyatts, Cesaro, Bryan. Is it an accident that all these guys are getting over? That guys like Batista and his ilk are universally unpopular? This crowd attitude isn't an exception anymore. Three years ago, it would've been, but now? It's the rule.
This guy's article may be loaded with truths, but the atmosphere he describes is outdated by at least 3 or 4 years. The smart fans aren't a dumb minority anymore. And even though yes, some are hardcore fans who will never give up, a lot of the smart fans now are casual viewers. Yeah, they're into the system, but they can also lose interest and go watch something else on TV. WWE can't rely on the old model they formerly produced, and they have to play to smart fans if they want to get viewership, PPV and merchandise sales. And if they're ignoring the fans, why are they pushing all the internet favorites all of a sudden? Focusing more on the wrestling and less on the talking? Is it all an accident?
I don't think so.
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shaker
Team Rocket
The numbers don't lie - and they spell disaster for you at Sacrifice!
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Post by shaker on Mar 4, 2014 14:53:17 GMT -5
So a TNA writer is trying to say WWE operates the same way?
That's like saying "I worked at McDonalds - I know how this 5 star French restaurant works!!"
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