SB Nation re-launched SBNation.com in early September and it's gotten some rave reviews. But it takes a lot of work to pull together that site on a daily basis and while Senior SBNation.com Editor Chris Mottram only has so many hours in the day, he has a staff of other editors to take over when his EST shift is over.
One of those editors is Eamonn Brennan. Eamonn works the night shift at SBNation.com during the week, so he's often the man in charge during the evening when the LCS games are going on or Monday Night Football or College Football Thursdays. So with that in mind, let's get to know Eamonn a little better in this week's edition of Better Know a Blogger.
Tyler Bleszinski: So describe your duties for SBNation.com.
Eamonn Brennan: As the weeknight senior editor, I have two sets of duties: I'm an editor, which means coordinating and overseeing all of the content on the new SB Nation home page, and a short-form blogger in our From The Editors commentary space. And I do a little bit of everything in between.
Bleszinski: What type of stories are you looking for when you're in charge of the site and the day editors have signed off for the evening?
Brennan: We're always keeping an eye out for anything noteworthy or bloggy, and that includes breaking news stories as well as the sort of quirky in-game stuff that makes blogs fun in the first place. At our best, the new home page is a mix of those two things. And at night, during live games, is when we can especially let our live commentary shine.
Bleszinski: What's the easiest way for someone to get their story featured on SBNation.com?
Brennan: Good original content is probably the best way, but we're always looking for commentary in the immediate aftermath of a game or a breaking news event. SB Nation's blogs are uniquely badass at this, so we're usually able to get strong perspective right away.
Bleszinski: What would you like people to think when they come to SBNation.com and you're in charge of the stories?
Brennan: That sports are fun. It's a little easy to get caught up in the seeming seriousness of our teams' weekly or daily travails, but part of what makes blogs great is the notion that we do all this because it's fun. I like to have the site's tone in general reflect that.
Bleszinski: What have you enjoyed the most thus far about the SBNation.com work?
Brennan: Working with the group of editors we've assembled has been a lot of fun, as has mining the network and gaining a familiarity with all 200+ blogs that make SB Nation go.
Bleszinski: Tell me about your background and what led you to SBNation.com.
Brennan: I've been blogging in some form since I was a junior journalism student at Indiana University in 2006. I started my online journalism career at an independent site I founded with my friend, Ryan Corazza, called We Are The Postmen. (Because we wrote blog posts, see?) From there I became a lead blogger for AOL FanHouse, before making the jump to Yahoo's college basketball blog The Dagger. I'm now the editor of The Dagger, in addition to the daily writing I do for NBC Chicago. I suppose that experience is what led Chris Mottram to seek me out for an SBN gig, and I'm quite glad he did.
Bleszinski: What teams do you root for and do you expect that will ever impact your coverage?
Brennan: I root for the Bears, Bulls, Blackhawks, Cubs, Arsenal, and Indiana. I also tend to form weird random infatuations with certain teams or program that tend to fade as quickly as they form. My Charlotte Hornets shooting shirt concurs.
In terms of affecting coverage, I think sports blogging is at its best when the writer in question is up front about his allegiances. I also think reasonable people should be able to root for their team without it affecting their ability to see their team clearly. Nothing irritates me more than blind homerism. But there's nothing wrong with homerism itself.
Bleszinski: Who are some of your favorite athletes?
Brennan: My favorite athlete of all time is Michael Jordan; the man formed my childhood in pretty profound ways. Beyond that, and the local athletes I love (Kane, Toews, Rose, etc) I tend to form serious man-crushes as forms of fandom that don't make all that much sense without some sort of longform explanation. And also Steve Nash. Steve Nash is a real hero of mine.
Bleszinski: What's your favorite all-time sports moment?
Brennan: Jordan's flu game. A.J. Moye's block on Carlos Boozer in 2002 Sweet Sixteen. The 1991 SummerSlam, in which Hulk Hogan teamed up with the Ultimate Warrior to win the tag team title. (Not really, but my roommate wanted me to write that. Peer pressure is a major problem for me.)
Bleszinski: Finally, tell me something about yourself that would surprise people.
Brennan: This Halloween, I will dress my yellow lab puppy in a costume against her will. I will show no mercy, and I will feel no remorse.
Bleszinski: Thanks so much for your time and we're enjoying your work on SBNation.com.
Brennan: Sure thing.