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Recommended Reading

Recommended reading: A look at the man behind the distinctive, soothing voice of Harry Kalas

"The Voice. First, and always, there was The Voice," Bill Lyons writes, adding, "Marinated by a million drinks, smoke-cured by two million cigarettes, The Voice was a distinctive, soothing, resonant baritone pleasing to the ear, and evoking emotions of calm and reassurance. The Voice was fully in charge and would guide us through whatever peril lurked in the night. For almost 40 full seasons and more than 6,000 games, The Voice was inextricably linked to the professional baseball team of Philadelphia. And vice versa. Theirs was a love affair that endured – Harry Kalas and the Phillies – Harry the K and the Fightin’s. Let no man put them asunder. He achieved iconic status in his lifetime, which ended early last spring with his passing at 73. In a most appropriate and poignant sentiment, Phillies president David Montgomery said: ‘We have lost our voice. Now, 11 months later, comes a biography: Harry the K: The Remarkable Life of Harry Kalas.”’
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Our Voices

Eric Deggans

Mike Wise’s biggest mistake: Not grasping the new world of online journalism

Sep 7, 2010

This will probably look like old news. Or that I’m piling on a well-dissected, long-resolved issue. But I want to devote one more column to suspended Washington Post sportswriter Mike Wise, who was given his involuntary month-long vacation by the newspaper last week after making up news about Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger in an unfortunate attempt to spoof the herd mentality of some sports media. My goal isn’t to take an easy potshot – though I’m not promising that won’t happen, too – but to explore one side of this that hasn’t been talked about much.

Dave Kindred

All kidding aside, Wise’s Twitter stunt “sad beyond sadness”

Sep 3, 2010

In March 1980, the late Kirk Scharfenberg of the Boston Globe wrote this headline above an editorial on a Jimmy Carter economic initiative: “Mush From the Wimp.” “I meant it as an in-house joke and thought it would be removed before publication,” he said. Uh-oh. Before anyone noticed, the headline appeared in 161,000 copies of the Globe. It was then replaced by a proper, dignified headline: “All Must Share the Burden.”

Jason Fry

The Curious Case of Jerod Morris and Damien Cox

Aug 30, 2010

Two summers, two columns, two different results. Last summer, Jerod Morris of Midwest Sports Fans wrote a blog post about Raul Ibanez of the Philadelphia Phillies and the excellent season he was putting together. Responding to jibes from a fellow fantasy-baseball GM, Morris tried to prove it was unfair to speculate that Ibanez’s numbers were the result of performance-enhancing drugs. He reluctantly concluded that he couldn’t single out other factors that would clear Ibanez of suspicion, and blamed Major League Baseball for the fact that such suspicions are now routine.

The Buzz

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