Are These WWE Announcing Edicts Real or Fake?

Last night, nine pages of directions for WWE announcers made their way onto Squared Circle, pro wrestling’s Reddit community. Some examples:

• Please be aware of major international events like the Earthquake in China, the Tsunami, the Mumbai Terrorist incident, and be sensitive to those people and areas. You don’t necessarily have to call them out but don’t inadvertently insult them and others sympathetic by using a move’s name or an analogy that could be hurtful.
• Lower your voice and used hushed tones when talking about something serious. E.g. Randy Orton going after Triple H’s family, or when Drew McIntyre refused to stop attacking Matt Hardy, even when he had a concussion.
• DON’T SCREAM. We are all guilty of this from time to time but there is nothing more annoying than to listen to an announcer scream at you for an hour. It distracts from the in-ring product. Start slow and build toward the climax. Give yourself a place to go at the end of an exciting match. DON’T EQUATE SCREAMING WITH EXCITEMENT.

So are these guidelines real, or did somebody with a lot of time on his hands type them up? As Deadspin’s Kevin Draper noted, a lot of the advice seems sensible enough. Though, I’ve expressed my reservations with the last bullet point above, and think the announcing has swung from Jim Ross’s infectious exuberance to something more resembling a golf match. As I speculated then, and these directions would seem to confirm, this has as at least as much to do with Vince McMahon’s micromanagement as it does with the commentators themselves.

To borrow a phrase from Ted Wells, it seems more probable than not that this leak is real. Everything in here is consistent with the way that the product is aired, though of course there are occasional slip-ups. One final thing to note is that these advisements are several years old. Matt Hardy, for example, has been gone from WWE since 2010. It would be fascinating to learn the backstory of how these sheets made their way online.