Joe Buck Took Issue With 'Clickbait' Stories About Drinking in the Booth
Joe Buck made a rare trip to Twitter in order to defend himself against what he felt was clickbait related to a story he shared on Colin Cowherd's podcast about having a drink while calling a game. Having written about that exact topic on Tuesday, I was a bit worried that I had been the one to upset Joe Buck.
My bosses at FOX have not said a word to me about it. They know how dedicated I/we are, and how hard we work and how much we care about EVERY WORD that comes out of our mouths. Most of all they trust us. For those three hours and through all the prep NOTHING is more important.
— Joe Buck (@Buck) February 18, 2021
So far that doesn't seem to be the case. Buck specifically alluded to a story on NJ.com with the title, "Joe Buck: Troy Aikman and I sometimes had a drink or 2 while broadcasting NFL games." Based on the stories from other publications, it must have been the "or 2" part that he didn't like.
well it is just another reminder that journalism is indeed dying and clickbait rules the day. Please listen to the podcast starting at the 5 minute mark and let me know where I said that. I didn't. I am 51, not 15. I believe I am old enough to understand what a drink is.
— Joe Buck (@Buck) February 18, 2021
The crazy part is, both our story and the NJ.com story were probably only written because of an email pitching this exact story which The Volume found interesting enough for a social media breakout.
The secret to a relaxing broadcast? @Buck shares what has worked for him. pic.twitter.com/ODvhkuYZj1
— The Volume (@TheVolumeSports) February 15, 2021
I received the email pitching the drinking story on Monday night. On Tuesday morning I wrote a post using the quote and video with the title "Joe Buck Told Colin Cowherd About Drinking in the Broadcast Booth." Sharing Buck's story, which again, he himself had shared with Cowherd, I used the words "moderation" and "inspiring." I honestly hope that if Buck did or does see my story about his story, he wouldn't be upset. I really did appreciate what he was trying to convey.
Whether or not he does see the article here, we can still talk about whether or not he got upset about actual clickbait. Did I think my article would get traffic because Buck drinking in the booth is something people would click? Yes. Did the article do decent traffic because I was right? Yes. Did I let "drinking" do a lot of heavy lifting in my headline without explicitly saying something? There's that line.
I want people to click and read and it is an interesting tidbit, which is why a PR person set it out in the first place. It's the exact kind of thing that might make someone think Cowherd is getting people like Buck to loosen up and tell some stories people haven't heard before.
We share things like this and if we misconstrue it or take it out of context, someone will get upset. NJ.com put a number on the story. A bunch of other sites instead focused on Buck and Aikman drinking tequila. (Take note that liqueurs just don't get clicks.) Would Buck lump our story and the others in the same clickbait category? I hope not.
All I can do is try to find more things that will draw people to this website. Like this story about someone taking issue with a story similar to a story I wrote. Joe Buck will definitely be in the headline. I want people to want to click on this. And if Buck is one of them, I hope this was all accurate. If it is, maybe I'll pitch it to another site.