So after doing some research on things that people have sent me/ I already know about. It seems like on the surface level what we're trying to do is already being done, and in a couple cases, I have to say it's being done well.

For example:

Reddit: Someone above (I believe wallysmith) mentioned reddit and reddit subpages. They do a great job of capturing some of the magic we have on these boards on a larger scale. Then with things like their AMAs have something exclusive that keeps the community engaged. The aggregate content and dont really create any of their own though.

Deadspin: http://deadspin.com/ Kind of the OG we've already talked about them. They write their own pieces, have actual journalists write, have done some investigative reporting and broken big stories. They have a huge fanbase and community interaction. How are we going to be different/better? Decent design, but too much clutter.

Shadow League http://theshadowleague.com/: Kind of a Black grantland. Cover sports, pop culture. Editor used to be at Slam. Some decent pieces but nothing spectacular. Not a lot of fan interaction. Not a design I like


Sports on Earth http://www.sportsonearth.com/: Lots of "real" journalists contribute here. Kinda boring. Nothing really stands out to me. I'd hate to have all invest in time and end up like this. But they do have a wie range of content...and yea I hate the design. Looks like it was designed by 55 year old guys trying to think what would be cool to 20-30 year olds--which is essentially what the site is.

The Classical: http://theclassical.org/ MY Favorite of the bunch. Could see myself spending time here if it wasnt for OKP . Comes across as genuine and speaks more to people in our demographic. Really good ideas for features--although not always expertly executed like their Why we watch series which highlights and breaks down one aspect of a player's game:
http://theclassical.org/tags/why-we-watch
They cover wrestlinga nd a bunch of other sports---not huge fan interaction. Again, overall I dig the design.

Then of course is the Monster SB Nation:
This is kind of the corporate overlord of this world (if you dont count Grantland). They stay pretty sports focused but have gobbled up different bloggers for basically any team/sport that has a following here. In some ways Brilliant...but i think whats lost is that you can tell the bloggers arent connected and are were just for the most part put together when they got swallowed into the belly of the beast and were slosshing around in stomach acid together. Lots of fan interaction. Boring--corporate design

Lastly there's Grantland which I think steers too much on pop culture for what I want to do. But i do think there are some salvageable ideas from the site.

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This isnt meant so much as discouragement but rather a challenge. We have to think outside the box. I already has some wheels turning, but I want to see if what I'm thinking coincides with anyone else.

I do really believe in the talent on this site but I think there are some questions we have to consider:

1a) Are we happy maintaining this site for our little circle + extended family/friends or do we wanna think BIG- globally.

1b) If so or not who is our target audience?

2a) What content are we going to provide thats different from above sites?

2b) How are we different? Not just content wise, but in our culture and tone.

I want to answer this one briefly. I think we have more diversity: of both ideas and ethnic/racial diversity that we have to embrace. Someone mentioned above but talking about race, cism, and sport is part of what we do he on OKS, and it should be maintained in any avenue we have going fwd. We shouldnt be shy about it.

As I investigate this more--I'm learning more about the power of Habit and routine in internet usage. Whats going to make somebody change their habit and routine and come to our site? When they get exactly what they THINK they want now? in their little internet bubbles?

Again this isnt a call to give up. Its actually exciting to me because its gotten me to really think creatively. I have one idea in particular that I need to figure out technically--but could be potentially groundbreaking.

Hate to post this on a Friday evening when the board is going more ghost--but id love to get some real feedback here. This will probably spawn a new post.