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Prank or hoax? Jordan Walden victim of fake interview
October 1st, 2009, 1:31 pm · 143 Comments · posted by Sam Miller, The Orange County Register
A week ago, I posted an excerpt of an interview with Jordan Walden at an Angels fan site. Walden’s answers were bold and confident. He boasted of the time he “completely dominated” his opponent in a playoff game. He said he would “absolutely not” convert to relief pitching if it were his best route to the majors. He professed love for sausage and eggs. “I can’t go without my sausage and eggs.”
The answers were out of character for the quiet Walden. “That’s not how he talks at all,” said Phil Elson, the voice of Walden’s Double-A Arkansas Travelers.
He doesn’t, and he didn’t. “I never said any of that stuff,” Walden told me by email yesterday. It appears that Walden’s Facebook page was breached, and that he and AngelsWin.com were victims of either a prank or a hoax.
Here’s what seems to have happened:
In March 2008, Chuck Richter — the executive editor of AngelsWin.com — sent Walden an interview request through Facebook. The pitcher agreed, but his answers were short. Richter decided not to run the interview, and he emailed Walden. “I said, ‘You’re probably busy right now, hit me up when you have some time.’”
Last Thursday, at about 4 a.m., Richter got an email from Walden. It had come from Walden’s Facebook account, the same (real) account through which he and Richter had communicated before. No reason to be suspicious. Walden told Richter he was getting back to him on the previous interview request, and invited Richter to send his questions along. Richter reworked the questions, sent them along, and got a long and detailed reply. He ran the interview (you can see it here) on AngelsWin’s blog.
On Tuesday, I got an anonymous email saying the interview was fake. “I know for a fact,” the guy told me. I emailed Walden, who told me the interview wasn’t him, and who contacted his agent, who contacted Richter.
“He went on to say Jordan is a quiet guy, and I brought up the interview that he did a year ago and (the agent) said ‘Yeah, that’s Jordan Walden. Really shy guy, hates doing interviews, kind of an introvert.’ We came to the conclusion that his Facebook got hacked,” Richter said.
By whom? Richter wonders whether it was a teammate, playing a trick on his buddy. Or one particular Walden-obsessed fan, orchestrating a hoax to fool the fan site.
The interview was removed from this site this week. It has shaken Richter — who has expanded AngelsWin to include some credentialed reporting at the stadium this year.
“All our interviews are legitimate,” he says. “Now comes the task of me trying to let everybody know that, Hey, this one was bogus.”
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You would think that the site that posted the fake interview would at least inform its visitors that the interview was fake (regardless of reason why) so they don’t think they had read an actual interview with Walden previously.
It’s one thing to get hoaxed or pranked but its another to just sweep it under the rug as though it never happened. No doubt there are fans out there who read that interview who have no clue that it wasn’t Walden’s words.
they have
I found this comment on another website, and it’s quite telling to say the least
“One thing I find interesting though, Chuck says he found out on Tuesday the interview was fake and removed all evidence of it from AW (the interview and 2 threads), and then says he’s been too sick to retract or mention he made a mistake. He said he planned on writing something today (Friday). Yet, since Tuesday he’s posted or commented over 31 times (including one long post pimping their t-shirts) on AW. It looks to me was trying to erase the evidence and hope no one noticed or found out. It wasn’t until the truth came out he decided to talk about it.”
Chuck was too sick to let his readers know that the interview was a fake, but he wasn’t too sick to be doing all of that other stuff? RIGHT.
Check out this comment on HalosHeaven.com that Stephen Smith (futureangels.com) wrote:
I read your post that you had a lawyer deal with Richter because he was stealing from your site.
He was doing the same with me.
When he started his sites AngelsWin.com and RotoAmerica.com, he asked if he could use my materials on his sites. I said no, one reason being that I lose control over my work if I give digital copies to someone.
He asked for my advice on how to run his sites. I made it very strongly clear that he needed to educate himself on digital copyright law, and referred him to the Electronic Frontier Foundation (www.eff.org) as an excellent reference.
Then he goes on the ESPN fan board and tells people I tried to charge him “big $$$” for my photos, which was a lie, and starts to smear my reputation.
Time passes. I noticed he was lifting photos and text from my site to post on his own, without permission or even attribution.
I e-mailed him and said this violated copyright law. He said it was a “one-time accident” and would remove the content.
Then it happened again. And again.
Finally, I told him that if it happened one more time I was going to take legal action. Sure enough, the next day he lifts another photo, cuts off the copyright watermark at the bottom, and uses it on his site.
I looked up his hosting service and sent them an e-mail. I wrote that if they didn’t stop the repeated copyright violations I was going to sue them. I sent it to abuse@whateverthedomainwas.com, don’t remember the name and didn’t really expect a reply.
Three days later, I got an e-mail from a lawyer. He said the hosting service was a subsidiary of Richter’s employer. Richter had talked them into giving him free space on the company server so he could run an Angels fan site. Apparently they didn’t monitor his activities.
The lawyer said that when they asked Richter about my complaint, he said it was … wait for it … a “one-time accident.”
I told the lawyer this was a lie, and sent him all the e-mails I’d exchanged with Richter.
The lawyer apologized and said they’d take care of it.
Almost immediately, Richter is on the ESPN board claiming I’d somehow found where he worked, called his boss and tried to get him fired!
Which, of course, was just another lie.
Apparently he got in trouble for lying to his employers about his activities.
Time passed. I noticed that he was bragging on the ESPN board that he’d figured out a way around the company firewall so he could goof off all day long. How brilliant is that to know they’re monitoring you yet you brag about goofing off?
And then one day he pleaded with his buddies for help finding a new job out ot state. So my guess is they fired him.
A few months after my incident, I received an e-mail from a friend who writes for Baseball America. They’d come across Richter’s sites and were mightily pissed to find he’d been copying their photos and articles to pass off as his own. I gave my friend Richter’s e-mail address. He e-mailed Richter and was told it was … wait for it … a “one-time accident.”
The writer told me BA was going to send Richter a cease-and-desist order, although I don’t know if that ever happened.
Regarding this latest incident, I suspect Richter simply fabricated the interview. Over the years, as Richter published interviews, I’ve asked a couple players if they granted the interview or said what was in the article. They said no. I’ve told this to the Register reporter who exposed the Walden interview. Hopefully, he’ll contact other Angels supposedly “interviewed” by Richter and find out whether those were fabricated too.
As you noted in the thread, the standard procedure for an interview request is to go through Media Relations. Since Richter claims to have an intimate relationship with Tim Mead — Richter was online bragging the day that Nick Adenhart died he’d been praying on the phone with Mead — so it would seem he’d have no problem lining up an interview through proper channels.
The suggestion that Richter was the victim of a prank, that Facebook was somehow hacked, seems rather implausible, especially given his past track record of prevarication. Occam’s Razor should apply here — the simplest explanation is probably the true one.
And let’s not forget that the Register exposed AngelsWin.com peddling bootleg Nick Adenhart T-shirts earlier this year shortly after Nick died. Richter claimed he had nothing to do with it, even though it was being sold through his site.
You have my permission to post the above in your thread on this matter if you wish.
Stephen Smith
FutureAngels.com
————–
Chuck is a liar and a thief? What a surprise. And he calls himself a Christian! Can anyone say “fraud?”
“Regarding this latest incident, I suspect Richter simply fabricated the interview. Over the years, as Richter published interviews, I’ve asked a couple players if they granted the interview or said what was in the article. They said no. I’ve told this to the Register reporter who exposed the Walden interview. Hopefully, he’ll contact other Angels supposedly “interviewed” by Richter and find out whether those were fabricated too.”
You know what to do, Sam.
FYI- The Angels are the first team in MLB histiry to have 11 players with 50 or more RBI’S in one season…WOW!!
This is why all FutureAngels.com interviews are audio and/or video. No one can claim they’re fabricated. Well, they can, but they’d be liars.
Hmmm… I’ve never heard of you or your website. Perhaps you should consider self-promoting it some more.
It was obviously a prank. Titanic? Sausage and eggs? Hanky? That son of a gun? It was obvious from the get-go.
AngelsWin.com should be blamed for this, though. Interviewing a player through facebook? Come on. How unprofessional and irresponsible is that? Walden could’ve given out his passwords over the years to many people. This was an obvious prank.
AngelsWin should apologize immediately for unprofessionally posting a fake interview.
I doubt that’s going to happen! They’ve known for a few days now evidently but nary a word on their website.
Amusingingly, what I did see when I just looked over there was a story written by one of them that begins, ” After clinching the American League Title for the 5th time in 6 years…” And here I thought it was the West we had won and that we haven’t won an AL title since ‘02. Learn something new everyday.
Then the statement, “Scioscia told the team that the victory belonged as much to them as it did to Nick Adenhart.” Shouldn’t that be the other way around?
But best of all is the comment posted under yesterday’s box score on the top-right side of the home page: “Weaver, the winning pitcher in the Angels’ first game after Adenhart’s death, was presented with the inaugural Nick Adenhart Award as the team’s pitcher of the year.” That was cut-and-pasted from the Notes section of the AP game recap story. Not good to not attribute other people’s work!
And they get credentials? Amazing!
Seriously. What a mess.
Also, now we know that Chuck pesters players through facebook into giving him an interview. That’s really laughable. At least Stephen Smith does his intervies in person. Chuck? All through facebook. Makes one wonder whether some of his other interviews are fake as well.
That isn’t what the article says. And the comment under the boxscore is a wdiget linked to an article. What’s the point of lying LIU?
You just now looking at it? It’s been fixed. And I wasn’t even thanked for proofreader the story. Maybe that’s because I pointed out the plagairism.
Don’t call me a liar. It was there plain as day.
Maybe Facebook isn’t the best way to do interviews.
I prefer Face-to-Face.
But I’m old school.
How about twitter, Bill? I hear it’s a fine medium!
Yeah, if your attention span doesn’t exceed 140 often-mispelled characters.
Exactly. Who interviews a player through facebook and doesn’t expect that something like this could happen? Really unprofessional, Chuck Richter.
If Walden hated doing interviews before, he certainly will now.
But if no one else is going to apologize, I will: We regret, and apologize for, the bogus Jordan Walden interview that appeared on our web site. It damages our credibility when we link or make a reference to stories or interviews that come from unaccountable sources. We will make every effort to see this doesn’t happen again.
Makes one wonder how (and why) AngelsWin got a press pass to begin with. Good Lord. This is embarrassing.
Ouch…good point.
Tim Mead must be embarrassed. This is an embarrassing situation for the Angels. I wouldn’t be surprised if AW doesn’t get anymore press passes. They simply lack credibility. This is proof. They don’t have any credentials whatsoever. Also, what I noticed is that their site owner will do and say anything to try to get on top. Kissing Tim Mead’s ass in articles shows how hard he tries. All he wants is a job with the Angels, and he will say or do anything to try to get it.
Too late. They’ve been granted press credentials for playoff games. Keep crying though, it makes you look great.
Good .They do a great job and get fantastic pictures.
It is embarasing, but hardly an excuse to impeach an entire blog/website. Seems like a bit of piling on here by a rival. Really no more signifigant for credibility than posting godawful foul mouthed youtube videos. The guy got burned, he owned up to it, let’s move on…
” The guy got burned, he owned up to it…”
I don’t see he’s owned up to anything. More like swept it under the rug.
Anyone with any integrity would have immediately made it known what had happened. Why would you let days pass letting your readers think they had read a legitimate interview?
It’s because he was hoping it would simply die out. He was hoping none of it would be made public. He didn’t want his members and the Angels to know any of this, so he didn’t say a word.
Now, he’s forced to think of what to say. You can bet that he’s scrambling.
Pestering players through facebook into giving you an interview is embarrassing. I mean, who does that? Posting a fake interview that you got from facebook is beyond embarrassing.
What does the Rev video have to do with this? And don’t even compare the two.
It’s been a few days now. Chuck never apologized. He never informed his members that the interview was a fake. I bet that he was hoping this would simply go away so he doesn’t have to take responsibility for it.
For the record …
There’s a standard procedure for requesting a player interview. You go through Media Relations.
Down in the minors, you go through the affiliate’s media relations. I’ve been around a long time, so most of the players know me and I can just walk up and request an interview.
It’s not only the way professionals do it, but it assures that you’re actually getting the person you want to interview. It’s also respectful of the player’s time. They get a lot of demands for their time, when they need to focus on baseball and their personal lives.
Even though the interview with Jordan Walden was a hoax, AW still has some good reading material in their website. Just stay away from their message board, there are some annoying characters who are full of themselves there.
Right. I’m not piling on AW at all. I’m sure Chuck feels bad enough. We just have to be more careful to whom we link, because that becomes our property, too.
Since when do 3rd-party external links become property of the OC Register?
Big deal. It doesn’t say the interview was done thru Facebook , just that Walden was contacted thru FB.
Sounds like a bunch of irrelevant petty rivals trying to puff their chests out now.
So, Stephen, why aren’t you granted a press credentials?
It’s not that he got punked by someone it’s that when he found out he had been punked he failed to make full disclosure. That’s important to do.
I see that he has now posted an explanation on his message board. But really, the delay was because he was sick? He wasn’t too sick to peddle his own shirts this morning:
http://www.angelswin.com/forum/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=27415&posts=5&start=1
And I also see that he’s removed the plagairized notes taken from a published AP story. Wonder if he will offer explanation or just deny that it was done?
lol That time of the month? Who the F cares?
We’re in the playoffs!
Wow. Seems like the same few people piling on here. Hope it makes you feel better so you can run back to your nondescript message boards and pat each other on the back.
Have at it ladies
This is a hoot, I would not be surprised is someone from HH was the one to hack Walden’s account.
To lightitup, you’ve become bitter in the last couple of years.
Bitter? Why wouldn’t I be bitter? I’ve been called a liar (long before the accuisition above) and disparaged too often not to be bitter. There’s never been any effort to correct wrongs or apologize for comments so, yes, I’m bitter. And I’m loving that Chuck is showing his true character. It’s something I’ve seen all along but he does a damn good job of kissing up to the right people.
This is the perfect example of how it’s been all along. Forget the message, attack the messenger. Because if you don’t like the messenger, the message simply doesn’t matter.
Don’t like being disparaged, try honesty
Why not be bitter? How about because you are a grown man and this is so trivial? I bet your blood pressure is at an all-time high right now, isn’t it? Don’t you have more important things to do in your life?
Never mind. We all know the answer to that question.
Use your AW user name here, so LIU knows who you are and he can criticize you right back.
LIU is just bitter because he couldn’t take AW calling him out on his lack of knowledge and his lies.
Wow, more bitter than I thought. I have no idea what lies you are talking about and I can guarantee you that you aren’t an item of discussion on AW, ever.
As far as the message, yeah, its a bummer, its a mistake, Chuck got fooled. One has to ask, however, who had the motivation to do such a thing. Funny how nobody is asking that question, instead they are all piling on the victim of a hoax.
It’s not that he got punked by someone it’s that when he found out he had been punked he failed to make full disclosure. That’s important to do.
I’m sure you don’t understand that or even care to understand that.
I see that he has now posted an explanation on his message board. But really, the delay was because he was sick? He wasn’t too sick to peddle his own shirts this morning, was he?
No, he didn’t want to inform his readers that what they read was bogus. He would rather they go on thinking they had actually read a real interview than post a simple disclosure as if it would embarass him? THIS is the embarrassment.
But I guess it’s the same reason he cuts-and-pastes AP game recaps rather than writting his own. It’s simply not that hard to write a game recap.
uh that wasn’t him peddling the shirts. Perhaps you should take a step back. You don’t have the facts, you don’t know what you’re talking about. you’re making stuff up and lying. How pathetic are you, good grief!
Wow, you’re 2 for 2 on these “lying” charges. You really need to be sure of yourself before calling someone a liar. The link is in a post above.
It was someone else’s article and link he posted but I hadn’t seen that.
The rest of this unfolded later in the day including the verification of the false interview and notification to Sam and others was made promptly and it was also quickly removed. You don’t know the facts. You don’t know how everything came down and when.
Fact remains that you called me a liar without knowing that he had indeed made a post this morning. And you just backtrack. As is the norm.
I love it when Tim gets his panties in a bunch. You’re about the only one who cares, Tim.
LIU, Chuck didn’t try to “hide” anything. You and I have known each other long enough, and this isn’t the first time pranks like this have been played as you know. Angelswin took a hit and got embarassed a little. But nobody was trying to “hide” anything once the mistake was discovered.
Unfortunately, as a high profile Angel fan site, Angelswin is going to continue to attract attention, and some of that is going to be unwanted. It is a fairly young site and learning as it goes along. The people behind it and participating in it are top-notch and earnest Angel fans.
Yes, because you know this. You speak for Chuck and are aware of what he was and wasn’t trying. Get lost, shill.
Chuck knew it was a fake interview for days. He chose to say NOTHING. He could’ve immediately let his members know it was a fake interview. He did not. As LIU said, he swept it under the rug.
In fact, Chuck took down the interview a few days ago. He knew it was a fake interview. He just chose to say NOTHING. Bad move, Chuck.
Is that you nugs?
Nugs? What? No.
There’s nothing left to be said. Some folks have been going after AW and many of its members for a long time now. That’s what happens when you are #1 and all part of the territory, as unfortunate as it is.
Those trying to make more of it than it is can keep trying, I guess. Different strokes, as they say.
LOL. That’s rich. Self proclaimed #1 fans. Again a serious LOL post there Vic. Keep em coming.
Nobody expects to be constantly hacked and harassed, so there’s that. Like I said, A-#1 is always going to be the target. The error was most likely just in realizing too late how far some would go or how much time they would devote to such a strange endeavor.
Chuck was exposed. Deal with it. He also chose to not say anything for days while knowing that his interview was a fake. He took down threads on his board and the blog post. He never said a word. He chose now to say something after the OCR made it public. That’s disgusting.
He’s an amateur and should be regarded as such. The OCR made a terrible mistake thinking he’s a professional. They posted his fake interview and now their credibility is questioned. That is terrible. They learned their lesson, and I’m sure they won’t make this mistake ever again.
Buh-bye, AW.
Dell Gue to Jeremiah Johnson: “Most Injun’s tribe’s greatness is figured on how great his enemies be…”
I will admit, AW’s greatness does not lie in the quality of its enemies for sure. But one doesn’t always get to pick one’s enemies, especially when based on jealousy or spite.
“You have enemies? Good. That means you’ve stood up for something, sometime in your life.” - Winston Churchill
Sorry, Vic, but those quotes simply don’t apply.
How many times and for how long have you seen the words “45-year old batboy” used to disparage Stephen Smith on angelswin? It sure caught on, didn’t it? It’s become an official term for him over there. People are told angelswin hates Stephen so everyone follows in line and hates on him whenever his name comes up.
Look at the RevHaloFan video. Sure, it was amateurish and stupid. But did it deserve the hate that was spewed one post after the other all day long? It was almost like people thought it was their duty to step up and throw a few rocks in the public stoning. Someone from angelswin posted a link to the thread on the OMB thinking we’d help pile on. But it had just a few comments. Mostly along the lines of, “eh, so what… it’s youtube.”
I saw in a thread at angelswin that was discussing the summer fanfest where it was noted that some people from other tailgates came over to hear and see Tim Mead. They were referred to as “straphangers” and the feeling was “how dare the uncool fans try to horn into the cool fan’s action.
Last year Chuck came over to the Official Message Board and posted his “resume” listing all the things he’s done in obvious attempt to recruit. In his resume he listed that he was the “voice of the fans” during the name change trial going on and on as he does with everything. Being he was on my home turf I took it upon myself to correct him. You know as well as anyone that I was at the trial everyday giving detailed reports of everything that happened every day. I talked every day with the reporters from the Times, the Register, KSPN, USAToday and they read my reports. Even the lawyers read my reports. I had questions from fans every night about what was going on. I heard they even posted some of my reports on angelswin and halosheaven. I thought it was cool that my reports were being shared.
So, yes, I thought it wrong for him to claim such a title. And what happened when I said so? I was disparaged, I was simply “butthurt” (another word that caught on with the angelswin faithful). Not a word of recognition because all recognition is his after all.
No, Vic, most often there’s a reason someone makes an enemy. There’s an air over there of hate toward those who aren’t part of the gang. And there’s nothing done to quell it. It’s actually encouraged.
Until he recognizes that we are ALL Angel fans and treats them with respect it’s going to continue just like this.
This “prank” goes way past that, LIU. You know for a fact that I had reservations going over to AW. You and I discussed it. This is getting completely off the subject, but this is nothing more than a political move on the part of some and a dirty on at that. The Fairy Godmother didn’t pose as Walden. There was a purpose and knowing you, I think you will admit, it was a foul purpose.
You may have your reasons to dislike Angelswin. I saw a lot of the same things you did. But the events you have described (like calling Stephen “the 45-year old batboy”, etc.) were message board posts on an open forum. It’s not like there was a campaign to bury or humiliate him by hacking into his board member’s accounts constantly or hacking into Angel players’ accounts and posing as them to embarass him with a fake interview.
As far as I am concerned, you were and are always welcome wherever and whenever. You are a fair man. Something very wrong happened here and it wasn’t just an isolated incident and is occurring with more regularity now that Angelswin has become more popular.
We get it, he got pranked. But you continue to miss the point. He conducted an interview on facebook. That is laughable. No true professional would ever do something like that. Everyone is laughing at Chuck over this. He pestered players on facebook for an interview. Is that being a professional to you? Chuck fooled everyone with that interview. He fooled the OCR, who took a hit with credibility because of it. It’s not the first time he conducted interviews on facebook. That’s amateurish and ridiculous. Chuck is an amateur. It was an unverified interview, and the OCR went with it. Oops. Big mistake.
And don’t you blame HH, Rev or anyone else for this mess. There is no damn conspiracy. Nobody is out to get Chuck. Walden’s roommate could’ve pranked Walden. One of his teammates could’ve been in on it. It was an obvious prank. Did you see the answers? It was a prank. There is no conspiracy. Nobody was out to get Chuck. Chuck is just a victim of his own stupidity and amateurism. No professional would ever conduct on an interview on facebook to get himself in that situation in the first place. Just don’t make up excuses or come up with BS conspiracy theories to defend Chuck. We know you have motivation to do so, being his friend, but just give it a rest.
uh Meh, he didn’t conduct the interview on Facebook
Yes, he did.
If your job is to troll and/or defend AngelsWin, stop. You’re giving them a bad name. You’re not doing them any favors.
Wow, amazing the lengths people will go through to misrepresent facts to suit their agenda.
you calling me a troll is sweet irony
You’re obviously a troll. This will be my last reply to you. Good day.
here you go, facts from the article:
Richter got an email from Walden. It had come from Walden’s Facebook account, the same (real) account through which he and Richter had communicated before. No reason to be suspicious. Walden told Richter he was getting back to him on the previous interview request, and invited Richter to send his questions along. Richter reworked the questions, sent them along, and got a long and detailed reply. He ran the interview (you can see it here) on AngelsWin’s blog.
Not an interview on Facebook as you claim. He didn’t pester players for interviews, more lies. He didn’t purposely fool anyone, he was duped himself, but that doesn’t fit your agenda so more lies. The swarming to attack Chuck and AW is juvenile. He made an error in judgment by not being suspicious enough of a contact that had been previously verified as legit, He got duped with the interview. He admitted it, removed the article and notified others of the mistake. That’s all this but you would think there was some huge egregious act carried out by Chuck or AW based on many of the agenda driven comments here.
He sent the questions through Facebook. Whoever responded sent it through Walden’s account. He conducted an interview over facebook. That’s what happened.
Chuck also interviewed O’Day and Butcher over facebook. He adds players over facebook. Then he pesters them into giving him an interview by promoting his website. That’s laughable.
Instead of going through the proper channels (because he’s not a professional), he gets some of his interviews in this way. And makes himself an open target for a prank.
Chuck has no credibility whatsoever. He is not a professional. He is just some fan with a website.
Oh, so you came back for one more comment, are you leaving now?
Nothing wrong with adding players via Facebook. He isn’t nor has he been pestering any of them no matter how many times you want to insist otherwise. Again, the interview was a mistake, he owned up to it. Lesson learned.
Yea, there is nothing wrong with adding players and pestering them for an interview over facebook…..for an amateur.
more? continuing your erroneous banter? carry on then, it says much more about you than it does about Chuck
Nothing more needs to be said about this. Good night. :)
nice embellishment. it just never ends with you. such a persecution complex and then defending yourself (I guess) with extensive hyperbole. sad.
speaking of not deserving of the hate that has been spewed all day and stepping up and throwing rocks at the public stoning, have you looked in the mirror?
Here’s the facts regarding the “Voice of the Fans” comments:
Chuck was contacted via email by KNX 1070 twice to do live interviews and THEY called him “the voice of the fans” He was also interviewed by the Times, the Washington Post and AP which was carried on ESPN as well as other sites. Here’s a link to the ESPN article: http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/wire?section=mlb&id=2286482
Chuck wasn’t touting himself as the “voice of the fans” as you stated and are apparently put off by since you at the trial every day etc. Sounds like you’re upset you didn’t get that moniker of press exposure because you think you deserved it more. But rather than be truthful about what was said, you’re trying to disparage Chuck and AW by falsely related the posts.
hold on guys… imma let you finish, but Clifford Irving had one of the best hoaxes of all time!
Irving at least had a sane reason for doing so: money. Those who employ, condone, or excuse the behavior of the dangerously mentally ill to serve an even more petty purpose however don’t even have that to fall back upon.
Boy, why is there so much anger here? Jordan Walden’s agent wasn’t this upset. I will post this and leave. I’m not getting involved in the back and forth nonsense here.
For the record:
I feel badly about this. I apologize to the Orange County Register and its loyal readers and to Jordan Walden first and foremost.
We took down the Blog article Tuesday night after I was notified by Walden’s agent.
I spoke to Sam Miller today and told him the story, you’ve read it so I don’t need to rehash it. I posted it on our message board also late this afternoon. I was scheduled to post an announcement tomorrow on our website for all of the visitors and members who read the Walden interview, but after reading this here I decided to get something out there now. I did let our writers and contributors know well before that. Combined with battling a severe case of the flu and finalizing a press release from our website about the Walden Q&A, I targeted tomorrow for the date to post it. Anyhow…..
Lesson learned as far as doing an interview through a website such as Facebook, or unverified, ever again.
Most of our interviews are conducted via phone through the Angels or in person, if not a live chat with invite from email only..
Scott Kazmir in Seattle a day before his 1st Angel start
http://angelswinblog.blogspot.com/2009/09/angelswincom-at-yard-kazmir-has-rhythm.html
Matt Palmer on the field
http://angelswinblog.blogspot.com/2009/08/angelswincom-q-with-matt-palmer.html
GM Tony Reagins twice in Tony’s office at Angel Stadium
In Mesa, AZ in Tony Reagins office before he was GM of the Angels.
Brandon Wood, Kevin Jepsen and Sean Rodriguez.
Dennis Kuhl, Dino Ebel, Ron Roenicke and Abe Flores were all contacted by phone through the Angels. All of which can be found on our Blog.
Some of the prospect interviews were setup from the parents or family members of the club who contacted me via email or from our message board. I asked them if we could coordinate an interview with them, they said yes, so we did.
Chris Pettit, Hank Conger, Matt Sweeney, Shane Loux, Peter Bourjos and Mark Trumbo were contacted through Facebook from me (not pestered as one person mentioned) sometime after they added me as “a friend” and they all verified it was indeed them after linking them to the Blog feature thereafter. I’m still friends with these players with the exception of Shane Loux who decided to leave Facebook a while back. The prospects are appreciative of what we do, getting the word out to the fans about the Baseball and personal side of the future Halos. We’re a website of the fans, by the fans, for the fans after all.
Pettit and Trumbo agreed to doing another one last fall for us when they both played on the same team in the Arizona Fall League:
Brok Butcher’s brother and former Angel Darren O’Day’s dad are readers of our message board and Blog, so we had those interviews with setup through them.
Both of these guys also did a journal for our Blog a while back which was a huge hit with the fans.
After the Angels granted us a press credential this year we’ve conducted our interviews in person or via the phone through the Angels only. This is the method of which we’ll continue to use going forward. Because we’ve legitimized past Facebook Q&A’s with the prospects mentioned above in the past, I figured it was OK to use Walden’s reply Q&A to me for our Blog. I figured wrong, for that I apologize.
Currently I’m working with Facebook and the authorities to track the IP address of who took over Jordan’s account last Thursday when the message was sent to me.
Be that as it may. We’re looking forward to the Boston Red Sox vs Angels in October………
Respectfully,
Chuck Richter
AngelsWin.com
LOL at contacting the authorities Chuckles.
Just figured after all the flame wars here, I’d jump in with this little nugget.
WHO THE !@#$(*!@# Cares?!? Sour grapes from one site versus another site. The Angels blogs are SO cliquey!
wait, WTF AM I TALKING ABOUT?
I blog. Nobody reads it. Its ok, it’s for me and a few friends. and anyone else? SWEET.
I don’t have to get into a lame ass hidden agenda “hiding behind bogus names” flame war.,
Didn’t include my website on purpose btw.
Someone messed with someone. Someone fell for it. Someone made amends. Sure, it wasn’t great. Sure it sucks, but welcome to the digital age. GET OVER IT
Go Support you HALOS…not your agendas.
Great comments. One has to question the motives of someone from a “rival” Angels blog/message board in the first place to go to those weird and creepy lengths. Angelwin is run by fans (”An Angels Web site of the fans, by the fans, for the fans”). Nobody is getting paid there. It would be more understandable if someone actually had money as a motive. Instead….it’s just a creepy obsession.
didn’t you fake your own death to get sympathy?
Yes he did.
Vic, that’s not true. The blog is a cash register, regardless of how much it generates, it makes a sale everytime someone visits it. Why do you think there are threads everyday asking you to vote in some silly poll on blog? Isn’t it easier to just ask the poll question in the thread itself!
no profit is being made and no one is getting paid
By the way, I challenge the OC REGISTER to assure us that these comments are coming from separate IP addresses. I bet Chuck Richter is creating multiple user accounts here to send up smokescreens and accusations after being outed as an amateur.
Wow, grasping for straws now….
I hope they accept your challenge and prove you a fool
What is your screen name on AW because you sure are defending it a lot. Why attack LIU? He is posting the Truth.
What is your name on AW because you sure are defending it? Why the Attack on LIU, he speaks the truth. You must be a Mod over there.
To the comment contributor known as “Heh”…
Somebody else may or may not be out to embarrass Chuck, but you sure seem to be posting in this thread with a definite purpose and passion.. This, of course, is true of quite a few people discussing this here, myself included. I’m here to question your motives.
You’re responsible for about 20% of the comments in response to the story at this point in time. That’s mighty impressive. I suppose you’d be just another disinterested party if not for your fervent love of the profession that is journalism. You obviously have no angle here, you’re just fighting for what’s right involving a baseball blog and fan site. I’m suuuuure that’s the case.
Chuck and other members of the site (myself included) are clearly embarrassed by what has happened and there is absolute resolve to make sure that it doesn’t happen again. It sucks to get burned like that and we will learn from it and grow. What has you so worked up about this situation involving a site that currently caters to a small sub-percentage of the millions of Angels fans out there? It’s rather puzzling.
Whoever you may be, you are fairly transparent in your posting and are clearly driving some kind of personal agenda. If you’re going to call on the Register to check IPs to find evidence supporting your accusation that a Chuck is spamming the conversation, you might at least want to reveal who you are via affiliation and what’s driving you.
Of course, that’s not likely to happen, is it?
(and the Register is absolutely free to quintuple check my IP and verify that it’s not the same as Chuck’s if they like)
Thanks, Justin (angelswin.com discussion board moderator)
Uh oh. The AW board monitor is in the house. Everyone behave. This is truly LOL material. Get off the OCR and back to your dungeon, Monkey. Heh, is posting in the OCR not AW so take you moderator cap off, weirdo.
So if I’m reading this correctly. Heh and LOL are Rev Halofan from HalosHeaven.com and everyone else on the attack here are his disciples. The same guys who defended their reverend here when he slammed Steve Physioc. Got it. Nothing more to read here. Chuck already apologized to the OCR, Walden and his agent. He got pranked like Dan Patrick when he was with ESPN, big deal (The fake Steve Bartman call). Grow up dudes. If anything this makes AW.com even stronger as they continue to establish some of the finest Angels content features on the net….
Go Angels
I think we all know who this is. Could it be Chuck?
Wait, does that make me a conspiracy theorist now? :O
you should request OCR run an IP comparison again. have them run it on Heh and LOL while you’re at it. Hey, I’ll second the request.
Unless Chuck is using a proxy server, which I wouldn’t doubt. Who is Dennis Stinson, by the way? Which member is he on AW, do you know? Why does this guy talk exactly like Chuck? Hey, does that make me a conspiracy theorist? :O
right, just like Chuck, you’re so clever. why do you talk and act exactly like mat?
Heh is Mat .
It’s obvious.
Any more videos that get you banned from 830AM ?
This is unfortunate for not only Angelswin, but for all blogs and fan sites as both AW and Halos Heaven are looking to gain credibility within mainstream media.
As far I as I know, no member of Halos Heaven has had anything to do with this incident, nor the comments on this site. If anyone from HH plans to post comments here, please use your real name or your HH screen name, otherwise please don’t comment. Anonymous comments don’t help anyone.
Also, it’s been mentioned in a few comments about AW’s press credentials. The granting of the credentials was a huge boost to the credibility of blogs from the Angels organization. Halos Heaven hasn’t received press credentials simply because no one the HH staff has requested them other than myself. Tim Mead told me they would issue me press credentials, but I have yet to use them. Hopefully this incident with the prank interview doesn’t cause the Angels organization to rethink their policy on issuing credentials to blogs and fan sites.
A media credential is requested when a person needs access to a controlled area, e.g. the press box or camera well.
I have a drawer full of them, including Angels Stadium, but since I don’t go there any more (having moved to Florida) I really don’t need one.
A media credential doesn’t make someone a “big deal.” It’s just granting controlled access. I’ve seen plenty amateurs over the years granted credentials so they could shoot in the camera wells.
It doesn’t make someone a “professional,” either. Professional means you’re being paid money to perform the job, and/or it’s your business. I’m not a professional, other than I sell my photos from time to time. I don’t want anyone paying me, because then people question my motives. That includes accepting perks from the Angels or whatever organization I happen to be working with. I don’t ask for freebies, although if given I’ll probably accept it.
In any case, this is all very childish, which is why I checked out of these fan site wars a long time ago. I just go about my business. The Angels grant me access where and when needed, because I long ago established my credibility as a service-oriented web site. I’m doing the same now here in Florida. Some issue credentials, if warranted, others say just show up and we’ll let you in.
But I never, ever would fake an interview. As I said upstream, all my interviews are recorded and posted online. Most professional journalists audio tape and/or keep notes so if there’s ever a question about what was said, it’s documented. If you behave professionally, even if you’re not a professional, people will treat you like one.
I understand what you’re saying and agree. The only reason I mentioned credentials is I hope this incident doesn’t ruin it for the rest of us when we do need them. AW seems to like to mention the credentials a lot in order to look important and they’re the only blog able to get them. Tim Mead has told me the Angels would issue credentials to me, but I haven’t needed them yet. No one else from Halos Heaven has requested them. Hopefully they’ll still be available when needed.
BTW, thanks for the tip on Jepsen earlier this season. I appreciate you having my back on that.
Sam Miller wrote a blog a couple weeks back making it sound like AngelsWin.com was the first fan site to be issued credentials. I wrote him that I had credentials years ago, but Sam didn’t correct the story.
As for this ruining it for other fan sites … Well, I think the larger issue is *why* a fan site would be issued credentials. As I said, it’s either to do reporting or photography. It’s not to hang out. A fan site really isn’t going to add anything unique. None of us is going to get a scoop out of Mike Scioscia. The Register, Times, P-E, etc. are going to a much better job of coverage than we could possibly do.
When I started doing my thing many years ago, someone in Media Relations said, “We don’t know how to categorize you,” meaning am I a fan or a journalist, and also said, “We can’t control you because you don’t work for us,” meaning they couldn’t control the message.
That’s what bothers me about this fan site access, that there may be some sort of quid pro quo.
So my two cents’ worth is that fan sites should be able to arrange interviews through proper channels, but I really don’t see the need for press box or clubhouse access. A stronger argument could be made in the minors where I work, because coverage is so minimal. For example, I have the only video of Kendry Morales’ press conference before his first game, and the homer he hit in his first pro at-bat. No TV media bothered to show up. But what could a fan site possibly add that would justify being issued a credential for Kendry’s big-league debut? Nothing, really.
Besides, as I said, my niche is history, so I’m not really interested in the day-to-day stuff.
AW/HH hiding why not post with your screen names?
Who is bigtimefan, has to be AW mod? Gary Trent?
Heh? Both boards just look silly.
I agree with you, WeaverRocks. I visit both site, along with many others. Gary Trent is my real name. I doubt Heh and LOL are the other respondents real names. I have no idea whether or not btf posts under that name as i don’t really post on message boards. I just like the content about my favorite team. For mat to call out anyone after his disgusting video attempt is funny, however.
And Mark Whicker - after your embarrassing article about a rape victim, i woulnd’t be piling on anyone if i were you. In my opinion, you’re lucky to still have a job.
Always nice to hear from The Shaq of the MAC.
GO ANGELS!
You “men” are all acting like a bunch of whiny little girly-men.
The guy’s facebook page got hacked. It happens all the time because people are careless with their log in info. The hacker logged into a person’s account and had a little fun, this time at the expense of Chuck & Angelswin.
Chuck published this ‘interview’ putting HIS reputation on the line. Blaming anyone else (including Rev) is absolutely ludicrous. You *got pwn’d*. It would be the same as someone hacking a famous celebrity’s account and ‘granted interviews’ and someone published them. Credentials weren’t verified. End of story. (but really, through Facebook?)
Should Chuck have been a little more transparent in all this? yes
Should Chuck have owned up a little quicker? yes
Trying to pass the blame to someone from HH hacking the account is insanity. Chuck’s reputation got muddied and quite frankly, any more drama on ‘poor me’ is making it worse.
This whole melodramatic hatred between 2 sites that share the same love for the Angels is beyond me. You have your friends, we have ours. Personalities mesh on your site, they mesh on HH.
For a bunch of “men”, you are all acting like a bunch of spoiled prissy girls comparing clothes, makeup and jewelry and putting down whomever is ‘different’ to make yourselves feel better.
GROW THE HELL UP!! I’m sick of it.
Chuck f*ed up, finally admitted it and now let’s move on to get this team to the World Series. You aren’t the eternal victim always being picked on by Rev or anyone else. Own up to the mistakes and move on. You want to be a serious journalistic medium? Then go for it. But if you want to be taken seriously, you have to act serious.
and this is NOT the way.
I’m a liar???? You sure about that? Be really, really sure, okay. Vut it’s important to have integrity and know what you’re talking about. Are you sure I lied?
This is typical. You call me a liar without knowing the truth. Not like it’s the first time though. You guys are so blindly loyal you’ll just assume it can’t possibly be true. Should I never be “bitter” over having been called a liar once again?
Perhaps you should have first checked with any of the Register writers who commented in this discussion after I made my post and before the plagairism was removed. I’m betting at least one of them confirmed it.
You want to see the screenshot and continue to call me a liar?
Like I said, THIS is typical. YOU called me a liar without knowing for certain the facts.
You’re really making AW look good, BTF. Keep it up!
It’s the officical FORUM of the site you embecile. You stated, “his message board is labeled as “the official LA Angels site” “
That’s not what Chuck says and wants everyone else to believe, but nice try!
Have a nice day now. I’ll let you embarrass yourself.
Really Heh, so to whom does Chuck say this stuff to?
despite your obvious expertise in this matter, there’s more to this situation than you are aware of and there is an investigation underway. This breech is not an isolated incident. I’m sure you have nothing to worry about though.
Didn’t you say that Angelswin’s and Chuck’s reputation was damaged? Loss of reputation is considered damages in a court of law. I hope Chuck does pursue a lawsuit and get the records subpoenaed as to who (or whom) instigated this hoax. You sound like you don’t want that to happen….
Hmmm…..
Gahh! It’s a conspiracy!
Chuck is not an amateur, guys. Got he set up. Somebody is out to get him. There’s “more” to that situation! Did you hear that, guys? There’s more.
Are you serious?
He posted an interview that he conducted over facebook. An interview that wasn’t verified. He is responsible for getting pranked. IThe only person who can make a case here is Walden, and he wasn’t harmed in any way. No harm was done from what I can tell. Chuck’s amateurism and stupidity got him in this mess. He has nobody to blame but himself.
Conspiracy alert!
LOL. These AW guys are too much. Keep it up, it’s making you all look great and reinforces what the others are saying about this bush league site.
Conspiracy? You’re the only one spewing that strawman.
Then you have nothing to worry about and I don’t quite understand your obsessive interest in this. You seem to dismiss the actual perpetrator here. Someone who hacked into an Angels’ players personal Facebook account and e-mail. You really don’t seem to have any problem with someone who would do that, which is strange. Who instigated all of this? Chuck?
Why would you even try to make hay out of something so despicable? Why aid an obviously mentally ill person in this regard?
Why not just say that this was the act of someone who probably belongs in an Institution while at the same time saying that Chuck and AW made a mistake? Quit blaming the victim.
“Chuck’s not an amateur, fellas. Some people are out to get him. Even though he conducted an interview on facebook more than once, some evil people are setting him up to make him look like an amateur. This prank clearly proves that Chuck was set up to appear like an amateur, even though he’s a professional. We are working with authorities to track down the IP of someone who went on Walden’s facebook. Wait, we don’t have the legal authority to do this? Oops. But wait, there’s more! There’s more to this! Some people are out to get us, I’m telling ya! There’s more to this situation! That’s the reason Chuck got exposed as an amateur.”
-AW
wow, lol beautiful spin job. keep reaching to protect your agenda
I’m not aiding the person who pranked Chuck. I couldn’t care less who did it. I’m just not going to take AW’s desperate words on this. Hank Conger could’ve done it for all we know. Walden’s roommate could’ve pranked him. Who pranked Chuck? Nobody knows except the person who did it.
Do you seriously want people to blindly believe that some bad people are out to get Chuck? I’m more inclined to believe that someone was playing a prank on Walden, and Chuck got inadvertently exposed as an amateur as a result.
That’s the most likely outcome. The prankster had joke answers. Titanic, sausage and eggs, Hanky, etc. Someone played a trick on Walden. Chuck got exposed as a result. Sweet justice.
You are here and I’ve gotten certain e-mails since I decided to chime in here (the contents of which boiled down to “How dare you call me mentally ill!”) You tell me. You seem to have some vested interest here (and I’ll probably get another e-mail to that seldom-used address again methinks).
Oh, really? Interesting! Unless you’re making this up, are you sure it wasn’t someone from AW or just some jokester playing a trick on you or me? Not that I believe you, for the record. Just more accusations and smoke screens by various AW members in an attempt to help Chuck. How low you go?
You seem the have interest in defending AW and Chuck. Why? Why shouldn’t I disagree with you and AW? Why shouldn’t I defend the accusations against the boogeyman (which some of you have implied HH and Rev)? My only interest is making sure AW doesn’t blame others and any other site in a group effort to try to shift the attention elsewhere to conceal Chuck’s amateurism and mistake.
Your only interest…. funny
How low do you go? If I knew someone had constantly hacked into another Angels’ site’s user accounts and then hacked into an Angels’ player’s Facebook and e-mail account in order to embarass your site…I honestly don’t think I would be blaming you. I would probably say that you should have known better and that trusting an interview via e-mail was amateurish, but my main concentration would be on the person that keeps instigating these things,
If we were professionals, we would be getting paid for writing our opinions. I don’t think any of us are getting paid. The lesson was learned and it will lead to better things. I don’t think it should have been expected that an Angels’ player’s e-mail would get hijacked a year after the fact or that somebody could be so mentally messed up to pursue that avenue.
The motives for the interview were good. An interview of an up-and-coming Angel player. The motives for the hoax were not good and were designed to embarass a site that in the end was just trying to give Angels fans something interesting to read from a top Angels prospect.
Let me say this slowly. You. Do. Not. Know. Who. Went. On. Walden’s. Account.
Slow enough?
Only the person who did it knows. It could’ve been Conger. It could’ve been Reckling. It could’ve been his roommate. It could’ve been his girlfriend. It could’ve been a jealous ex. Should I go on? It could’ve been anyone. You are clueless in this regard. If Chuck knew who did it, he wouldn’t have to lie about getting the authorities involved to track someone’s IP. He doesn’t know who did it. You don’t know who did it. Nobody knows besides the prankster. In the end, does it really matter who did it? The focus is Chuck and his laughable ways of getting interviews. He’s an amateur, and it’s good that he got publicly exposed for it. Nobody likes a fraud.
What is obvious is that you will blame others (without proof, of course) to try to shift the attention away from Chuck. You are trying to get sympathy by blaming the boogeyman. You are playing the sympathy card. It isn’t working.
In my opinion, the most likely outcome is that someone decided to play a trick on Walden. The joke answers gave it away. Someone was just playing a trick on Walden. That is the more obvious explanation, not your outrageous conspriacy theories. Chuck got inadvertently exposed as a result of this prank.
There is no conspiracy. Nobody was out to get him. The boogeyman was not out to get him.
If you want to play it right way, have Chuck apologize for his amateurish ways and for posting a fake interview. Have him own up to his mistake. Stop shifting the focus elsewhere. Stop coming up with laughable conspiracy theories. Stop playing the sympathy card. Own up to your mistake, apologize and move on.
We all know the score. It’s nothing new. I was declared dead at one point in time probably by the same individual(s). There wouldn’t be a big disussion over this unless somebody(s) had a hard-on for Chuck and Angelswin. Like I said….#1 makes you a target. Sorry for you #2’s, but that’s just the way it is. Trying to reap the rewards of some mental patient isn’t going to make you #1.
You. Do. Not. Know. Who. Did. It. Either, Heh.
…but you’re pretty sure it’s one of the eight hundred people you listed.
Brilliant!
See what I mean? Paranoia. Conspiracy theories. Delusions. No offense, but how can anyone take this stuff seriously? You guys are looking like a bunch of nuts. No offense. I’m not trying to be mean here, but how do you expect me or anyone to reply with a straight face to any of this? The boogeyman is everywhere, right? If you turn around, he’s there. The boogeyman is out to get Chuck, that he decided to declare you dead? Come on, man. This isn’t doing AW any favors.
Whoever pranked Walden had joke answers. That doesn’t sound like the work of someone who was trying to be convincing or serious. Many people felt that the interview was a joke from the beginning. Some of the answers were ridiculous. Come on, man. You read it. That was a joke interview. It turned out to be a prank. Someone was obviously messing with Walden, and Chuck got inadvertently exposed as an amateur. Now, he’s upset. And his followers will try to do anything in a moment of crisis to shift the focus elsewhere and generate sympathy for him. It’s ridiculous.
Just own up to your mistake, apologize and move on. That’s the best course of action, don’t you think? None of this other laughable stuff is helping.
Of course we don’t know who did it. Neither do you right? You’re also clueless in this right? We have our suspicions but we’ll let the investigation run its course and see if it reveals the culprit. There have been multiple breeches of Facebook and email accounts of AW members in the past. We don’t know if they are all related or if there are multiple idiots but enough is enough. If it turns out it was just a friend of Walden’s as you suggest, fine. We move on. The fact of the matter is, a mistake in judgment was made. When it was brought to Chuck’s attention, he begin working to repair the error and clear the air. He knows he got taken. He’s admitted it. It’s a lesson learned.
What’s curious to me is that you seem so hell bent on embellishing at every turn to try to make a bigger deal out of this than it, like you have a vested interest in disparaging Chuck and AW. Why is that? You don’t know the facts but that’s not stopping you from inserting plenty of allegations on Chuck. Interesting that this is the tack you chose to take on this. Doesn’t mean you were involved in the fraud or that you know anything about it and I am not implying that you are/do.
Every “popular” site will have it’s trolls. It goes with the territory. I don’t deny that AW has experienced troll attacks. HH has experienced troll attacks. The mlb.com board has experienced massive troll attacks. I just don’t believe any of the ridiculous, exaggerated claims, though. And the conspiracy theories, paranoia, and delusions aren’t helping or making you guys sound convincing. This is a group effort to generate sympathy for Chuck by blaming the boogeyman. You guys are playing the sympathy card, and it’s cartoonish. It’s beyond laughable at this point.
yeah, you’re right, no one has had their Facebook or emails hacked. It’s all just figments of our imagination (delusion as you called it) or we’re just making it up. . No one is shifting the focus - the mistake has been addressed, apologies were given.
It’s not like this is suddenly going to vault HH or any other site into the most popular Angel fan site. Some may be trying to use this to make it so, but that’s just kind of sad (and funny). It’s not like the Register or the Angels organization are going to say “You know what? You’re right. We should be giving YOU the press credentials instead.”
There was only one dishonest motive here, and everybody knows it. An attempt to discredit Angelswin. A constant and continual attempt. That’s why they are #1. #1 makes enemies.
You wrote: “We don’t know if they are all related or if there are multiple idiots but enough is enough.”
You don’t know, you said so yourself. Let’s say someone forgets his password. Boogeyman did it? By the way, I never said none of it happened. I just believe your claims are exaggerated for show. You want sympathy for Chuck.
The fact is, Chuck conducted an interview with a player over facebook. That should be the focus here. Chuck posted an unverified interview. He’s now trying to get sympathy by blaming a boogeyman or boogeymen for his mistake. And AW is throwing out all kind of weird conspiracy theories and accusations that lack evidence or proof to be taken seriously. Paranoia. Delusions. Outrageous accusations that lack evidence and proof. Conspiracy theories. Sympathy card. Smoke screens. That sums it up.
There’s just no reason for any of this. Own up to your mistake, apologize and move on. That’s my suggestion.
Of course I said it, I’ve said it all along. Someone losing their password doesn’t lead to having their account hacked. Just another strawman.
So do tell, what part do you believe and what part is being embellished?
Speaking of embellishing, let’s take a look at a paragraph in your last post. You said the following:
The fact is, Chuck conducted an interview with a player over facebook. That should be the focus here. Chuck posted an unverified interview. He’s now trying to get sympathy by blaming a boogeyman or boogeymen for his mistake. And AW is throwing out all kind of weird conspiracy theories and accusations that lack evidence or proof to be taken seriously. Paranoia. Delusions. Outrageous accusations that lack evidence and proof. Conspiracy theories. Sympathy card. Smoke screens. That sums it up.
___________________
The facts have already been addressed, as I have said repeatedly. They have been owned and apologies have been extended. He’s not blaming a boogeyman. Someone fraudulently represented themselves as someone they weren’t. We didn’t make it up. We’d like to find out who. It is a fact that other accounts of several board members have been hacked and trashed previously. We’d like to know who has done that also. We have our suspicions and reasons for believing they might be related. We’re going to have it investigated. That’s it. No smoke screens. Nothing outrageous. We don’t know who did it, we aren’t claiming to. Your motivation here has become pretty obvious. Same tiger.
One thing is for certain. There is no heir apparent to Angelswin in any case, despite this gaff, Like I said, this isn’t going to suddenly propel another blog or website to #1, no matter how much hay is thrown up. These are all Angel fan sites and Angel fans are free to pick and choose between them. The Angels organization is free to decide who deserves press credentials and who doesn’t.
I know what you said. I’m telling you that I don’t believe you. I’m telling you that I think your claims are exaggerated for show and to garner sympathy for Chuck. The paranoia in this thread puts even the most paranoid to shame. This is cartoonish. All you have to do is read it to see it, and I’m surprised that AW would go this route. This was a total miscalculation on your guys’ part. If you thought doing this would garner some kind of sympathy and understanding, you’re mistaken. If anything, it’s even more of a reason for the OCR to distance themselves from AW. “Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.”
The fact is, the OCR got burned badly here. Their own credibility is in question now after this. It damaged their credibility, and they got AW to thank. I don’t think they will be associating themselves with AW after this debacle. They’ll likely distance themselves. It’d be a joke on their part otherwise. I believe that AW lost any credibility it may have had with the media. Chuck simply lacks credibility, anyway. AW duped everyone.
But this cartoonish, insane behavior isn’t helping. I figured you guys would be more professional. Boy, was I wrong. This took me by surprise.
I’m sure the OC Register is worried about their credibilty with the 40 or 50 fans from the HH site.
And I am sure that this will compel the Angels organization to give HH a media pass instead of Angelswin.
The fact is we all know who had the best of motives here…and who didn’t.
#1 is always going to become THE target. Jealosy and intrigue doesn’t change any of that.
I’m trying to have a discussion here, and that’s the best ya got? That’s all you can muster up? Do you think that gives you credibility? Desperate measures require desperate actions, I guess.
I guess we can say AW is jealous of HH for making such a big deal about Rev’s video. Talking about him all the time and belitting him. See the logic? Jealousy! Accuse someone of jealousy is what to do. That’s the ticket to a dying attempt by you guys.
No, this isn’t about jealousy. You just can’t handle criticism. It’s like someone accusing someone people of racism after they get backed in a corner.
“Hey, look at me!”
One is #1 and the other a #…?? That’s the difference. Trying to drag Angelswin down doesn’t mean that HH will all the sudden get a huge influx of posters. So the exercise is fruitless. All anyone has to do is log onto either or both (or however many) sites and choose between. Nothing that is said here is going to sway anybody. Some may wish it was so, but they’ll continue to have to wish.
Chuck and Angelswin had the best intentions when that “interview” was posted. It was supposed to be a bonus interview for Angel fans to read and enjoy. That was the intent. Instead, it got turned into this. Like putting time and energy into putting together a carnival, then somebody sabotages one of the rides, and a rival carnival operator swoops in and says “I told all of you!”
This certainly doesn’t help HH no matter what happens.
To repeat, this isn’t about “jealousy.” There is no jealousy on my part, I promise. You just can’t handle heavy criticism, and accusing others of jealousy whenever you get backed in a corner is an easy way out for you, isn’t it? It’s like the people who accuse others of racism when things don’t go their way or get backed in a corner. Or any “easy” excuse like this one. It just doesn’t fly. It’s a desperate move on your part because you have nothing. This is your only move. If you think this gives you credibility, think again.
This was a somewhat civil discussion until you started spewing this stuff. Shame.
Those of us on that forum have experienced what we have experienced. Like I sad a half dozen times now…being #1 makes one a target. The constant hacking of accounts. The constant harassment of members. Falsely declaring deaths of members, etc. All part of a pattern. You can try to distance yourself from all of this and say it’s all just some kind of cover…whatever.
Somebody posed as Walden and used his e-mail address. And it wasn’t Chuck. Why? We all know why.
#1 is always the target. The sad thing is that this latest episode lowers everyone involved. The Register is free to make a determination of credibility in the future and all parties should make sure going forward that this kind of thing never happens again. Everybody gets that at least.
It’s too late to be going in circles. Nothing more needs to be said here. I believe everything that needed to be said was said, and that’s that. Have a nice night.
Well at least LightItUp or Stephen don’t change their screen names when posting on the OC Register comments section like you guys.
I’m positivie you guys supporting Chuck wacked up interview with Walden. WHy don’t you use your AW screen name here so we all know who you are? Don’t hide behind a different screen name here. Keep it real guys.
GO HALOS!