Thursday, June 24, 2010

online evolution

Over at the Guardian's Wimbledon liveblog, I think we're witnessing the birth of the internet's version of long-form journalism -- with a healthy dash of Hunter S. Thompson mixed in.

John Isner and Nicolas Mahut's history-making multi-day match spurred Xan Brooks' unbelieveable, epic, and hilarious account yesterday that mined the depths of one journalist's sanity (spoiler alert: he was tapped out by the end and quite mad):
6pm: The score stands at 34-34. In order to stay upright and keep their strength, John Isner and Nicolas Mahut have now started eating members of the audience. They trudge back to the baseline, gnawing on thigh-bones and sucking intestines. They have decided that they will stay on Court 18 until every spectator is eaten. Only then, they say, will they consider ending their contest.
Today's effort by Paolo Bandini deserves its own set of sports commentators who can analyze his attempt to take up Brooks' baton with the Zombie Tennis Apocalypse Meme while looking to put his own stamp on it. Clearly, a live accounting of the match is of secondary concern to continuing Brooks' masterpiece.

(What would make this a truly watershed in internet history would be a cleverer set of commenters. One of them already noted their ranks are depleted by the concurrent World Cup. It's a damn shame.)

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