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Two Email Firsts

Sep 11th, 2007 | By | Category: General

As you now know, the campaign of Senator Fred Thompson has graciously decided to change the name of their podcast. They have now publicly announced their intention to change the name, and are now having a contest on their web site to name the new show. They have assured me that they will stop using the name FredCast by next Monday and I believe them.

Shortly after the posting on Fred Thompson’s web site, I received two emails. Each of these messages represented a first. My first truly hateful email, and my first request for an interview by a major national network.

The first email was from a Yahoo email address, and the name associated with the account is The Shadow. Scary, huh?

The hate email had just two simple words: F*** Bikes.

I don’t know whether or not the Thompson announcement and the arrival of this email are connected, and I am certain that the campaign had nothing to do with it. It should also be noted that of the 109 comments associated with this issue (as of this writing) on the Fred Thompson web site, not a single one says anything even remotely negative about me, this site or my podcast.

I guess hate mail just comes with the territory.

The second email was from an ABC Network News producer who is traveling with and covering the Thompson campaign. She read about the FredCast issue on the Senator’s web site and wanted to interview me about the timeline and the way in which I was treated by the campaign. We had a very pleasant 20 minute conversation, but I have no idea whether or not the story will be picked up by their web site or other outlets. If it is, I will be sure to let you know.

All in all, it was quite an interesting evening.

Oh, and by the way, I entered Senator Thompson’s contest. Listener/attorney Doc Bradshaw came up with a great name and I submitted it. If I win, he’s getting my prize.

4 comments
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  1. Matt September 11th, 2007 11:40 pm

    Holy cow! That is crazy! There is a lot of hate out there. That is awesome that they are changing the name of their podcast. That is also awesome that you were interviewed!

  2. Brent September 12th, 2007 8:48 am

    I see the ABC story here.

  3. Hugh Tidwell September 13th, 2007 6:56 am

    I’m just a peon Thompson supporter but I thought it was interesting that there was already a Fredcast and thought I would drop in here to have a look. Lets hope that the F word didn’t come from a supporter of Thompson. At the same time you have to love politics etc.

    Great website and I’m glad that things have happened the way they have because I probably would have never come here if they had not. Sorry for the inconvenience and I hope you have continued success.

  4. James September 14th, 2007 2:00 pm

    Actually, I am a bit surprised that you just received your first email like that. I am sure that my blog gets considerably fewer hits than the Fredcast, but I have received a few very hateful emails in the two years I have been doing it. Maybe it is the coverage of a variety of types of cycling that gets a few people riled up. One person, who wanted me to quit posting racing/ recreational bike content on my blog, emailed me with a very colorful rant about the evils of bike racing and all involved in the sport. I don’t even want to allude to some of the incredibly crude words he used to describe anyone who uses a bike for anything other than transportation. I suspect that most general anti-bike comments come from people who just stumble in looking for something else. Oh well, as long as the vast majority of comments are positive, I can ignore the occasional nasty message from a “hater”.

    Since you brought it up though, I wonder if other bike bloggers have received similar negative emails to the one you describe. I’d hate to think it is just me (and now you).

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