When it's OK to lie as a journalist

I've mentioned in the past on this blog how I was once a wrestling aficionado and followed it religiously until it got pretty brutal.

But, secretly, I've always wanted a career in the WWE.

No, not as a wrestler. If that was the case, I would have started pumping the 'roids years ago.

But a career as a wrestling journalist or play-by-play announcer.

Let me start by saying, as hard as it is to believe, professional wrestling is fake. Scripted. Phony. Whatever word you want to use.

But do journalists cover it even though it's fake? As Stone Cold Steve Austin would say, "Hell yeah!!"

So what does being a wrestling journalist consist of? Well, there's writers on the official website and for the official magazine.

Some of the features in the magazine include profiles of different superstars. A profile of Randy Orton and his amazing quest to win the WWE Championship. Well, actually, it was a bunch of scriptwriters that determined that he would win the title.

Writers on the website will cover a match and use quotes like "John Cena knocked down Edge and hurt him badly." Actually, Edge was acting and he's not hurt at all.

I find the whole thing very intriguing. Covering a scripted event but portraying it as a real event.

As a journalist, it's the only time you'll get away with "lying".

Being an announcer has to be another difficult job. The announcers know what's going to happen before they go and do the show that night. Their job is to provide the information to the audience but act like they didn't know it was coming.

And again, the ability is needed to make a scripted event sound real.

(This clip below is a great example)



These are jobs that are probably a lot harder than they actually seem.

Journalists with a tad bit of acting skills.