The Media Frenzy pt.2

A number of days ago I looked at the amount of media interest there was in the Benoit family tragedy. The mainstream media caught on to the story and did great to terrible job in reporting on the subject. The one media genre that has been outstanding in their coverage of these heinous deaths is the wrestling newsletter.

I order the Pro Wrestling Torch which is edited by Wade Keller. The newsletter is nearly twenty years old and I have been reading it on and off since the year 2000. I have been a subscriber non-stop for the last three years, though.

Keller has done a spectacular job on covering this situation. His website has a VIP section for newsletter subscribers. This part of the site offers audio updates and the analysis has been continuous throughout the aftermath.

The most recent issue of the Torch printed newsletter has been a double issue looking at the number of angles that have stemmed from that horrific weekend. I think any fan of the business with a thirst for historic significance should seek out this issue. It will play an important part of looking back in years to come.

Dave Meltzer is the number one journalist in wrestling. I used to subscribe to his publication, the Wrestling Observer Newsletter between 1998 and 2003. It has been called the 'bible of professional wrestling'.

I knew Meltzer's writing would be great at this time so decided to re-subscribe. I was not wrong.

The Observer - as with the Torch - has done an outstanding job of trying to work out the answers to a question that will never be answered. It has covered every aspect of the case and in this week's issue the writer has a hard hitting piece.

Dave looks at the list of wrestlers who have died at an early age and are linked to the drug and steroid culture that is associated with professional wrestling. His macabre shopping list of deceased wrestlers and the reason behind their passing is something that the mainstream media should look in to have a further understanding of this scary trend.

Ironically, the Meltzer list was deemed out of date within days.

John Kronus - a star of ECW during the mid to late 1990's - was found dead in his girlfriend's apartment on Thursday morning.

Add another name to the list.