Unpopular Opinion: Wrestling journalists passing on plans that WWE have is contributing to ruining the business
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the writer and not necessarily those of Sportskeeda.
Over the last 15-20 years in the world of professional wrestling, we have seen the rise of the internet and indeed many people posting dirt sheets on plans that WWE or other companies have. In turn, it has lead to many of the future plans or surprises being spoiled, with the news being revealed beforehand and people knowing everything that happens backstage.
During the early days of pro wrestling right up till the rise of the internet in the 1990's, everything that happened backstage with superstars and storylines was always kept a well guarded secret.
The superstars who were feuding with each other at the time were not allowed to be near each other out in public, regardless if they were friends or not. This was called " maintaining kayfabe". This basically means wrestlers maintaining a fictional lifestyle and in character, outside of what their real life character is.
Things changed in the 1990's however as the internet grew and secrets were starting to be let out. Wrestlers were starting to be seen breaking kayfabe, most notably the " curtain call" at Madison Square Garden with the Kliq. This effectively led to the slow death of kayfabe, with companies forced to incorporate real elements and think more outside the box in storylines.
Since there are a lot of wrestling websites these days that are known effectively as "dirt sheets" or "spoiler pages", it has hindered the business in what some (including me) would feel is a negative way. It has certainly taken the surprise element out of storylines, and forces people like Vince McMahon to constantly make last minute changes to keep intrigue for the fans.
Proof of this was the inception of the hit reality show Total Divas, which gave us a look into the real life of certain WWE women, while also being used as a platform to create certain storylines between them.
While WWE did try to blend in the fiction with the reality in several storylines ( e.g. Naomi/ Cameron, Lana/Natalya), they weren't able to sustain the magic in the storylines on the weekly shows, due to it being revealed that the show had filmed these superstars arguing then making up before it was played on TV.
While WWE still airs Total Divas, they definitely have cut back on using storylines out of Total Divas for their weekly Raw and Smackdown shows.
We know that it is fun to write articles and speculate what could happen, however it definitely isn't good knowing that things in the business are being ruined by spoiler pages. Journalists like Dave Meltzer and Bryan Alvarez, as well as many others, are constantly revealing what they get told from their " sources" backstage.
They seem genuinely happy to ruin it for the audience which is disappointing. While it's true that people don't have to read or listen to what is said, it is hard for us fans to not come across an article where there is a claim to what's happening.
The opinion could also be made that these journalists with their "sources" could also be getting fed false information, perhaps to keep them happy to have something to discuss. It would be something that a company like WWE would do in order to protect the plans that they really have.
If WWE have managed to allow these sources to still work for them and pass on information, it is likely that they are doing it purposely to keep the journalist happy, even if the information they receive is completely false.
I personally think people can make better predictions of what could happen rather than rely on so called 'rumors'. All rumors in turn should always be treated as that, rumors, and be taken with a grain of salt.
The Internet nowadays is full of people claiming to have inside knowledge of what's going on, and while some people take all of it as gospel, we can never know for sure what the WWE or any other companies have up their sleeves.
They are well aware of what the Internet Wrestling Community (IWC) is like, especially with backstage news or scoops, and they would have a plan in place.
Certain superstars are also known to troll the IWC such as The Revival and Becky Lynch. Other superstars such as AJ Styles, Seth Rollins and Ronda Rousey have expressed their annoyance of rumors that have done rounds about them.
The rumors of AJ Styles apparently signing a new contract had started late last year, months before he actually did resign with WWE. It was also speculated that both AJ Styles and Seth Rollins may miss WrestleMania with injuries.
While Seth Rollins confirmed recently he did have a minor back problem, AJ Styles was quick to deny the rumors of him supposedly suffering from a hernia. It really does make you wonder where people get their information from.
I have learned a wise lesson over time, which is to not take anything seriously that is spread by wrestling journalists, as it's not usually accurate. If anything, only believe things that are put up or confirmed by WWE themselves or the superstars.
It would be incredibly frustrating having false information spread about you if you was a WWE superstar. It's quite easy to see why Seth and AJ have gone on to slam certain journalists.
At the end of the day, everybody is entitled to have an opinion, and to believe what they wish to believe. This article is just based off a personal opinion. I believe that it would be better to hear it straight from the direct source (WWE or the superstars), rather than it go through various people (The saying of hearing things straight from the horse's mouth comes to mind). However you are certainly allowed to disagree with my opinion on those who post spoiler pages.
Have your say below and thanks for reading.