I actually defended Monson for a long time on a couple grounds: 1) He actually is a good writer and 2) he has been an equal opportunity offender— Ute and sometimes Jazz fans (and players—see Eisley, Howard) have hated him as much as the folks in Provo.

Mind you, he’s always been annoyingly self-important. I couldn’t
listen to him or anyone else on his radio show. But as for his print stuff, I haven’t necessarily hated it over the years, and I’ve enjoyed much of it.

I don’t read him regularly any more – – the Trib is what it intends to be, and I am not their target audience.

But Monson of late does seem to have embraced the role of in-house latter-day stooge: the member of the institution Trib subscribers largely cannot stand who is willing to criticize said institution from inside the house. It makes his readership feel good about themselves, as it would, any readership who is made to feel superior to their perceived antagonists.

This of course, bleeds over into other things. He’ll be more inclined to suck up to the Utes and their perspective because increasingly, those have become the folks that read him. And if you can backhandedly lecture those other guys on the attitudes they should hold, even better.

Monson can be both thoughtful and witty. He can pen a good piece. His own pomposity seems to be an Achilles heel. Cougarboard’s criticisms of him didn’t make me lose interest, but Monson’s gradual tilt into what he is these days has largely done the trick.