No matter how you slice it this is good news.

No matter how you slice it this is good news.

Very good news. I just hate waiting.

It could cost upwards of close to 100m to lay fiber to each home in the OKC metro area (and burbs). I doubt people would vote on a tax to basically help a business get in the market.

Thunder, any business in bricktown, the business that will be along the street car route, etc.

A good way would be too tell google we'll pay for all the fiber up front, lease it to you for $1 a year for 50 years, and you provide free internet at 10mbps. Any future upgrades and maintenance and all that is on you. City and therefore the taxpayers still own the infrastructure Google is the service provider. There's lot of different options to go with. Just depends what Google wants to do. I trust Cornett.

Thunder, any business in bricktown, the business that will be along the street car route, etc.

A good way would be too tell google we'll pay for all the fiber up front, lease it to you for $1 a year for 50 years, and you provide free internet at 10mbps. Any future upgrades and maintenance and all that is on you. City and therefore the taxpayers still own the infrastructure Google is the service provider. There's lot of different options to go with. Just depends what Google wants to do. I trust Cornett.

Well google in other locations gives free internet for up to 7 years @ a $300 installation cost. My assumption is that $300 = Actual average installation cost per household + 7 years worth of maintenance costs. (Guestimating 330k households x $300 = 99m). If maintenance is a significant part of that $300 piece then obviously it could be much cheaper to roll out.

What does this mean? Hell I don't know I just started rambling.

Been seeing the Cox commercials for their Gigablast internet for about a month now. They have a promotional price for TV + phone + internet for $135.00. Could be they heard the rumors about Google as well and were trying to get their word out first.

https://www.cox.com/residential/internet/gigablast.html?sc_id=cr_dm_camp_z_giglife_vanity

The only thing I hate about Cox and similar companies are the monthly fees a "special" two year rates. In the end it is advertised for said price then either you have to rent a box for 10 bucks a month or the price goes up by 80 dollars in a year.

It looks like Brianna Bailey is really wanting to pick a fight with OKCTalk.

https://twitter.com/briOKC

She doesn't care, so she tweets four or five more times to prove it.

Her presumed indifference is belied by her childish responses. I think someone at the Oklahoman needs to tell her to knock it off. Move on. She looks like an angry 3rd grader right about now.

Oh she burns him real good.

Newsok is always in a tough spot. They need to be first but they have to be spot on 100%. OKCtalk can get things 75% correct and no one cares.

Why does NewsOK "need to be first?" That's the problem is that in an age of web 2.0 and social media, traditional reporters likely won't be first. But instead of accepting the shifting media landscape the Oklahoman reporters are engaging in unethical journalistic practices by not giving credit (and that doesn't even consider the defensive and unnecessary insults towards the site). They've also gone out of their way to trash OKCTalk - which is really just trashing Pete specifically. In the new media age, reporters need to accept that they won't get the story first and focus on producing quality pieces with additional sources and information. New media doesn't hurt or end old media.

Someone should buy a copy of this book for everyone at the Oklahoman: Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide: Henry Jenkins: 9780814742952: Amazon.com: Books (http://www.amazon.com/Convergence-Culture-Where-Media-Collide/dp/0814742955)

If espn can report stories while giving credit to yahoo sports, ect, I think the Oklahoman can do it too. Never been a fan of Brianna. Focuses too much on selfies and whining.

And to respond to the cox comment above, my promo just expired and it jumped $80 a month. Someone is about to get a phone call.

Why does NewsOK "need to be first?" That's the problem is that in an age of web 2.0 and social media, traditional reporters likely won't be first. But instead of accepting that the Oklahoman reporters are engaging in unethical journalistic ethics by not givign credit. They've also gone out of their way to trash OKCTalk - which is really just trashing Pete specifically. In the new media age, reporters need to accept that they won't get the story first and focus on producing quality pieces with additional sources and information. New media doesn't hurt or end old media.

Someone should buy a copy of this book for everyone at the Oklahoman: Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide: Henry Jenkins: 9780814742952: Amazon.com: Books (http://www.amazon.com/Convergence-Culture-Where-Media-Collide/dp/0814742955)

It was sometime in the last year or so that *someone* finally go to ESPN and some other major outlets to have them start giving credit to the source of their stories or tweets if it was reported elsewhere first. If you'll notice, many of these outlets include a notice such as "Story first reported by XXXX" in a tweet or other similar social media post.

It was LostOgle who kinda started the flames on this by suggesting credit to OKCTalk, and she (Bailey) responded very defensively and made it instantly worse. If she'd included even a vague reference to the fact that social media was on the story, it would never have been an issue. The irony is that Pete probably doesn't care about the credit nearly as much as Bailey obviously does, as her protestations to the contrary clearly demonstrate.

Alas.

And I'm OK with her acknowledging that they took their time to get everything 100% correct. I don't believe OKCTALK.com was the source for the article. I'm sure it was the press release from the city. But getting into a flame war in twitter? And pulling okctalk.com into it (who was not and has not as far as I saw participated)? That's unprofessional. I don't have high standards for the lost ogle on behavior, and maybe I shouldn't for newsok reporters either.

If you've been paying attention, today's tweets are not an isolated incident, but part of a larger pattern. I'll just leave it at that.

You'd think she'd be better than this, or that somebody from her office would tell her to shut it

Several of her coworkers were participating in the nonsense, so that seems unlikely.

It would be academically interesting to know if any city that has been put on the "potential" list has ever not then made it to the "coming" list.

Why does NewsOK "need to be first?" That's the problem is that in an age of web 2.0 and social media, traditional reporters likely won't be first. But instead of accepting the shifting media landscape the Oklahoman reporters are engaging in unethical journalistic practices by not giving credit (and that doesn't even consider the defensive and unnecessary insults towards the site). They've also gone out of their way to trash OKCTalk - which is really just trashing Pete specifically. In the new media age, reporters need to accept that they won't get the story first and focus on producing quality pieces with additional sources and information. New media doesn't hurt or end old media.

Someone should buy a copy of this book for everyone at the Oklahoman: Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide: Henry Jenkins: 9780814742952: Amazon.com: Books (http://www.amazon.com/Convergence-Culture-Where-Media-Collide/dp/0814742955)

Why does Newsok need to be first? I dk, isn't being first, the point of any business?

And I'm OK with her acknowledging that they took their time to get everything 100% correct. I don't believe OKCTALK.com was the source for the article. I'm sure it was the press release from the city. But getting into a flame war in twitter? And pulling okctalk.com into it (who was not and has not as far as I saw participated)? That's unprofessional. I don't have high standards for the lost ogle on behavior, and maybe I shouldn't for newsok reporters either.

I learned long ago, never to wrestle with a pig. You get dirty, and besides, the pig likes it.

It would be academically interesting to know if any city that has been put on the "potential" list has ever not then made it to the "coming" list.

None so far. All have been added.

None so far. All have been added.

So basically we are now in a planning phase. As a "Potential" city, Google now sits down and verifies that is will work before there is any formal announcement that we are definitely getting it. I imagine the only thing that would stop us from getting it at this point is some logistical issue that makes putting fiber lines not possible or not cost effective. I don't see that happening since both AT&T and Cox have already run fiber in OKC.

OKC has plenty of negatives.

Our history of accomplishing major infrastructure projects is not one of them. (Indeed, efficiency sometimes is a problem for us, but 1. We still get the things done and 2. We would be working with Google, who didn't arrive as a $500B company by making a bunch of inefficient and poor decisions.

This would be a very interesting addition to a MAPS ballot, especially if it were in exchange for a better rate and potentially city-wide free Wi-Fi…something that becomes more and more realistic by the day.

Just put the Wireless routers on all the sirens ;)

Guys, we're getting Google Fiber.

Pete's original report is spot on; stop being let down by the "potential" label because that's merely a technical label in the process towards getting Fiber. Google has been exploring OKC for a while now and has pretty strong connections to OKC most people aren't aware of; the "potential" label just means they are in deep discussions with the city to figure out the permitting process and other technical details. Rest assured that unless something completely unexpected pops up (or Cox is able to buy some legislative votes to prohibit Google from coming here--a possibility I wouldn't count on given the strength of Google's government relations team), Fiber is coming.

Guys, we're getting Google Fiber.

Pete's original report is spot on; stop being let down by the "potential" label because that's merely a technical label in the process towards getting Fiber. Google has been exploring OKC for a while now and has pretty strong connections to OKC most people aren't aware of; the "potential" label just means they are in deep discussions with the city to figure out the permitting process and other technical details. Rest assured that unless something completely unexpected pops up (or Cox is able to buy some legislative votes to prohibit Google from coming here--a possibility I wouldn't count on given the strength of Google's government relations team), Fiber is coming.

Unless someone can produce something that shows that a "Potential City" did not get chosen as an expansion city, I agree.

I think some of us are missing the forest for the trees on this one.

Unless someone can produce something that shows that a "Potential City" did not get chosen as an expansion city, I agree.

I think some of us are missing the forest for the trees on this one.

Right.

Just to emphasize again: we are getting Google Fiber. It's happening.

NewsOK and others can harp on the "exploring" and "taking a look at" terminology all they want because they don't know much about the topic. In this particular case, I just personally happen to know exactly what Google means when they say we are a potential city and that they are exploring us: it means we're getting it. Unless, of course, something insanely wild happens to derail it. Google didn't just pick OKC at random and think, yeah, let's explore there. They've already done a massive amount of work "exploring" us.

Annnnyway, Google Fiber is coming to OKC.

They've already met with City officials extensively and have never done 'exploration' without pursuing a roll-out.

They also don't fly people in and have press conferences without being pretty committed.

So, very, very cool news. Not really interested in all the other nonsense surrounding this announcement, and very excited for OKC -- both for the service and the feather in our cap that comes with this.

http://www.okc.gov/news/2015_10/Oklahoma_City_to_work_with_Google_Fiber_OKC.html


Oklahoma City to work with Google Fiber to explore bringing OKC residents ultra-high speed Internet access

(Oct. 28, 2015) - Today, Mayor Cornett announced that Oklahoma City will begin working with Google Fiber to explore the possibility of building a brand new superfast broadband network in the city.

“We’re very excited to be at this point in the process. We’ve had ongoing conversations with Google since 2012 and today we are moving forward with a game-changing opportunity to enhance broadband access in Oklahoma City – both in terms of speed and access, said Mayor Cornett.

“We’re also grateful for what could be a substantial investment Google will be making in Oklahoma City as we move forward.”

Improving broadband speeds and choice for residents has been a priority for Oklahoma City for years. Today’s average American broadband speed is 11.9 megabits per second. In contrast, Google Fiber could bring Oklahoma City residents access to Internet speeds up to 1,000 megabits per second—or up to 85 times faster than average speeds in America.

“This is about raising the standards in Oklahoma City and laying the foundations of economic development for our future. In today’s wired world, research, education, business and entertainment take place online. To be competitive in the world, we need to ensure we have access to high-speed, fiber-optic networks and that we get as many people online as possible.”

Jill Szuchmacher, Director of Expansion, Google Fiber said abundant high-speed Internet can help communities grow stronger, laying a foundation for innovation and economic growth.

“City leaders like Mayor Cornett have taken a big step to see what they can do to bring superfast fiber networks to residents and businesses,” Szuchmacher said. “We look forward to working side-by-side with Oklahoma City in the coming months to explore the possibility of bringing Google Fiber to Oklahoma City”

Consumer demand for faster Internet speeds is at an all-time high. Many of the things people love to do online — from gaming to streaming new movies — require a lot of bandwidth. Families want faster speeds at home to do what they love to do on the Web, without buffering or fighting over bandwidth during primetime. And fiber networks aren’t just about meeting today’s speed needs. This year the White House made faster Internet speeds a priority, citing the need to drive innovation, foster investment in new industries, and ensure that America is competitive in the global economy. The next leap in Internet speeds — to gigabit Internet — will lead to innovation that’s unimaginable today.

Starting this week, Google will work closely with Mayor Cornett and city leaders on a joint planning process to explore what it would take to build a brand new fiber-optic network capable of delivering these gigabit speeds throughout Oklahoma City. Google will begin compiling a detailed study of local factors that might affect construction plans. Simultaneously, Mayor Cornett and city leaders will begin meetings with Google to discuss what it would take to plan and prepare the city for a fiber project of this scale.

Google Fiber is an Internet and TV service that provides Internet connectivity up to 1 gigabit — 85 times faster than average speeds in America, along with hundreds of HD TV channels. Google Fiber is currently available in Kansas City, KS, Kansas City, MO, Provo, UT, and Austin, TX. Google Fiber in the process of expanding Google Fiber to six additional metro areas: Atlanta, GA, Charlotte, NC, Nashville, TN, Raleigh-Durham, NC, Salt Lake City UT, and San Antonio, TX. For more information about this announcement, visit the Google Fiber blog.

To get updates from Google Fiber about when the service might be available in your area, sign up here.

One of the things Google is gaining in their deployments to date is *experience*, dealing with local governments, local regulations, local pols, and then finding out how to streamline aspects of deployment. Don't forget Google has a data presence here in OKC, so I suspect they know a lot more about the infrastructure potential than any of us realize.

The details will be in figuring out where they lay their physical cable plant, and that means rights-of-way, permits, municipality access rules, covenants, buying land, all of which I strongly suspect they already have in hand to no small extent. There's just no way Google or OKC makes an announcement like this without a strong confidence it'll happen. It would just look too bad on either side for it *not* to happen.

Now, that said, given that gigabit ethernet was a *huge* get for the cities in the initial iteration, that first run was two or three years ago. Technology has already evolved, so other providers might be able to offer a comparable service - but the technical upside would seem an *overwhelming* technical advantage in Google's back pocket. Cox has a mostly-copper plant with some fiber backbone, as I understand it, but they're reaching the max on what they can do with copper. Where does Cox go from there? And what do they promise OKC when they go into discussions about renewing the franchise agreement next year?

I was at the press conference and the formal comments were very short.

Basically the major got up and introduced the rep from Google, said they had been working together for a while and that this step is another example of OKC's great growth and potential.

Then the Google rep basically said the same things and that they will need to work very closely with the City Manager (Jim Couch was there) because thousands of miles of fiber optic cable actually has to be laid all over town and that will require a lot of coordination with the City.

Was a nice little event but short and to the point.

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CSbJpH7UEAAnYFK.jpg

One of the things Google is gaining in their deployments to date is *experience*, dealing with local governments, local regulations, local pols, and then finding out how to streamline aspects of deployment. Don't forget Google has a data presence here in OKC, so I suspect they know a lot more about the infrastructure potential than any of us realize.

The details will be in figuring out where they lay their physical cable plant, and that means rights-of-way, permits, municipality access rules, covenants, buying land, all of which I strongly suspect they already have in hand to no small extent. There's just no way Google or OKC makes an announcement like this without a strong confidence it'll happen. It would just look too bad on either side for it *not* to happen.

Now, that said, given that gigabit ethernet was a *huge* get for the cities in the initial iteration, that first run was two or three years ago. Technology has already evolved, so other providers might be able to offer a comparable service - but the technical upside would seem an *overwhelming* technical advantage in Google's back pocket. Cox has a mostly-copper plant with some fiber backbone, as I understand it, but they're reaching the max on what they can do with copper. Where does Cox go from there? And what do they promise OKC when they go into discussions about renewing the franchise agreement next year?

I hope Cox starts upgrading infrastructure and competes. I want options. My options are Cox for speed or ATT which is hardly an option as DSL is far too slow for my household.

Annnnyway, Google Fiber is coming to OKC.

They've already met with City officials extensively and have never done 'exploration' without pursuing a roll-out.

They also don't fly people in and have press conferences without being pretty committed.

So, very, very cool news. Not really interested in all the other nonsense surrounding this announcement, and very excited for OKC -- both for the service and the feather in our cap that comes with this.

Pete, you are all class and I'm very proud to be a part of this community because of that.

I hope Cox starts upgrading infrastructure and competes. I want options. My options are Cox for speed or ATT which is hardly an option as DSL is far too slow for my household.

I agree with this.

DSL in this day and age has gone from a worthy competitor for cable access to basically a last resort if you can't get anything else. It's simply impossible for AT&T to compete using the copper POTS system and they don't care enough to upgrade their infrastructure to fiber-to-the-home like Verizon did in its FIOS markets.

AT&T has already started installing some Fiber. Right now it is just for businesses (we got it when we moved into our new office in Cotter Tower). Maybe this announcement will prompt them to start rolling it out for residential as well.

Pete, you are all class and I'm very proud to be a part of this community because of that.

Thanks. When all this blowback started to happen a couple of years ago, I felt the strong need to defend myself, my reputation and OKCTalk. Now, I just let the work we do here speak for itself. Smart people can figure the rest out for themselves.

And it's just so awesome to be here and be able to stroll over and watch this announcement and meet Jim Couch in person and lots of other movers and shakers and be a part of this exciting announcement. Pretty easy just to focus on that, the beautiful day and a nice walk back to my place.

Oh, and had a fantastic lunch at the Museum Cafe! What a great spot and great food... Kind of gets forgotten about with all the new places, but it's a real gem.

Their brunch is top notch.

The Briokc/TLO Twitter feed just got better! LOL!

I hope Cox starts upgrading infrastructure and competes. I want options. My options are Cox for speed or ATT which is hardly an option as DSL is far too slow for my household.

At least you HAVE an option. Tuttle has NOTHING. You get 1 choice depending on where you live. Where I live in Tuttle on my side of the street in a 10 year old neighborhood Im stuck with AT&T for phone (I use cell), and that is IT for land access. I can get a line of sight WISP antenna that maxes out at 6mbps even if it gets that far. Across the street is fiber from Pioneer that I cannot legally access. Even wrote the FCC, but they sent my complaint to a telco in Oregon.

At least you HAVE an option. Tuttle has NOTHING. You get 1 choice depending on where you live. Where I live in Tuttle on my side of the street in a 10 year old neighborhood Im stuck with AT&T for phone (I use cell), and that is IT for land access. I can get a line of sight WISP antenna that maxes out at 6mbps even if it gets that far. Across the street is fiber from Pioneer that I cannot legally access. Even wrote the FCC, but they sent my complaint to a telco in Oregon.

I had a WISP for a while when I was a teenager (lived out in the country) and it really sucked. It still beats HughesNet though.

Get everyone you know to fill this out.

https://fiber.google.com/cities/oklahomacity/

done!!

If you've been paying attention, today's tweets are not an isolated incident, but part of a larger pattern. I'll just leave it at that.

I could be way off base on this as I'm basing this on anecdotes and (worse) movie and TV depictions of press, but...

Is it possible that what we see on Twitter may be nothing more than the normal ribbing and verbal jousting one might have seen between journalists at a bar or other social spot in the pre-social media days? A not quite friendly rivalry resulting in these small digs and attacks at each other? A less fatal version of the fight scene between networks in Anchorman?

Of course, its all public now and the journalists we've only previously seen as Reporters are now revealed to be just people to everyone watching. I don't disagree that professionals should remain, well, professional on social media, but its possible this isn't as childish (or, at least, abnormal) than it may appear. If this makes sense.

Their updated expansion map...

Oklahoma City looks so, so pretty:


http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/fiber2.jpg

If sure like to have att or cox where I live. We don't have any options but wisps or satellite. I sure hope google gets to us.

If sure like to have att or cox where I live. We don't have any options but wisps or satellite. I sure hope google gets to us.

How far out are you? I thought Cox was pretty consistent in its coverage of most of the populated regions of the metro. I know it gets spotty out towards Newcastle and Tuttle.

Cox is rolling out "gigablast" gigabit fiber service in some markets. I can't imagine why they wouldn't be moving freaky fast to compete. The standard introductory rate is $100/mo for gigabit.

I'm most interested to see google's television offering and future plans for 4K broadcasting.

Their updated expansion map...

Oklahoma City looks so, so pretty:


http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/fiber2.jpg

But... but... I don't see Tulsa on that list.



:D

I'll definitely be interested to see if they make it out here to areas like Eastern OK county.

Was in Kansas City two years ago and saw signs about Google Fiber. At the time I thought we were at least 5 years away from getting on Google's radar, so this is really awesome to hear.

Right.

Just to emphasize again: we are getting Google Fiber. It's happening.

NewsOK and others can harp on the "exploring" and "taking a look at" terminology all they want because they don't know much about the topic. In this particular case, I just personally happen to know exactly what Google means when they say we are a potential city and that they are exploring us: it means we're getting it. Unless, of course, something insanely wild happens to derail it. Google didn't just pick OKC at random and think, yeah, let's explore there. They've already done a massive amount of work "exploring" us.

:Smiley199

Just look at all the BS they had to deal with in Austin. I seriously doubt they will have any of those issues here, especially now that broadband is now a utility, which means the current pole owners must provide access.

Why does Newsok need to be first? I dk, isn't being first, the point of any business?

No. Not at all.

I honestly think much of the negativity at NewsOK surrounding this is to jab at OKCTalk. The way Brianna and even Lackmeyer have handled this is unprofessional in my opinion. Kudos to Pete for all the hard work he does to keep us informed.

Others have stated this, but here's a short article that talks about what this means:

Oklahoma City, Jacksonville And Tampa Invited To Explore Google Fiber | TechCrunch (http://techcrunch.com/2015/10/28/oklahoma-city-jacksonville-and-tampa-invited-to-explore-google-fiber/)

:Smiley199

Just look at all the BS they had to deal with in Austin. I seriously doubt they will have any of those issues here, especially now that broadband is now a utility, which means the current pole owners must provide access.
Hopefully they will bury these lines.

This is wishful thinking, but this would sure be a good opportunity for OKC to bury a lot of the utility lines where fiber goes.

Is this going to be just limited to OKC limits, or is there a chance they're going to go metro-wide? I'm fairly sure they cover the suburbs in Kansas City, but is that an exception or the rule? If Google is interested in hooking Norman up, I doubt the city would turn them down...


Hopefully they will bury these lines.

This is wishful thinking, but this would sure be a good opportunity for OKC to bury a lot of the utility lines where fiber goes.

I don't know a whole lot about the pros and cons of burying utilities vs. poles, but it always seemed kind of strange to me that we have so many above-ground utilities in Oklahoma, considering the weather.

I was talking to some friends be in Austin that just got fiber in their neighborhood and they said that you have to have everyone in your neighborhood request it or they won't ever get to your hood.

I honestly think much of the negativity at NewsOK surrounding this is to jab at OKCTalk. The way Brianna and even Lackmeyer have handled this is unprofessional in my opinion. Kudos to Pete for all the hard work he does to keep us informed.
100% agree. Very disappointed in Steve. I've come to expect it from Brianna.

100% agree. Very disappointed in Steve. I've come to expect it from Brianna.

I am no longer surprised by Lackmeyer's behavior. I am learning about Briley's. It makes me glad I follow neither of them on social media and even happier I don't take their paper. The insolence is pretty staggering. That the Oklahoman implicitly stamps their imprimatur on it my not putting a stop to it speaks volumes.

Kudos to Pete!

Steve is just a repeat of things we learn here before he's able to post them. Beyond that, he's often just flat wrong or believes what developers tell him. I basically ignore most of what he says these days.

Revealing news doesn't have to be a contest. Although OKCTalk is a busy website, there are a lot of people in OKC who don't read it. I would have big informative articles in the paper with lots of quotes and it will appeal to readers. We should all be working together to promote OKC and not worry about who said it first.

I don't want to belabor this media stuff but since we are talking about it I wanted to clarify some things.

It's not as simple as being 'first'. News stories are completely binary: Something is either reported or it is not.

Once reported, then everyone generally knows what is going on and from that point it's just very subtle gradiations of various facts, perhaps a bit more new info, etc.

There is this general thought -- perpetuated by local traditional media through their wide-reaching bully pulpits provided and enabled by their employers -- that they already had the story they were just holding it for more and complete information, confirmations, etc. In most these stories that is absolutely not the case.

They see something here or elsewhere where all the hard work of finding the info, verifying it -- all the stuff they claim to do -- has already been done. I could easily just take articles from the local papers, make a couple of calls to add relatively meaningless quotes and really no new info, and act like I had the story the whole time. But that's not what we do. If the Oklahoman or Journal Record comes out with something really new (like the Sunshine Cleaners redevelopment), we are happy to see that fantastic news, post the links with full credit and get on about discussing it. Believe me, there are plenty such stories where I pretty much know it's going to happen but don't put the story out for various reasons. For example, I sat on the Swanson's Tire development for months because the proprietor of Swanson's wanted the deal to close first then tell his employees. So that's exactly how things transpired, then he told me they had been informed and I wrote up the story. Many times someone asks me to sit on a story then they turn around and give it to the Oklahoman. All part of the risk you take by waiting and part of this.

I know enough about all these stories to know when the traditional media knows and when they don't know. And there are many, many times they aren't even close to having the full story until we put something out. And vice versa of course, the difference being we merely post their story, celebrate the good news and start following from that point.

Also keep in mind in this binary "it's either out or it isn't" reality, once something *is* out then is super easy to call people and get them to talk to you about it. Far, far harder to be the person trying to get the story out in the first place and more often than not you get absolute denials and then have to say, "I'm holding the plans in my hands as we speak so you can either provide more information or I have plenty here to put this out". Often, that is the only way people will talk to you.

The rhretoric becomes about rushing to be first (with the implication that is somehow reckless and irresponsible) but that is not the issue at all. It's all about getting the news *out*, otherwise it isn't news at all and there is no guarantee it will ever be reported.

Also,.I personally work my arse off getting this information. I talk and call and research and meet with people and look up court cases and read and then repeat all that until I can put together a pretty full picture. The idea that we somehow come to our stories differently or with less effort is absolute rubbish and anyone who knows me and follows this site somewhat closely knows this. The traditional media knows it too, despite them constantly trying to claim otherwise.

I am also proud to say that in some ways we are simply smarter, more organized, more creative and do a better job of building trusting and trusted relationships. THAT is how you get news and information, plain and simple.


And finally, it is true that more people read the Oklahoman and Journal Record and Gazette than OKCTalk. However, that is absolutely no excuse to steal our work, repackage it and present it as your own. In fact, the whole point is they want to keep our readership as small as possible by replicating our stories so people DON'T come here.


There is much, much more to this but those are some points that I think many misunderstand.

By nature I am very determined, disciplined and highly competitive so it's hard for me not to be drawn into the fray, especially when my personal integrity and my business has been attacked... But this has reached the point where it reflects badly on OKC in general and that goes far beyond any personal or business issues.

Power to ya, Pete.

What personally irritates me is the disingenuous way the Oklahoman's reps in this matter are working so hard to make a subtlety in the information into some sort of manifest, important distinction that made their "journalistic" reporting somehow more "valuable" than yours, or to make yours "less credible."

If they truly hold the moral, journalistic high ground on this issue, then the proper, professional response is *not to respond at all," any more than they would have responded to "Aliens Landing in OKC!!!" had it appeared in some rag like "The Enquirer." But the fact they *did* respond so defensively tells us *exactly* how much of a threat this kind of reporting is to them - because it most certainly is credible. And their response makes *them* look very, very bad in my personal, unsolicited, and entirely irrelevant opinion. And I'm equally sure they care not one whit what some former subscriber like me thinks of them "journalistically."

Power to ya, Pete.

What personally irritates me is the disingenuous way the Oklahoman's reps in this matter are working so hard to make a subtlety in the information into some sort of manifest, important distinction that made their "journalistic" reporting somehow more "valuable" than yours, or to make yours "less credible."

If they truly hold the moral, journalistic high ground on this issue, then the proper, professional response is *not to respond at all," any more than they would have responded to "Aliens Landing in OKC!!!" had it appeared in some rag like "The Enquirer." But the fact they *did* respond so defensively tells us *exactly* how much of a threat this kind of reporting is to them - because it most certainly is credible. And their response makes *them* look very, very bad in my personal, unsolicited, and entirely irrelevant opinion. And I'm equally sure they care not one whit what some former subscriber like me thinks of them "journalistically."

Completely agree with this. The professional thing for Steve and Brianna to do is simply ignore OKCTalk and do their own thing. The subtle jabs in their articles and the flat out attacks on Twitter only make them look bad.

I think I'm with most Oklahomans in that I couldn't tell you who broke what story first or even care. I know if there is something big happening in the OKC area I'll learn about it on OKCTALK.

Yesterday well before the official Google announcement I said out loud OKC is getting Google fiber. Somebody overheard me and asked me my source which I replied OKCTALK.COM. They didn't looked too convinced but I said if the owner of OKCTALK reports it then you can bank on it.

In the end that's all that matters to me.

Yesterday well before the official Google announcement I said out loud OKC is getting Google fiber. Somebody overheard me and asked me my source which I replied OKCTALK.COM. They didn't looked too convinced but I said if the owner of OKCTALK reports it then you can bank on it.

I told a friend of mine literally the same exact thing yesterday.