"Oh, you're from the Examiner.  You're like the second person from the Examiner that I've met this week."  - Dan "Shoe" Hsu, real journalist, at E3 after I told him who I work for.

 (Note: for those unfamiliar with the Examiner, it's a site where regular folk get to write on a semi-regular basis about topics that are of interest to them.  Compensation is based on how many readers a writer can attract.)

Sure, I got into E3 under the premise of being a member of the media, but I wasn't there on assignment, technically.  I didn't have an editor breathing down my neck for coverage of super-hyped game A or indie game B, nor did I have fancy video equipment ready to interview anybody with a pulse.  I wasn't going to every booth asking for swag or looking to exchange business cards with anybody who would take it (interestingly enough, ex-EGM  editor Shane Bettenhausen was the only person who asked for my card, which took me by surprise).  Nope, all I had was a phone to send out twitter and twitpic updates if I saw anything of interest to me and a digital camera to take pictures.  I did write a round up of my experience during that weekend, but I wasn't under any obligation to.  The beauty of being an Examiner is that we write when we want to (at least once a month). And I'm guessing my fellow Examiner that Shoe met didn't have anybody pushing them either.   So were we just taking up space that maybe should have gone to someone who does the game writing thing as their livelihood instead of a dalliance?

People like Shoe, Jeff Gertsmann, Stephen Totilo, and until recently, N'Gai Croal (pictured), are real journalists, with or without the "game"  prefix.  Through the years, they have worked with unprecedented access to the industry (Shoe at EGM/1UP, Totilo at MTV, Croal at Newsweek) and as outsiders looking in (Shoe at Bitmob, Gertsmann at Giant Bomb).  Regardless, their stance never changed; they always reported without bias or favor (at least I think so, trolls think otherwise). And most importantly, they're damn good writers.

Me?  I don't actually know what the hell my title is in this world of  games journalism, and I wonder how other Games Examiners feel too.  Am I journalist?  I sure don't consider myself one (I stumbled upon Examiner while I was looking at job listings on Monster; being a new teacher in California sucks.), especially when I compare myself to even an EGM intern.  I don't have any direct connections in the games industry, but there are some Examiners who have ties with PR people and get stories out of it.  Am I an enthusiast?  Maybe, but I will admit to not playing as much video games as you would expect someone who writes about video games in the traditional sense to play (notice my "reviews" are usually iPhone games and short 30-minute impressions).  Am I a blogger?  Possibly, since I do the occasional "hey, look here's a video, watch it" post or the "make snarky comments about stupid things that the industry does that's sure to get some people ticked off because they don't read my text and just write ignorant things in the comments section" rants.  But then again, I do go long form from time to time and I sincerely doubt anybody online has the patience to read anything that takes more than a few rolls on the scroll wheel.  But I must be something, right?  There's got to be a reason I'm occasionally the top Examiner in Los Angeles.  I'd like to think I'm not part of the the problem that Scott Jones talks about in his brilliant piece today, and that I'm helping move the medium forward in some minuscule way, instead of being someone who likes to copy and paste press releases and calls it a day.

So as Examiners, we do get paid whatever we get paid to write about the things we love.  Maybe we shouldn't worry about a label that people will give us and that it is ultimately pointless, but if we want gaming to be on the same plateau that film and literature occupy, we have to give it the respect it deserves.  Of course, by tomorrow I'll probably be writing jokes about how Shemmue fanboys are probably having hyperventilating over the news that Ryo Hazuki will be in Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing, but I plan to balance it out, someday... eventually... I guess... sorry, Scott.  Damn this indecision...