A fair question.

It was hardly the first time I'd been asked, but my friend's matter-of-fact query as to how I could profess "fan-ship" for my club (Ajax Amsterdam) and my two live-and-die-with national teams (the U.S. and the Netherlands) in my blog/column writing and claim to remain unbiased when it comes time to report news.

She wasn't trying to poke a hole in my integrity, mind you. She just wondered if some readers might trust me a little less as a reporter because I openly make comments in other works that reveal a fondness or disdain for certain teams or players.

I've never really felt the need to defend this, up to and including this moment, but I figured enough people have mentioned it that I'll just use this informal setting to lay out my thoughts on the question she asked me. After all, it's a fair question. I'm not above answering it. Actually, the idea of answering it sounded kinda fun... so here I am.

Quick side note of confession before I begin: a BigSoccer pal recently told the forum that he trusted my stories '99% of the time'. I mailed him to jokingly ask what the hell happened to the shorted 1%. He essentially implied hoping for that last percentage point was too much to ask - and I suppose he was right. That is the trade-off for doing what I love to do. I have to try and earn the last hundredth every time, even if it's completely out of the question.

Okay, here we go... without getting too flowery, I must admit to being influenced by several journalists that went against the traditional grain to varying degrees and in various ways. Call it Gonzo, call it whatever you like; most of the people I've looked up to (and in a couple of cases, been given advice by) were always at least a little bit off the mainstream idea of reporter.

I will admit to swiping the odd reportage personality trait from writers like Hunter Thompson, Tom Wolfe, Seymour Hersh and Fareed Zakaria to try and push the creative side of this job without sacrificing any journaistic credibility. I am also a HUGE Studs Terkel fan.

When it comes to sports media, I dare say my role models were second to none. Being from St. Louis, I was insanely fortunate to grow up listening to Jack Buck, Bob Costas, Jim Holder and the incomparable Dan Kelly. In the paper as well as on the radio, I had the amazing Bob Broeg to admire.

The second sentence on Wikipedia's "Journalism Objectivity" page cites four pillars of the title concept - 'fairness, disinterestedness, factuality, and nonpartisanship'. I think it would be quite the stretch to argue that any of the 10 men I mentioned could ever be described as 'disinterested'.

To me, these are guys that aren't or weren't afraid to put a little heart... no... a lot of heart into it, even if it meant some would question their authenticity. I don't feel that having personal biases denies me the opportunity to be objective whenever I punch the clock.

No reporter can claim absolute objectivity because it doesn't exist. The main thing that drew me to both sports and writing as a kid revolved around the chance to be creative. Sports is a way to make others force the best out of us, physically and mentally; writing is a way to give life to old events and new ideas. As with soccer players, my favorite reporters know when to break the right rule, to shake up the standard and common and run-of-the-mill. And when they do it, it's through honest personality expression, whether the name is Zidane or Terkel.

I can't testify that I've never felt a personal pang in the press box, but I can assert that the only way to be a professional is to be professional. How well I do this definitely gets a self-examination from time to time, but I'm confident I get the job done.

For instance, we reporters are not supposed to be friends with our subjects... but then again, people aren't supposed to date at work. Muh huh. I see. Anywhere you find humans, you will find connections and rivalries, but never pure objectivity. That's reality. I'm not interested in how things appear to be, I'm interested in how they really are.

I have turned down the chance to go hang out socially with some players and club execs, as cool as I think they are as people. And at the same time, I have also become pals with a couple, which will happen when you interact with folks for a living. None of the players, coaches or otherwise that I've ever talked to has gone on to comment either way on a credit or a criticism, so I just assume they respect my work and don't worry about it.

Perhaps good guy Danny Califf of FC Midtjylland said it best. I recently mentioned old American Soccer Daily colleague and Aalborg supporter Poul-Henrik Worm, who had the rare chance to hoist a cold one with the defender during Danish title celebrations last season, in conversation. He basically said (and forgive my paraphrase license, Danny): "I like that guy. He was tough on us sometimes. But he was right to do so."

So, here it is, for all to see... Oranje were my first soccer true love in the '70's. They brought me to the game and have never lost any of my devotion. Obviously, that squad led me to Ajax, who were cemented as the only club I'll ever support heart and soul when ESPN started carrying Sunday morning Eredivisie matches during the glory years of the early '90's. As for the USMNT, well, who are we kidding there?

I had each of these strong allegiances before I ever cashed my first writing check. Should I be expected to somehow disengage them? Should I keep them hidden? No, I'd rather lay my cards on the table and let readers decide if I have integrity or not. I'm just the scribe... who cares what I think about that anyway?

All of which brings me to the book seen above. I've often found a copy to thumb through a little at libraries, friend's homes and other places, delighting in the small passage I was able to digest each time. It's one of those books that stays on your to-read list so long because you know for sure you'll get to it eventually - only new, exciting titles always end up grabbing your time. Thinking about this topic has made me force it to the top of the list once and for all.

So yeah, I am finally ordering my own copy of that book pictured at the top right. Sure, it may have been more contextual to put the pic here at the bottom, but c'mon... that would have looked unconventional.

- Greg Seltzer