Rec.sport.pro-wrestling
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- The correct title of this article is rec.sport.pro-wrestling. The initial letter is shown capitalized due to technical restrictions.
rec.sport.pro-wrestling, or RSPW, is a Usenet newsgroup dedicated to the discussion of professional wrestling. RSPW received its first post in January 1990[1], and counted 33342 posts during its busiest month to date in July, 1999[2]. It doubles as a forum for individuals to discuss other topics of interest, including music, sports, and pop culture. It mimics real wrestling by posters creating their own gimmicks, feuds, organizations, awards, and so forth.
A book on professional wrestling calls it "the largest online discussion forum for wrestling" and comments that much conversation in that forum "revolves about the issue of real versus fake; fans are obsessed with knowing the difference between a shoot and a work."[1] The author of a book on professional wrestling mentions that she follows RSPW, and cites it as a source for fan opinion.[2]
Rec.sport.pro-wrestling covers not just World Wrestling Entertainment but also other wrestling promotions as well, such as Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, Ring Of Honor, Japanese wrestling, smaller independent federations, and combat shoot sports such as K1, UFC, and PRIDE.
[edit] Sources
Google post count for rec.sport.pro-wrestling
- ^ Sammond (ed), Nicholas (2005). Steel Chair to the Head: The Pleasure and Pain of Professional Wrestling. Duke University Press. ISBN 0-8223-3438-0., p. 185
- ^ Mazer, Sharon (1998). Professional Wrestling:Sport and Spectacle. University Press of Mississippi. ISBN 1-57806-021-4. p. 9; RSPW mentioned on pages 115, 149, 159, 162, 163, 165 as sources for fan opinion.