May 20, 2010 update: Mikey found to be a deception
Original article:
This will be a short post and I will follow up, but there is something weird going on with “Mikey,” the teen-age hockey player-blogger I first wrote about in December. On the front of his site is a post by “Jimmy,” a Canadian student and Mikey devotee saying that Mikey is a “40-somethin dude who lives in Minnesota.”
Jimmy’s post is a rambling take on being deceived and lied to by someone (Mikey) he fell in love with. What is odd is that parts of the post have Mikey’s writing style (“K I’m rambling n I’m not thinkin clearly neway.”) Jimmy wrote for Outsports during the Olympics, and this post seems out of his writing character.
There is also a post by Madeleine that says, “It’s sad that this was all a lie.” There is also a forum thread on Mikey’s site where readers discuss the issue.
Is Mikey a fraud? Is Mikey real, but now claiming he’s a fraud so he can disappear, go to college and not be bothered with being discovered? I will post a longer piece when I can get more information. Anyone with information on the issue, please post below or e-mail me (jim@outsports.com).
on Apr 24th, 2010 at 4:27 PM
Jim, you are really being a bit cruel in your handling what is very real grief for Jimmy and if you had been through the last few days you probably would not have even considered kicking Jimmy while he is down in that way.
on Apr 24th, 2010 at 4:43 PM
I thought all of these anonymous gay athletes with blogs that Outsports reports on were authenticated by Jim and/or Cyd.
This report can only leave us to believe that not all of the bloggers have been screened for authenticity.
If they, in fact, are not, then how are we to know that ANY of these anonymous athlete bloggers are real?
Outsports should only support the blogs whose authors Cyd and/or Jim can authenticate.
on Apr 24th, 2010 at 4:53 PM
Hoax or not, there has definately been a need identified for the gay youth in this world to have some place to find out they are not alone.
As an adult gay person who is athletic minded (former player), I think it is important to let these kids know they aren’t “weird” and that things will be ok. I think it is the duty of the gay, lesbian, bi, trans, questioning, whatever community to pay it forward to lend these kids a hand, ear or shoulder.
Fred
on Apr 24th, 2010 at 6:23 PM
Here’s the reason I think Mikey is real. If this was really a 40 something guy, why reveal himself to Jimmy or anyone at all? The logical thing for him to do would be to write a post ending the blog, saying he wants his privacy, and simply disappear. But if he’s a 17yo star hockey player, it’s not that easy. He’s revaled too much about himself and people would keep looking for him. Only the 17yo hockey would have a motive for wanting us to beleive he’s really a 40 something con man.
on Apr 24th, 2010 at 6:50 PM
I followed the blog and I am reporting this to appropriate LGBT organizations as well as the internet host of the site, the attorney general, and law enforcement.
If this was a 40-something guy posing as an underage blogger, then it has huge implications as well as the ability to disastrously impact gay youth that communicated with Mikey. If underage individuals communicated with him via email and he responded as “Mikey” then he is a predator – plain and simple. A 40-year-old man offering a story that vulnerable children (under 18) will relate to and engage is outrageous.
Having read the blog for months one has to wonder how the emtire blog disappeared, but “Jimmy” and “Madeline” somehow wrested control of it and the archives from “Mikey”. If they are each separate individuals, then they are each accomplices in this.
A “hoax” is joke and masquerade played on the public. THIS was aimed at kids. This was cruel, cold, and calculated. This is a crime.
Mikey Nation should be shut down immediately by state police and this should be pursued as a crime. I have screen shots of the forum, blog and lucky for me (and woe to Mikey) emails I received from him.
He is going to be exposed and brought to justice on this.
on Apr 24th, 2010 at 7:12 PM
I agree with Rob. The Mikey hoax is criminal, most especially because it duped kids. The term suicide was used so often by bloggers to this site that I fear there might be some harmful actions as a result of advice offered on the site.
The Jimmy and Madeleine characters are also shady. How they got control of site and yet deny any culpability is confusing to an adult and devastating to youth.
It was a compelling story, touted by gay media. Everyone suffers in this hoax.
on Apr 24th, 2010 at 8:20 PM
I think Outsports has a recsponsibility to investigate this and keep it in the headlines. There is a certain accountability that this site has, if it is going to report on and support gay athletes coming out of the closet and living richer lives through truth. I look forward to a featured editorial addressing this.
I think PFLAG and Lambda Youth will as well.
on Apr 24th, 2010 at 8:26 PM
“On the Internet, men are men, women are men, and children are FBI agents waiting to get you.”
I forget what site was quoted saying that in the mid-2000s, but it’s true. Well, not really, but you get the point.
If the hoax is real, and it is a 40 year-old man, then it just plays for negative stereotypes that affect gay men. You know, how gay men like to bother children, when in reality, their heterosexual counterparts are more inclined to bother children. I pay no attention to these athletics blogs by teens, mostly because the grammar is so horrible it’s a waste of my time trying to read it. I’m 20 years-old, and I say this. JHC, I wonder what I’ll be saying when I’m 30… On second thought, I would rather not envision myself that old at this age. The thought is deathly terrifying.
If this is a cover up because an actual 17 year-old felt that his cover was being blown, and that people were adamantly trying to find out his identity, and got very close, then I don’t blame him for making up such a hoax. However, I ask myself why make this dribble up, and not cut the service to the site. It isn’t hard to do, if you’re tech-savvy, that is.
If adults were trying to find out his identity and possibly get in touch with him or out him to his peers, then I shake my head in disappointment and utter amazement. Why people would stoop to such lows is beyond my range of rational thinking.
This is also a reason why I refuse to keep a blog or Twitter. I like to keep my personal real-life tight and secure. I like to maintain no connection of what I do on the Internet to my real life.
on Apr 24th, 2010 at 8:33 PM
By the way, if adults feel okay with portraying themselves as high school athletes and calling attention to themselves, and feel it’s right to do so because they believe they’re helping all the young kids out there, I promptly urge them to see psychiatric help.
If you really want to help, join a center for LGBT youth or team up with other adults and create a site that publishes articles that are positive in nature. Think of something like Advocate. Donate your time to suicide hotlines or something. That’s where these kids will get their help. That’s how you will help.
I made a promise to myself recently that once I’m done with my undergrad, or my graduate in the future, I’ll start a small organization to help kids when they’re faced with these problems. I know what’s it’s like, and while I still experience problems, I’m a much stronger person than I was a year ago, and much better than just 2 years ago next month.
on Apr 24th, 2010 at 8:37 PM
I’ve received a statement from the hosts of the site. The story is true. They are taking serious actions and seem to be willing to do what is right. They have done some investigations of the identities of “Jimmy” and “Madeleine”, which they initiated in response to this on their own.
on Apr 24th, 2010 at 8:45 PM
Rob, can you please clarify your post? I’m slightly confused whether the hoax is real, or whether Jimmy or whatever alias he goes by is a legitimate 17 year-old.
on Apr 24th, 2010 at 8:46 PM
All of these closeted bloggers have credibility issues that have been brought up and addressed in the past, if I remember correctly this was the case for the ballplayer. What kind of proof did “Mikey” provide the site owners, if any? And if he didn’t, why was he allowed to participate so actively on the blog? Is this a question of not screening at all, poor screening, or an extremely persuasive con job?
The entire thing just seemed lame from the start — I’m not wasting my time reading people who write in text abbreviations. But apparently his stories touched a lot of people.
on Apr 24th, 2010 at 9:06 PM
This is bizarre.
“Mikey” was even interviewed on a gay podcast program (bendave.com) and didn’t sound like a 40-year old – he sounded like a nervous, regular high-schooler. Part of me thinks that the “anonymous” blog was getting too public and high-profile for his liking so he shut it down, but everyone with real knowledge of the situation seems to say he’s some anonymous 40-year old. Weird.
on Apr 24th, 2010 at 9:11 PM
This is getting weirder by the minute. If the site owners who supposedly donated space to mikey are real and sincere they should fwd hits on the now gone w/o explanation site. At least to explain.
What a mess.
on Apr 24th, 2010 at 9:13 PM
@OUTinLA: I agree. That sold me and I decided to participate.
mikey always sed hockey was his life so you may be right.
on Apr 24th, 2010 at 9:34 PM
Out InLa and Steevo, could either of your please post the link to the PodCast in question?
This is really bizarre and makes little sense to me, other than the whole 40 yo thing. Because as teenagers we always joked that pedos were 40 years old, just one single base age.
on Apr 24th, 2010 at 9:35 PM
http://www.bendave.com/saywhat/2010/01/episode-29-sherlock-homos.html
on Apr 24th, 2010 at 9:43 PM
You can listen to “Mikey” on the above link at around the 45-minute mark. Is this the voice of a 48-year-old man? I would love thoughts on this (or is this a guy “hired” by Mikey to impersonate him?). I am been gone all day and am just now trying to sort through private e-mail on this issue. Appreciate the comments so far but I am still confused by the whole thing.
on Apr 24th, 2010 at 9:49 PM
No… it doesn’t.
on Apr 24th, 2010 at 10:07 PM
I listened to the Ben & Dave interview. It sure sounded like a nervous teen. This is maddening. I applaud Rob for his actions in notifying the Web host.
For endorsing this site, OutSports must investigate.
I’ve written to “Madeleine,” and she insists she’s real. So what? In my mind she’s complicit in this horrible mess.
on Apr 24th, 2010 at 10:17 PM
For those who say Jimmy and Madeline “got control of the site” — they don’t “have control” of the site. The webmasters do, and there’s a note from them in addition to those from Jimmy and Madeline.
I suppose it’s possible that “Mikey” is trying to cover his tracks so no one can out him and Jimmy came up with this “40-something man” story to help. Part of me kind of hopes that’s the case, because it’s a little more acceptable than a man in his 40s pretending to be a 17-year-old on the Internet, no matter what the reason may be. I suppose it’s possible the whole thing is a hoax perpetrated by who knows who. I have no way of knowing the truth.
For now, I’m going to accept Jimmy and Madeline at their word.
Jim Buzinski: re: Jimmy’s writing like “Mikey” — on the “Mikey” site he did abbreviate some — not to the extent that “Mikey” did, though. Since I’m accepting Jimmy at his word, my assumption is he cleaned up his grammar, etc. for his Outsports writings.
on Apr 24th, 2010 at 10:21 PM
Oh, and those of you wanting investigations and criminal charges and such…why? People make up fictitious identities for Internet sites all the time. No one asked for money, there was (from what I’ve read) no trolling for sex, none of that. I don’t see criminal behavior here.
I think people who cared about “Mikey” are letting anger get the better of them, and those who were naysayers from the beginning are feeling even more holier-than-thou than they already are.
on Apr 24th, 2010 at 11:02 PM
“For endorsing this site, OutSports must investigate.” Oh, I am investigating.
on Apr 24th, 2010 at 11:09 PM
The Rainbow Runner is gone now too. Only the page but no posts.
Perhaps just a technical glitch?
http://therainbowrunner.blogspot.com/
Best,
Drew
on Apr 24th, 2010 at 11:23 PM
No, Drew, it’s gone. How weird.
on Apr 24th, 2010 at 11:27 PM
Well, another blog has been “mysteriously” taken down, after posting a comment about “Mikey” today: http://bisportzdude.blogspot.com/.
Very strange!
on Apr 24th, 2010 at 11:36 PM
“Well, another blog has been “mysteriously” taken down, after posting a comment about “Mikey” today: http://bisportzdude.blogspot.com/”
Or perhaps the 16 year old author of the blog, that was started because of “Mikey” – was so devastated that he couldn’t handle being in blogworld anymore. His email, which previously worked, has bounced. He clearly wants no part of this anymore. Jon was a good kid, just looking to vent his feelings and deal with homosexuality in high school.
I only hope to god that he is doing OK, because I know things weren’t going so well for him. “Mikey” was a source of support, a person to look up to.
on Apr 24th, 2010 at 11:51 PM
To #27, you obviously know much more than I do. I suppose these two other bloggers could have been so upset that they decided to end their sites too. I don’t know what to believe, and perhaps it doesn’t matter. Whether or not “Mikey” was a 40 year old charlatan or a true 17 year old hockey player, there were much better ways to end it. Obviously he served as a hero and role model to many teens and young adults. Either way, he broke the hearts and spirits of many people who were already vulnerable. Maybe one day the truth will come out?
on Apr 24th, 2010 at 11:57 PM
Whatever the truth is, this sucks and I my heart goes out to all of the people who found a community on Mikey’s site. We are getting to the bottom of this, I assure you.
Jim and I have talked about these anonymous blogs, and I personally don’t think we should stop mentioning them. We say we don’t know if the person is real up front, but many of these blogs are interesting. Either way, I’d love to hear people’s thoughts on that.
on Apr 24th, 2010 at 11:58 PM
Did you guys listen to that podcast? That doesn’t sound like a 40 yo to me.
I’m willing to bet top dollar some sicko out there found out his information and threatened to out him to everyone he knew. Let’s face it, there are idiots like that in the real world. I wouldn’t blame these other guys taking their blogs down, too, in fear of being outed by the same villain who threatened “Mikey”.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 12:10 AM
Rob, Thank you for contacting the web hosts, but at this point, they should be investigated as well. They could be covering up for “Mikey” if hes trying to go into hiding. I would hope that you and others will do whats in your power to investigate what the truth is.
If “Mikey” is a 17-year-old that just had too much of this and made up a lie to cover his tracks, then tell us that, but don’t tell us his name.
If “Mikey” is a 40-some year old man, tell us that, and use your own discretion to release his name.
Basically, I don’t trust the web hosts own “investigation” of this. There should be an independent investigation, and hopefully OutSports would be the ones to do this.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 12:13 AM
yes my blog is gone, and right now i have no intention of bringing it back up. No i am not a 40 yr. old man. The reason why i am taking my blog down is because today has been a very sad day for me and many other people who have been involved in mikey nation. A person who i very much trusted has betrayed me, and i am extremely hurt. Now people are trying to bring the authorities in and thats just way too much for me to be even a little bit involved in. If legal action starts taking place i dont want to have to have a conversation with my parents that i am not ready for. I have never been in contact with Jimmy, but i have been in contact with madeleine and she is a real person. She is not afraid to tell people who she really is and i almost started crying when i read about how someone is thinking about pressing charges on her.
Today is an extremely sad day for everyone in mikeynation.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 12:27 AM
Hey Jon, sorry to hear that.
Honestly, if some of you, such as Rob, took the time to research, and possibly record your own voice, you’ll realize that no 40 YO, bar the Late MJ, could sound so young.
Honestly. It’s the people who are trying to start independent investigations, bar Outsports, because I trust both Jim and Cyd, are the type (not Jim and Cyd) who end up ruining some kid’s life. If you’re wrong about what you’ve said thus far, which I am sure you are at this point, then you should be ashamed of yourselves. Ashamed because you’ve grabbed something weak, and are trying to expose it. Unfortunately, there’s no law against outing someone against their will.
If you end up outing some poor innocent teenager who’ll lose the respect from his school, friends, peers, and most importantly, his family, then all I ask is, how the hell do you live with yourself? Do you have no moral character?
If you are wrong about this Jimmy and Mikey BS, then I would hope to God that you’re sued for intrusion of privacy.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 12:38 AM
DJ, I am not saying to out him. If you read my post, I say that if it is found during the independent investigation by OutSports that if Mikey IS a teenager, his actuall name should be withheld by Cyd and Jim (two credible and trustworthy people), but it should be revealed this is indeed a real kid that has simply decided to retire from blogging because of personal or identity safety reasons.
DJ, I also hope you realize how hurt some people are (and could be) by this hoax (if indeed it is a hoax). I truly believe with all my heart that there are teenagers and adolescents reading that blog, and I honestly believe this lie could lead to depression that could have terrible, terrible implications.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 12:40 AM
DJ, also notice that I call for an independent investigation and not so much a criminal one. That is because of the chance that this could indeed be a 17-year-old.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 12:52 AM
Take a look at the Trevor Project website for the latest horrendous stats on suicides by gay kids and cut these blogs a little slack. The knives are out for anybody on the internet, after all.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 12:54 AM
I just want to know if it’s real or if it was all a lie. I followed this thing religiously for several months. It just sounded so authentic and as a teenager I can honestly say it would take a damn good hoax to have a 40 year old be that convincing. If it really is some kid who just snapped under the pressure I think he went about it the wrong way, but it would be nice to know he was real. The odd thing is that he was absent for a week leading up this…all very confusing
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 12:56 AM
Chad, by all means don’t think I was calling you out. I took note of your post and held my remarks. You presented two arguments, for which I took note of.
I’m talking about the people who are so convinced without having heard the recording. It’s a teenager thing to do, as I explained to someone else today. It just seems like a worried teenager.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 1:09 AM
No one is going to charge Madeleine with anything. I think she’s got a big heart and I condemn everyone here who says she should be investigated. She’s a victim in this like everyone else, so keep Madeleine out if it – she only means well.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 1:12 AM
jon..
i’m glad to read your post. At least I know you’re ok, sorta. I don’t think when good blogs go bad, it’s time for duck and cover. I enjoy reading yours very much. Just don’t let this distract you from getting your drivers license and don’t let doubt rule your life. You’re a good blogger and I hope you come back soon.
NOw I think mikey made the decision to end his blog to protect his privacy but he certainly chose a piss-poor way to do it. It’s a fine mess he’s gotten himself into.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 1:13 AM
I listened to the podcast and it sounded like it might’ve been an adult using software to shift the pitch of his voice upward a bit, to sound younger.
I really don’t know what to think at this point, though.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 1:16 AM
I agree that Madeleine is authentic and has proven herself to be real.
Evan’s comment ^ basically summed up my argument as to why an independent investigation should be done. I trust both Cyd and Jim to keep his name in-house if he is 17, but I also feel as if this is a credible enough site to do some reporting and investigating.
At this point, this is more than about one (potential) 17 year old in Minnesota. The emotions of possibly THOUSANDS of emotionally-vulnerable young adolescents and teenagers are being toyed with, and that can have deadly consequences.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 1:19 AM
I agree with John (post #41). If this indeed is a hoax, it was certainly elaborate enough that this guy could’ve used voice-altering software. Very possible.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 1:25 AM
I should mention that a couple of bands I was in 25 years ago used pitch shifters twice. In one band, we used it to make ourselves sound like little kids, even though we were in our mid-20s. In the other, I used three different settings on my voice. One made me sound like Jess Cox from Tygers of Pan Tang (weird and nasally), one made me sound like a screaming banshee and the last made me sound like Barry White. Stuff around today is no doubt a lot more sophisticated.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 1:38 AM
John, that’s a live sound processor, which is different than what’s available to the average consumer…
One costs more than a thousand the other required pre-recorded material.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 1:41 AM
Forgot to say. Can’t pre-record and alter, even by way of macro, that fast. Your average CPU processor would take at least 30 seconds to process clear audio.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 1:41 AM
Now I’m angry. You people calling for INVESTIGATIONS are nuts! First of all, you’re scaring kids like Jon. He went and deleted his blog because you morons have him paranoid that he’s going to be investigated! He had an outlet to express himself, get things off his chest, etc. and YOU destroyed it for him. Not “Mikey.” YOU. That’s how you want to help kids who can’t come out of the closet? By forcing them to keep everything inside?
And even if this were something worth investigating, how on earth do you expect Outsports to do it? It’s been mentioned before that Outsports is essentially a two-man operation, Jim and Cyd. This isn’t CNN or ABC or news organizations with resources to pour into investigations.
I repeat: you people are nuts. Stop it. So the “Mikey” blog was a hoax. It affects those who were regulars on the site and identified with the story and those like Jon who were inspired to start their own blog. The rest of you will just have to get over it. It doesn’t affect your life one damn bit so shut the hell up.
Jon, my advice to you would be to start blogging again. These people on here are a bunch of Internet blowhards. They have no power to investigate anything and even if they could, and even in the unlikely event that some “authorities” found something worth investigating, I see no reason for them to question you. What could you possibly tell them, anyway?
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 1:45 AM
Well said, Joe.
Lot’s of hot air being strewn about carelessly here. Everyone’s become some kind of Sherlock Holmes. Too bad they don’t put the effort into doing something actually useful to help gay youth.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 1:52 AM
DJ, I used to own a guitar pedal that did the same thing, though I can’t remember if we ever used it specifically for vocals. We often used things in ways they not meant to be, like an electric razor to play a guitar, or a guitar pickup stuck to a hubcap, which we then smacked with stuff.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 1:53 AM
Joe, I think it cuts deeper than those who were just “regulars” to the blog like Jimmy, Jon and Madeleine. Us wanting this IP address and whoever is behind this blog investigated has nothing to do with Jon or any other blog out there. I have no problem with anonymous blogs. I trust that Jon, Jimmy, or whoever else has a blog is who they say they are unless proven otherwise. I trusted that Mikey was authentic, but according to those running the site, he has admitted otherwise. It is now time to go after this.
There has been a potential admission of guilt here of SEVERE misrepresentation of an identity which has misled minors. The man behind this (if a hoax) is a potential predator.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 1:55 AM
John, that is so much effort. Honestly, why would he go through so much damned effort? I fail to understand why. He didn’t even have to do the interview. He could of claimed he wanted to protect his identity. So I can’t understand how your argument even holds up.
@ Chad: An IP address is not always unique to someone. It’s almost fruitless, and no ISP will be willing to hand over information, not even with a court order.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 2:05 AM
DJ and Joe, I understand what you’re saying. I guess I will agree to disagree on this one.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 2:14 AM
DJ, I’m not saying that’s what happened; I’m saying it’s a possibility.
Until someone comes forward and explains, and has tangible evidence rather than words on a screen, we can’t know exactly what happened.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 2:20 AM
I agree with Joe in post #47.
Jon, please don’t close yourself off. I know it can be cathartic to write stuff out. You have a lot to offer, and you had some followers who you were inspiring as well. I was disappointed to see you had taken down your blog.
Madeleine, is an incredible girl who whole heartedly supports her gay friends, and was just as surprised, and completely blindsided as the rest of us.
I, am still here for those of you who I have corresponded with. If you need to, you know how to contact me.
FredB
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 2:30 AM
This is just sad and depressing…for an adult. How can all the kids who posted, feel anything but awful betrayal? I don’t want to see anyone hurt further by an investigation. But I want this story told clearly. It’s still a damned mess and just can’t be dismissed.
This was a powerful blog, compelling and supportive to all numbers of people. And poof, it’s gone. Hell, I even got an endorsement from “Mikey” for my new organization. Think I feel scammed?
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 2:34 AM
First of all, I am ACTUALLY 17 and not f@$%ing 40, and to be quite honest I feel like shit. I am closeted and gay and thought,hey this Guy is soooooo much like me when I found the blog like a week ago. I read every single post from the beginning to the end and now…this. I just can’t even believe this. It’s insane everything was soooo intricate and precise and true sounding and i thought, man, i wish i had someone like this to talk to and relate to, turns out that no one was even there,….now thats sad shit when ur 17 and looking up blogs to read about kids like u because there is NO ONE like you where you live,… and then this happens and you feel like there isnt even anyone like you on the fucking internet. and therefore, really is there anyone like me? Honestly this just ruined the hell out of my last days of spring break and has made me feel so confused/angry/alone/like i never wanna trust anyone ever again. Well anyway, thats what this has left me like.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 2:48 AM
hey al ya know a bunch of people (myself included) found it thinking there was no one like them. but the thing is now that all of us (however many there are) found it just cause one guy isn’t real doesn’t me WE aren’t real. if that makes any sense.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 3:02 AM
thankyou everyone for the support that you have given. i will put some thought into starting up my blog again for people like Al. hopefully this whole mess is worked out because i know first hand how devastating this news was, and i dont want anybody else to go through that.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 3:07 AM
As one of the owners of the hosting company that provided the domain and webspace when ‘Mikey’ moved from the original Blogspot site he operated to a more full featured WordPress driven site after his initial boost in popularity resulting from Jim’s Dec 8th, 2009 post about the original blog at http://hockeykidmn.blogspot.com/. With all these calls for investigation, I am trying to find out what is in need of investigating. Is someone looking into Google’s policies on creating blogs with invalid profile information since so much of this, including Jim’s very first post about Mikey was based on that information?
If there is a need for investigation I assume someone has been harmed, or a minor has told someone that he was sexually interfered with by this “Mikey” person. If so, I have not been able to find a report, can someone provide a link to the criminal act that is being alleged. I would hate the shut down of the site to interfere with a serious criminal investigation if a crime has been committed.
To the best of my knowledge this was a betrayal of our trust, as the community providing free webspace, and of the trust of the readers of the blog. Sad, unthinking, and wrong, but not criminal. Also, to the best of our knowledge, the blogger had actually turned 18 last fall and wanted to obscure his birthdate to protect his privacy.
>We are a community host and while we fully comply with COPPA (Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act) and will not let anyone covered by the law, including those under 13 from registering for any service, the law does not cover web site operators over that age whether they are a blogger or a budding young entrepenuer writing code or a talented art student selling her work.
Now, with all that said, I know people are hurt and feel betrayed and “fooled” and that feeling fooled is enough to make some people lash out at others. I just ask that you look at who and what you are lashing out at carefully to avoid victimizing a victim of this hoax.
>And again, if anyone has ANY inking that an illegal activity took place on the site the proper investigating team is the police department where the victim reported the crime. We stand ready to help with any police investigation but have yet to be contacted by anyone at this time.
As far as an investigation by Outsports, Jim and I spoke on the phone earlier this evening and he has my email and my phone number so we can keep in touch and ensure that any lessons that can be learned from this incident can be learned and shared.
For me personally, the worst part is that my partners and I have decided that the risk is too high to provide community based hosting for anyone who can’t pay actual money no matter how important their cause or how noble thier mission may be.
>As a gay man who spent most of his teenage years as a runaway who fled home for reasons related to trying to grow up gay in a small southern town, I envy kids today for their access to the Internet and sites like I believed HockeyKidMN.com to be until this week. The existence of LEGITIMATE niche sites like that are important and I certainly hope the growth resources continues to grow as the generation of young adults comes of age in all their diversity of interests and beliefs.
In 1985 a single hotline for help in a big city was the norm and gay youth were treated with a cookie cutter mentality. In just one generation we are seeing that supporting gay youth means being able to support young gay athletes or young gay musical theater aspirants and everything in between.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 3:25 AM
This whole situation is really wrecked up (wanted to say something else but can’t be that rude)…..I don’t know what to say here but obviously want to say something. First off, Assuming this is a lie – and this a 40 something person who acted like a 17 year old, shame on you! Shame! Do you realize the betrayal you have caused, the mistrust generated. I will say to those who are out there – like the 17 year old who said ….”(my) spring break was ruined”……. don’t give up! I am not an expert on who to say you should talk to, but maybe a good spot is the LGBT groups. I say this because, at the end of the day, someone you talk to in reality is there, and you can see them, and you know they are real in body (k that sounds wierd, but I hope you get what I’m saying).
We were all misled it appears by someone who put up a pic/avatar , created a description of themselves and backed it up with great stories. It’s like meeting someone in real life, and finding out their name is diff than what they said, they don’t have the life experiences they said they have (like a kid who lies – I know I had a few friends like that (friends really probably isn;t the best term, but thought they were friends) when I was younger). Turns out they don’t have the dog they showed you pics of, or they didn’t go on vacation to where they said, or there dad didn’t have the brand new car – that they said they did, which made them look kewl.
We were lied to! I say that assuming this is what is said to be, that this Mikey has now turned out to be a 40 year old – and no offense to 40 year olds as some of us are closer to 40 than 20. Be grateful if you get to age, as some people don’t get to be on this earth till they are 40. Point is, the whole thing was a scam it appears. UNLESS, as some have said, “Mikey” decided to go underground. I want to believe that; I would rather know that to be the truth. But how now do we know what is true or false.
I have been lied to online in the past, when talking with someone, and then you find out they are not what (age) etc they said they are. It would be like finding out that someone you’ve divulged stuff too – e.g. a good neighbour – is actually a criminal who has robbed your personal info out of your desk drawer when not looking. You would be a bit more careful with neighbours next time. I am now even MORE skeptical of anything chat related/blog related. no offense intended to Jimmy or Maddy, but I can see how people become skeptical in general.
IF Mikey has simply gone underground and is really 17, and this is a cover, I wish we could somehow be told. but this in itself will prove to be difficult, what is real. I know I contacted “mikey” a few times, and even questioned him -but in a diff context – about how he sounded mature on that interview. My interest in this blog, which I somehow stumbled across a few months ago, was because “mikey” was getting the support thru the internet that didn’t exist for me back 20 years ago. he loved hockey, and seemed so average and non stereotypical. I as I type this am now wondering about all his stories – like another poster wrote.
What about his page on formspring?
There was alot of time taken to posting etc. who is this person really if not Mikey a 17 year old?
What about all the stories about how highschool? Were some of his unwillingness to reveal details scenarios really because he was a 40 something guy?
This whole thing is like a twilight zone episode. What is real and what is fake. I feel duped. I was duped it seems. Touche to you mr “Mikey”. IF you are really a 17 year old, come clean. But then why didn’t you just say “I’m tired of blogging, I need to go into seclusion , and thanks for support, and good luck”. Is it bcause you are 40 something.
I’m tired of typing. I will say that those who feel alone, don’t feel alone. I don’t know where to direct you. I’m not writing any blogs – not that they would get read. Just know that THERE ARE people out there who are gay, who want to just have a normal life, and just happen to be – by fact they are gay – attracted to the same gender. Believe that many do play sports – I know they do – and they are just afraid to come out. If you don’t have faith in “Mikey” then believe in the postings/ responses by the other readers of his blog. Not everyone is a liar. We do know that Mikey as we knew him does not exist as he did a month ago. He either is: a 40 year old liar, or he is a 17 year old as stated, but has gotten scared and wants privacy and this is his way.
I have asked for Jimmy to reach me, and I hope he does as I would really like to try and make some sense more of this, but also want to be a listening ear to Jimmy.
T
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 3:26 AM
Appreciate all the comments. I did speak at length with JD, who hosted Mikey’s site for free; in essence it seems all-but-certain that Mikey is a 40-something Minnesota man who graduated from college in 1984. We have an ID and other info to go with it. (I will be writing a full story when I feel I have collected all the info I can).
Jimmy and Madeleine are simply innocent victims, who got sucked in by Mikey’s story. They were not able to post on his site. Their 2 posts today revealing Mikey’s scam were posted by JD, who owns the server (Mikey never had Admin privileges on his blog, just posting privileges).
And these calls for an investigation by authorities are absurd. No one has offered any shred that anything illicit occurred other than a hoax perpetrated by a disturbed person.
It sucks that people like Jon were scared into dropping their blogs. I will be posting a thoughtful article Sunday by an 18-year-old and his thoughts on Mikey.
After I posted this, I came across this on “Mikey’s” old site, being administered by the server hosts. Via Jimmy:
“Our long lost leader has informed me he will be posting something for y’all in the next couple of days. Until then let’s play nice. He says he’ll explain – for whatever that’s worth – but at least he’s gonna come out n play. I’m goin to bed… ”
I have no idea what the above paragraph means. “Explain”? That should be interesting.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 3:28 AM
John:
You should have stated that in your first reply when you brought up the use of live sound processing. I can’t even begin to understand why you would even mention it, as the possibility, you state, is SO OUT THERE, that I cannot even comprehend how you came to such a conclusion.
In addition, the blog’s hoster has just posted. Someone who has been in contact with the owners of OS. The kid recently turned 18, and could still very well be in high school.
Some of you, not all, some, keyword being some here, are trying to force this kid, who has been identified as a kid, out of the closet with your “pitch-fork in hand” attitude. I’m not sure what’s wrong with some of you. You read one note, and you think you know everything? He could have wrote he was a Mexican illegal and y’all would have believed him. LOL
If I didn’t know any better, it looks like most of you are doing what you feared most that would happen to you at his age; being outed at a young age after you confided in some people about your secret. P-A-T-H-E-T-I-C.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 3:36 AM
Never mind the last post.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 3:44 AM
its totally a cover up because all the info was so consistent and unique. honestly who can blame him tho? someone probably figured it out.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 3:51 AM
Damn i missed all the excitement! lies! deceit! fake identities! blackmail! witchhunts! all in one day!
I don’t wanna be a dick because I know a lot of you believed this joker was real and were heavily invested in his “life”, but I knew all these “closeted jock” sites were suspect at best, and I can’t believe that Jim or Cyd would not make it conditional to verify who these people were before promoting their blogs. I hope they apologize to their readers for the shoddy journalism that went into promoting these and stop publicizing these sites until they KNOW these people are who they say they are.
Look at the devastation that could have been prevented if Jim (an otherwise fine journalist) had used some JOURNALISTIC STANDARDS and verified this blog instead of following his dick or fantasy or whatever inexplicable excuse there is for this clusterf*ck!
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 4:06 AM
#29 Cyd Zeigler jr. on Apr 24th, 2010 at 11:57 PM
“We say we don’t know if the person is real up front”
then how do you explain this?
#44 Jim Buzinski on Jan 27th, 2010 at 7:57 PM
“Mikey is the real deal and his blog is terrific.”
http://outsports.com/jocktalkblog/2009/12/08/closeted-teen-hockey-players-terrific-blog/#comment-21653
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 4:20 AM
Well how does Jim’s personal opinion coincide with Cyd’s?
Besides, like I said, “Mikey’s” writing was like reading a wretched novel… Think Jane Austen mixed with some Ayn Rand. Well you’ve got something close to diarrhea. I would have been more inclined if he didn’t spend so much time ranting about pictures he posted, his gay life, or anything. Did him being gay interest someone who wouldn’t have read his blog in the first place? It saddens me that someone has to be gay or bi for it to be interesting. It’s not like they’re airing their sex life. It’s just a repetition of “I’m gay, I dislike it, I’m stuck in the closet, I have no one to talk to.” I thought like that a long time ago. But stuff changed.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 4:25 AM
#60: “What about all the stories about how high school? Were some of his unwillingness to reveal details scenarios really because he was a 40 something guy?”
“Mikey” is probably some sick pedophile who invented a whole “Mikey” persona based on his stepson, neighbor kid, or student and elaborated from there. if you are reading this “Mikey” look at what u have done to REAL gay kids like Al and Jon! You are a sick evil man and I hope the guilt eats away at your very soul you piece of human garbage!
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 4:31 AM
What’s next on Outsports? Advertisements selling readers the Brooklyn Bridge?
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 4:35 AM
well that’s the thing, DJ, is Mikey “the real deal” or do they not “know if the person is real”? they can’t have it both ways.
I am not here to gloat or bust balls. I am a big fan of Outsports and believe Jim & Cyd need to be held accountable for this utter disaster and to push them to take the necessary steps to make sure this doesn’t happen again.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 4:42 AM
Wow. Cyber-Drama… When I first read this – I think it’s kinda sad that this has transpired like this. But I feel like I’ve pretty much moved on but the time I’ve finished reading all the comments.
Yes it sucks and I think we are all, on some level, angry and upset because we are emotionally invested. (I once exchanged an email with Mikey when I read about Brendan Burke’s death – cause I had a really difficult time with it and didn’t have anyone to talk to – so he was a good sounding board.)
But at the end of the day, no one is cheated out of their money or damaged beyond repair due to this. (I really hope not). So this is really on par with a bad joke / mean-hearted prank that no one is amused.
I think it’s probably more productive to just acknowledge whatever feeling is there (anger, sadness, frustration, etc.), take a lesson from this (Be open minded AND be guarded. Always take the anonymous blogs with a grain of salt), and move on.
At the end of the day, this is the internet! When a blogger wants to be anonymous online, no amount of (reasonable and ethical) screening can prove his/her authenticity. So yeah sometimes, there will be fakers, but sometimes, there will be the real deal too.
To dwell on this excessively just ISN’T a good investment of time and energy. Let’s all just get away from the computer, go outside and play instead. (Or do some other worthwhile thing in real life.)
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 4:47 AM
Honestly, why would he go through so much damned effort? I fail to understand why.
Oh come on. It’s a troll. Why do people troll? Why do people create computer viruses? Why do people vandalize property? Why do pranksters make “crop circles?” I remember reading a story 10 or 15 years ago about some guy confessing that, for the prior 50 years, I kid you not, he had been going out into the forest and creating “Bigfoot” tracks with a big wooden “foot” that had constructed.
You never know about this guy. Maybe he’s a pederast who hoped to meet up with teenagers, but somehow I doubt it. My gut feel is that this was an imaginative (and talented) prankster who really got into the persona. Maybe some “recapturing lost youth,” too.
Don’t get me wrong, the whole thing is creepy. So is a computer virus, albeit in a different way. I mean, I got taken in. I thought it was a kid, and wrote some pretty elaborate stuff, including a couple of private e-mails with heartfelt advice. I suppose I should be madder than I am, but I find myself taking it in stride. Hey, it’s the Internet. It happens.
Dry your tears, everyone. Cyd, if you guys do your “investigation” and learn the con man’s name, I’d suggest keeping it private unless you find good reason to think he’s a predator or has been running other cons.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 5:01 AM
@ Druggy Bear:
I would classify “Mikey” as an Ephebophile if he’s indeed 40. Because he would be targeting 16 and older. However, because he didn’t talk to posters in a sexual manner, he can’t be classified as anything but a liar, because it would be incorrect to label him something given to sexual predators.
Sure, Jim and Cyd need to carefully evaluate what they write about in the future when it pertains to blogs, but this kid probably used the identity of someone else —- perhaps a family friend? I’d like the guy to post a blog post explaining who he really is. Cause I’m sorta tired of reading repetitions of what’s been said already… about a bazillion times now.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 5:05 AM
BTW, I should really use this incident if I ever have a future paper of compulsive liars.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 5:05 AM
BTW, I should really use this incident if I ever have to write a future paper on compulsive liars.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 6:53 AM
Hey all. I was devasted by the news so I contemplated all day whether to keep blogging. I decided to delete it for time being. I was telling truth the entire time. Just need to focus on my dreams and make a change in this world! Mikey was reason why I started my blog so all my posts pretty much praised him. I will be perfectly okay. I just hope nobody else is really hurt by the news. Main reason why I deleted my blog is because I don’t trust people anymore. I simply just need a break.
@Jim Buzinski: I don’t think this should be an end to hightlighting blogs on OutSports.com. Make sure you put a disclaimer or something so this doesn’t happen again. You can email me at bisportzdude@yahoo.com if you want my point of view.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 7:24 AM
I’d like to just thank Jim and Cyd for taking steps to establish facts here. Yours are not paid jobs and you have real lives to live, so to the extent that you are spending your time on a matter to help others understand what has happened, thank you. And also, thank you for Outsports. It’s a great site and a great resource for all of us. We can all take things for granted without thinking through the sacrifice of others to make them possible, but I for one do understand that you guys are putting your hearts into this, and I really appreciate it!
I’m really sorry for all the kids and others out there who have been hurt by this. To be honest with you I had my doubts all along but it didn’t really matter what I thought and I was just grateful that good things seemed to be coming out of the blog. I hope that in the end that kids like Jon and Rich and Evan know beyond any shadow of a doubt that they are not alone, that there are a whole lot of others out there who are like them but they are just not “visible”, and that there is a community of gay adults out there who genuinely want the best for them and nothing more.
I don’t think the person behind “Mikey” is evil but rather misguided. If it is a 40-year old man as has been alleged, it’s probably someone who has too much time on his hands, too few real people in his life and too little of a real life, and was living out some issues that he had never worked out in reality. But the truth is, “Mikey” did a lot of good, and that doesn’t go away with the charade. He has provided meaningful support to a lot of kids, and given a lot of confidence to some who really needed it. It’s unfortunate that the “person” was not real, but the accomplishments were. So let’s keep that in mind.
I feel really badly for all of those who were very hurt by this. The hurt is no less real because this is the Internet. But life will go on. As the saying goes, this too shall pass.
There are a lot of really good people out there. I like that Outsports seems to attract them. It’s just a shame that more of you aren’t hardcore skiers.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 10:21 AM
I will take Jim’s word for it that this is indeed a 4o-something year old man.
Message to “Mikey,”- please go get some psychiatric help. You have some obvious deep-rooted issues in order to allow this hoax to become SO elaborate and to carry on for so long. My anger towards you has subsided a bit, and now I’m feeling more concerned for your own mental health. Please go seek some help.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 10:25 AM
I intentionally avoided covering any of these anonymous bloggers on my own blog, because I felt it’d be far to easy to fake just for some attention.
Not saying all are frauds, or all aren’t…. I just wanted to avoid it entirely.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 12:18 PM
I have to wonder how explicit “Jimmy” and “Mikey” were in there online romance chats? Seems there could be some sickness going on here.
Otherwise, I am thrilled that his incredibly poor grammar and spelling will now end!
I think it’s funny how many defended him when I posted about his terrible writing on the hockey playoffs. I think I’m getting the last laugh now at all of you who fell for this idiot’s tricks….lol
One post in that thread said something like “Mikey’s writing is his own and will someday make him a lot of money”….muahahahahahahahaha
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 12:43 PM
I’d love to hear from DruggyBear what we should have done. Jim spent literally hours sleuthing to validate Mikey’s existence. We even found a picture of him on a gay-youth site; And when Jim asked him about it, his story fit. We heard his voice. He seemed like a 17-year-old hockey kid in Minnesota, and we had no reason to doubt it (other than my gut feeling).
So what should we do with these bloggers who say they’re closeted athletes, whose voice we hear, who email with us and whose stories fit? Demand a copy of a driver’s license? Demand we meet them in person? How far do we push closeted athletes to reveal themselves to us to avoid the incredibly rare con-artist?
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 1:16 PM
Cyd hit the nail on the head. They did took reasonable steps to ensure the validity of his claim and based on that, they felt comfortable enough to share the information with us – the readers of this site.
It’s unfortunate that this all has happened but let it be a lesson as well… not everything we read, see or hear on the internet is true. Take steps to protect yourselves when communicating with a complete stranger because you simply do not know who’s on the other end.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 1:29 PM
“I will take Jim’s word for it that this is indeed a 4o-something year old man.”
I wrote “all but certain.” Based on facts I learned yesterday. But this is still an odd story with pieces that don’t, so we are trying to learn more before writing a more definitive article. And the whole truth may never be determined to everyone’s satisfaction.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 1:44 PM
I really don’t think Cyd or Jim did anything wrong by believing the story. I’ve been on the Internet for a long time, and it was the smoothest troll I’ve ever seen. Druggy Bear, ya got “I told you so” rights, but nothing more than that.
I’ll be interested to see what Jim and Cyd come up with on the guy, and hope they’ll give as much detail as they can without naming him. Absent some evidence of actual harm, I don’t think “being a jerk” is cause enough to have your life ruined.
Frankly, at this point I don’t know exactly what to believe. The persona was so well crafted that I could also believe that “Mikey” really is a 17-year-old, and that he had reason to dive for cover. Either way, it was interesting and fun while it lasted.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 2:38 PM
Boyz! Please! Stop and think for a moment.
Lots of people got duped. Me included. Should I know better? You bet, but the story was too good and too close to home.
For me, I was that kid (Mikey) in an earlier life, tho my sport was different. I understood perfectly what that kid was going through and what it was like, as I’m sure others here did too.
Let’s not loose sight of all the closeted gay athletes out there (High School and professional) because we are angry that we got duped by Mikey.
Perhaps there are lessons to be learned all around and hopefully more good will come of this. Could there be a better way for closeted athletes to tell their story and support one another? Maybe, but until that mechanism is discovered maybe these kids deserve our continued support.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 2:59 PM
Cyd I’ll be happy to throw up a few suggestions. For one, start by getting the person’s NAME, their real name, with which u could check out their facebook/myspace pages if they are kids or team rosters if they are a pro or semi-pro. Then, conduct a few video chats with the person to make sure those profile or roster pictures match up. Those 2 things should be enough to verify their existence and if they aren’t then just don’t publicize their blog.
I never read “Mikey”‘s site but I understand it blossomed into a big endeavor and if it had gone on longer he could have swindled money from his fans or worse- he could have met Jimmy somewhere and sexually assaulted him. Is this the rabbit hole that Outsports really wants to go through? To be fair it wasn’t just you guys either, other gay media sites covered this kid but they seemed to be following your lead. That’s why I think it’s upon you guys to be more responsible.
Speaking of which, is it really responsible to be floating the “whole truth may never be determined to everyone’s satisfaction” meme, Jim? Look at what happened yesterday with the calls for investigations and the panic it set off, do you really want to keep the conspiracy alive? Is it that hard to believe this kid was a fraud? You seem to be in denial, and worse, you sound like a jilted lover yourself. Your post put “Jimmy” in quotation marks and questioned the manner of his writing, as if you think he could be a fake too and if that’s the case why would you have him (along with “Mikey”) write for this site? Frankly your behavior here is unprofessional, Jim, it always has been when it comes to these “closeted jock” blogs. I hope this serves a Come-to-Jesus moment for you because you are so much better than that. Your profiles of real jocks coming out are powerfully written and inspirational, I would hate to see your reputation as a journalist further battered by this.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 3:15 PM
“Speaking of which, is it really responsible to be floating the “whole truth may never be determined to everyone’s satisfaction” meme, Jim?”
Uh, yeah — It would be irresponsible to claim we know the whole truth when right now we don’t. And if you have some specific info, please send it along.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 3:34 PM
Druggy Bear, you were correct one time but that doesn’t mean you’re always correct. Specifically:
1. “Mikey’s” site wasn’t a “big endeavor.” It was a suddenly popular website, not General Motors.
2. There hasn’t been any “panic,” just some disappointment and irritation.
All in all, it’s a tempest in a teapot, nothing more. Unless, of course, it turns out that there were other scams connected to it.
In retrospect, it probably wasn’t a good idea for Outsports to have given “Jimmy” a platform without nailing down the veracity of “Mikey” and that site. The solution, I think, is for Outsports to keep mentioning anonymous blogs, with a disclaimer attached. If they become more newsworthy, then verify.
As for never knowing the whole truth about “Mikey” and that blog, Jim and Cyd are simply being honest, and I salute them for that.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 4:40 PM
By the way, Druggy Bear, my reading of Jim putting “Jimmy” inside of quote marks is that recent events puts ALL identities connected to “Mikey” in question.
I also differ with you on Jim sounding like a “jilted lover.” Tone is open to interpretation, and mine is that both Jim and Cyd are feeling betrayed and embarrassed. While it’s true that these are feelings often seen in busted love affairs, I don’t read anything erotic into Outsport’s involvement with “Mikey” and that site.
I think it’s less complicated than that. I think Outsports was taken in by a really quite talented imitation of a gay teenager. In the end, Outsports is run by a couple of human beings, not a machine. They were fooled, just as a bunch of other people were.
It’s not a capital crime, and it doesn’t invalidate anything that happens here. Outsports does a great job. This is a wrinkle, not anything more.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 4:54 PM
“For one, start by getting the person’s NAME, their real name, with which u could check out their facebook/myspace pages if they are kids or team rosters if they are a pro or semi-pro. Then, conduct a few video chats with the person to make sure those profile or roster pictures match up.”
Incredibly unrealistic. What closeted person, especially a kid, is ever going to agree to this?
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 5:58 PM
“It’s not a capital crime, and it doesn’t invalidate anything that happens here.”
No it’s not, but it does affect the integrity and credibility of this site, which is a great asset to the gay community.
“Incredibly unrealistic. What closeted person, especially a kid, is ever going to agree to this?”
someone who wants their blog pimped on a national website like this should be willing to do that at the very least. or else don’t publicize it. You were one of the ones suckered in by “Mikey”, Joe, I would think you’d be supportive of any new efforts to make sure these people actually exist.
How does the saying go? Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me….
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 6:12 PM
ERR HELLO…
Facebooks can be private… MySpace’s don’t always come up because they used a false name.
However, 95% of the time, the person’s name will show up on MaxPreps.com.
Hell, I know my stats are on there, they have been for as long as I remember.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 7:58 PM
Craig, the closeted semipro soccer player in England who blogs (no, I don’t know who he is and he might be 95 for all I know) has a clever post: “We’re all not fake (with proof, sort of)” that shows his body.
He is shirtless and he has a sign with the his blog name. He might be 95 but a great body for someone that age:
http://www.gayfootballer.com/2010/04/i-am-posting-these-pictures-for-people.html
Craig also posts a pic of the real Mikey:
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_zqYck-Z5Op4/S9M3T1QHP_I/AAAAAAAAAIY/wKmDwRBYIc4/s400/TheInternet.jpg
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 8:07 PM
@ Joe Guckin (#47):
You wrote:
“Now I’m angry. You people calling for INVESTIGATIONS are nuts! First of all, you’re scaring kids like Jon. He went and deleted his blog because you morons have him paranoid that he’s going to be investigated! He had an outlet to express himself, get things off his chest, etc. and YOU destroyed it for him. Not “Mikey.” YOU. That’s how you want to help kids who can’t come out of the closet? By forcing them to keep everything inside?”
He may have been scared, but no one MADE him do anything. He did it, because HE decided to do it. I also think that your hysterical reaction is the one that needs to be placed in check. Everyone that has posted here has done so out of interest in the story and every person has shown nothing but concern for the kids and youth that might be affected – including Jon. I find your very narrow summation that others don’t want to help kids live true lives obnoxious. Everyone here read Mikey’s blog, supported the blog, and was intrigued by his writing. If anything, we were his most outwardly supportive readers. I urge you not to blur the issue of Mikey with the decision by Jon.
You wrote:
“…you people are nuts. Stop it. So the “Mikey” blog was a hoax. It affects those who were regulars on the site and identified with the story and those like Jon who were inspired to start their own blog. The rest of you will just have to get over it. It doesn’t affect your life one damn bit so shut the hell up.”
How do you assess who was and wasn’t affected by this “hoax”? Can you submit your list of everyone that ever read the blog? Can you provide detailed information of how many people read it daily without adding comments? What delusional throne are you sitting on where you command people who are concerned and hurt to “get over it”? Outsports introduced a lot of people to the blog, so it is reasonable for people to come back here with questions.
Again, Jon was inspired to write a blog. Jon made a decision to stop and delete his posts. We don’t know if that is a good thing or a bad thing. There’s an old Zen saying, “We’ll see…”
I would argue that, should Mikey prove to be a teenager or whose age correlated within a year or so to the blog postings, there is nothing here. I wouldn’t question it and I don’t think anyone reading that blog would want him outed or criticized.
The deeply troubling ISSUES arise if he is, in fact, a 40 year old man, or anyone well removed from high school age. If it was then this was a serious manipulation, especially since he had to know the impact his posting could have on kids. The question comes down to “intent”. If he is 40-ish, then how did he come to introduce a blog that made the claim that it was being written by a 17-year-old. Wouldn’t a blog by a 17-year-old high closeted high school jock attract other kids or closeted athletes? Who did he think was reading his posts – especially after comments began appearing and email came flowing in? What about the Mindspring questions and the fact that, just two weeks ago, he wrote how much he liked answering the questions?
There are legitimate questions here. Considering the true stories that are out there regarding the impediments, bullying, and rabid hatred LGBT youth experience, the people who are responding to this story, with calls for investigations or advocating for the well-being of the blog’s readers, ought to be commended and encouraged. I’m pretty sure that some of the people you refer to as “morons” and “nuts” are people who have advanced gay rights over the years and decades trying to make the world a more accepting place for us.
EVERYONE commenting here was affected by this story and I have no doubt that EVERYONE wants to ensure that our gay youth are not victims of a hoax. Many wrote that they were closeted and scared of coming out. Who’s going to protect them from these kind of hoaxes? You? You just took to the response area and alienated half the readers.
I am doing my part to see that the investigations go forward. If a person can attract this many underage gay kids, even if it was done without malicious intent, then is can be done by the people who claim we are ungodly and responsible for the world’s ills. THAT makes this a very dangerous situation and this case a very good example to look at from legal and societal perspectives. The door back into reality awaits you. Won’t you pleasse join us?
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 8:09 PM
I’d like to suggest that if there are any fingers to be pointed, they be pointed only in one direction, at “Mikey”. Jim and Cyd did nothing wrong and for anyone to suggest that they did is not only ludicrous but also suggests a lack of grounding in reality. Let’s remember that Jim and Cyd are VOLUNTEERS who are trying to build a community, be helpful, have fun, and do good. Even if they were not volunteers it is not their job, nor do they have an ability, to police everyone that crosses their paths. I think sometimes that people who blow things out of proportion in an environment like this are people who are just not terrible grounded in the first place.
I guess for me the bottom line is, it’s an unfortunate incident, let’s learn what we can for the next time, and let’s also not blow it out of proportion so it closes us off from helping some kid that may in fact need help and is afraid. I’d rather that we make a well-intentioned mistake on a “Mikey” than the opposite mistake on any other kid who is looking for help and support and is ignored.
Also, what’s clear is that a peer-led forum for gay kids is needed. I think the involvement of adults is fine, but I think what made “Mikey” special for these kids is that they (believed) they were talking to one of their own. Let’s face it, from a kid’s perspective, their peers are generally going to be a lot more interesting to them. So let me raise the question: What can we adults do to support these kids, in a way that is meaningful to them? Any thoughts?
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 8:34 PM
First off as a legit (believe it or not) 18 year old I find it very encouraging that all of you do care so much about gay youth. It’s important and pressing and good to know there are older people out there who really want to help.
Now, for that whole “Mikey” thing or as I like to call it MINO (mikey in name only). What is troubling for me is definitely that this could be some old guy but also how raw the details were. Being in high school “he” took real AP classes, listened to music I like and so on. The fact that he was absent for a week leading up to this event gives me even more confusion. Part of me may be in denial but I just want a real answer from whoever this is. I get it if he is a kid and just wanted to stop, though he could have stopped in a better way. I just worry that the manner in which it was done left a lot to speculate about. As someone who really connected and felt this it leaves me with questions I may never have answered.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 8:37 PM
this is a fascinating story to me, i wonder what we will find out next. sorry to those who were hurt. was it a hoax? was the hoax a hoax?
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 9:08 PM
#94: “I have no doubt that EVERYONE wants to ensure that our gay youth are not victims of a hoax.”
EXACTLY Rob. If we are going to present these blogs to our youth we should absolutely be sure they are authentic and not run by potential predators and/or the mentally unstable. Remember people were encouraged on this site to “drop him a line”. If you are going so far as to recommend that you need to be damn sure who you are directing them to.
#95: “What can we adults do to support these kids, in a way that is meaningful to them? Any thoughts?”
Excellent question. Perhaps Outsports can start a forum for “Mikey Nation” refugees? We will never know who is talking amongst them but at least we can be assured the site’s founders are who they say they are and only have their best interests at heart.
Speaking of which ,#59 J.D. should be commended for exposing the fraud. Good job, J.D.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 9:09 PM
” Absent some evidence of actual harm, I don’t think “being a jerk” is cause enough to have your life ruined.” -Comment #84-Jake Jackson
Im sorry, but I consider a grown-man that plays with the emotions of some SUICIDAL high school and middle schoolers to be more than just “being a jerk” behavior.
“Being a jerk” is bullying someone for their lunch money.
Faking who you are and misleading tons of emotionally depressed and unstable teenagers is MUCH MUCHHHHH more than just “being a jerk.” Mikey may not have been real, but the types of people that read his blogs certainly were. There are many, many adolescents and teenagers that were having suicidal thoughts that read and looked toward that blog for guidance. This revelation of it being a hoax could have devastating consequences for them.
What this man did may not have been illegal, but it is certainly someone that I do not want on the streets, or in contact with any challenge. The man needs help for what appear to be SERIOUS issues.
I’m still undecided as to whether I want his full name out there or not but I will tell you this: if it were MY child that were on that site, you can be damned sure that I would want that name.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 10:39 PM
Rob, I’m not even going to waste any more time with you. I’m not. It’s not worth it.
As for DruggyBear and the comment that “someone who wants their blog pimped on a national website like this should be willing to do that at the very least. or else don’t publicize it”: Go back and read the original post by Jim on this blog:
http://outsports.com/jocktalkblog/2009/12/08/closeted-teen-hockey-players-terrific-blog/
Jim writes that he stumbled upon the “Mikey” blog. So he decided to write about it based on the content of the blog, NOT because “Mikey” asked him to.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 10:51 PM
It looks like Rob’s calls for investigations have led the forum’s hosts to shut it down. So now the real gay kids left behind in the wake of all this mess have to scramble for a place to go to talk. Nicely done.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 10:59 PM
ger, there is a forum on this site. with minimal research, they can find this site. there is a message board here.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 11:02 PM
I just listened to the radio interview and now I’m even more mystified by this situation. First of all, he talks like a teenager being interviewed for the first time, he wrote like a teenager on the blog, and if he were some creepy 40-year old, why did he seem to want to keep the blog pretty clean (i.e. in his email note, “I’m proly not answerin most sex questions”)? Isn’t this the opposite of what a predator would do?
And in the last week of the blog, didn’t “Jimmy” say that he was Mikey was currently on a recruiting visit to sign with an out-state university? So that was also a lie, then?
The stories and personnel on this blog were so consistent that I think one of three things had to have happened:
1.) “Mikey” (and “Jimmy,” for that matter) was real, and someone either recognized him on the campus visit or before the visit and threatened to out him, and he needed to terminate his online identity ASAP
2.) Mikey was a 40-year old guy who created one of the most elaborate and consistent online hoaxes I’ve ever seen. I mean, writing about your daily struggles and experiences for MONTHS???? And they all sounded so real! If this was a 40-year old, he should’ve channeled his efforts into becoming an author, because the talent was definitely there! (if only he didn’t write in textspeak . . .haha)
Or,
3.) This was a profile setup by a government agency trying to capture predators. Otherwise, why make Mikey 17? This way, you make it believable, and the old creepy guys come out of the woodwork into a trap where they can be prosecuted for pursuing a minor. There are people that literally troll chatrooms as their jobs for the government to try to catch people in the act.
Thoughts?
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 11:08 PM
Just an update.
After receiving an email from Rob yesterday and “P” today alleging laws were broken and illegal activity took place on the blog, the forum, or both, and presuming that neither of them would be cruel enough to want to punish the blog readers by removing their safety net without a damn good reason and evidence they simply cannot reveal, I have removed the forum entirely.
The continued existence of the forum was meant to help cushion the landing for its users who were devastated by the news about the blogger being someone else. That seemed to be helping people, at least based on their own statements, but as long as there are people claiming that laws have been broken we simply cannot take the chance that even one person there would use the technology with ill intents.
It feels to me very much like punishing the victims, but if Rob’s and the others allegations have even a shred of truth to them (and why would they make that stuff up), then its better to hurt some feelings now than to put anyone at risk.
Most other hosting companies would have just cut off service OR allowed the fraud to continue depending on their policies. We tried to be better, kinder, and show compassion for those effected, and create a softer landing for the crash. That has been received well by the core community that commented often on the blog, but there are clearly others, commenting here, who do not see it that way.
And again, if you have information about a crime occurring please do not just keep mentioning it here, take it to the PROPER AUTHORITIES. It’s now been well over 24 hours since I first asked Rob to do so and still have not been contacted by any law enforcement agency.
I am not asking to be told details of these alleged crimes, but if these clearly upset individuals are withholding information that they have from the authorities I hope they are understand that the victims of the alleged crimes would be best served by their coming forward.
If, on the other hand, the allegations are merely idle speculation on the part of a few people, (and God, I hope there are not people who would do such a thing), then I offer my most heartfelt apologies to the forum members for taking away their infrastructure.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 11:17 PM
Thank you – to the people who have nothing better to do but screw things up even further. Really appreciate it. “Mikey” shouldn’t of done what he did – he screwed up. But the “Nation” was still there -UNTIL TODAY. Where are all these kids going to go? Don’t tell me that there are hotlines they can call, not every kid feels comfortable doing that.
How would you feel if something you had been reading, following, and contributing to for months was suddenly taken away from you? Hundreds of friendships that had been established are now fractured, some bonds broken. No meeting place for them all to congregate. JD and Brian very generously donated the space for the website, to what they thought was a kid who could use the help. Turns out they got screwed too. They shouldn’t have to deal with any of this mess. Where’s the karma in all this?
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 11:29 PM
Ex-Mikey Nationite, there is a message board on HERE that people can use. Or you or someone else can create your own. It doesn’t take a brain surgeon or a rich man to start up a message board.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 11:39 PM
I am also sorry the forums were shut down. They were NOT run or administered by Mikey, but by people who met through his blog.
All thanks to a tiny number of blowhards who are demanding an “investigation” without any shred that a crime was committed. But they can pat themselves on the back for “thinking about the children.”
One guy even threatened to go to the authorities if I did not removed his comments from any Outsports blog post that mentioned Mikey. I had to write the dumbass back and tell him he NEVER posted a single thing on Outsports … which he acknowledged, but not before giving me a lecture on who knows what. He’s one of the guys that made JD shut the forum down since it was not worth his aggravation.
But Outsports has long had a forum open to anyone, where you can discuss sports, real life, entertainment, hot jocks etc. It’s free and all we ask is an e-mail:
http://www.outsports.com/forums/index.php?
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 11:51 PM
yeah..this is just getting weirder and weirder…i listened to that interview too and he definitely sounded younger than 40, and if he really was 17, then this would have been the WORST way to end it…if he is 40 then that is SICk and gross and i can’t believe i feel for that…but he was really really good at making kids like me believe him…so idk, maybe i’m just being hopeful but part of me thinks maybe he is real, i mean everything was perfectly detailed and stuff….i mean, what kind of grown person over 40 has time to put into s^&% like this……just weird and sick….and yeah, his absence for a week before his actual leave is reeeeally really sketchy if u ask me, and did jimmy ever talk to him on the phone or anything…i mean wouldn’t yu do that before getting so close to someone…not blaming the kid or anything AT ALL, but i mean….naive?…anyway…i hope this gets sorted up since the blog kinda became a big deal to a lot of ppl.
on Apr 25th, 2010 at 11:56 PM
@Chad Yes its true that there are lots of messageboards, however people grow accustomed to “their” places, and until some people made a lot of currently unsubsantiated and somewhat hysterical accusations there was no need for the MikeyNation boards to be closed at all. They had already been amended. Its way too easy for some people to sit behind a computer screen and froth at the mouth. Its not constructive, its just splashing blame and accusations around to see what sticks. Im sure a lot of the accusers would scream if they were being held to the same standards they insist others be held to. I dont think Outsports have done anything wrong and nor do I feel they did less than they should have in this whole situation.
I just hope that the good parts of Mikeynation live on for those who clearly needed it and enjoyed it. As for “Mikey” we may never know.. and hopefully soon we wont care either. I think any investigating done by those in a position to do so is more than enough.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 12:07 AM
k…actually the guy does sound a little old…ugh.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 12:08 AM
I can’t tell you how upsetting this whole Mikey thing has been. People were excited by a Web site that offered hope, optimism, and an unusual combination of subject–sports and coming out. Whoever Mikey is/was, he was creative and clever. I’ve heard of some sadistic gay behavior and if this is a 40 year old closeted ref, coach, or father, I would put him in jail or forced community service.
After thinking and spending too much time depressed, I’m glad the site is down. There should be a new site for recovering visitors. I the kids are chatting at Maddy’s site, but that leaves out adults like me who found like minds there.
Why does Jimmy lapse into that Mikey-style of text talk…”proly,” “dint’, etc. I remember in their hockey predictions they argued about the use of text talk a la Mikey. I don’t want to hurt Jimmy, but I think the whole story is still waiting to be told.
A sad, sordid chapter comes to an end. I feel really bad for all taken in by this hoax. We as gay folk have so much to put up with that all of this Mikey stuff is pretty much cruel. This was my first blogging experience and that’s enough for me. Hang in there kids.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 12:40 AM
To all of u caped crusaders n Rob’s merry men…
Holy shit. I agonized whether to write the last post on MINO’s blog. Agonized. Admittedly, I wasn’t thinkin very clearly at the time but NEVER in my worst nightmares did I ever think all you moralistic high-horse ridin gas-bags were in this with me… Had I known, I prolly woulda jus shut up n let MINO decide for himself how to bow out graciously… and with out the world caving in…
I sincerely, honestly, truthfully thought I was doin the right thing.
And now, due to these heroic acts by Rob n his tea-party-ish crusaders we have no where to go. I think it’s Chad (second from the throne?) suggests with a lil research everone can find forums on Outsports….
But ya see, we didn’t need Outsport’s to provide a forum. We had one. And by lookin in over the weekend the forum was proving MINO’s ridiculous fairy tale was havin a galvanizing effect. Bringin everybody closer. Knowing we had a place to come if the feelings of bewilderment, betrayal or lonliness were gettin us down. A place to vent if/when we got angry. A friend to say hi to. An ADULT who we trust to lean on…. now because you, Rob etc’s have decided for us that we need your strong hand for guidance.. you tell me Rob… When all the steam runs out n u find your next ’cause’ – who do we turn to then? Where do we go? We had a place n it was our place n it was jus fine.
Why didn’t u jus leave us all alone. We were workin thru some pretty grim stuff… but we were workin on it jus fine without you. And in case u don’t realize it, I’m the idiot who got burned the most. I’m also the idiot who feels the guiltiest. To me, thanks to your wisdom n blustery bull… all the ppl who leaned on each other since I obviously made a mistake Thursday night – are scattered here, there n everywhere n that pisses me off.
I don’t have alot of room to add any more emotions. I am brain-beaten and emotionally dry. I have been hoping u would go feed some birds or make a quilt DO SOMETHING jus leave us alone… but u can’t seem to do it… I’m starting to pity u too…
So well done to you Rob n all others who forced two very decent people into pullin the plug on a valuable place on the net. Perhaps more valuable now than it was when MINO was still Mikey. Props Rob. Yur a (self)righteous dude…
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 12:43 AM
“All thanks to a tiny number of blowhards who are demanding an “investigation” without any shred that a crime was committed. But they can pat themselves on the back for “thinking about the children.” -#107
A crime may not have been committed, but the type of emotional and mental damage done to many adolescents and teenagers was disgusting and worse than many types of criminal behavior.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 12:57 AM
Im sorry, but I consider a grown-man that plays with the emotions of some SUICIDAL high school and middle schoolers to be more than just “being a jerk” behavior.
What evidence do you have that anyone who reads that blog is suicidal? I read both the “Mikey” site and the forum, and never saw anything of that nature from anyone. Only the “Mikey” character claimed to have once had semi-suicidal thoughts, and now we’re told that “Mikey” never existed.
What this man did may not have been illegal, but it is certainly someone that I do not want on the streets
You really need to calm down.
All thanks to a tiny number of blowhards who are demanding an “investigation” without any shred that a crime was committed. But they can pat themselves on the back for “thinking about the children.”
Yeah, no kidding. This hysteria is over the top. If there’s any evidence that “Mikey” was running other scams, I’ll change my mind, but as of now we have nothing more than an elaborate hoax, or just as likely a hasty retreat by an actual hockey kid.
Thank you – to the people who have nothing better to do but screw things up even further. Really appreciate it. “Mikey” shouldn’t of done what he did – he screwed up. But the “Nation” was still there -UNTIL TODAY. Where are all these kids going to go? Don’t tell me that there are hotlines they can call, not every kid feels comfortable doing that.
Oh come on. First off, there were maybe 15 or 20 regular commenters, if that. Secondly, even before this Horrible News came out, the thing was starting to drift sideways. The world hasn’t ended, so stop acting as if it has.
I can’t tell you how upsetting this whole Mikey thing has been. … There should be a new site for recovering visitors. I the kids are chatting at Maddy’s site, but that leaves out adults like me who found like minds there.
You’re an adult and a “recovering visitor?” Get a life, bud.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 1:09 AM
I have avoided commenting here, but I wanted to let everyone know that there is now a chat on my blog, and all the regulars of Mikey Nation are there. It’s not the same level as the forum, but it’s keeping us together, and anyone is welcome.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 1:40 AM
@OutinLA
I just listened to that radio interview, and it did sound like an older guy, I can’t tell how much older but that was no 17 y.o. There is alotta voice filtering technology out there too and I noticed a little auto-tune-like quality to it, so yeah it seems totally phony to me.
Besides why would a kid who was closeted and terrified to be exposed agree to a radio interview and reveal his voice? that is completely out of character for someone worried to be exposed and kicked out of their school or home or team, unless of course, he wasn’t worried about anyone recognizing his voice because he just made it up. This joker was good but he made mistakes and that interview was one of the first. If you guys weren’t wanting him to be real so badly you might have noticed that.
So please, accept that this is one ugly, hurtful hoax and stop holding on to the idea of “Mikey”. Just let him go he was never real anyways….
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 1:50 AM
I listened to it, and I don’t think it’s obvious what his age is. The fact that there is disagreement on that here is enough to show that it, like other aspects of this little contratemps, is open to interpretation.
At the moment, we’re not even certain it was a hoax. Coulda been that “Mikey” is real and had to dive for cover. Or not. It’d be kinda-sorta interesting to know the rest of the story, but I really don’t think it’s a Vitally Important Matter to anyone.
The kids, in particular, will forget about it in a week or so, if not sooner.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 1:53 AM
DruggyBear’s just pissed the guy didn’t post a shirtless pic…
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 2:47 AM
I wasn’t going to say anything because some of these comments have gotten pretty nasty, but I’m going to because I feel like I have something worth saying. There are some who say to just get over it, which for them may be easy. But for some of us kids this was our first connection to the “gay” world (and possibly our only). I speak for many when I say I seek validation or closure from the true source MINO (gotta love acronyms) simply because it is hard to let go of something that fueled you and your belief system for so long. A 40 year old with such an uncanny ability to relate to teenagers seems far fetched as does the idea that the caring, concerned, albeit possibly fake Mikey would abandon so many with a gruesome lie. Personally if it was me, I would have risked being exposed rather than devastating so many young gay kids (that is, if he was real). In the end we may never know, but I ask all of you to understand why to so many (me, rich, jon, etc…) this matters. When you invest in a person and they fail you, you deserve resolution. In the end Jimmy deserves none of the crap he has received and the line “don’t kill the messenger” comes into play. I ask some of you to grow up (this coming from me, a teenager) and realize what it may have been like for you as a scared, closeted, child. Now imagine many of us. I only hope that there will be clarity but I don’t want to be too optimistic. But truth is rooted in perception as much as reality, and for hundreds our perceptions have just been severely convoluted by a possible reality. I am not ashamed to admit I grieve, not so much Mikey, but rather the idea of him and the hope he gave. Now I must get back to studying for a physics test I am destined to fail. Thank you, and goodnight.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 3:19 AM
This whole thing is so weird and makes no sense.
I dont know about launching a CIA investigation but there is something fishy. I never even heard of Jimmy until he started randomly posting fill-in blogs on Mikey’s blog. Him posting in the first place struck me as odd. If Mikey was going on vacation he sohulda just put up a vacation notice and called it a day. Who even does that? “I’m leaving for a week so I’m gonna have someone else write on my blog.”
Then Madeline and Jimmy’s posts about Mikey being fake make no sense. Then all of sudden Mikey and Jimmy are having a love affair and everyone needs to focus on helping support Jimmy. Who in the hell is Jimmy? Instead of either of them explaining anything, they just talk about how much we need to support Jimmy and how hurt he is.
I’m not buying it to be a 40-something guy. There was way too much detail for it to be from someone that old. He writes just like my little cousins and their friends, I just dont see someone my parents age being able to do that. If it turned out Mikey was lying about hockey or that Mikey was a in fact a girl I’d believe that but this is BS. If he is an older guy he must be some kinda crazy genius b/c it was an elaborate ploy. And someone that disturbed just wouldnt confess to a couple of kids they made the whole thing up.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 5:22 AM
Craig, the closeted semipro soccer player in England who blogs (no, I don’t know who he is and he might be 95 for all I know) has a clever post: “We’re all not fake (with proof, sort of)” that shows his body.
He is shirtless and he has a sign with the his blog name. He might be 95 but a great body for someone that age:
http://www.gayfootballer.com/2010/04/i-am-posting-these-pictures-for-people.html
Craig also posts a pic of the real Mikey:
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_zqYck-Z5Op4/S9M3T1QHP_I/AAAAAAAAAIY/wKmDwRBYIc4/s400/TheInternet.jpg
Holy shit! Craig’s got a hot body!
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 10:32 AM
Mikey professed his admiration for Brendan Burke and his sadness at the time of his tragic death. He also mentioned several times on the blog that he had been in contact with members of the Burke family.
Not to rub salt in the wound, but, does anyone know if this shit head made all of that up too or was he cruel enough to actually contact these folks during their time of grief to perpuate his fantasy?
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 10:45 AM
“What evidence do you have that anyone who reads that blog is suicidal? I read both the “Mikey” site and the forum, and never saw anything of that nature from anyone. Only the “Mikey” character claimed to have once had semi-suicidal thoughts, and now we’re told that “Mikey” never existed.” -#114
You must not have read the comments under each blog post very much. There were a number of commenters (teenagers) that came onto the blog and admitted that they too have gone through depression or had suicidal thoughts.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 11:35 AM
[...] hockey kid a hoax? A few weeks back we had an interview with Mikey, a closeted high school hockey player. His blog is [...]
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 1:07 PM
Evan,
Since I used the phrase “get over it” let me clarify. It wasn’t meant to be addressed to you or other kids in similar situations. It was meant to be addressed to those calling for investigations and saying they were going to contact law enforcement and the attorney general and so on.
Certainly anyone who followed the “Mikey” blog wants a clear and truthful explanation of what happened. At this point, it may or may not happen. Even if the real “Mikey” explains himself, I bet some people won’t believe it. Life is like that. People who know in their hearts that Al Gore beat George W. Bush in the 2000 election — or to bring it back to hockey, people who know that Leon Stickle’s blown call led to an Islander goal that helped them win the Stanley Cup over the Flyers in 1980 — will never get the closure they’re looking for.
In the end, though, I hope that everyone caught up in this hoax finds a way to deal with it and not let it affect them negatively for long.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 1:10 PM
First of all, Jake Jackson, you’ve got to be kidding me. You didn’t notice anyone else there being near suicidal at some point? Open your eyes. There were several, including me. For your almost daily comments it’s unusual that you would miss these details. For the record most of these people WERE dealing with these types of thoughts BEFORE finding the blog, and the sense of support and community it brought. 15-20 regular readers? Doesn’t make sense to me, considering there were over 100 forum members, and who knows how many more lurkers who were generously allowed to post anonymously in the advice section.
Jarron, clearly you didn’t read the blog enough to know what was going on. Jimmy and Madeleine were readers from very early on, and were involved in the blog comments well before a forum was established. The blog regularly received 100+ comments per day, about half of that commentors replying to each other and having their own little side conversations. Jimmy proved to be one of the de-facto lead contributors to the blog in a secondary way. It was obvious he connected with “mikey.” Lots of us enjoy the daily postings, and were asking for something to be put up when “mikey” went on vacation. That’s why the forums were established, there was an obvious need for a place where readers could directly communicate with each other. When they were set up, Jimmy and Madeleine were appointed moderators in case there was any moderating to be done. But the site was clean, the members very well behaved. Madeleine was like a neutral third party, a straight girl who dedicated a significant portion of her time and effort in furthering LGBT rights. “Mikey’s older sister” was her unofficial title, due to the support and advice she regularly provided. I know for a fact she is real, and is who she says she is, so give it up.
I’m just tired of hearing all these armchair quarterbacks come out of the woodwork. Sit down. You’ve already caused enough trouble.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 1:23 PM
Who even does that? “I’m leaving for a week so I’m gonna have someone else write on my blog.”
Actually, there are plenty of blogs that have guest hosts. TV shows, too. In fact, I suspect popular bloggers got the idea from guest TV hosts.
If he is an older guy he must be some kinda crazy genius b/c it was an elaborate ploy.
Not a genius, just talented. Hard to imagine that a 40-year-old would’ve gone to that much trouble, but it’s a big crazy world out there. Ya never know.
You must not have read the comments under each blog post very much. There were a number of commenters (teenagers) that came onto the blog and admitted that they too have gone through depression or had suicidal thoughts.
True enough. I wasn’t there from the very start, and didn’t go back and read every comment. I found it after seeing something here on Outsports, and then was a regular commenter. The only suicide stuff I recall was some semi-suicidal, past-tense stuff out of the “Mikey” character. I didn’t see anyone on the ledge there, or near it.
Madeleine was like a neutral third party, a straight girl who dedicated a significant portion of her time and effort in furthering LGBT rights.
Straight, you say? On the “Mikey” site, she claimed to be bisexual. I remember this very well, because she and I argued about transsexuals, and Madeleine’s bisexuality got mentioned in that argument.
I always suspected that her bisexuality was a put-on, and now you seem to be confirming that. Hmm.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 1:29 PM
Jake, you know what I mean. This isn’t a conversation about Madeleine’s sexuality. The point is she isn’t gay, but still cared about us and others enough to help out. She was a proponent of the idea that sexuality is more complex than just labels. She is a great advocate for LGBT rights.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 1:29 PM
Everyone wonders how this guy made his blog seem so real. I think he was probably writing about his experiences as a teenager. I think this was the REAL story of a gay teenage hockey player, only thing is the events happened 30 years ago.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 1:47 PM
@Joe in Philly
“…or to bring it back to hockey, people who know that Leon Stickle’s blown call led to an Islander goal that helped them win the Stanley Cup over the Flyers in 1980…”
OMG! Don’t we have enough on our plate than dredgin up the past?! Why can’t u jus let this die already!?
I know I shouldn’t know any of this considering it took place waaay back in the 80′s… Right NY Dad? – But Joe: are u referring to Bob Nystrom’s goal on a pass from John Tonelli… clearly ONSIDE n clearly a beautiful moment in hockey history?
To #125 – Props dude. Yur a sweet guy who should remember the immortal words of Dr. Seuss:
“Those who mind don’t matter – and those who matter don’t mind.”
Once again a fine example of “the American way”… the loud obnoxious MINORITY kickin up enough fuss – so they get their way…
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 1:54 PM
so Jimmy, can you shed any more light on what’s happened here? what motivated MONI? what was your relationship with him? I think more info will help a lot of us deal with this….
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 2:08 PM
Jake, you know what I mean. This isn’t a conversation about Madeleine’s sexuality. The point is she isn’t gay, but still cared about us and others enough to help out. She was a proponent of the idea that sexuality is more complex than just labels. She is a great advocate for LGBT rights.
I asked a really simple question. You’d written here that she was straight, and I recalled her claim to be bisexual. Which is it? Ya know, I’ve been around the track a time or two, and am quite familiar with the bisexual dance.
She can be whatever she wants to be; it’s no skin off my nose one way or the other. When she said she was straight, it raised my eyebrows because that one came up in debate. So, which is it for her, straight or bi? Do you know? Pure curiosity here.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 2:09 PM
Oops, correction:
She can be whatever she wants to be; it’s no skin off my nose one way or the other. When you said she was straight, it raised my eyebrows because that one came up in debate. So, which is it for her, straight or bi? Do you know? Pure curiosity here.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 2:23 PM
Jake, just to clarify, I identify as straight, though I have kissed a girl before, and if that makes me bisexual in your eyes whatever, but I still call myself straight and always have.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 3:48 PM
Jake, just to clarify, I identify as straight, though I have kissed a girl before, and if that makes me bisexual in your eyes whatever, but I still call myself straight and always have.
The “Mikey” site is now unavailable, and is also unavailable through the Internet Archive (“Wayback Machine”), probably because the site was so short-lived.
Therefore, this is a she-said/he-said. I specifically recall your having called yourself bisexual in a thread when we went at it over the issue of whether or not the lesbian-gay community ought to include not just bisexuals, but also trans people, the intersexed, “queers,” and “allies.”
In that discussion, I made some cynical remarks about your claimed bisexuality. I remember it well, or at least I think I do, and it would be good if the one thread could be found so we could see exactly what was said.
That much said, in a subsequent private discussion you did tell me you were straight, in passing, and at the time I glossed over it. But in “public,” to the extent that the “Mikey” site qualifies as such, I am confident that you identified as bisexual.
In my experience, there are two recognizable types of what I’ll call here “false bisexuality.” There are males who are actually gay but call themselves bi. Some of them are in transition, and others are semi-closeted and trying to leave themselves an escape route in case someone calls them on it.
And there are females who so strongly want to identify with the gay community that they’ll call themselves bi. Other manifestations are the well-known “LUGs” (lesbians until graduation) in Eastern liberal arts colleges, Smith being a notorious example.
Madeleine, this is the hazard of going at it with a 52-year-old guy who has pretty much seen it all, and who’s done 80% of it. For more on the subject, see Ecclesiastes 1:9. Honest, it’s okay. I don’t hate ya, not nearly. But I reserve the right to chuckle one of those knowing little chuckles that we in the gay tribe exchange with each other on a regular basis.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 4:15 PM
p.s.: There are other “bi” games out there. One is regularly played out on Craig’s List. Guys will advertise themselves as bisexual and/or married. Or they will seek bisexual and/or married guys. You see these ads all the time, both in the “men seeking men” section and in the “M4M” subsection of the “casual encounters” section.
What to do, what to do? Well, if you’re feeling all self-righteous about it, you can get mad at those ads, which are obviously foolish. Or you can play along with it as a kink, realizing that a guy who is looking for a “bisexual” or “married” dude is probably seeking a particular style of masculinity that’s more distant, less emotional, more “mainstream masculine,” and less affected.
No, not that anyone has ever, say, gone out to a pawn shop, bought himself a cheap wedding ring, and answered one of those ads as a married man. Never happens, because no one has any imagination or sense of adventure. Nope!
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 4:18 PM
Jake: “I am confident that you identified as bisexual.”
Well I am confident that it’s irrelevant and inappropriate to continue this discussion. You’ve gone off on a tangent and there’s no need to insist to others that their sexuality is different than you recall it being.
This whole thing sucks, to re-quote: “Those who mind don’t matter – and those who matter don’t mind.”
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 4:29 PM
@Jake Johnson,
Dude, wtf is up with your obsession as to Madeleine’s sexuality?
Can we say “irrelevant”?
Try it with me now…
“Ir-rel-e-vant”
Glad we cleared that up.
- Jon B
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 4:37 PM
Is it possible for Outsports to put the comments into seperate columns marked must read and CRAZY so we can all save some time here. Just a suggestion..thanks for listening.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 4:49 PM
What are you people doing? Discussing others sexuality? How hypocritical . I am appalled by the self righteous fools who have taken away a forum that gave young gay people hope and an identity. If you actually read it, you would have seen there was nothing inappropriate going on, Just good solid advice and care. As a closeted gay, I know all too damn well the feelings of isolation and loneliness and the feeling of not belongoing. To a young teenager trying to find their identity, this can be devastating to them. I found the forum a place to feel comfortable talking to others like me who understand what I am going through. Talking to straight adults who have no concept of what we are going through is pointless-its just a phase, you’ll get over it. NO WE WON’T! It is who we are. The forum was a place of support created by people who know what we are going through like no one else. You have sent young people back into their shell they were trying to find a way out of. I hope you can all live with yourselfs.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 4:52 PM
So…yeah. little late to the party. I missed the statement made by Jimmy on the blog. (above links…obviously are no longer working) Is that around anywhere, I was just wondering what it said. Did Jimmy actually talk to him?
The dedication to the hoax was pretty amazing. i was initially a bit skeptical about the blog, but with the level of detail and the pretty consistent postings, and a couple of emails to me (unsolicited and out of blue) from “mikey”…. well, i bought it. Really, the free time this guy must have. Wow. seriously feel scammed. like I fell for a nigerian email scam or something. bleh.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 5:03 PM
Oh man Jake now you’re turning it into a discussion over Maddy’s sexuality? I read plenty of your postings on Mikey’s blog site. So for everyone I’ll just say it, you’re a fucking genius. You know everything, your knowledge makes God tremble with fear. Steven Hawkins comes to you for the answers. Now do us all a favor lay off Maddy. And quit fucking trying to lecture us. If you want a pulpit feel free to go to seminary school. Oh and by the way brainiac, Mikey fooled you too. And to all the other nutjobs on here calling for a congressional hearing into Mikey. Have a fun time Ahab chasing that white whale. Because no matter what the truth is with who he was/is, the fact remains people were hurt by this. And the important thing that needs to be focused on now is helping them and supporting them now. So all those who keep looking for the second gunman on the grassy knoll, keep your eyes peeled your mouth shut while others are trying to help the kids who are upset about what happened. If you were a kid burned by this go to Maddy’s blog, she’s set up a forum and chat for those who want some help about anything can go to.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 5:03 PM
Kay, this is silly. Jake, I don’t hate you either, nor am I mad about this silly little debate, and I can see why you think I identified as bisexual, but I can guarantee you 100% that I only ever defended them, and did not identify as such. There was another girl who I believe did, but not me. Not that any of this matters, it’s irrelevant what my sexuality is, I just thought there was enough confusion already that we didn’t need more.
Ok, back to stuff that really matters.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 5:20 PM
jimmy, aka hockeyiscanada, you are obviously still around cause u r putting some comments here. when ar you actually going to explain what really happened here? because , you have not. everything you have said about this so far, including your original “reveal” post , and especially all subsuquent comments, has been very vague, and quite rambling. you barely make sense to be honest. you are causing more problems by simply not telling ppl what you know. i suggest you do so immediately, and put an end to all this conjecture. unless of course, you are hiding something, which to be honest is what it looks like, given your behaviour the last couple of days.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 5:20 PM
Dude, wtf is up with your obsession as to Madeleine’s sexuality?
Not “obsessed” with her sexuality. Just one of those blips along the way. Nothin’ more.
You know everything, your knowledge makes God tremble with fear. Steven Hawkins comes to you for the answers.
Funny you should say that, ’cause Steve just called two days ago looking for advice on single malt Scotch. I told him that the 10-year-old Talisker is really good, but that the 25-year-old Talisker is outta this world. Which, by the way, is much more interesting to me than whether Maddy is straight or bi.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 5:43 PM
green ectomorph gives some very good background on what went down on his blogspot. It kind of is the 3rd piece of the puzzle.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 5:58 PM
Thank you Johnny. Madeline and Jimmy are still here, but neither have given any coherent, articulate answers. It’s not that hard to explain. You both pretty much just said Mikey is fake. He’s 40 years. The End. Then started going on and on about Jimmy and how people can still learn from the blog. I agree people can still learn from it. But I primarily read Mikey’s blog entries and not so much of the comments. So I had no clue who Jimmy was or he and Mikey’s relationship. I’m sure I’m not the only one in that boat.
I think a lot of the more reasonable people would be satisfied if either of you simply shared the details about how you discovered Mikey wasnt real. And the big thing is explain the voice on Ben and Dave’s show. If you dont know who or how he did the voice just say you dont know how he did it. The fact that you dont address anything specific is what makes people suspicious of you. Then you come here to comment and seem to only want to address whether or not Madeline is bisexual.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 6:10 PM
I’m kinda-sorta in the “I love a mystery” camp. That’s really why I’ve been coming back here, hoping that someone will just lay it all out. But if that happens, I really hope no one “outs” the 40-year-old. That’s not old-man solidarity talking but just a sense of proportionality. Unless there were other scams involved, I don’t think it rises to the level of a public unmasking.
If someone can tie up all those loose ends and tell the whole story, hey, I’d be interested. If not, well, I’m not exactly holding my breath until I turn blue.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 6:15 PM
Jarron n Jonny ~ If either of u were even remotely connected to this blog – or this matter at all – then u’d know more than u obviously do. The people involved know as much as I do – or will as I get better at actually putting my thoughts down…
Sorry we didn’t wrap all this up neatly for ya within an appropriate amount of time… the next time I want whoeverthehellyouare sniffin thru my life – I’ll be sure to be more succinct. Sorry…
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 6:32 PM
For those interested in a more detailed post about this, read this:
http://greenectomorph.blogspot.com/2010/04/lies-are-exposed.html#comments
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 6:35 PM
sniffin thru ur life? wow, you think this is all about you? what about the many 16yo kids who r suffering right now, and are strugling for answers? there was a whole community associated with mikeys blog, and yes i was one of them. please tell me how i could possibly know more, or anyone else. im quite friendly with many other ppl associated with the blog, and they are all asking the same questions.
given your extreme reluctance to provide any clear information on what has really happened, the only conclusion i and many other ppl can make is that if this is just a big scam, then you must be very involved in it.
feel free to prove me wrong, by actually telling everyone what really happened.
of course, i expect another vague reply to this one, your good at that.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 6:39 PM
Jimmy, don’t let any of these people worry you or pressure you into making comments. In fact, maybe it’s best for everyone to let all of this hysteria die down.
And the goal I was referring to was the 2nd Islander goal of that game, which was CLEARLY offside — even Leon Stickle admitted he blew the call.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 6:44 PM
Since everyone is doing nothing but guessing, another guess is that the hoaxster was a gay kid (and big hockey fan, but not player) who invented the high school jock persona that he wishes he could be. Or the 40-year-old is a high school athletic coach who knows (either specifically, or suspects) that one or more of his players his gay, and decided to become that kid’s “voice” on the Internet.
There are all kinds of possibilities, if you think about it.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 6:50 PM
joe guckin, the hysteria will not die down unless people get some answers. Jimmy clearly has these answers, but he is not being very forthcoming in providing them. i dont think its unfair that ppl ask him for answers, given he is the one that apparently exposed this scam, yet he wont reveal oublicly any details. did you read his formspring?
ill copy and paste a question and jimmys answer:
“I know u probably don’t feel like answering questions but could u pls tell how did u exactly find out abt mikey’s identity?
I found out cause I was lookin for something to send someone – my mom. It was all very innocent n I was kinda showin off how bright n talented my boy was…
Upon further examination, the wheels started to fall off the mikey-mobile. When pressed, the ass-fuck chose to string me along for four or five more days. It was the worst four or five days of my life – or so I thought. Those days were still ahead of me. ARE still ahead of me… this truly, truly blows….
Tell the another truth? I forgot all about this answer thingy again. Man I do that alot…”
so – if ANYONE can make sense of the above answer, id like to hear it. talk about avoiding the question!!!
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 7:28 PM
Wow, seems to me these young adults here are more adult-like than most of the adults here. Kudos to you.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 7:31 PM
So “mikey” decided to reach out beyond his own site to connect with gay youth. check this out:
http://www.thegyc.com/comprofiler/task,userProfile/user,76370/Itemid,99999999/tab,getforumfbtab/fireboardfposts_sortby,hits/
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 7:33 PM
I had a feeling that this was a hoax to begin with. It was actually based on info he posted about hockey. Statements he made about involved teams, scores, and stats did not match up with anything I read in the Star Tribune.
I wanted to attribute it more to youthful typos than flat-out lies because I thought a gay youth presence in a sport like hockey…minnesota hockey nonetheless…was important.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 7:48 PM
My only skepticism was the amount of time he devoted to blogs, emailing, formspring. He seemed to blog like every day. He talked about sending all types of emails. And he generally answered tons of questions on formspring. I didnt see how a person who seemed to be such a big time hockey player and so many friends had so much free time.
Now back to the lack of answers. It’s more than just people being nosy or wanting closure. The more transparent you are could help people spot other fakers online. Now it’s like people dont know what/who is real anymore. Now you wonder if that guy Rich is real.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 7:51 PM
I mention Rich b/c he seemed to be handling the whole thing surprisingly calmy then all of a sudden his formspring was deleted.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 8:06 PM
Jarron, don’t let the frequency of posts weigh on your mind, we taught him how to do scheduled posts so he could have a few on tap so he could post daily even when busy. Its a standard feature of WordPress, the blogging platform he was using. Some may recall the outrage when he did NOT post about Burke’s death immediately – the post that went out then was a scheduled post and only after did he do a “real time” post on the tragedy.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 8:17 PM
wow chad… that link is VERY interesting. that profle was created 2 years ago!!! so if this was a hoax, did he come up with this identiity 2 years ago then? that just doesnt seem to fit.
it makes the actual topic of this article very interesting.. IS this really a hoax?? we all think it is, because one person has said that it is, yet this has not provided anything close to proof or even logical explanations…. all we get is very vague and at times very strange answers.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 8:55 PM
That profile being created two years ago would make sense for hoaxing. It would have given him over a year to communicate with, and learn how to imitate, gay teens.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 9:16 PM
That two-year-old posting is giving me a nudge toward exposing the guy. I’d like to know what he was doing on that gay teen site.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 9:19 PM
wow. thanks to those that posted more info and the links to to more info.
@johnny, there looks to be more to that formspring answer since you posted it. Sounds like the kid got duped and strung along.
I hope there is some follow up article on this. Various of those involved clearly know the details. Personally I don’t want to rip open jimmy’s wounds or anything, I think a lot of people just want a little closure on the matter. Personally I hope someone could shed some light on who “mikey” was and what his motivations were. This goes beyond just internet trolling…that took serious effort and lots and lots of lies.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 9:21 PM
Ok if it was an elaborate hoax what was his goal? It seems like someone would only do this to get money, solicit sex, receive nude pics/used jockstraps, or something out of it. As far as I know that never happened. Are we supposed to believe a grown man did all this merely to be part of an online community and have an online romance with Jimmy?
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 9:26 PM
@jarron – that certainly is the question; What was the point?
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 9:32 PM
hi duped,
the rest of the formspring answer was always there, but it is really just random rambling and not relevant to the question, so i didnt copy and paste that part
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 9:33 PM
I just wonder. Maybe Mikey was who he was…and he got found out by someone and panicked, I mean he’s still a kid(if he is….)
Maybe the 40something year old could be a parent/guardian of his(whose computer Mikey may use….and said computer could be registered in their name(s)) a parent that….say found out about Mikey being gay and didn’t react well at all….cutting off the computer and forcing to stop all contact with the community he had become a part of.
I’m rambling a bit…..and it’s probably a stretch of a theory….but I toss it out there…..just a crazy hunch.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 9:37 PM
Seriously after reading these articles/comments I’m so confused.
WHERE IS THE EVIDENCE!?
I’m the middle here, ready to believe this is a hoax or if the guy is real if the evidence is presented but I’ve yet to see real proof besides claims.
1.) I don’t think it’s ethical to write an article (outsports, not jackson) claiming something without posting the proof.
2.) IMHO whoever has the evidence owes it to the people who made a connection with through hoax-blog and are genuinely hurt by it.
So again I reiterate my question: WHERE IS THE EVIDENCE?
[reposting this from 18-year old reflecting article]
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 10:08 PM
Agree with johnny, duped, and Bob. Also, if you notice on that thegyc.com profile of him, he has a large following of “connections” and wall posts that occurred before this blog was created.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 10:26 PM
It is frustrating to read some of these comments. On one hand, we hear that the person named Mikey is a sick, deranged individual. Then on the other hand, you demand that he have logical motives that would make sense to a sane individual. There is an obvious disconnect there. Is this really the most drastic internet relationship you’ve heard of? People get duped all the time. Very smart and very intelligent people. And yes it is natural to want answers to look for ways to minimize the feeling of being duped. But your desire to assuage your own ego shouldn’t come at the expense of two young people who were victims too.
Unfortunately, I believe this story because it happened to me. Fifteen years ago, when I was first coming out, I had never met any other gay guys before my age. I struggled with dating. I was a regular in the AOL chat rooms and on Delphi GEnie. It was there that I met a guy that claimed to be my age. We talked for hours every night. It seemed like we were soul mates and everything just clicked. We talked by phone. Months went by and I wanted to meet him so I started floating the idea of getting together somewhere. Initially positive, the time to meet always got pushed back. Then one day he told me that the reason he didn’t want to meet was because he “was sick”. He had developed cancer and only had a short time left to live. The story started getting weirder. This was my love and I was surely going to meet him before he died. But things stopped adding up. The tone changed. Suddenly I got an email from his “friend” who told me that he died. I called his phone in disbelief. It was answered by his “friend” who sounded suspiciously like him changing his voice. By then I had serious doubts and this just confirmed everything for me.
I never heard from him again. Now I don’t think I’m a stupid guy (you may disagree). I had a college degree and a job. (I was 25 at the time and a little older than Jimmy and Madeleine too.) But I was a romantic and this guy played my heartstrings like a violinist. And no, we never had any kind of sexual contact or chats. He never asked for any articles of clothing. Our relationship was very tame and largely romantic. I am left wondering about his motives as anyone else.
Yes the internet is place where this can happen. So can real life. I’ve had guys give me fake phone numbers, tell me they worked places they didn’t, give me phony names and addresses. It may be more challenging to pull off in real life but the news is filled with stories of people that have done it well for a while too.
So I know many people want answers but I will tell you that even if you had “Mikey” in front of you, you’d probably not get any answers that satisfy you. Because there is no sensible reason why someone would do this. It is simply the product of someone that is sick and enjoyed playing on the feelings of others.
Unfortunately, you had what is, in my opinion, a decent young man that was duped by someone very good.. It is no reflection on him that this happened other than he wanted to be in love and opened himself up to the risk even if it seemed a little strange. As well, you had a community of people that were fooled. This isn’t the first time. Bernie Madoff fooled some of the brightest investors in the country and all were surprised when it came crashing down. An evil person can be creative and to know what to say and writing a blog and fooling people that are there for help or because they want to help is an audience primed to be fooled. I was one of them.
In the end when the facts started adding up wrong, Jimmy did the right thing. He told as much of the story that he could as someone who was a victim and deeply hurt without laying all of his hurt open to the world. We never ask victims of crimes to provide a full detailed newspaper account of every second and every event so why do we expect it from him?
Ultimately, he could have just walked away and let this Mikey continue his little charade. But he choose to do what he could to end it. I think he did more than most people would under the circumstances and his reward has been the blame the victim comments populating this forum.
As I said, it would be nice to have answers but the answers you’ll get are unsatisfying because I was there in my own situation. I, for one, am unwilling to subject these young people to further cross-examination for those unsatisfying answers. Ultimately, in my opinion we already have the most important answer: Mikey was hoax, he was discovered and now the hoax has ended.
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 10:55 PM
ed, you might get frustrated by some comments here, but personally comments like yours frustrate me more.
firstly , i dont think mikey whoever he is will ever appear with an explanation, and thats not im wanting, becuase if it was a hoax, then the explanation he would provide would unlikely be very honest. but all you talk about is jimmy being the victim and he shouldnt have to tell the full story. BULLSHIT. if his story is true, then yes jimmy is a big victim. but there are hundreds of other victims here also, who want an explanation from jimmy, but arnt getting one. its NOT ALL ABOUT JIMMY!! Its about a whole community. i dont see why jimmy SHOULDNT give a full account on what happened, given he is not the only one who has been affected. your situation is completely different, it was a one on one situation. does a 16y.o kid who looked up to mikey as a hero not deserve to know what jimmky knows? i believe he does.
its not only the fact that jimmy is not telling the fuill story, its that what he does say to be honest does not make much sense, most of what he says is very vague and nonsensical.
all he has to do is tell us what happened, and perhaps it might provide some answers to those who are seeking them, and end all this argument.
he and others are blaming some ppl here asking for investigations for resulting in the forum etc being shut down. well to be honest, i believe if these ppl were given some more facts, then i believe noone would be going to this extent.
you believe jimmy, thats great. some ppl might believe him also if he starts being more upfront. how do you know your not still being hoaxed?
there is obviosuly so much more to be revealed, i just hope someone does so soon
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 11:26 PM
against the advice of many ‘elders’ – ppl I met thru Mikey’s blog n then really got to know in his forum – n ppl I have total faith n trust in…. I’m jus gonna say one more thing n then that’s it… you guys jus go on n continue yakkin bout shit u have no clue bout… have a gay ol time…
IF u blowhards didn’t totally screw shit up, a complete unedited – from the heart, start to finish detailed description of EVERYTHING woulda been written eventually. Shit, it’s been hard enough jus writtin what I have… only the fool in me keeps chirpin when I see some of the crap said or really good ppl needlessly slagged all for yur gratification…
Anyway, so yea my COMPLETE account of this magical ride woulda ended up on OUR forum… cause the people I care about deserve to know n that’s where it coulda/woulda been found. The rest of u coulda read it if ya wanted n I wouldn’t give a shit either way…
But I can’t do that can I? Nope. You burned our forum down. Oh well, maybe I’ll still get around to it sooner than later. Jus gotta scrape my guts off the floor n then I’ll get right to work. Will that be ok?
Or better yet, ‘Mikey’ can write it jus like he promised he would.. yea that would even be better.. You guys would much rather hear it from the horse than the ass right?
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 11:48 PM
jimmy
eventually? why eventually? why not just tell the whole truth straight up? so now ur just trying to prove a point? why punish those good ppl from the forum who are still wanting to know what really happened? does a 16yo kid who looked at mikey as a hero and inspiriation not deserve to know the truth? why r u denying them that?
i was not one of the ppl asking for “investigations”. but in my opinion, if you start giving ppl some answers, no one would have been asking for investigations. so in my opinion, the forum would still be alive if u had been completely upfront .
if what happened to u is true, im very very sorry about that, i really am. but stop and think about things from everyone elses point of view. you are far from the only victim. the other victims deserve to know what u know.i implore you for the last time, tell the full story, now not later. thanks
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 11:49 PM
Jimmy, I’m really sorry some of these people went mental and effed up your forum. It’s not right.
Oh no, now maybe they’ll call for an investigation of me …
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 11:51 PM
hey jonny why dont u fuck off k? if u think tellin that story is gonna be easy then yur a bigger fuckin twat than I already know u are.. so do me a favour n fuck off – thanks in advance
on Apr 26th, 2010 at 11:53 PM
“a complete unedited – from the heart, start to finish detailed description of EVERYTHING woulda been written eventually”
“maybe I’ll still get around to it sooner than later”
So basically you said nothing at all in that post. Jimmy, we never said we wanted or needed it this instant, but at some point we would like to know more. I understand you’re hurting, but if you personally didn’t want to be put in this position, you could’ve just told the moderators and site administrators to post your story themselves.
By posting it yourselves, YOU put yourself in the position of being questioned. By giving a “tease” version of the story, you opened the can of worms. If you had the site administrator deliver the message for you and say “After research into the issue, we have determined Mikey to be a hoax,” then we wouldn’t have as many questions. However, you did give a partial version of the story, meaning people will want more.
You CHOSE to be the messenger and now you’re moaning because people want (and deserve) more.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 12:11 AM
gee thats really grown up jimmy. did i ever say it was going to be easy for you? no, what im saying is, you can make it so much easier for everyone else. yeah yeah yeah, u got burned, ur guts r on the floor. its all about u, we’ve gathered that. but other ppl deserve to know what u know.
the more u keep what u know secret, the worse this just gets. u might have some of the “elders” on ur side. whatever. its not about the fucking elders. this is about the average reader of mikeys blog. young ppl struggling with their sexuality. u can help them – but u wont. and its a real shame
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 12:19 AM
How did I know this was coming? Now there’s because not gonna be a coherent answer b/c everyone was so mean. What a copout. I dont see how Madeline and Jimmy can see themselves as much better than Mikey at this point. It is pretty irresponsible to just announce EVERYTHING IS A LIE but come to my website and talk about me, me, ME. Why not just wait until you could gather your thoughts before saying anything?
This is why I stopped reading the comments section early on. It was one big kumbaya-athon. Anytime anyone challenged Mikey on anything “like the unethical nature of dating girls when you know you are gay”, a million people would chime in and let me know that Mikey was infallible. Now Madeline and Jimmy have essentially become Mikey. People just follow them blindly and accept any nonsense they care to share.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 12:21 AM
@173: not to offend, but I’m not asking for your life story or the whole story of the mikey situation. I’m just asking for evidence that supports the story about mikey being 40 years old and it being a hoax. I could care less who is telling the truth or if mikey is 40 years old. I just don’t like outsports.com writing about something with leaving evidence to support such claims.
I won’t believe words on either side unless there is proof. This whole situation is just shows that you can’t believe what anyone says on the internet.
P.s. @Jimmy or whoever got his heart broken (if that not a lie and actually the “true” story). Sorry, it sucks but I think you’re being a little too emotional. You’re in your teens right? People get lied to and dumbed all the time. Trust me, relationships end and when they do, it hurts…….but with straight and other homosexual people, they get over it and find someone new eventually. Don’t think this guy was your soulmate or whatever.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 12:24 AM
Johnny WTF do you care. What’s been done to the kids has been done. The best thing we can do now is direct them to Maddy’s blog to find people who are honest and want to help them. He’s already said Mikey’s a fraud, if you want to keep believing he’s real then feel free. But if you read it Mikey said he’d be back on the 26th in his last post. Well that time has come and passed, and if he was real and cared about the kids don’t you think he’d be here telling how it’s not true he is a 17 y/o? Nope nothing. So Johnny if you want an investigation start one yourself. Most of the people I spoke to on there are over it. JD and Jim from here both have said, the evidence points to him being a fraud. But that’s not what you want, you want a lifetime movie. Well here’s the final plot twist, you’re a fucking douchebag. Well not really a plot turn from the last 10,000 comments you left we all saw that coming from a mile away. So leave Jimmy alone, if he wants to talk about it then he will. If you want to believe Jimmy’s fake then do so. But until someone with more info is willing to talk just leave people alone. If you’re worried about the kids then if you speak with one of them send them to maddy’s blog. She’s there trying to help them, with more than just this.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 12:28 AM
@Bob “I just don’t like outsports.com writing about something with leaving evidence to support such claims.”
I have written several times that we are investigating and it is an odd story with a lot of pieces. If you wish, we can run a premature story that might wind up being inaccurate if that will satisfy your need for an answer right now, just because you demand it.
I posted this original item Saturday since Mikey’s site had blown up and it would have been impossible to ignore that something had happened (people would then have accused us of covering it up).
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 12:33 AM
reading these comments is really sad you guys need to accept you all got pllayed and still are has anyone seen mikey and Jimmy in the same room think about that you guys need to start dealing and looking at the other mikey threads on here shows that lotsa people knew he was fake you guys should have knew that espcially outsports you guys look like the biggest fools of all
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 12:37 AM
“potvin sucks”, perhaps u might learn to read before commenting.
wtf do i care? well im one of the victims, as i stated. i believe a better explanation from jimmy is required to be told to the other victims. they all deserve answers.
. whats done hs been done, yes, but the best way to move forward is to have full disclosure about what is really known.
Ive never said i dont believe that mikey was a hoax. what i have said, and it is far from just me, as ju can see, is that ppl deserve to know the full story behind the hoax being uncovered. as i have stated , and u alsomobviously didnt read, i am not one of the ppl who has asked for an investigation. all i have done is ask Jimmy to tell the full story, because i believe ppl like me, and others like me, really need to hear it, so we can get further understanding of this whole debacle.
to mkae matters worse, not only does jimmy refuse to tell the story, he randomly appears here and there with some nonsensical garbarge that doesnt make sense to anyone. id like to believe in him. i really would. but you cant just expect ppl just to be told “it was a hoax. thats that. the end” it really isnt good enough
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 12:41 AM
What answers do you want? I don’t know what questions you want answered that haven’t already been answered. Jimmy and Mikey chatted outside the blog. Jimmy became suspicious of Mikey’s story based on catching him in a lie. Jimmy confronted him, Mikey said he was a 40 year old guy in MN and not a 17 year old. Jimmy blew the whistle. Mikey contacted the hosting people on an account that Mikey only had access to and Mikey *said* it was true. Story got posted on the blog. We’re here today. None of this is disputed, is it? JT from the hosting company has validated all of this.
What else do you want to know? Why Mikey did it? Ask Mikey. What did he think he was accomplishing? Ask Mikey. Is he sorry? Ask Mikey. What gave him the right to do this? Ask Mikey. How did manage to write so well in 17 year old’s voice? Ask Mikey.
Mikey, the perpetrator of the fraud knows how to contact outsports. If he wanted to defend himself he could. If he wanted to explain himself he could. If he wanted to challenge the facts, he could. He’s done none of those things. Basically, he knows the story that is out there and he has not challenged it at all. So Mikey’s silence is his consent to the truth. If Mikey wanted to say he just got scared and the hoax is a hoax he could. I’m sure the minute Cyd and Jim got word from him they would let us know. Mikey has disappeared into the ether and let someone else be his fall guy.
For someone, and I mean Mikey, that has hurt you, you’re all letting him get the last laugh in too. Because he is out there and knows that Jimmy is getting crapped for blowing the whistle and I would bet he is enjoying manipulating you one last time.
I know Mikey has hurt a lot of the kids and I’d like to hear Mikey explain himself. I’d love the opportunity to tell Mikey what I think of him and tell him where he should go. Especially because he is letting someone else be his patsy. But that’s between me and Mikey. When he decides to man-up and show his face, I’ll do exactly that.
Everyone else’s beef here is with Mikey too. Jimmy didn’t hurt anyone. In fact, in this mess he has been the one that has had everyone else’s interest at heart. He blew the whistle and Mikey *cofirmed* it. You want answers, ask Mikey because he is the one — and the only one — that owes you the full story.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 12:44 AM
I told myself I wouldn’t comment here, and I don’t think I will again, but I had to step in and defend a friend.
FUCK OFF AND LEAVE JIMMY ALONE!!
I’m sorry to swear, it isn’t lady like of me, and I think nothing gets solved by it, but I’m angry. Jimmy is a really good friend of mine, and he’s in more pain than any of you can imagine. Yes, we all deserve to know the whole story. He knows that. But can you imagine how hard it is to tell that story? Give the kid some space to breathe for God’s sake!
Jonny, I’m sorry for what happened, I really am, and I understand why you want to know the truth. But please try and understand there were others hurt in this, perhaps worse than you.
I know people think I’m the new Mikey, but I still want to encourage anyone who wants to talk to visit the chat at my blog. There are good people there.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 12:53 AM
@Jim Buzinski: I feel the initial article about the hoax is warranted to warn people, if only to warn people of the hoax but the 18-year-old opinion piece I don’t think is and that’s original article I commented. I commented on because I feel it exasperates the situation in that the article was written under the thought that the Mikey is truly a 40 year old man. But I guess it gives comfort to people who have been affected by the situation.
And I apologize, I might have been too rash, but I feel like that it would’ve helped if you at least shed some light on what the evidence or details might have been (things that you’re sure is accurate). Also, no offense to Jimmy, his comments have not been that coherent so not that helpful.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 12:55 AM
Chad: I am very glad you posted this as it explains your behavior far better than your comments thus far. You are very off-base in your assumptions but I can sure understand why you would act this way believing the things you said. I thought all this was clarified two days ago, but I will repeat. (Fielding stuff on this took up my weekend and I can’t remember what I posted where or what I answered by email, or in IM.)
Chad, neither Jimmy, not Madeleine, “CHOSE to be the messenger“. When this came to my attention, as the server owner, I decided the site needed to be shut down. I also took a look at the community on the blog and the forum and felt it was unfair to just slam the door, so to speak, instead of providing an outlet for those most closely affected.
Given that Jimmy was the most directly affected and that Madeleine was a long time contributor to discussions on both sites I ASKED them to give a statement to the community that they belonged to (but I did not). I felt that hearing the news from someone people had talked to and laughed with would make things easier. I was wrong in two key ways.
After “Mikey” contacted us and confirmed that he was not who he said he was, and that Jimmy was correct about the situation, we, the community web hosting group, asked Jimmy for a statement. Had I know the extent of Jimmy’s emotional involvement with the blogger at that time, I would NEVER have done that. He was in no shape, emotionally, to make a rational and explanatory statement that would satisfy the likes of many people commenting here. Instead of the itemized facts and timeline that many people want, Jimmy instead opened himself to his community and shared his pain. I think if he was talking only to the people he thought he was, he would have had the support and shoulders to lean on that he clearly needed. Jimmy, we are so very sorry that we misjudged the reaction that was coming and put you in such a vulnerable and untenable position as the ‘face’ of this bullshit. Blaming the victim is nothing new, and its clear that most of those who actually part of the community have your back. Maddy, the same applies to you. I am truly sorry that you have had to go through this on top of the heartache of finding out that someone you took into your heart as a virtual ‘little brother’ lied to you for months.I realize now that I was underestimating people’s willingness to grasp at straws and embrace conspiracy theories. Instead of trying to create a soft landing, I should have saved myself a weekend of working and answering email and just killed the sites. By trying to create a controlled shutdown and a way to let the community regroup instead of scattering to the wind, it just opened the door for more crap. Since people are so eager to grasp at straws and jump to conclusions based on conclusions jumped to by others the sudden closing of the site would have probably thrilled them since it would give them a blank canvas on which to project their bizarre conclusions. Clearly many people WANT a mystery instead of the truth which is, simply, that someone did something unconscionable, people got hurt, and steps were taken to prevent its continuance.
So just to summarize:
The site was shut down by the server owners, Jimmy could not have done it if he wanted to, he was just a contributing author on the blog who Mikey asked to fill in while he was away so the blog was not completely inactive. This is not as weird as many people seem to think and most blogging systems, like WordPress, have the ability to do exactly this as part of their core functionality. The site’s closure was a foregone conclusion once “Mikey” had confirmed to us that he was indeed the older man we were told he was. By the way, he did say he was sorry for deceiving everyone and called himself a “bad person” for doing this to his readers.
Jimmy (and Madeleine) did not ASK to make the statements on the shut down page. There were actually conscripted for the task. Thanks again Maddy and Jimmy, and I am so sorry I did not foresee this eventuality when we asked the two of you for those statements.
You all now know as much as everyone.
The blogger was caught in a cascading series of lies that only happened because he got too close, emotionally, to a young man who read his blog. (Jimmy, you will feel better after time passes, I swear you will.) Had “Mikey” kept his distance he could have kept this up for far longer. Not indefinitely, but certainly through “graduation” and the summer if he was careful.
It was only the fact that he got emotionally entangled and entered into a more personal relationship with one person that was his undoing. When you are in love, you look much closer than people who just come in, read, comment, and go onto the next blog.
People ask why he did a podcast (over the phone or on-line? Jim, did you ever find out?) if he wasn’t real, but what nobody is asking, because they are not aware probably, is why he did not do the NPR (National Public Radio) interview when they contacted him. NPR could do a far better job protecting his identity than most podcasters and he would have been able to reach far more people if that was the goal. If you think only the gay press was interested in talking to “Mikey”, you are very wrong.
The sustained blogging as an assumed identity is, looked at dispassionately, quite a feat, but it was not sustainable without also maintaining a near mechanical distance from the people he is connecting with. I personally feel that this unraveling was inevitable and there were many better ways of shutting down if he really did just want to stop blogging as a few people not as close to the situation have suggested.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 12:55 AM
omg everytime i refresh this page the comments just keep coming. and even tho i want answrs just as much as the next guy i think maybe we really should all let it all blow over…
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 12:56 AM
jimmy is a big victim. but there are hundreds of other victims here also, who want an explanation from jimmy, but arnt getting one. its NOT ALL ABOUT JIMMY!! Its about a whole community.
There were never any more than about a dozen regulars, maybe 15, on that site. The separate “Forum” was further evidence of that. There’d be a couple or three new posts per day. Not exactly the output of “hundreds of victims.”
JD and Jim from here both have said, the evidence points to him being a fraud. But that’s not what you want, you want a lifetime movie.
Yeah, too much drama here, too little mature perspective. People really need to calm down and get some rest.
its not only the fact that jimmy is not telling the fuill story, its that what he does say to be honest does not make much sense, most of what he says is very vague and nonsensical
Jimmy would’ve done better to serve up less emotion and more cold fact. But he’s hurting. What’s your excuse?
I posted this original item Saturday since Mikey’s site had blown up and it would have been impossible to ignore that something had happened (people would then have accused us of covering it up).
Exactly. Outsports has nothing to apologize for here. You’ve done just fine.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 1:01 AM
@ed – actually jimmy has never clearly stated what you just wrote. perhaps its his writing style – he is completely vague in everything he writes.
what questions do we want answered? ok
1. how did jimmy catch him in a lie
2. how do we know that jimmy is not part of the scam?
3. why didnt jimmy tell us the whole story in the beginning?
4. why did jimmy send a photo that mikey sent him to another blogger? if he “loved” this person, then he would have kept his trust (and this apparently happened before the lie was found out) . how trustworthy a person does this make jimmy?
5. when did jimmy actually find out the truth?
6. whats the real story behind the “going away til the 26th” and jimmy taking over the blogging until then?
7. how was this deception uncovered if “mikey” was away? was he not really away then? therefore jimmy must have known this?
I could keep going if u like. is that enough questions for now? because, there is so much that doesnt make sense, and its not just about this persons “motivations” etc.
as for the questions you refer to that should be asked to the “mikey”, im not expecting jimmy to answer any of that, nor is anyone else. what we do expect, is the fll truth about what he knows.
@ madeleine: as ive stated several times, i am seeking answers, not only for me, but for the others that you speak of. its very kind of u to stick up for ur friend jimmy, but really all he needs to do is start tellin the truth. the end
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 1:04 AM
@Jake Jackson….Christ now you are re-posting your crap from Saturday….give it a rest dude no one is interested in your shit.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 1:14 AM
I’d like to point something out: I, for one, haven’t criticized Jimmy. I accept his story about being taken in. I’m fine with Madeleine too, the tiny contratemps about whether she’s straight or bi notwithstanding. If there’s one thing that this whole thing makes clear, it’s how fragile Internet communities are, especially early in their evolution.
Jimmy, hang in there. Next time, make sure to meet the guy before falling in love with him. And even then, be careful. There’s only so many times you can get yer heart broken before some real damage gets done.
This sucks, but it’s also an occasion to learn. The real place to file your complaint is in front of the nearest mirror. I’m not stomping on ya like that might sound, but ultimately you are going to have to learn to find the right balance between openness and emotional self-defense.
It’s not an easy one, but you’ve got some work to do on that front, and I wish you absolutely nothing but the best. I haven’t been there in the same way you’ve been there, but trust me Jimmy, I’ve been there in my own way and so have a lot of other people.
Everybody else, quit kicking the shit out of this guy, would you?
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 1:14 AM
@NY Dad, back at ya.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 1:49 AM
JD, thank you for the clarification. I agree with you that you made a major mistake in asking a teenager to break this news to people. Also this is a teenager that, no offense to him, doesn’t articulate things very well in writing. As a few people here have said, it was very hard to read into what he was trying to say and it wasn’t articulated very well. You shouldn’t have just abolished the website yourself, but said that through a commenter that will remain anonymous, you have proven and verified that “Mikey” is a hoax. That would’ve gotten a lot less people up in arms about the details.
I also think Jake Jackson brings up a great point. Don’t get emotionally cozy with people over the internet until you can at LEAST verify that these are people that are the age you thought they would be. At the very least. This means either having them get on a webcam, or taking a picture of themselves holding up a sign with their name or screenname (this is the protective measure I take when using a website to meet guys). It is far too easy for people to steal pictures.
Jimmy, you are young and (from what I can tell) very bright, and I know you will learn from this. You were caught up in an evil hoax by a terrible human being and put in a spot of revealing news that you should never be put it.
One other thing, yes, there are people from the old hockeykidmn site that have moved over to Madeleine’s blog, but I would recommend more people to go over to theGYC.com forums because there are peers posting there as well as professionals in the LGBT field that monitor and contribute to the site, which helps to keep it safe as well as productive. I understand Madeleine wants to promote her site and she has good intentions, but when it comes to teenagers on a ledge of depression, I would recommend something with some more professionals involved and contributing.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 2:02 AM
Jimmy’s stated age is 26…not a teenager.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 2:06 AM
Ummmmmmmmm really????!!!!
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 2:11 AM
My recollection was 26 from the Mikey site commentor profiles. When I asked J.D. on Monday what he thought Jimmys age was he thought early 20′s but then found the profile and it said 26.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 2:14 AM
I, like many, was a religious follower of this blog. I have stayed on the sidelines, but I feel like I need to say something. I am appalled by those of you who are blabbering on and on about what you think you deserve to know, pointing the finger at two people who didn’t ask for any of this (Jimmy and Maddy), and coming up with your bullshit conspiracy theories. Quite frankly, you should be ashamed of yourselves. It is completley ridiculous. You call yourselves adults? The youth who were directly affected by this hoax are dealing with this in a much more mature fashion than any of you “blow-hards”. Personally, I like Jimmy’s description better…”twats” that has a nice ring to it.
Stop being so self-righteous, it is nauseating. Why don’t you try something useful…perhaps compassion. Many young kids were hurt by this, and made victims by a very elaborate lie. Jimmy is not the only one, nor does he pretend to be. May I remind you, however, that he did have his heart ripped out and exposed for everyone to witness. What an asshole for not giving us a full report, I can’t believe he would be so selfish. Jimmy owes you nothing. He is not in cahoots with this doucher, so why don’t you just leave him alone.
Had you not worked everyone up into hysteria, these kids would still have their place to go and to help eachother process and work through this mess. It disgusts me that so called “adults” such as yourselves would behave this way. You took away the place where they could connect with eachother, all because certain self-important elitists took it upon themselves to become the judge and jury. In all actuality, you accomplished nothing of value or anything remotely productive. Yes they could go somewhere else, but it is not the same. That was their spot, the table they sat at together every day for months, and just because the table across the room is open doesn’t mean they wanna sit there.
To those of you who actually matter, and not the pompous asses that can’t get enough of their own genious level of intellect, I say this… I am really sorry that it came to this point. It is not fair to any of you to have to feel this pain and sense of betrayal. If I could take that pain away from you, I would do it without blinking an eye. Just trust that things will get better. You have a great group of people that truly care, and hopefully soon you will have your forum back where ya’ll can continue to do good things for eachother.
To Jimmy, I have never spoken to you personally, but my heart goes out to you. This is the last thing that you should have to be dealing with right now, and I commend you for being strong enough to be there for others when your world has been turned upside down. Just remember that you owe these people no explaination. Your main priority is dealing with the pain your are experiencing. It seems that you have a great group of people that will be there to help you along the way and at the end of the day, that is what truly matters. I wish you nothing but the best.
-Jo
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 2:17 AM
Give it a rest people. You’re only hindering the ‘investigation’ with your weird claims.
For those affected, such as JD, Madeleine, and especially Jimmy, I feel for you. Jimmy, I wish I could extend a helping hand, but I cannot. I will only repeat the words JD told you: It gets easier over time, I swear it does.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 2:21 AM
Jimmy’s 26?
…..uhh…..that changes things slightly.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 2:28 AM
Omg this is getting waaaaaaaaaay weird i actually dont know who to believe anymore … im more for believing that this is a forty year old dude from mn but that gyc profile had to have been created under an age of 15 since it updates ages yearly (I have a page there) that just seems tooooo weird that Mikey would take the time to make sure all of his online profiles matched up with what his new blog would say…the character he created seems so exact but on the other hand we have many accusations of flaws in his hockey reports and on the fact that he was online so much is weird but i play sports and am online a lot too as a teen so idk …not that much so it is a little odd but ugh.. All i can say jimmys profile supposedly saying hes 26 is really…umm…suspect. but I dont wanna point fingers because if he is 17 like me and as tricked that bad i really feel for the kid because i would be balling my eyes out. most likely…
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 2:35 AM
1. how did jimmy catch him in a lie
Mikey admitted he lied. Does it matter how he got caught? Or do you think he is lying about lying making him a liar?
2. how do we know that jimmy is not part of the scam?
Mikey admitted that he lied. What other scam is there? Everything is gone.
3. why didnt jimmy tell us the whole story in the beginning?
I do not what story you didn’t see at the beginning but this was all pretty clear on Fri / Sat.
4. why did jimmy send a photo that mikey sent him to another blogger? if he “loved” this person, then he would have kept his trust (and this apparently happened before the lie was found out) . how trustworthy a person does this make jimmy?
Whatever trust is really between Jimmy and Mikey and not relevant. Mikey confessed to everything. But Jimmy has explained that Mikey gave permission for him to do so.
5. when did jimmy actually find out the truth?
Go back and reread the existing statements. The time line is pretty clear.
6. whats the real story behind the “going away til the 26th” and jimmy taking over the blogging until then?
What real story? You’ve already heard why. Jimmy was asked to be a guest blogger. What Mikey’s rationale for having Jimmy do this is a question for Mikey. Ask Mikey.
7. how was this deception uncovered if “mikey” was away? was he not really away then? therefore jimmy must have known this?
Jimmy has explained that he caught Mikey in a lie as to his whereabouts and reported it. Mikey confessed.
I could keep going if u like. is that enough questions for now? because, there is so much that doesnt make sense, and its not just about this persons “motivations” etc.
It’s clear that its not that you don’t have the answers but you don’t like them. Repeatedly asking the same question won’t change the answer.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 2:39 AM
YES JIMMY IS AN ADULT! He never claimed to be a teenager.
People have been commenting without even bothering to know the basic facts. All of the primary people involved here adults. Some of the blogs readers may have been teenagers but the primary people involved ARE ALL ADULTS!
Just because he’s an adult doesn’t mean Jimmy’s heart is any less broken. But I don’t see any sign of any children being harmed here, just hurt feelings.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 2:45 AM
@Ed thanks for clarifying
@Johnny – Every single question you asked has been THOROUGHLY EXPLAINED if you would take the time to read.
Mikey lied, Mikey got caught, Mikey fessed up. End of story.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 2:49 AM
Jo, how do YOU know how the youth are dealing with it?? are you in contact with the over 2,000 regular unique visitors the site was getting at one time?? I will say it again, Jo, I work with children (many of whom have gone through depression and have suffered physical effects), and have for many years. As you YOURSELF said, “Many young kids were hurt by this,” so how is it being a blowhard to ask for an investigation into whether this guy was doing anything criminal?? The man misled tons of emotionally unstable minors. If this was YOUR emotionally unstable child that was reading this site, wouldn’t you at least want someone to look into this or get the full story??
“Had you not worked everyone up into hysteria, these kids would still have their place to go and to help eachother process and work through this mess” -Jo
Actually, Jo, if you read correctly you would see that someone did e-mail JD saying they believe a crime was committed. JD says he hasn’t been contacted by authorities, but he made the proper call as to be cautious with this. WE didn’t ask for the site to be closed. We asked for someone to investigate this further.
As for the “jimmy is 26/not a teenager” thing, well, im not going to touch that right now, but i will if its true.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 2:53 AM
@Chad
In all honesty, I don’t entirely disagree with you. I think perhaps it is a good idea for LGBTQ youth to go someplace with a bit more professional staff, though I will say that the people over at Maddy’s chat room (and I am one of them) are incredibly caring and loyal. That being said, I have honestly never been more terrified of a site in my life than that http://www.thegyc.com site you just reccommended. There isn’t even contact information to get in touch with the administrators, and as you pointed out, this “Mikey” guy was on there TWO YEARS AGO TALKING TO TEENAGERS!!! It seems like a hotbed for creepy shit. While I was trying to look at what “Mikey” was up to on there, I was free to jump back and forth between profiles (most with shirtless pictures) of 15 year old boys that this dude was chatting with, AND I DIDNT EVEN HAVE AN ACCOUNT!!! WTF? Even on Facebook you can hide more information than that site, and it is geared towards a much more fragile group of individuals.
@Everyone else: As far as Jimmy goes. Fuck all of you for thinking your need to know is greater than his need to recoup a bit. Honestly, do I want a somewhat more detailed explaination? Yes. Does he owe it to anyone? No. The guy that wrote the blog owes an explaination, and I doubt we’re ever going to get that. Furthermore, for you DBags who aren’t satisfied with what he’s given you so far, go back and read it again, because you apparently did not comprehend much of it the first time.
Here’s what happened… Jimmy and “Mikey” found themselves in a romantic relationship. Jimmy dug a little too deep into Mikey’s story – in order to show his mother how great Mikey was – and the story started to fall apart. Mikey tried covering it up, but this was the second time he had been caught in lies. The first time, Mikey actually posted and told everyone he had hurt someone he loved. If the archive was still up, you’d be able to go back and read that Jimmy’s comment to that article cryptically referenced the fact that Mikey was talking about him, and he forgave him. The first occurence took place in mid-March, this last one took place while “Mikey” was supposed to be away. Mikey fessed up to being a 40-something, and corroberated Jimmy’s story to the web providers.
WHAT EXACTLY ARE YOU LOOKING FOR?!?!!? Transcripts of their conversations!?!? It was a ROMANTIC relationship…. perhaps he is not entirely comfortable revealing every detail of their discussions to you at this time when the wounds are so fresh.
Okay. Rant over.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 2:53 AM
ed: thanks for wasting my time with your ridculous answers, even tho the questions arnt for u. in response:
1. how did jimmy catch him in a lie
Mikey admitted he lied. Does it matter how he got caught? Or do you think he is lying about lying making him a liar?
ummm answering a question with a question, isnt an answer, moron. yes it matters. hence why the question is being asked. if it can be established how jimmy caught him, then perhaps it makes his WHOLE story much more believeable.
2. how do we know that jimmy is not part of the scam?
Mikey admitted that he lied. What other scam is there? Everything is gone.
UMMM did u even read the topic of this article? there is confusion everywhere, and even those who are coming on here saying “jimmy wouldnt lie, blah blah blah”, they dont even know him, all they can say is “hes my friend and i believe him”
3. why didnt jimmy tell us the whole story in the beginning?
I do not what story you didn’t see at the beginning but this was all pretty clear on Fri / Sat.
no. it wasnt. all that was said was that mikey wasnt real and was a 40 something man in minnesota. thats not the whole story.
4. why did jimmy send a photo that mikey sent him to another blogger? if he “loved” this person, then he would have kept his trust (and this apparently happened before the lie was found out) . how trustworthy a person does this make jimmy?
Whatever trust is really between Jimmy and Mikey and not relevant. Mikey confessed to everything. But Jimmy has explained that Mikey gave permission for him to do so.
where has he explained thus? and that seems completely ridculous. your saying mikey gave jimmy permission to pass his photo and basically real identity around the net? BULLSHIT!!!!
5. when did jimmy actually find out the truth?
Go back and reread the existing statements. The time line is pretty clear.
no the time line is not clear at all. hence why i asked
6. whats the real story behind the “going away til the 26th” and jimmy taking over the blogging until then?
What real story? You’ve already heard why. Jimmy was asked to be a guest blogger. What Mikey’s rationale for having Jimmy do this is a question for Mikey. Ask Mikey.
ummm ok that just totally ignores the question
7. how was this deception uncovered if “mikey” was away? was he not really away then? therefore jimmy must have known this?
Jimmy has explained that he caught Mikey in a lie as to his whereabouts and reported it. Mikey confessed.
no, jimmy has not explained this. perhaps jimmy has told his inner sanctum from the blog? thats hardly explaining it, i know a lot of ppl from the blog didnt speak with jimmy at all, myself being one one them
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 3:01 AM
Jimmy’s stated age is 26…not a teenager.
What?! This thing just gets odder. I’m outta here.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 3:04 AM
ok ppl u can attack me all u want – i know ur just friends of jimmy and stickin up for him – but im all im askin for is the full story. funny how some ppl (perhaps jimmys inner circle) have been priveleged with some info. but the average blogger out there knows nothing. and @ alex – no it hasnt. and im not the only one with questions.
so jimmy is 26 now? ive heard that many conflicting stories about this persons age, i dont know what to believe. perhaps the man himself can clarify for us.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 3:05 AM
your right jake. it does get odder and odder. more questions no real answers .
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 3:22 AM
@johnny – You’re asking questions that have been answered over and over. The timeline is very clear and ed just re-explained it to you if it’s not, the picture is explained on the other blog linked up above. Jimmy was a guest blogger, a very common thing, I don’t even understand what you’re fishing for here.
Your other questions are about how Jimmy found out but they’re irrelevant once MIKEY HIMSELF ADMITTED THE FRAUD to Jimmy and to the company running the blog. It’s not like Mikey is anywhere to be found claiming his innocence.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 3:32 AM
alex, no, they havnt been answered over and over, or at all
please read above for my response to ed’s “answers” which, mind u, r as close as we have come to actually getting some answers.
i know exactly who jimmy was. like i said, i was part of that blog. i read it every day. i spoke to “mikey” quite a bit via email.
however, jimmy, and if its not intentional then i dont mean to offend him, but he really doesnt articulate himself well in his responses. im not the only person who thinks so. read up.
if u also read jimmys last comments, he actually admitted himself that he hasnt revealed the full story, and he “intended to do so at a later date” . but because ppl r asking questions now, and the forum got shut down, now he says he wont, or “might at some point in the future” . sorry but thats a cop out.
as i said, he can end all this conjecture right now. just needs to tell us the full story. that will be the end of it.
however the more and more he refuses to do so, the less believe he is in my opinion, as besides his apparant “hurt” at tellin the story, the only other explanation is that he is hiding something.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 3:32 AM
Jimmy never pretended to be a teenager. He always said he was in college. So I don’t know why you guys find it so strange that he’s not a teenager.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 3:34 AM
@Chad, how could I possibly be in contact with as you said over 2,000 people? Let me clarify, I am not foolish enough to assume that I know how the youth are handling this emotionally. I was referring to the actions of certain adults commenting on this site and how ridiculous their behavior has been. I was not talking about the emotional state of children here, simply that they are not the ones jumping to conclusions and singling out individuals and claiming crimes have been commmitted.
As far as a criminal investigation goes, there was never any actual evidence to support that a crime had been committed. They sent JD an email saying they believe a crime was committed.” BELIEVE being the keyword. On what basis? It is nothing more than an assumption based on no credible information. JD said he hasn’t been contacted by the authorities, so shouldn’t that be some indication that someone may have over reacted and jumped to a conclusion before getting the facts straight? Which is an example of what contributed to the forum being shut down.
This is exactly what I am talking about…People taking it upon themselves to sound the whistle when they have no credible information on which to base their accusation. It is real easy to point the finger and say he did this he did that, but it is counterproductive and damaging when it is based on speculation with no evidence to back it up.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 3:35 AM
It appears this blog was a hoax. There are a ton of unanswered questions. Instead of getting into a giant panic and spreading rumors, theories and other thoughts… why not just wait and see what comes out of this.
Both Cyd and Jim have said that they will provide more information once they figure out what the heck is going on. That’s all that we need to know at this time.
Jumping to conclussions will not help in this situation. Just wait and see what happens.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 3:43 AM
@Chad…It is clear to see that kids were hurt emotionally as a result of this. To what extent, I don’t know. I would assume it would depend on the individual. You work with children, so you must know exactly how each one of them are feeling, right?
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 3:48 AM
It says above that Mikey himself admitted the fraud to the people that matter.
Once Mikey admitted the fraud why does anyone even question Jimmy or need to know more detail from him.
It says above, over and over and over and over that Mikey himself admitted he was lying on the blog.
Outsports said they are investigating and I’m sure they’ll post a full story.
I’m sure if this was some kind of hostile takeover, that by now would have heard from Mikey. I’ve even been keeping my eyes on his old blog over on blogger.
One more time: it’s stated above that Mikey himself admitted he was lying.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 3:53 AM
your right Jo. kids r emotionally hurt by this. im trying to help them by have jimmy publicly explain what he knows, and so r some other ppl here.
unfortuntely all we get is nonsensical ramblings from jimmy himself, and abuse from his “friends” saying leave him alone , or even worse some ppl claiming the story has been fully told (what friggin garbage!)
its quite clear he is either not prepared to tell the full story, OR he is also part of the hoax, as several other ppl may well be. i wont be commenting on this anymore as its clearly wasting my time, but like “enigma” said , ill keep an eye on it to see what happens.
peace everyone.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 4:03 AM
oh and a final thought alex… if a liar says they lied. are they telling the truth? think about it.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 4:07 AM
k I really hate it when someone criticizes my writing… but I’ll be damned if yur gonna make me twenty-fuckin-six!
As all u less-than-informed-but-think-you-are’s should know, I was born in 1987 … so to the best of NY Dad’s recollection, that would make me bout 87? Sound bout right NY Dad? Dude, I thought u n me used to be homies… whaaa haps daddy-o?
n wasn’t it u who needed to know how trustworthy I was anyway cause I sent a photo of ‘mikey’ to another friend? Yea dude. It wouldn’t fit yur neat ol story if I had permission to do it – would it now?! Again, a know-nothing gas-bag…
n Jonny fuck man shut up already. As its been said over n over n over again, the person who should be answerin all the questions ain’t me idiot! So why do I have to read the story to ya. Why can’t u jus wait n see how it all plays out? Attention deficit?
The person puttin yur life on hold has been asked, begged, coaxed n cried to… he says he’ll talk – or has – to Jim B… w/e
It still ain’t me who should be answerin. Maybe I’m just not a big ol douche. I coulda jus said who he is (or who he said he is this time) n let u fuckwads tear him apart…. But what if he had a family? What if he had kids? What if he still is a kid? Either chronologically or mentally? What if?
Ya see dingleberry, I don’t got the answers you seem to be starved for (btw what did u do b4 all this???). You say u were a constant follower of mikey’s blog? Then why don’t i know who the hell u are??? You n yur mob buddies… outside of NYD… I never heard of any of ya n u keep proving yur bullshit bout following the blog by speakin outta school. You DON’T KNOW ANYTHING! So yea, where was I? Oh yea, please shut up k? thanks AGAIN!
n finally to Enigma… member the FUN we used to have durin the Olympics when my writin was good enough for Outsports? Ya know, before the standards were raised to Jonny’s n chad’s n jarron’s etc. etc. intellectual level. Remember all the nonsense I used to write bout – then we’d frolic in the comment section… shit I remember in one story, I even had some dude eat a cat! Can u believe they ever posted such shit?
Yea, I wonder what ever happened to that kid who ate the cat…
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 4:21 AM
Jimmy, don’t worry.
All those people who complain about your grammar have multiple errors in their posts. It’s really funny. While your writing is sometimes difficult to read, it’s still understandable. Better a person writes with their heart than rape a thesaurus trying to pass themselves of as an intellectual.
Feel better, brahski.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 5:32 AM
Johnny please dont let these bullies make you think you are crazy or mean just because you want logical and answers and not their circular BS. The recent so called answers are just as nonsensical as the original statement. Now that we know all that everyone involved is a legal adult it is even more tragic.
Jimmy being 23 is a huge revelation and really changes everything. His writing style and sounds like someone much younger. I think that is why a lot of people are surprised. And most importantly, why are people feeling sorry for someone who supposedly got their heart broken by someone who they thought was a minor? If he actually met up with a real Mikey he would be in jail. Jimmy was carrying on an online relationship with someone he thought was 17 but people are defending him? he’s a real martyr
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 6:30 AM
I’m going to weigh on on this matter and then not comment any further. I echo the comments of those adults who point out that a few individuals who keep posting here over and over again continually are dragging this discussion into inappropriate directions, pointing fingers at people such as Jimmy and Madeleine who are not responsible, etc. Given the intensity of posting by some of these “individuals” such as Johnny, I’m convinced that one or more of them is in fact the psycho case formerly known as “Mikey” who is getting his thrills now in a different way.
There’s nothing more to discuss here, and I wish this discussion would cease about all the nonsense details. But there is one issue I wish we could come back to: What can we gay adults do to truly support these kids? I’ll go back to my earlier comment, the reason why I think the Mikey forum worked for so many kids is because it was peer-led by a kid who was not “out there” as some (though certainly not all) gay out kids can be. He was “mainstream” and not “fringe.” The kids were talking to one of their own and that meant something to them. They don’t want to talk to adults (primarily), they want to talk to each other, in a safe, respectable, affirmative environment. What can we do as adults to give them that space? This to me is the only question worth discussing going forward from this unfortunate matter, and I’d like to invite everyone else here to just stop pointlessly discussing other issues that just don’t matter at this point. And Jimmy, I’m really sorry you were hurt. I’d send big hugs if I could. At least the Bruins won last night–although I’m not sure if that made you happy. It did me, at least.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 6:36 AM
FYI: Maddy’s blog and the new forum …for the civilized and non-combative …http://savedbytheblog14.blogspot.com/
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 6:58 AM
Jarron,
I never thought Jimmy was 17–I think because his real age was in his profile on Outsports when he wrote during the Olympics. And “Mikey’s” character was supposed to have turned 18 last year, correct?
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 8:09 AM
No the Mikey character was just graduating high school and mentioned several times that he was turning 18 in June. So it baffles me why someone who is is in their 20s would come and admit to having a romantic relationship with someone that they thought was a minor.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 8:37 AM
Would you please leave Jimmy alone. What he has gone through would be tramatic for any one of any age. If your goal is to send him over the edge, keep it up and you might acomplish your goal. Jimmy, I am so sorry there are people who have no care for your feelings and what you are going through. So people, Fuck off and leave him alone!!
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 8:42 AM
@Johnny – look man, I think you’ve made yourself clear. There really is nothing more that can be said that would satisfy your demands. Those that know apparently have said all they will. If what they have said is true, well, honestly I don’t blame them for not saying anymore. Hell If I was Jimmy, I surely wouldn’t have said as much as he had after being scammed and lied to in such an intimate way. I think at some point we’ve all been betrayed by someone close, but I bet we never had to go through it publicly and they be nit picked about the details.
@JD – Thanks for the run down. I missed the weekend’s statements and the meltdown. That was all the summary I needed.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 8:44 AM
So that we can move on from this particular topic… Mikey was (supposed to be) 17, Jimmy is 23 (and btw Jimmy, fuck you for knocking 26!), the age of consent in Minnesota is 16. The age of consent in Canada is 16, with various Romeo and Juliete statutes. Anal sex is okay after 18, but that law was struck down in two provinces, where it would be okay at 16 as well.
Something bad may have happened here… but how about we stop it with accusations of criminal conduct until we actually look up the criminality of the conduct in question? Thanks!
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 9:13 AM
why is everyone attacking the people who have simply asked for the person at the centre of this scandal (hockeyiscanada) simply to explain in plain english exactly how these events transpired? i dont see any pointed fingers, just some ppl desperate for answers, and its a fair request. if he says no, then not much you can do, but its wrong of him in my opinion. herr moguls: your post has to be one of the most hippocritical things i have ever read. you say , and i quote
“continually are dragging this discussion into inappropriate directions, pointing fingers at people such as Jimmy and Madeleine who are not responsible, etc. Given the intensity of posting by some of these “individuals” such as Johnny, I’m convinced that one or more of them is in fact the psycho case formerly known as “Mikey” who is getting his thrills now in a different way.”
man, you just dragged it further into innapropriateness, and u did the very thing that u r having a go at other ppl for – u pointed fingers. i suggest if u post again, u think a bit more clearly about what u write.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 9:21 AM
@Jimmy….I think you need to direct your concerns about the age thing to JD. As I stated above, on Monday I asked JD what he thought your age was (I obviously had some doubts about things and privately went to someone who had access to the FACTS… I thought I remembered 26 being posted in your Mikey Blog profile), JD said he thought you were in your early 20′s. He then looked through his electronic files and sent me a link to your profile which indeed did say you were 26. Jimmy if you need that link, please ask JD, I think he is a source you trust.
26 or 23 not a big deal as far as I’m concerned. The only reason I posted it here was because so many people were operating under the assumption that you were very close to the same age as the fraud Mikey when in fact you are a bit older.
I did not make the comment about sending pictures. I know nothing about that.
BTW I thought your explaination about the Pelle thing made perfect sense. I was wrong to question that.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 9:35 AM
@Jarron: “No the Mikey character was just graduating high school and mentioned several times that he was turning 18 in June.”
As stated before,
Mikeythe blogger privately told people like us, the technology provider, that while he was indeed a high school senior, he had turned 18 late last fall, knowing most schools use a September or October cut off date, it seemed a viable statement. He said he was using the June birthday to protect his identity. I do not know if he told Jimmy the same thing or not.But even if he did not, and
Mikeythe blogger claimed to be 17. Given the fact that the age of consent in Minnesota is 16 I fail to see the big scandal here. I certainly can see why people would want it to be scandalous, but life – thankfully – is not generally prone to following soap opera plot lines or I would be worrying about an amnesiacMikeyblogger coming forward asking “who am I?”on Apr 27th, 2010 at 9:45 AM
I never said Jimmy should go to jail. Obviously no real crime was committed. But a 23 year old wanting this pity party over a “closeted boy in high school” who he was “in love with” is completely nuts. If Jimmy was 17 as well i would feel bad. But how can a 23 year old man think they are in love with a person theyve only interacted with online?
Like I said before I never read Jimmy’s comments on the blog, thank god, but the more I do he sounds more fraudulent than Mikey. Mikey might be fake but his writing seemed authentic. Jimmy writes someone trying to seem younger that they are. He randomly throws in dudes and bros. He sounds like one of those older parents that tries hard to be cool and talk like their teen kids. This whole thing is such a circus.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 9:45 AM
@NY Dad, Jimmy: What I actually said was more along the lines of I do not know for sure, I think early 20s. All I knew was we were talking more collegiate than high school.
Until Brian asked Jimmy last night there was nothing from direct from Jimmy at all regarding his age (that I had seen). The profile I came across after being asked Jimmy’s age by NY Dad that looked like it might belong to Jimmy and had an age of 26 was never confirmed or even shared with this Jimmy.
Jimmy and NYDad, sorry if that age of 26 guess came out sounding like a more authoritative answer than it was. I never asked or cared how old Jimmy beyond knowing he was not a minor.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 9:59 AM
Well, I wasn’t going to touch it but because people were calling me (and others) on making it a “big deal”, I wanna clarify why I brought it up.
I don’t think the 23/22 and 17 year old thing as it pertains to a relationship is a big deal. But personally, I don’t understand how a 23/22 year old gets so involved in an online relationship to this level with someone who can’t even completely verify who they are.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 10:03 AM
@JD…a minor point…I recalled Jimmys age as being 26 on Mikeys Blog. Within seconds you produced a profile of Jimmy from another site that showed 26 as his age. Two profiles…two different web sites…both said 26. So he’s really 23..big deal
I’ll put away my fingerprint dusting powder now.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 10:10 AM
why is everyone attacking the people who have simply asked for the person at the centre of this scandal (hockeyiscanada) simply to explain in plain english exactly how these events transpired?
@George. The person at the center of this scandal is Mikey and not anyone else. That’s why people are upset. The wrong name keeps ending up as the center of the scandal. All of the questions being asked have been answered by the hosting providers, an independent third party and they all point to Mikey acting by himself and hoaxing others. Unfortunately, Mikey has disappeared and left a lot of people holding the bag.
People are hurt and they want someone to hang for the crime. Since they can’t find Mikey, they are trying to find someone else to take out the hurt on. Its not right to make someone else who is innocent do the time for someone else’s crime. If you want to be angry, be angry at Mikey. If you want answers, demand them from Mikey.
I have no special knowledge other than I’ve read everything that has been posted, her, other blogs, by JD and on the site before it got taken down. No fact at all has ever pointed to anyone else but Mikey being involved. Mikey, communicating with JD, confirmed that.
I know people want answers but there is only person that has the answers you want and that’s Mikey. He is the center of this and no one else.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 10:23 AM
Please, don’t interpret my JOKE about fingerprints as anything more than a bad joke.
I agree the Fraud Mikey is the person at fault.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 10:24 AM
People aren’t blaming Jimmy for whats happening, so stop with those dramatics. People want a little more detail, and I understand that. At this point, I’m fine with whats come out and I look forward to more details coming from an OutSports article because I trust that they will do their homework with this. I just hope that Jimmy learns, as an ADULT (22 or 23 years old) that he got lied to in an online relationship in which he got emotionally invested and never verified the person was real and that as an ADULT he should be less naive with the Internet. Jimmy is no longer a kid (like I, and many others, thought he was) and should know how to handle things like this in the future.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 10:26 AM
I would also like to add that I’ve sent “Mikey” a few messages (via formspring and e-mail) stating a brutally honest piece of my mind. I hope that man gets some major professional help, because he needs it.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 10:29 AM
@NYDad thats cool, I just never saw anything with 26 on it except that profile we looked at and it did not have much info beyond 26 and Canada.
The only place I knew to look for that stuff on the blog was the mikey nation – whos who page and all Jimmy said there was that he was a student. Most of the other students who commented there were college students so I figured he was one too.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 10:32 AM
It’s hard to feel bad for a 23 y.o, who is dumb enough to fall for a high school kid he has never seen not to mention one who is so immature he is withholding the truth from fellow readers out of pure spite.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 10:50 AM
Bunchasuckas my sentiments exactly. It is so weird how all these people are like “we needa support Jimmy” “Poor Jimmy”. Jimmy is old enough and needs to knock himself into some sense. The real support needs to be for the real teenagers. Now Mr. Jimmy is being such a baby and decides “I’m not telling anything else b/c everyone has been mean to me.” Yet he keeps coming back to curse people out periodically.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 11:20 AM
Actually, Jaron, you did intimate that Jimmy’s actions in regard to a 17 yo Mikey bordered on criminal: “And most importantly, why are people feeling sorry for someone who supposedly got their heart broken by someone who they thought was a minor? If he actually met up with a real Mikey he would be in jail.” Hence pointing out the age of consent in both jurisdictions. Furthermore, whether you know it or not, simply soliciting a minor on the internet is a crime. As is discussing things of a sexual nature, which is often done when in an intimate relationship.
My only point here is, how about we use slightly less sensationalistic language? As it is, the situation is already sensationalized enough.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 11:29 AM
I gave up reading the comments after about 100 or so. But my most immediate thought was ‘man, some people really need to get lives’. I understand the consternation from Jim and Cyd -despite their best efforts at verification, they publicized a fake blog. That’s not in keeping with their personal integrity and standards.
But as for some of the other posters, all of us know how many fake things there are on the Internet. Unless some sort of predatory behavior surfaces, stop treating this like ‘the third World War’. There are many other legitimate resources that gay teens struggling with their identity can access, including Outsports.
Move on for goodness sakes.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 11:35 AM
Furthermore, Jarron, you keep mentioning that we need answers for all of the teenaged kids that are the real victims. I agree, I think that the teenagers are the real victims, but the teens that I observed that were very hurt by all this have decided to move on and put it behind them. They understood that while they were decieved, there was a chance that this could happen, and while they are hurt, they don’t want to dwell on the pain.
I assume that you are not a teenager, am I correct? IF teenagers are the real victims, And you are not a teenager, then WHY are you the one being the least patient in this process. Facts will come out in due course. But the more you demand in peicemeal form, the more questions will emerge. Give it a bit of time and answers will come. At least so far as answers can be known. We will likely never know what “Mikey’s” motivation was, so don’t expect it.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 11:38 AM
See that’s what has been pissing most people off with your comments guys. How does telling Jimmy that what he did was dumb and stupid. Because if you guys were regular followers of the blog and the forum, like you claim, you’ll see how he said how foolish he feels, and how he’d never thought he’d be one of those guys to get tricked by someone on the internet. So he’s fully admitted it and feels bad for it already, but you guys have to get a few kicks in while he’s on the ground don’t you. He has said he’ll tell the story, when he calms down. But what do you guys do? You post more comments to get him pissed, and make himself feel worse about the situation. How do you think that’s going to get him to give you all the details you so desperately need any faster? Jimmy had said in it, before the forum when down, that the blogger formally known as Mikey had told him that he would come clean with everything on Monday so he wouldn’t have to. But he hasn’t, so any details you want will have to wait until Jimmy’s feels like talking about the whole thing. And to Jimmy using language to make himself seem younger. I didn’t know between the ages of 17/18 to 23 our vocabulary changes. Was there a class I was suppose to go to? Because I mean I have a college degree and it wasn’t taught there. And as for him using dude and bro randomly. When the fuck was the last time you spoke to a college guy? I mean if you look at frat guys alone, I think it’s a frat law that the word dude or bro must be used in every sentence spoken. I never once thought Jimmy was trying to use language to seem younger. Could his humor at times be juvenile, yeah maybe, but I’m the last person who should tell someone to act their. So what everyone is trying to tell you guys is back off, of everything. If you want answers and it turns out Jimmy will be the only source of the details, posting every 5 mins screaming your head off for the full story will only make things worse. In fact if it was me in his spot I may just tell you all to fuck off and give you nothing because of the way you are acting. But again Dude that’s me not acting my age, right Bro?
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 11:44 AM
Only one more and the comments will reach 250…anyone???
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 12:13 PM
250 comments?!?!?! Hmmm well I’m pretty sure I know where the Mikey Nation forum moved to now.
Now can someone please post “Mikey”‘s real name and location so we can make his life as miserable as he made all these teens and a certain 26/23 year old who should know better?!?!
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 12:31 PM
Fine. I’ll bite.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 1:33 PM
Well said Potvin
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 1:41 PM
As all u less-than-informed-but-think-you-are’s should know, I was born in 1987
Last comment. When I was your age, I had graduated from college and was starting my career. I wasn’t messing around with high school kids, either in person or by mail.
“Jimmy,” whoever you are, you can look back through the messages here and you’ll see that I was sympathetic to your persona. That’s because I thought that you were another high school kid who’d been snared by this 40-year-old.
Now I find out that you (whoever “you” really is) are an adult case of arrested development, complete with fake text-ese. If you really exist, grow up now. Consider yourself lucky for having dodged a bullet, because there are still some jurisdictions out there that will throw a 22- (or 23-) year old in the slammer for diddling a 17-year-old.
Myself, I will put this one in the “lesson learned” file, and hope Outsports will too. For those of us who took these people at face value, we learned to be more skeptical, and to ask more questions. Our desire to give kids a helping hand, or in the words of the old song, to teach the children well, got the best of us.
Druggy Bear, you were more on target than I thought you were. I’d urge you not to stomp all over Outsports, but at the same time, Outsports, I think Druggy Bear has had a good point about regarding this one as a wake-up call. Don’t shred yourselves to pieces over it, but don’t let it happen again.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 1:48 PM
I second DruggyBear. Obviously someone has a name and contact info. I would never encourage anyone to do anything malicious, but clearly the only one that can answer the many questions about the situation is the real “mikey”.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 2:16 PM
@DruggyBear and duped: I know of nobody who would be likely to assume that giving out a name would only affect the guilty party.
If a crime had been committed the choice could be in the hands of the authorities but I can’t image the Outsports gents, Jimmy, or anyone else would risk harming the lives of this person’s family, colleagues, or innocent associates in the name of simply making people who have been emotionally hurt feel better.
As nice as it might feel for them to do that (and I bet it would feel damn good), two wrongs do not make a right.
I had hoped that by now he would do it himself, but if I were him, after reading these comments, I would certainly not go into full disclosure mode. The comments may be largely hyperbole, but I know I would not risk my one and only life on that chance. Crazy people do crazy things and reading this stream of comments reveals a whole lot of crazy.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 2:20 PM
#253 “Druggy Bear, you were more on target than I thought you were. I’d urge you not to stomp all over Outsports, but at the same time”
I appreciate that but please know it’s my respect for Outsports that makes me so adamant that they take precautions so this doesn’t happen again. Outsports is far too valuable an asset to young gay athletes (and gays period) to fall to a scam in which they lead their just-as-valuable readers into the realm of a mentally unstable fraud like “Mikey”.
#254 “I would never encourage anyone to do anything malicious”
neither would I but he deserves to hear directly from all the people he has hurt. it also wouldn’t be a bad idea to check with any schools in the area to make sure he hasn’t lured and manipulated any teens in person as he did the web.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 2:40 PM
Jake Jackson makes an excellent point. I wasnt being dramatic by bringing up the criminal implications of “Jimmy’s” actions. I’m not trying to prosecute him but it is a valid point. While the age of consent in Minnesota is 16. It is 18 in MN next-door neighbor Wisconsin and even in Cali. Of course JD has the convenient “BTW guys the Mikey character told us privately he was actually 18.” It’s just nonstop shadyness. So stop trying to act like you people have been upfront and clear. And stop trying to villainize people for not being lemmings.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 2:42 PM
“If a crime had been committed the choice could be in the hands of the authorities but I can’t image the Outsports gents, Jimmy, or anyone else would risk harming the lives of this person’s family, colleagues, or innocent associates in the name of simply making people who have been emotionally hurt feel better.”
sure no crime that we know of….
did you check to see if he is a registered sex offender? or had a criminal record at all? if so then the courts need to know of this.
what if this guy is a teacher or hockey coach to kids right now? don’t the parents of these children have a right to know what kind of man their kids are around?
the local newspapers/tv stations should know of this too, so if there are teens victimized further or more directly they can know it’s safe to come forward.
stop protecting “Mikey” and start letting those around him know exactly what kind of man he really is.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 2:54 PM
@JD – Maybe I missed the post that threatened ‘mikey’s’ life. The guy may get some nasty email and letters he doesn’t like, but I seriously doubt anyone is driving cross country to rough him up. People are hurt and angry, but c’mon, no one is grabbing the pitchforks.
With regard to protecting “mikey’s” family,colleagues, or innocent associates ? Seriously? They SHOULD be informed immediately they are living with some one that is clearly significantly unbalanced and hugely invested in pretending to be a teenager online in various capacities for who knows what purposes.
Frankly I think (as druggybear mentions) that divulging the name is a public service to, at the very least, the schools in the immediate area. This is a guy that perpetrated a pretty elaborate hoax in which he convincingly fobbed himself off as a teenager. While engaged in this hoax he communicated with teens and likely discussed various intimate details of their lives and (if he is to be believed about the claims) their suicidal thoughts. How many other times and through how many other avenues has he done the same thing?
Unless anyone underage is going to come forward to say that ‘mikey’ solicited sex or graphic pics from them or someone says that ‘mikey’ solicited and received money under false pretenses, there has not been a crime committed. I think we can all stop running around with our hair on fire on that one. Really, of all people you probably have the most compelling claims as you allowed him free use of your services based upon his fraud and affirmative misrepresentation of the facts. Personally I’d take him to small claims court if I were you and you lived near by…just to fuck with him.
in any event, this douche should not be allowed to simply slink back into the ether without having to at least face those he toyed with. he’ll do it again. and again. and eventually something more than a few hurt feelings is going to be the result.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 3:06 PM
Wow, you guys just don’t quit.
You were up all night long bitching and moaning. Go figure!
Look at yourselves in the mirror – I hope you like the image.
I sure as hell don’t.
Druggy – Dude, I suggest you take a step back and THINK.
Let”s say “Mikey’s” real life contact info is released, what then? Judging by the off-the-wall comments here someone will do something incredibly stupid and make matters far worse. Then whose the criminal? Do you want to risk huge legal fees to defend action against you for something you said out of anger and put in print along with someones real life name. Look up the definition for defamation and libel!
If Jim, Cyd or JD discover something criminal took place, I think it’s a safe bet they will contact the authorities. They’re big boys, they’ve been around the block a time or two. Give them a chance!
As for your concern about Outsports, seems to me you guys are doing far more harm here than “little old Mikey” ever could.
Go to work. Go for a walk. Go skydiving. Go out to dinner. Just go!
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 3:18 PM
hehe, lots of ranting, i hope everybody involved learned a lesson from this “fiasco”
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 3:25 PM
Gents-
As someone who was in at pretty much the beginning of Mikey’s blog in mid-November, although I never posted much, I would like to comment.
Working the night shift putting a newspaper sports page together and reading and re-reading sports scores on the radio 3 times an hour all night (and you thought sports media was exciting), Mikey’s quirky blog was a treat. Who didn’t laugh at Josh’s randy antics, Jake’s sexual disaster on that couch, Cosco cargo pants and hoodies, strawberry pop tarts and pepperoni pizzas and mom’s tasty meat loaf? The dude sure has an appetite! I’ve got to say, the mornings are a lot greyer here without that blog.
It’s just amazing he could create a whole world like that. He should have be writing screenplays or sport team press releases. Those are all mostly fiction, too. And I got taken too; I offered to take him down to the United Center and introduce him to Hawk players and management. Duh … do I feel stupid.
What he did to Jimmy is cruel. Can you imagine texting someone who is spilling their heart out knowing that you’re lying through your teeth? You just don’t play with people’s feeling like that. Jimmy—you will find someone real. There are a lot of cute, nice boys in Canada. It won’t be a phantom but the real thing.
Madeleine—you were a mom to us all. And who doesn’t need a mom? I’m so sorry your trust was abused. I guess that’s the real problem; all our trusts were abused.
I don’t think I’ve read anywhere here about thanking JD. Just think, he sponsored and built a whole blog for one kid to air his feelings. What a kind thing to do! I wish some adult had been that concerned and generous when I was a kid. And when he discovered the hoax he did the kind thing again and asked Jimmy and Madeleine to post comments.
JD you are the stud here, not Mikey.
Finally, it seems to me that gay kids are having a tougher time than ever. So I hope you all don’t say “never again,” but say be careful and verify.
chiguy
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 3:34 PM
Jimmy,
I am only gonna write out of support dude. Seems like there are alot of f*cked up people on here who go with have truths, have facts, and don’t have a clue what they are typing about. You have been hooped over by this dude with the “m” name – don’t even wanna use his name anymore!
There are people from what I’ve seen on here that are very very casual readers, and like alot of people in this age of “info” they seem to grab a few things on the perimiter and not get the whole story. There are alot of Villages missing their idiots today me thinks.
Jimmy, please make sure you take care of yourself. Cheer for my Canucks – tho they are playin your bo Toews. Just try to distract yourself from all this crap a bit. I’m concerned for you, and I don’t wanna see this thing eat you up. Remember your a province over from me, and as Canadians need to stand up for eachother – and more so us Westerners (no offense intended Madeline).
my suggestion is just approach the morons and idiots on here like the way you would’ve approached the idiots you played against in hockey or the morons you come up against in the real world – just laugh at them (even if only under your breath). This situation will blow over. IF you want to shoot me a message ever Madeline has my info.
I’m sorry what you went thru. You did not deserve this. There is no other way to put that. Just know that there are people on your side, and there are alot of people out there who would starve with sandwiches in both hands (remember laughing at that one before dude). Take care! You’re a decent fellow I’d say!
T
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 3:35 PM
ack….
Typos above…..should have said “half” NOT have ….”truths and facts”…..man that is brutal typing.
T
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 3:39 PM
This is EXACTLY my point – we KNOW of teenagers who talked to him on the blog and they have been approached and asked about the possibility of him approaching them sexually or in any way that even smacks of illegality and so far its been a big zero. Making their being fooled into an even bigger thing where their parents or friends or anyone else they have not come out to could get whiff of it strikes me as cruel.
I have no interest in being “shady”as Jarrod put it, but as someone who was used technologically and not emotionally as were the blog commenters I feel I have no right whatsoever to escalate this when no victim has even hinted of anything illegal occurring.
The blog had RSS that had plenty of subscribers that data did not just magically vanish when the site was removed.
It would not be hard for a reporter of the type that DruggyBear thinks should be told to start going through the 5,818 approved comments on the blog one by one and tracking down at least one closeted high school or college kid who does not want to be found because they are not ready to come out to those around them.
And again, for the 4th time, if anyone was sexually approached, harrassed, intimidated, abused, or otherwise violated by the blogger, please go to the authorities as soon as you are able.
The commenting system, since its WordPress, never asks for age, but on the Forum, for those of you not there the day it was shut down, the average birth year for people who posted 3 or more times was 1974 and the median birth year for that same group was 1977.
As most people paying attention are aware, the VAST majority of people involved in the blog were ADULTS offering Mikey and a small minority of young commenters support and an open ear. Even the one case thats known of the blogger getting involved deeper was with a visitor it was someone 5 years older than his persona’s age.
I have no doubt that given the level of hero worship among the younger visitors, the blogger could have easily coaxed a photo or phone number out of a minor if that was his intent.
I see a lot of people jumping to a nasty conclusion that seems to be based on the same assumptions that the religious right made when they sponsored the laws that kept homosexuals from teaching in Dade county schools.
Are we, as gay men, really like that? My first younger partner was 29 when I was 31 so I just don’t know – prior to that every relationship with with someone at least a little older than me.
I admit that I am a bit of a recluse at times and my friends and partners have sheltered me. Is it the norm to assume that someone who is gay and older who talks to teenagers on the cusp of adulthood is out to bed them? That seems to be the conclusion reached by some here and I am willing to assume I am naive for not screaming fire when there isn’t any visible smoke if the appropriate response to this situation.
If I were one of these young adults I would be horribly insulted that these adults were assuming the worst about at least their side of their relationship with “Mikey”.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 3:40 PM
Chi guy,
Polite shout out to you.
IT makes two of us – in reference to your “….offered to take him down to the United Center and intro him……..”….
yah and I offered to put him in touch with a couple NHL types visavis the Brendan Burke passing.
Man, it does make you wonder or think:
1) thank goodness I (or you) didn’t make asses out of ourselves – with you having some 40 something guy possibly showing up there, or me having a 40 something guy contacting NHL teams under the guise he’s someone completely different.
2) I too have wondered how someone could be so creative with all the stories. Maybe he’s some unemployed screen writer – independently wealthy?? Makes you wonder how he had all That time avail.
Anyways dude, should be a good series upcoming with Chi and Van. I have some thoughts on it, but I just think the Canucks are just getting warmed up. Looking forward to the series.
Go Canucks Go!
T
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 3:45 PM
Ok, so we have a 40 old guy pretending to be 17 or 18 guy named Mikey and portraying himself pretty successfully. So in private conversations is it unreasonable for that 40 year old to tweak himself a little bit so he feels more 20ish? It would be a subtle change but doable.
Keep in mind, Mikey wasn’t a real 17/8 year old constrained by the limits of having only been as mature as a real 17/18 year old. Mikey was an extremely effective con artist /chameleon capable of adapting his portrayal to act whatever age he needed to continue his deception. It’s not even that difficult for an actual 17 year old to do. No one has ever heard of someone under 21 being able to act as if they were older to fool someone? Really? Constrained by the limits of the online world, I’m sure it wasn’t difficult for Mikey to make it easy to forget how old he *claimed* to be.
I was also a 17 year old freshman in college and I hung out with guys that were 22 and 23 because our dorms were mixed and we had freshman, sophs, juniors and seniors all living together. I can tell you this isn’t the first 17/ 23 romance in the history of the world by a long shot.
But this wasn’t 17/23 romance. This was a 40 year old pretending to be someone that he wasn’t and playing on the heart of young guy. You’ve got to stop accepting the Mikey’s lies as a basis for your opinions.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 4:30 PM
Those of you shocked that Jimmy wasn’t a teenager and those who thought he was 26 obviously don’t read Outsports often enough. Jimmy wrote for the Outsports Olympics blog during the Vancouver games. Here’s a link to the very first post…
http://outsports.com/olympicsblog/2010/02/14/a-canadian-enlightens-us-on-the-games/
Go and read the introduction. I’ll wait…
What’s that, you say? It says his age is 23? And “Mikey” privately claimed to be 18. Nothing illegal or improper. Why would anyone be surprised that people of that age could fall in love? People of various ages fall in love. I fell in love at 21 with a guy who was 10 years older than me. Who says people don’t fall in love on the Internet? As I wrote on my blog, that same guy I fell in love with, after our relationship ended, fell in love with someone he “met” on the Internet. They still live together to this day. Why is it so hard to believe that some people on the Internet lie, and others, even the brightest among us, can be fooled by those liars? There are so many news reports about people being duped by liars and con artists and such on the Internet. Is it so impossible to accept that this happened to Jimmy, and to a lesser extent to Madeleine, and JD (the server owner) and everyone else who read the blog?
JD, in comment #188 above, has laid out the entire scenario for everyone. Anything else is just people wanting to pile on — either to carry on their feuds against Outsports because they don’t like Jim and/or Cyd and/or their politics and/or their personalities and/or their opinions, or to just continue to harass Jimmy relentlessly until they get every salacious detail.
Honestly, this page should be locked to prevent any more comments. This is no longer contributing anything of value. All it’s doing is hurting people.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 4:49 PM
Joe, the point I was trying to make is not against their relationship (I don’t care if a 23 and 17 year old are together), it’s that the TWENTY THREE YEAR OLD should be less naive than to completely fall in love with a guy (of any age) that couldn’t completely verify who he was, either through webcam or a “verified” picture. The 23 year old is an ADULT as well and if he can’t verify who this guy is, he shouldn’t be completely shocked when it turns out he might’ve been lied to.
I “meet” people all the time via internet, and this is the FIRST thing I ask them. I ask them either to go on webcam to verify their pictures or send me a picture of them holding up a piece of paper with their name written on it.
“Seems like there are alot of f*cked up people on here who go with have truths, have facts, and don’t have a clue what they are typing about.” -#263
Well maybe we would have FULL truths, FULL facts and we would have more of a clue if we were given more information. Ever think of that one???
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 5:41 PM
What a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive.
I followed a compelling story here, one I really wanted to believe. It was almost too perfect, from the too-cute name “Mikey.” Under the text talk, “Mikey” dished out clear emotions and sound observations.
All of the comments here have just muddled the situation to me. My key questions: Why did Jimmy keep blogging for an Internet love when Jimmy had blown Mikey’s cover? Jimmy, is being defended but I’m stilll troubled by his use of text talk that’s too eerily close to Mike’s text talk.
I din’t come here for nethin nasty and im not answerin nymore.
I bet the answers are out in the cyberspace and we’ll probably never know the real story. sucks.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 5:49 PM
“I ‘meet’ people all the time via internet, and this is the FIRST thing I ask them. I ask them either to go on webcam to verify their pictures or send me a picture of them holding up a piece of paper with their name written on it.”
Sure, if you’re in a chatroom or at a dating site or whatever. But if you’re just replying to blog posts and that goes on for a while, and then start exchanging e-mails and things develop from there, you might already have started falling for the person and therefore been a little more trusting.
And being 23 and an adult doesn’t mean someone can’t get fooled. Again, look at all the news stories about this stuff. Here’s one example, from the following article about meeting online:
http://bit.ly/bSFk5a
“The name Jeffrey Marsalis did not come up in the survey. He’s a serial date-rapist from right here in Philadelphia who is serving 15 years for sexually assaulting women whom he met mostly online.
Marsalis met several of his victims through Match.com. His online profile listed him alternately as a trauma surgeon and an astronaut. His fake astronaut-training photo is still up online.
Now, you would think that anyone sophisticated enough to use an online dating service would be wary of a man who claims he’s a former astronaut seeking a soul mate in cyberspace.
Guys who have been, literally, around the world don’t need to dial up a date on their computers.”
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 5:53 PM
Chad – you made your point crystal clear. Many times. Done yet?
Thank you for reminding us that we don’t measure up and that we’re something less than perfect by your standards. I’m sure the 17, 18 and 23 yr old folks here really love reading that.
Keep in mind that some of us here still have a little faith that the world we live in is fun and exciting and good.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 5:54 PM
Maybe some good could come of all this. Perhaps with a bit of pressure from everyone here we could get laws passed to require all pedophiles to have blogs and be forced to endure endless comments from the Outsports investigative team keeping them from trolling the internet.
Maybe we could get the United Nations, as part of their sanctions against Irans nuclear ambitions, to require Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to have a blog and force him to answer all of our questions. He’d never have time to build a nuclear reactor.
I bet if Osama bin Ladin had a blog we could smoke his ass out in a couple of hours of mindless posting banter.
Just think of the possibilities if we could harness this power for good.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 6:08 PM
And maybe, just maybe we could get the Pope to stop …
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 6:18 PM
“Sure, if you’re in a chatroom or at a dating site or whatever. But if you’re just replying to blog posts and that goes on for a while, and then start exchanging e-mails and things develop from there, you might already have started falling for the person and therefore been a little more trusting.”
I don’t really think so. Listen, Jimmy is definitely a victim here, no doubt. With that said, I am done commenting here unless more details of this story come out. I have said my piece multiple times. You all may now go back to your pity party for Jimmy…..
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 6:46 PM
“As for your concern about Outsports, seems to me you guys are doing far more harm here than “little old Mikey” ever could.”
Dude, Fred, all we are doing is calling for accountability and all u are doing is sticking your coward head into the ground. It seems to me that J.D. is just covering his ass at this point by refusing to release the name. Did you check to see if he was a sex offender or not JD? That might be a little important since he was having direct contact with UNDERAGE KIDS. You guys withholding this vital info are the ones keeping the conspiracies and questions alive. Will someone tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth already so we can move on?
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 7:36 PM
Druggy – Are you a sex offender? What’s your real name? What’s your address? I’d be a coward if I didn’t check you out, too.
What’s your phone number?
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 8:18 PM
@ The Other Fred: nice way to address the points I laid out, douchebag. piss off.
JD i hope to get your response soon.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 8:23 PM
Response to what? As a web host covering your ass means shutting down any illegal activity as soon as its reported. No illegal activity has been reported and we shut it down anyway because it was hurting people emotionally. Not sure what response you are awaiting.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 8:55 PM
Well shutting it down was the right response, and let me say I believe you genuinely care for the members of that community but your refusal to go into specifics about this spectacularly elaborate hoax is beyond maddening. at the very least can you say if you have checked to see if this person has a criminal record or is a registered sex offender? if so, having the correspondence he had w/ many teens across this country would be cause enough to lock him back up. i mean, is it that big a stretch to believe a mentally unstable 40 y.o. who morphed himself into a 17 y.o. boy online and emotionally raped Jimmy and traumatized who knows how many teens might have a more sinister ulterior motive?
or you can just tell us the whole story about him and why he did what he did and help put this thing to rest.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 9:12 PM
How can I check a sex offender registry if he won’t come forward with a confirmed name? As I said in #255, if a name does get confirmed I don’t think it should be just tossed out there strictly based on what I have read here, but its not my choice to have to make thankfully.
Thats what I was looking for yesterday after he told Jimmy was going to publicly come clean. If I had a confirmed name, I’d run it. I’ve been a network abuse specialist a long time and I know how to handle this stuff. His no-show yesterday means no name that I know of.
If Outsports or Jimmy gets a confirmation, I hope they are smart enough not to open themselves up to liability issues by publishing it as I said in #255, but thats not my call.
As far as the “emotional rape” of Jimmy, not sure what you are talking about there. All I know is they grew close, Jimmy fell in love with a lie, the lie was revealed to Jimmy, and the existence of the lie was revealed to us, with a maddeningly lack of useful details beyond “Mikey” confirming that he was indeed an older person who was masquerading. You must be talking privately with Jimmy to have gotten to that “emotionally raped Jimmy” position so at this point, you know more than me.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 9:30 PM
JD I was under the impression you had his registered name and address since you hosted his site. As far as Jimmy goes I was describing his mental anguish, but you took that literally, probably due to that overly-legalesed mind of yours, typical of a site owner I suppose.
Regardless, thank you for your response and I hope the truth will come out soon, as this hoax is still too hard to comprehend without all the facts.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 9:48 PM
Ah Druggy, guess you skipped to the end in all this. The blog was hosted on donated space on our server since it seemed a good cause at the time. He was not a paying customer or anything like that. This was all covered before you started commenting on this post. Pop back to #59 if you wanna get up to speed.
My concern and focus on the word rape has nothing to do with a legalistic mind, my mind only works that way in terms of my business.
Rape has a very real, tactile, sensory, meaning for me, personally, and when I see it used I give the user the benefit of the doubt and assume they know what they are saying. Your comments here have been so serious, I took your choice of that word seriously as well.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 10:03 PM
rape 1 |rāp|
• figurative- the wanton destruction or spoiling of a place or area : the rape of the Russian countryside.
rape is used figuratively all the time, the whole world doesn’t revolve around your interpretation of specific words. what did u think I meant? that he stuck his dick in his ear and penetrated his brain?
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 10:13 PM
No, but the use of rape, as opposed to any of the words Jimmy himself used, left me thinking that you somehow knew something I did not and things had gone far past breaking his heart into the areas that one may move past but never actually recover from… ever.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 10:29 PM
All you would have to do to get to the bottom of this is contact 1 of the 4 major network news stations in the Twin Cities. They all have investigation departments and would be on this so fast, esp. if they thought one of the other news outlets was on it as well. They’d have this guy on film within a few days…they’d hawk him till he lawyered up or talked. I’d rather have the IRS after me than these guys. If you showed them this comment thread they’d be droolin’…My 2 cents.
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 10:46 PM
“left me thinking that you somehow knew something I did not and things had gone far past breaking his heart into the areas that one may move past but never actually recover from… ever.”
i don’t have the slightest idea what that means but ok i plead guilty it was a bad choice of words sheesh why u gotta be getting all word police on me? i was trying to be conciliatory after all!
This hoax is like “Lost”. It starts with a spectacular crash, has shady and intriguing characters, busts out crazy plot twists and spawns countless conspiracy theorizing, but at the end of each episode/day the truth is never really revealed and you are just left with more frustrating questions.
but as with “Lost”, I’ve gone this far I might as well stick with it till the end! :happy:
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 10:54 PM
great idea jondoe. since we aren’t getting any answers from the principal players here it’s time to go to the big dogs…
on Apr 27th, 2010 at 11:29 PM
@DruggyBear….Keeping in mind that this is a cross border event don’t you think we should contact the Mounties? Can we get them by dialing 911?
on Apr 28th, 2010 at 12:06 AM
jondoe and Druggy – super idea in #286
And since I live in the Twin Cities and have friends at each of the 4 network stations you mentioned – gay friends, both on camera and off at each station, I could just pick-up the phone! It would be so easy…
But, where’s the news? What’s the story?
There is no question this is drama at it’s best, but this is no longer about “Mikey” – it’s about your warped need to be controlling and manipulative! You guys continue to keep this alive only because you manipulate and twist words. You miss quote and take comments out of context to the point where they become pretext.
If something criminal happened there’s a pretty good chance it will become known. “Mikey” is bantered about in blogs all across North America even Europe.
If you’ve have concrete evidence that a criminal event took place then get off your ass, pick up the phone and do the right thing. If not, let it go!
on Apr 28th, 2010 at 1:18 AM
@JD in #265:
Is it the norm to assume that someone who is gay and older who talks to teenagers on the cusp of adulthood is out to bed them?
For a lot of straight folks, I’d say yes, sadly. As an adult that does volunteer work with LGBT youth, I find it extremely offensive. I do it because I want their lives to be better and happier than mine was when I was a closeted teen and twenty-something*. Rather like parents who want to make things better for their kids than when they were growing up.
Plus, the message the above sentiment potentially sends to LGBT kids is far from positive: “Your kind are predators.”
*preteen, too, since I pretty much knew by the time I was 11
on Apr 28th, 2010 at 11:07 AM
@the other fred, not a news story? huh? you have got to be kidding me? this is an exceptional news story for so many reasons, not the least of which it is particularly relevant to what is currently being covered by the national media on a daily basis….
on Apr 28th, 2010 at 11:12 AM
“I live in the Twin Cities and have friends at each of the 4 network stations you mentioned – gay friends, both on camera and off at each station, I could just pick-up the phone!”
who says CNN is the most trusted name in news? CNN’s got nothing on the other fred!
“but this is no longer about “Mikey””
uhh, actually yeah it is, try paying attention
on Apr 28th, 2010 at 12:36 PM
I call on the editors of this blog to request substantiation of the outlandish claims made by certain commentators as they are providing a platform for continued propagation of inaccurate information. If the claims made by your commentators cannot be substantiated (such as Mikey “emotionally raping” Jimmy), then I am requesting that their comments be removed or flagged as pure speculation.
Intentional misrepresentation of facts and false accusations are not protected under freedom of speech, and should not be promoted on a site that is dedicated to news. Their continued presence at best damages the community as a whole, and at worst admits the administrators’ willingness to continue allowing unsubstantiated sources to influence their reporting.
Thank you.
on Apr 28th, 2010 at 1:48 PM
Intentional misrepresentation of facts and false accusations are not protected under freedom of speech
I think DruggyBear has gone too far, but so have you. He hasn’t intentionally misrepresented anything. He has engaged in hyperbole, and it’s been too dramatic. False accusations aimed at whom? An anonymous character who might be fictional.
All of this is just commentary. Some of it’s been good, some of it’s dumb, and some of it’s been in between, like yours and DruggyBear’s.
on Apr 28th, 2010 at 2:00 PM
@random follower:
it’s a comment section…. get a grip!
on Apr 28th, 2010 at 3:46 PM
oh wow look who went to law school your mother must be so proud now go work off that $100k loan and let us be
on Apr 28th, 2010 at 3:47 PM
“He has engaged in hyperbole, and it’s been too dramatic.”
i don’t do nuance
on Apr 28th, 2010 at 6:41 PM
Okay, seriously? WTF is going on here? Is everyone just waiting to take 300? Well, I’m gonna take one for the team and fall on the knife here. 300 is up for grabs now folks. Going once… going twice…
on Apr 28th, 2010 at 7:36 PM
SOLD! how many will we hit till I can finally coax “Mikey”‘s real name out of them? 400? 500?
on Apr 28th, 2010 at 8:02 PM
300 comments about just another internet poseur/scammer. Kind of sad.
on Apr 28th, 2010 at 9:01 PM
Anonymous blogs remind me of all the guys in the first years of the net who would claim to be something they’re not, pics, stories, background and all.
Until it’s right before one’s eyes, it’s all fiction, and should be treated as such.
on Apr 28th, 2010 at 9:40 PM
Druggy, who are you trying to coax his real name out of? And why? It was already explained that he didn’t give his real name, so no one knows it until he himself comes forward.
on Apr 28th, 2010 at 9:41 PM
Steve – #292. Will you write the story? If it’s accurate, balanced and has a little journalistic flair I may help get it broadcast. I can even help film a package for broadcast. But don’t forget TV is visual, how do you plan to capture visual aspects?
on Apr 28th, 2010 at 10:54 PM
Gee, thanks Joe. He had actually remained silent for two hours. This thread is far more pathetic than the actual hoax.
on Apr 29th, 2010 at 1:27 AM
It’s sad that this bog post has gotten this many hits and comments.
Yet you guys neglect to post on the actual sports related stuff being posted daily.
on Apr 29th, 2010 at 1:32 AM
Rick aren’t you the same jerk-off that told everyone to quit commenting andd get a life about 100 comments ago? yet here you are not only reading every comment but noting the timing of each! take your own advice, hypocrite.
@Joe Guckin
“Druggy, who are you trying to coax his real name out of? And why? It was already explained that he didn’t give his real name, so no one knows it until he himself comes forward.”
I don’t know if I believe that Outsports/JD/Jimmy/Madeline don’t actually know his real name. Beyond that, I’m dying to get to the bottom of how this guy managed to sucker so many people into starting a whole little community centered around him, how he got them to worship him- so much so that his minions would come bite our heads off when we dared questioned his existence or blasted that absurd “textspeak” he wrote in- and more importantly how he managed to fool gay media outlets into promoting him without even verifying who he is? and what is that whole sordid love affair w/ Jimmy all about? how was he finally exposed? and of course I wanna check out his background, to see if he has a criminal past or a record of these sorts of scams, and to see if we should be worried that he is a danger to any teens around him.
But it doesn’t look like we are gonna get anywhere until Jim posts his full, revealing investigation (I won’t hold my breath) or until the fraud himself comes forward. Things seem to have calmed down so maybe the truth will soon follow. In the meantime, I’ll get back to trying to figure out what really happened at Tiger Woods’ house that Thanksgiving night and what exactly killed MJ. What can I say, I can’t get enough of this stuff
on Apr 29th, 2010 at 11:12 AM
Is there really any surprises anymore when it comes to the Internet? So what if Mikey is real or fake what harm has he done? If he was trading pics with underage boys that’s another story but I haven’t heard that he was doing that. So what harm did he do but fool a lot of people. Is he the first that did this no don’t think so. He damn sure won’t be the last it’s to easy for someone to sit behind a computer and be whoever they want. I bet many of you weren’t around about 5 years or so ago when another big time blogger took a hit.
There was a blog called Brat Boy School ran by a guy called Ethan. Turn out he was somewhat like Mikey and his blog was one big lie. Only difference was Ethan’s boyfriend was the writer and Ethan was a pretty face to put on the blog. Hell they were so good they got a porn star involved with them. At first they wasn’t hurting anybody until they started selling shirts and other things the problem was they took people’s money and never shipped anything out. Finally one of the guys that knew it was lie and was also there website guy took the blog locked them out and spilled the truth.
Somewhere I missed how this blew up in Mikey’s face. I read his blog for a while but then it got to where it drove me crazy so I just stopped. Then I seen on another blog where this all blew up. I still ask where did he hurt anybody other than with his lies? People you need to look at it as a lesson learn and move on. Unless he harm some kids then that a different story and out of our hands. But if he made you feel good about yourself about being gay then keep that thought and move on. If he did any good in your life hold on to that and move on. It was only a blog like many others out there. Let’s be honest if it wasn’t for outsports and towleroad his blog would never got off the ground he would still be posting on blogger. Just let it go people yeah I’m pissed off like everyone else but I’m looking at it like a bad book I just finished. So now it’s time to find a new book!
on Apr 29th, 2010 at 12:01 PM
Druggy…if you think I’ve read every comment lol, you couldn’t be more wrong
Everyone should be able to voice their opinion, but there comes a time to let things go…especially things that aren’t that important in the scheme of life.
on Apr 29th, 2010 at 12:11 PM
Druggy…if you think I’ve read every comment lol, you couldn’t be more wrong. I didn’t even comment on this item until there were 245 comments! My second comment came at 305, when I again said this thread had become pathetic.
Everyone should be able to voice their opinion and feelings, but there comes a time to let things go…especially when there are far more important things in life. Time now for you to ‘pen’ your 24th or 25th comment. Knock yourself out; I’m on to something that’s actually productive.
on Apr 29th, 2010 at 2:43 PM
@the other fred:
you have a point about the lack of visuals for this story….however, I was hoping that a local news outfit would actually do some investigating and try to get a few of the already out members of the forum to be interviewed, the outsports guys, and maybe even Mikey himself….
on Apr 30th, 2010 at 10:50 AM
Jim-
I am an internet search marketer and could tell from the time I first saw his page that this guy was a fraud. His page titles, meta descriptions, URLs, everything were too perfect. But you didn’t want to hear that when you published the original story. Cmon- he goes to high school and spends 5 hours a day on the ice – when is he gonna learn all this, much less implement it perfectly for 4+ posts per day?
And did you maybe think it a little bit odd that he suddenly got this rash of random commenters who don’t look much of anything like his target audience? Specifically, women?!?!? I’d bet money if you traced their IP addresses back, you’d end up in India or the Philippines.
Wish you guys would have done some diligence before you gave him the attention to allow it to take on the proportions it did. You are as much of a perpetrator in seeking to exploit stories like this to grow your own traffic.
This was nothing more than a commercial scheme by folks who’s identified a market to make money off young gay guys. Don’t comfort yourselves by telling yourself this was an attempt by some older guy to build ‘community,’ help kids, or even help himself to recapture his lost adolescence. There is no redeeming value in any of this. It’s about $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
What you need to do, if you care: hire a private investigator and have them track down the real owner/publisher. Look into the commenters and the sites they’re associated with, and you’ll probably find they’re all connected.
This can all be done by someone who understands the web. I’m sure you’ll find 20 other schemes just like this one from the same person/company, and you’d do a real service by smoking them out.
Or you could just go back and report on some gay local rugby match or some useless shit like that.
on Apr 30th, 2010 at 10:57 AM
Oh yeah, and one more thing: you oughta start by looking real closely at the web host. Wouldn’t surprise me a bit if you can’t find anything. Folks who run schemes like these often have their own little hosts to hide behind….who can appear to be doing users a favor by pulling the site down. in reality, legit hosts almost never do that. it’s their cover to duck and run before someone does more serious investigation. copies of the site should be on archive.org, and if they blocked that crawler then you know you’ve got a real pro on your hands.
on Apr 30th, 2010 at 1:07 PM
SEO, wtf are you talking about? You sound like a raving lunatic with absolutely no idea what you’re talking about. First off, his IP address traced back to Minnesota, around the Minneapolis area. Second, there was no way he could have made more than a few $ a day off advertising… he didn’t sell anything or ask for money. Third, he RARELY posted more than 1 post per day. And finally, the host has been posting here the whole time and is helping to investigate.
If your vast ignorance didn’t piss me off enough, your fucking smug attitude and holier than thou tone of voice put you over the top. I really wish you had been born without fingers so I didn’t have to experience the level of pomposity that just spewed forth from your keyboard. Choke on a bag of dicks and die you fuckwit.
on Apr 30th, 2010 at 2:53 PM
@SEO “I am an internet search marketer and could tell from the time I first saw his page that this guy was a fraud. His page titles, meta descriptions, URLs, everything were too perfect. But you didn’t want to hear that when you published the original story. Cmon- he goes to high school and spends 5 hours a day on the ice – when is he gonna learn all this, much less implement it perfectly for 4+ posts per day?”
You might be a search marketer but you don’t have a clue in this instance. The site was hosted on server space donated by a gay couple who (obviously, at the time) believed Mikey was legit. Mikey had first set up a Blogger account.
They set up the Word Press account (hence its professional setup) and Mikey never had Admin privileges. Had you read their many comments (by JD) about this, you would have seen it and not posted such nonsense.
But if you are so convinced this is some international conspiracy, feel free to investigate. Should be easy since you are obviously smarter than everyone else. I’m sure you must know people at the CIA and Interpol who can help you crack this scheme.
on Apr 30th, 2010 at 3:12 PM
hey Random Follower idiots like you need to stay off message boards. You know nothing about the law and if you did you would know that no one here has committed anything close to a crime, except jim and cyd who committed a crime against journalism by not fully verifyling who this kid was
on Apr 30th, 2010 at 3:53 PM
@seo you know I have never commented on here but i felt the need to inform you that the sheer amount of ignorance that you have stated amazes me. I am sorry but unlike you I dont go around looking for evil in the world. I find it truly sad that you apparently do. first how do you figure this in any way made money off of people? second if you have ever in your life understood what it is like for not only younger people but all people who are confused about their sexuality you never would have made such stupid comments. being in a minority it is extremely hard to find people to relate to you and sometimes you dont even know what you want. i know thats my case, so finding someone who even though we have not met face to face can really be helpful. while i think that this situation sucked I also feel like it has helped many of us grow. how dare you try to talk about things you know nothing of! I find that it is people like you who make it soo hard for people like me to feel free enough to be out. Normally I would not wast 2 breaths on your stupidity however I personally have talked to the people who were the web hosts and know that not only are they hurt and confused by the recent events, but they also feel used. To me unless you know what and who you are talking about do me a favor and shut up!!!!!! The web hosts are people who unlike you know how hard things can be and tried to do something positive in order to help unlike you who it seems is only out to make people who are already hurting and confused feel even worse. Honestly that goes for anyone here who is talking crap untill you have walked a mile in the shoes that this situation has affected dont open your ignorant hate filled mouths… now that you have caused my blood to boil i must calm down.
on May 1st, 2010 at 1:48 AM
Ok, it’s almost a week since the end of Mikey’s site. I’m still waiting for a detailed article from OutSports, rather than poking through these shrill comments.
This is a big deal and I’m dubious of all the players at this point. This may not have been a widespread following, but many of the bloggers and their comments were very emotional. And Mikey, in retrospect, was too good to be true. I was suckered by the slick headlines, the creativity, and the detailed knowledge of hockey and hockey history. In retrospect, how could a HS student pull all of this off? Some of it, but not all of it.
In the aftermath of Brendan Burke’s death, I was looking to see how gay teen athletes would/could react. And “Mikey” fooled us all.
We can just paper this over. It’s too important for all the kids who poured out their guts. And yes, even adults are disillusioned. It’s not right to “move on” before an adult, like Jim at OutSports explains his “recommendation” as fully as possible.
Gay youth will face a lot of heartache and unnecessary crap like the “Mikey” scheme must be explained, and those responsible for promoting it explain themselves.
on May 1st, 2010 at 2:44 PM
Well E-MN, if they ever post the correct podcast for this week we can see if they address Mikeygate there, though from the description it seems as if for some odd reason they are gonna gloss over the story that has gotten the most comments I have ever seen on Outsports. Hmmm…
I’m currently leaning to the “Jimmy is Mikey” camp. Do you remember how “Mikey” was “too busy” to blog with Jimmy during the Winter Olympics? Like I said, hmmmm……
on May 1st, 2010 at 8:58 PM
Druggie, I don’t think Jimmy is Mikey…Mikey knew things about Minnesota hockey that no one could possibly know unless you lived here and grew up here. And Jimmy knew things about Winnipeg and Canada that you wouldn’t know if you lived in Minnesota unless you did one hell of a lot of research and I can’t believe anyone would go to that legnth to pull this deal off. I just can’t buy that. There would be no reason to do that. If you wanted two persona’s why take it too that extreme when you could just make another, say, older persona from Minnesota or Wisconcin or somewhere that there wasn’t as much cultural difference.
on May 3rd, 2010 at 8:16 AM
Wow.
This IS fascinating.
Oprah had a segment on her show about Interner scammers as well as the Nigerian scammers who ask to deposit millons into your account.
Was interesting and a lot of people were duped, esp ones who wanted to find the ‘right person’ to live/love.
on May 3rd, 2010 at 12:11 PM
jake jackson (#190) wrote: There were never any more than about a dozen regulars, maybe 15, on that site. The separate “Forum” was further evidence of that. There’d be a couple or three new posts per day. Not exactly the output of “hundreds of victims.”
with all due respect, you know not of what you speak.
my name is jenn. i’m a regular reader of outsports – i subscribe via google reader. yes, i called myself a “regular.” do jim, and cyd, and the regular commenters of outsports know me? if i’ve posted 5 comments ever, it’s a lot. that does not make me any less of a regular.
i followed mikey’s blog for months. i honestly don’t remember how it started, but it must have been from outsports; i don’t know how else i would have found it. i commented periodically; i think i had 5 posts on the mikey nation forum, and i think every one of them was about dc sports (the nationals, and the capitals… maybe something about the redskins).
i’m 28, though when i type that it seems scary and older than i feel. probably because i was still in school until 2008, when i finished my master’s degree. i’m in a clinical healthcare field, which means i don’t get to sit in front of a computer as much as i did when i was in school, or my friends who work in offices do. because of this, i was not nearly as involved in conversations as other posters (jimmy, madeleine, the joes, bisportzdude, my fellow big 10-er from mich state, etc.) but if you think that makes me any less of a regular, you are very wrong.
from the beginning, i knew that outsports had no way of knowing whether mikey was real. no matter what your gut feeling, an anonymous blog is just that. if i had been in that position, at 17, and somebody had tried to confirm my identity, i would probably have run. i have such respect (and, strangely, pride) for all of the high school, college, and young professional/semi-pro athletes who have been coming out in blogs and on outsports. like many other people, i struggled with confusion through high school, and didn’t even come out to myself until college. it wasn’t an easy thing to do, actually it was pretty traumatic, and it took me years to really figure out who i was. sometimes i think i’m still trying to figure it out.
no matter how “easy” your coming out story is, there is always some degree of struggle. we are so, so very fortunate that in 2010, we have the internet, and the ability to set up a free blog with a few clicks, and forums where we can congregate and share and help each other. we’re so incredibly fortunate that a site like outsports even exists! i try to imagine what my life would have been like if the internet had been as advanced as it is today in the second half of the ’90s, when i was in high school. i supported my high school’s women’s basketball team as they became the virginia state champions… how different my world might have been if i’d had a forum to meet other young queer athletes and sports fans.
no matter how much you tell yourself to hold back, no matter if you’re trying to keep in mind that someone may not be who they say they are (which, let’s be honest, is true for 99% of the internet, right?), we are human, and we are emotional, and the younger we are, the more emotional we are, and we get sucked in. it’s natural, it’s normal, and it’s inevitable. and the further in you find yourself, the further you have to fall when you find out the truth is not what you’d been led to believe.
to those of you like “jake jackson” who want to mock, or pass judgment, or belittle the emotional responses that the regulars of mikey’s blog (those who commented 17 times a day, or those who commented once every other week or so, like myself… or those who simply read daily, whenever a new post popped up on google reader, and followed the conversations in the comments, and maybe even over on the mikey nation forum) – i’m sorry you did not have the opportunity to take part in it. because even if “mikey” was a hoax, the community that his blog inspired was entirely genuine, made up of real people, of all ages, from all over the united states and canada. no matter how fictitious “mikey” was, his blog opened my eyes to people like brendan burke, and the community of real, actual people who mourned his death along with me was a comfort. and the fact is, fake or not, he posted valuable information, including links to the trevor project. i wish i had known about something like that in 1999, when i was first coming to grips with my own sexuality and honestly wasn’t taking it very well. i’m lucky; i was too terrified to do any of the things i’d thought of doing at the time. i quit school on a whim and bought a train ticket home, and wound up applying to a new university and starting fresh a few months later. it’s been over 10 years now, and trust me, i know how lucky i am to be here. if mikey’s blog helped a single person who felt the way i felt then, that is a silver lining we shouldn’t ignore. and that is exactly why it’s so painful that it’s gone, and gone so suddenly. because no matter what jake jackson or anyone else says about it, it was a community, one that sprang up organically from a blog that could have been real or fake – at this point, it doesn’t matter. the blog was what it was; what came about as a result took on its own life. and it will be missed.
my name is jenn, i’m 28, i’m from dc (nva), i’m the one who graduated from ohio state (’04) and boston university (’08). scout’s honor, or something like that.
on May 3rd, 2010 at 10:58 PM
Hey OutSports, so when are we getting an article on this??
on May 10th, 2010 at 4:35 PM
I totally feel fo Jimmy. It is SO sad when an adult pursuing a minor finds out that the kid is 40, not underage.
It must be heartbreaking for Jimmy to receive a picture of a minor via email, pursue a romantic relationship, and then have it blow-up in his face.
If you’re not thinking that Jimmy is a duplicitous weasel and a part of this whole lie, then you’re not thinking at all.
on May 10th, 2010 at 5:48 PM
@Rob, Jimmy was told by “Mikey” that he was already 18 and only saying he was still 17 to throw off anyone who might be able to guess his true identity. So to say that the 23 year old Jimmy was pursuing a minor is slightly off base.
on May 11th, 2010 at 6:44 PM
99% of what you read in the media is a hoax, lie, fabrication, gross distoration, even if you would like to believe it.
on May 11th, 2010 at 7:57 PM
hey OUTSPORTS…. are you guys EVER going to do a follow-up story on the Mikey fiasco?
on May 12th, 2010 at 2:56 PM
even in real life it happens least mikey didnt go this far!
http://highschool.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1083689
on May 12th, 2010 at 7:22 PM
I am wondering the same thing Steve. This is a legitimate story for many reasons, hopefully outsports is treating it as one. Given the site’s rather embarrassing endorsement of Mikeykid’s blog a few months ago, restoring some credibility by pursuing this MUST be a priority at this point, no?
on May 12th, 2010 at 9:30 PM
I hope they don’t think that everyone is just going to forget about it.
on May 12th, 2010 at 10:05 PM
Yes, I am working on a story.
on May 13th, 2010 at 5:17 PM
Good. Thank you for responding Jim. We’ll wait patiently, well sort of….
on May 17th, 2010 at 1:45 AM
Just wanted to add my 2 cents to this. I am a closeted hockey player myself (slightly older than “Mikey”). I never posted on his blog, but I did correspond with him via email and then txt messages. Nothing inappropriate ever came up, all hockey talk. I think Mikey was real, but I didn’t follow his comments enough to follow the drama that ensued.
on May 17th, 2010 at 1:57 AM
In regards to the comments above by the “older closeted hockey player” (post immediately before mine as I type this, I sure wish Jimmy would respond or say something here – something recent. I know I am still miffed about this (I think about it occassionally).
I still get a feeling that Mikey decided someone was getting on to him, and decided to come up with this – “….oh I’m 40 years old and not who I said I was”. Sorry if Jimmy doesn’t like me saying this, but I am just having that funny gut feel about this, that it’s gone so silent, as if to make this all go away and hope we forget. If I were a betting person, me thinks mikey decided to let the blog die, and this way it would throw people off the track. No recent events means we can’t tie anything to him in terms of, no risk of him slipping up and revealing himself.
Just my thoughts and Jimmy you just have been TOO silent on all this me thinks. fact you wouldn’t respond to any formspring things, and haven’t posted anything there in weeks, is just not sitting right with me visa vis that mikey is a fake.
on May 18th, 2010 at 3:14 PM
http://www.facebook.com/#!/profile.php?id=100001036590961&ref=ts
on May 18th, 2010 at 3:15 PM
sorry wrong link:
http://www.facebook.com/people/Hockey-Moose/100001036590961
on May 18th, 2010 at 4:46 PM
neway, my latest theory is that on fbook, there are these three brothers, the oldest 2 have all their privacy settings locked down so you cant see nething much. the parents profiles, also pretty much locked down, list each of their kids and there appears to be 3 and only 3 brothers. however, the youngest’s wall is available to see if you have an account and he is the one who became friends with the hockey moose. (the youngest would be “jake”) the middle one is going to princeton hockey, so smart (as “jimmy” was saying on the blog) and he turned 18 in oct 09. if you click on the hockey moose’s pic, he has a bunch of “jimmy’s” avatars/pics from the blog plus a yellow lab (which was mentioned on the blog) and a single quote about canada and the olympics. there are also at least 3 friends named jack (“josh”) who also have younger brothers and one with a younger brother and an older sister (like on the blog). there are a bunch of other things that fit too but whatever i dont keep a big list. disclaimer: just my theory, it is likely all a coincidence. it is based on publicly-available information, as i got bored one day and tried to figure out the mystery myself. the lesson is, folks, keep your personal stuff off the internet.
on May 18th, 2010 at 5:07 PM
It’s crazy how horribly this whole thing has been handled.
But I’ve always thought what a lot of others have concluded recently. That the whole 40 year old liar thing made no sense whatsoever and is the lie.
It is such an unnecessary and stupid lie to tell. All “Mikey” had to do was stop posting and not explain anything. I dont get why others involved came up with this other nonsense. It just makes them all look crazy.
on May 18th, 2010 at 5:32 PM
i should say he turned 18 in nov 09 not oct 09, sorry. regardless, i dont think there are any other D1-prospect mn suburban hockey players who are a senior in hs, a captain of their team, and have the right number/age/sex mix in siblings that fall in line with what was written on that crazy blog. i pretty much checked them all (again, out of boredom, and i acknowledge i should go get a life now lol).
on May 18th, 2010 at 7:50 PM
Ok, this is getting bat-shit insane AND scary.
I have no doubt whatsoever that the Mikey persona is based on one or more real persons - Occam’s razor makes that quite clear since that is the easiest way to flesh out a persona. There were plenty of splits as this comment thread has shown, but for most people, myself included, the superficial details were fine.
Even in the extreme unlikely scenario that “Mikey” decided to stop blogging and nail the closet door shut by intentionally causing the most emotional pain possible with the least effort to the readers he repeatedly (including after the ‘outing’) claimed to want to help through the blog…
Actually, lets go over that again…
The scary thing to me now is that whoever he based the persona on (whether its one kid, or a few as he claims) is now out there with no idea that his basic life story was co-opted. That kid or ANY kid (sorry but to me, 18 is a kid) with enough similarities to the persona is fair game for stalker-like behavior like toorad’s it seems. Its bad enough but to have the minutiae of his personal life recounted here but the probing and digging into parents, siblings, and friends goes past anything that should occur in a reasonable universe.
And toorad, if you do believe he is monstrous enough to do this – and you must to having been willing to publicly dissect his life and his family’s life here for us – then I can kind of understand your wanting revenge by exposing him here with clues and links to let anyone, no matter how unhinged, find him. I just hope you think through what you have done if your guess is wrong and instead you found just some kid that was the inspiration for “Mikey”.
I, for one, have no trouble accepting Mikey’s word that the feelings, situations, and problems blogged about were very real – decades ago - and that he did not know the blog would get so popular and that he planned to exit blogging quietly when he “graduated” this spring and that he made the mistake of getting too close to someone and was found out before he was ready to exit gracefully. Go back over your interactions with “Mikey” and see which rings more true for you… a well meaning, compassionate, empathetic but MISGUIDED roleplayer who dug himself into a hole he could not get out of, or a sociopathic asshole who was willing to intentionally hurt people and then ignore every oportunity to lessen that hurt. You can’t have it both ways.
And Jim and Cyd: I am the last person to suggest censorship of any kind, but please consider doing something about comments 337, 338, 339, 341. Regardless of anything else, toorad has you are playing host to stalker fodder for either an insanely closted kid so desparate to stay anonymous as to be willing to hurt many people and steal the identity of a 40+ year old man to do so, or an innocent bystander unlucky enough to have been used as an inspiration for “Mikey”, or just a random kid’s info in a thread with a lot of angry readers.
on May 18th, 2010 at 8:46 PM
just give us his real identity already!
on May 18th, 2010 at 8:48 PM
heh Please the typos and such in the prior comment. Working in a 432px by 140px window was harder than it looked.
on May 18th, 2010 at 9:06 PM
JD i see you protected the hkarchive. and i certainly agree with everything you say, regardless, i will be rooting for the tigers come the fall.
on May 18th, 2010 at 9:23 PM
Yea torsten, after seeing it used for such a dangerous game by amateur sleuths felt it was better that way. I didn’t have the heart to delete it entirely given that its about 145 posts “Mikey” posts but over 5700 comments by people who did their best for people they took on faith.
on May 19th, 2010 at 1:53 AM
I have not ruled out anything at this point. We have not been given 3 of the things we were told we were going to be given:
1) An article from Outsports
2) A statement from “Mikey”
3) Some more explanation from “Jimmy” as to what happened
So no, do not blame those of us here who want answers when the fact of the matter is, we were told we were going to be given something and we’ve been given nothing. Until more details come out, the speculation will continue (and rightfully so) that there is being some cover up done by somebody within this operation.
on May 19th, 2010 at 2:11 AM
Interesting reading…..now that link ……
http://www.facebook.com/people/Hockey-Moose/100001036590961
is coming up as invalid link…or whatever,….; it’s that page that comes up when it seems someone doesn’t want you to look at their facebook unless you are logged in..
Do I think Mikey really was who he said he was. YES.
Do I think he thought saying he was 40 etc would solve this YES
Do I think he wanted to hurt anyone NO
Did this whole thing get bigger than he wanted to YES
ARe there questions unanswered YES
Will we get answers from “Mikey” the 40 year old (or the 18 year old) NO (not likely now)
Where is Jimmy???? who knows !!!!
It shows how much one has to be guarded on anything and I mean anything in terms of profiles on line etc. Unless you can verify the person is real through objective evidence (e.g. I have talked to this person, etc…..and doesn’t mean now that someone should take that chance to try and meet a random someone….just saying)…then there is always the chance that what is online is a mirage/fake etc.
The kicker in all of this is where is Jimmy/Moose?
Just very odd how he has gone so silent!!!
Some interesting research done by the other poster, and if that is TRUE, then hmmmm….especially since the moose facebook thing doesn’t seem to work anymore!
on May 19th, 2010 at 8:20 AM
Yeah you can still see it all if you’re logged in, I got no balls or I would message the Hockey Moose or the hockey player to see what they say about this…
on May 19th, 2010 at 10:16 AM
Chad: Don’t try to jump in the line of fire for no reason.
What you’ve said is rational and wanting answers is perfectly reasonable; however, stalking a teenager on Facebook and posting details of their personal life on a gay sports news site is neither reasonable nor responsible.
on May 19th, 2010 at 11:20 AM
i read this web site a few times, and i was creeped out by it. i do think it was fake considering that “slugger” was also a fake, and probably the same dude.
the last time i went to that website, the commenter who was the “closeted football player” from new jersey who came out to his “team”, logged in under a different name, but i guess didn’t log out entirely, or whatever it was, well, he commented as somebody else, but his picture and nickname was still there, but the person was posing as somebody else trying to coax this dude “mikey” into asking him out. the text was different, and not that of the “kid” that was portrayed with the “text speech”, you know the child-like text speak. the guy who pretended to be the football kid from jersey realized the mistake and then commented again as the kid from jersey saying he was “acting crazy”. yeah, i agree…to say the least. that in itself speaks volumes about people pretending to somebody else online. i knew that blog was too fake. it was funny though but very creepy. i knew that both “kids” werre probaby grown men.
on May 19th, 2010 at 11:37 AM
jesus people, dont leave your damn profiles out in the public internet. anyway, the kid has now removed the reference to hockey moose on his wall, so that just proves it, case closed im done with this. peace.
on May 19th, 2010 at 11:54 AM
At this point, I think theres a very good chance that either:
1) Jimmy himself is a fake or
2) That Jimmy is covering up for Mikey, who is real and might close to being exposed.
on May 19th, 2010 at 12:03 PM
ditto that, Chad ^^^
on May 19th, 2010 at 12:28 PM
all you queens going crazy over this. you should all start blogs.
on May 19th, 2010 at 2:59 PM
I was never so enamored with Mikey like a lot of people. I thought he was a decent kid but one thing that never sat right with me was his attitude about being in the closet.
I dont think he wanted to hurt people but it was clear that this person felt his staying in the closet to protect his hockey career was more important than anything in life. It was appalling to me how he justified using girls, with encouragement from posters, in order to keep up this facade.
So I am convinced that while Mikey wasnt a monster, but he would do ANYTHING to protect his closet. anyone who doesnt get that hasnt been paying attention.
on Jul 7th, 2011 at 4:26 AM
A return to Hell? Hey peeps! Apparently, after 15 mos. (No, not 15 homos, 15 months) this shit still means something to me. Who knew?!?
Naw … I jus wanted to shout out to the GOOD people and sincerely thank them for everything they did for me when I was at the bottom of the Earth. Amazin how far down the depth can be. Oh well … Didn’t kill me bitches! HaHaaaa!
To the good = You are all gonna be a part of my life for the rest of my life … but thanks to you, I’m gonna take the wheel from here, k? I know many of u think I tucked tail – n I guess I did – but shit, it’s my tail, right? Had to abort …
I know some of u might be mad(dy) at me but shit … blog Jimmy died bout 15 months ago! Corpse was (reportedly) cute but unresponsive at the scene n never met code anyway. Please see: Monty Python Parrot Sketch …
Corporate response was swift n immediate. Shelve the 2010 n bring out a better model in ’11. Job well done. Thanks again, Mikey Nation! The ’11 model is better (that’s what he said)
So anyway, cheers dudes/dudettes. To all my loved ones from Mikey’s blog, I salute you! Wow, we had a good thing goin on, eh? Yup (sigh).
BTW ~ All this shit comes from me re-reading Mikey’s blog from day 1 to zero hour. Oh, n MOST importantly, ALL the comments. Holy shit, regardless of the outcome; Regardless of the lies; Regardless of the brutal lies ~ the boy (Ha!) did some pretty good work. Again, I’ve re-read every entry. This Blog was NOT a waste. Whoever the douche is (yea, yea, we’re all pretty sure we know), the man did some good shit … jus sayin
I’m kinda pissed I can’t re-read any of the forum. Epic shit happed there ~ albeit for a tragically short period of time. Still tho, some of the discussions? If accessible – would surely result in a masters degree on human behaviour for someone. Again, jus sayin. NUT JOBS – ALL OF YOU!
So, peace to ALL of Mikey Nation. You are the real deal. Never forget, karma is real. Mikey will feel that wrath sooner or later. Go to sleep with that knowledge. What ALL YOU need to feel is trust n love. I’ll get (gotten?) there. I promise. Be there or be talked about! hehe
Peace out mooses! Be happy, k? 
~ Jimmy