Don't underestimate...
Hmmmm,
I understand the points that others have posted on this thread so far, but I want to carefully consider the wording of the actual title,
Can sites like the clinic push change?
I think so. I think The Clinic and sites
like The Clinic (although I'm not sure anything compares) can have, at the very least, a gentle nudging of perception. Is that "pushing change?" Sure, I think it is.
Of course I don't want to fall into the trap of self-important delusion over the direct effects of what goes on here, but I do believe the word gets out. I just noticed that the SI thread, which was only started less than a week ago now, already has over 61,000 views!
Someone is paying attention.
When McQuaid openly refers to "bloggers" and being "accused" by them, Who do you think he's referring to? Again, addressing the OP, there are
other sites and sources, but it all
does have a cumulative effect. I have to believe that he hears, at least bits, of what goes on in here and other places.
When Bob Roll, in his latest rant of ridiculousness mentions, "Well, in recent weeks, the rumor mill has been grinding away..." The Clinic is most certainly
part of that mill.
Lance, who so famously, and obsessively, surveys all that is said about him online, has to be touched, is some small way, by the whispers that go on here and other sites "like" this one.
It keeps the pressure on; and I think that's hugely important. Is there more clutter than clairvoyance, more fiction than fact? Of course! But if I can sort it out to a reasonable degree, then why
not some intrepid reporter or author's assistant? Again, not to over inflate any sense of importance, but the fact remains, as I recently pointed out to one persistent troll:
There are members of this forum who were actually named, specifically, in the Sports Illustrated article. These are people with direct knowledge of events who's very actions have, and will continue to have, an effect on the outcome of those events around which The Clinic often orbits.
So in light of that, Darryl, I would have to say YES to your OP.