What Comes After The Spartanburg Spark?

The Spartanburg Spark has been one of the most amazing things that I’ve ever been a part of. In the year and a half I’ve been actively involved with the project, I’ve seen the number of unique monthly visitors to the site more than double, and the page views skyrocket to over five times the level they were when I first started. I’ve had the privilege of being along for the ride as this simple blog has changed the tone in Spartanburg in some small, but important, ways. Even if it closed its digital doors tomorrow, I think it would be hard to call the Spartanburg Spark anything but amazingly successful. That point is driven home even further by the fact that the project never had any money to speak of. The whole thing has been a giant learning experience for me personally, and I’m going to miss shooting emails over to Steve to ask about this or that Spark-related thing.

When I first learned a while back that Steve was going to be moving back to Asheville, and that the Spark would either have to be handed off to someone else or killed off altogether, I didn’t have any idea what that meant for Spartanburg’s burgeoning progressive movement or for me personally. Defying all common sense, Steve offered the site to me first—and keeps offering it to me every time we speak—and while I’ve definitely entertained the idea of running the site, I’m not sure that doing that would be the best thing for me personally or for the Spark.

It’s not false modesty that makes me think that I shouldn’t run the Spark. I could run the site just fine. In fact, I’ve done exactly that for a couple of months at a time. The truth is, I don’t think Steve Shanafelt realizes that the Spartanburg Spark can’t survive without his voice. I’m not trying to kiss the boss's ass here. That’s just calling things as I see them.

Steve is persistently positive on many, many fronts when it comes to Spartanburg. Not to be insulting, but the word “Pollyanna” has been thrown around a lot, though always in a good way. That sort of enthusiasm isn’t something I’ve always shared, but it has been part of the Spark’s character. If I’m being honest, I have to admit that it’s a part of that character that I can’t reliably recreate. I told Steve, in explaining why I wouldn’t take over the Spark, that the only thing I’m truly confident in is my own voice. My voice has been a part of the Spark, but it’s only a part. I wouldn’t dream of making it the whole.

There are practical, personal concerns as well. I am currently still unemployed, which obviously means that I have the time to run the Spark, at least for now. Eventually though, I’ll find a job. It’s hard enough as it is to look for work without worrying about some site that thousands of people depend on. What happens once I find work? If I took on the Spark, I’d naturally want to find work that allowed me to devote the necessary time to running the site. I don’t know if anyone’s noticed or not, but now isn’t exactly the time for those of us looking for jobs to be selective. I won’t allow the future of the Spark to hinge on my employment situation.

So, now we’re at the part where we talk about other options for the Spark.

Steve has been having conversations with different groups about how the site could continue, and I won’t go into any detail about those conversations except to say that in my opinion, many of the people who’ve expressed interest don’t exactly “get” the Spark’s mission. They’re coming from the best of places I’m sure, but to me, a lot of what’s been mentioned so far hasn’t been anything I’ve been thrilled with. Ultimately, what happens there is Steve’s decision, and I’ll support whatever he decides, but I should explain what I mean by not “getting” the site’s mission.

Some of the people who’ve been reaching out so far believe that every aspect of the future Spark should be relentlessly positive in it’s coverage of Spartanburg. I’m sure it will come as a surprise to absolutely nobody reading this that I think that’s a terrible idea.

I know, I know. I just wrote a few paragraphs ago about Steve’s “persistently positive” take on many things in our community, so how can I be bashing that sort of positivity now?

For starters, Steve is positive on certain things, but he’s just as quick to turn a critical eye at some things as I am. Some of the people who who’ve expressed interest in taking over the site don’t share that eye. The public persona of those people is relentlessly positive at all times. That sort of thinking will kill the Spark. The choice isn’t between negative and positive. In fact, I reject that dichotomy out of hand. There are issues where it’s important to speak out with a loud, forceful voice. That’s not negative, that’s realistically confronting injustice. There are other times when boosting something positive in the community is what needs to happen. The Spark has always been about balancing those things, cheering when appropriate, challenging and questioning when not. To lose that balance is to lose the essence of what the Spark is.

The other part of that for me is personal. I don’t think it’s going to happen, but if the Spark is ultimately taken over by people who have the intention of neutering the site and turning it into some bland, mindless, cheerleading blog, not only will I not have any part of it, but I’ll actively work against it. The last thing we need in Spartanburg is another goddamn cheerleading organization. We need an honest, balanced, forcefully progressive alt-media site, and if there’s no way for that to continue on the Spark once Steve leaves then the site should be killed off.

The truth is I don’t know exactly what’s going to happen with the Spark, but I can make a few promises about what’s going to happen with my part of it.

First, “Flying Oskar” isn’t going anywhere. If the Spark is ultimately shut down I will create a site for it, and for some other projects I’ve had on the back burner. It will not be a replacement for the Spark by any means, but it will be a place where progressivism in Spartanburg is proclaimed loudly and proudly. I also intend to continue filming Spartanburg City Council meetings as long as it doesn’t conflict with whatever job I end up with. My hope is that I’ll be able to deliver some sort of original content at least three times a week, and I think that’s possible even if I do land a job that puts more constraints on my time than I’d like. I’m willing to gamble on that because it would be my site, so if it fails it’s won't be as though people depend on it the same way they’ve come to depend on the Spark.

Whatever happens to the Spark, I can promise you that I’ll still be out there doing many of the same things I’m doing now. The Spark may have been my most successful foray into the world of blogging, but it was by no means my first, and it certainly won’t be my last. I started “Flying Oskar” with no expectations beyond the catharsis that comes for me with writing. As far as I can tell, I need that catharsis now probably more than I did when I started, so no matter what, I’m pretty sure you’ll all still have Christopher George to kick around for quite a while to come.