David Simon, who created the greatest TV show ever ohmigod it's like Dickens etc., testified before the Senate Commerce Committee about the future of newspapers yesterday and told members that if newspapers die no one will be left to cover City Hall. Gawker's Ryan Tate offered an excellent response.

Bill "The Sports Guy" Simmons:

Just two weeks ago, reports surfaced that the New York Times Company (which owns the Globe) was demanding $20 million in union concessions or it'd shut down the Globe completely. I grew up dreaming of writing a sports column for the Globe; now the paper might be gone before I turn 40. It's inconceivable. But this Garnett story, and how it was (and wasn't) covered, reminds me of "The Wire," which laid out a blueprint in Season 5 for the death of newspapers without us fully realizing it. The season revolved around the Baltimore Sun and its inability (because of budget cuts and an inexperienced staff) to cover the city's decaying infrastructure. The lesson was inherent: We need to start caring about the decline of newspapers, because, really, all hell is going to break loose if we don't have reporters breaking stories, sniffing out corruption, seeing through smoke and mirrors and everything else. That was how Season 5 played out, and that's why "Wire" creator David Simon is a genius. He saw everything coming before anyone else did.

Uh, no. In completely unrelated sports news, Moe "Maureen" Tkacik is guest-editing Deadspin right now, which you should probably check out.