Steve Hyden is a funny guy, and he certainly works for a funny newspaper, The Onion. But he isn't getting paid to write humor. Instead, the Appleton native is running the show at Decider Milwaukee, The Onion's new online publication with branches in several cities across the country.

Hyden is the man in Milwaukee, running the local section of the weekly print publication, as well as the continuously updated edition of the online version -- with a skeleton crew of two employees and a handful freelancers.

We caught up with Hyden recently to talk shop, Bay View and more in this latest Milwaukee Talks.

OnMilwaukee.com: I guess I should probably get this out of the way, since a few people might wonder why we're interviewing "the competition." I don't view The Onion as an OnMilwaukee.com competitor. Do you?

Steve Hyden: I'm not sure if the people selling ads would answer differently, but from the editorial side, I don't see you as competition in the sense that we're doing the same thing or that we copy what you're doing. I see both Web sites, as well as other Web sites in town, as maybe covering the same general areas, but having their own mission. It's not an either-or proposition. If people are going to read Decider.com, they're probably also reading OnMilwaukee.com, the Shepherd Express or any of the other publications that cover entertainment. If you're interested in what's going on in Milwaukee, why would you only look at one source? That's not the media landscape of today.

OMC: Is there a lot of mystique around working at The Onion? Do people think your job is a laugh riot every day? It's not really like that, is it?

SH: No, it's like any other office, really. It's always funny when I tell people that I work for The Onion, they get really excited for about a minute. Then I tell them that I don't write the humor content, and all of a sudden they lose interest and walk away.

OMC: You're not even in the same city where the humor stuff is written, right?

SH: All that comes out of New York City. I've been to the office before and I know some people who write humor content. People will send me submissions for the humor side, but it's extremely difficult to write for the humor section. That staff is basically in an underground bunker.

OMC: But even the Decider and the AV Club have their own unique editorial voices, wouldn't you say?

SH: Before I worked there, I was a huge fan of the AV Club. It was funny and irreverent, but really well-informed. It's not too hard these days to turn on TV and see people being snarky. But when people are making cheap jokes, you don't get the sense that there's a real love for what they're talking about. I can honestly say, with affection, that we're a bunch of nerds who spend way too much time consuming pop culture. Basically, this job is an excuse to utilize all this worthless information that we have in our heads.

OMC: You say you're a bunch of nerds, but you have a tiny staff, right?

SH: Locally, yeah. We have two editorial staff members plus a variety of freelancers.

OMC: Are you one of those two staffers?

SH: Yeah, I'm the only full-time employee.

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4 comments about this article. Post a comment / write a review.

Recent Talkbacks ...

Posted by StevenHyden on May 14, 2009 at 10:50 a.m. (report)

Hey all, this photo was actually taken a month ago when I was vacationing in Tybee Island, Georgia. Yuengling is everywhere down there.

Posted by Gizzle on May 14, 2009 at 10:09 a.m. (report)

I don't know where the Yuengling came from in the photo, but there is at least 1 bar in town I know of where it's a 'secret special'; meaning it's not advertised anywhere...you have to ask for it. Kind of like Cuban cigars. So I won't spill their beans but if you know where one of the best beer selections in town is you should be able to figure it out. Cheers!

Posted by Southern_Ex_pat on May 14, 2009 at 9:38 a.m. (report)

re:the yuengling- yeah spill the beans.

Posted by Eastsider30 on May 14, 2009 at 9:06 a.m. (report)

Wait, where did he get a Yuengling?