The watchers are being watched like never before. And that’s great, whether we watchers like it or not.

Those of us in the so-called mainstream of journalism don’t always do well with criticism. We might not feel that it’s constructive or fair. (Welcome to our world, say the newsmakers.)

In the old days it was much easier for us to have the last word and be less accountable. But now with all these bloggers, Twitterers, Facebookers and self-appointed citizen journalists and their fancy machines, everyone gets a say if they want, at least to some degree. And everyone is held to a higher level of accountability — even those of us who (by chosen profession, anyway) are supposed to help keep those in power in line. Maybe it’d be too much to call social media the fifth estate, but you get my drift.

That’s why, although I looked forward to it, voting for the first time in the Associated Press football poll represented a little bit of a new challenge.

It’s just sports, you might say, if you’ve wandered over here from another part of the newspaper or website. But it’s college football, and people take these things seriously and personally.

There are websites now that police the pollsters. That is, the ones like us who can be policed — the coaches who vote in one of the polls that helps determine the national championship still do not release their ballots for public scrutiny.

Anyway, if you go to pollspeak.com, you can see how everyone voted in several different polls, including analyses of whether we are "good" or "bad" voters.

Many Hawaii fans probably think I’m a "bad" voter already, because I, like 56 of the other 59 AP voters, didn’t put UH in the preseason Top 25.

I considered it, but something about only two returning starters on offense held me back. If UH beats Colorado and Washington to start the season, that won’t matter anymore.

Someone wrote on a fan site that he wasn’t surprised I didn’t vote for Hawaii because I "think Nevada’s going to win the WAC." That’s not really true. I chose Nevada to win the WAC because, of the eight teams in the league, it has the best chance to do so, in my estimation. But, I’d also say the odds of this happening are less than 50-50, because Hawaii, Fresno State and Louisiana Tech all have legitimate shots at the title with a break here or there.

We have a similar situation nationally.

I’m among the 36 voters who put Oklahoma at No. 1. Does that mean I "think" the Sooners will win the national championship? Let’s just say I might bet the house on it. Not my house, though … maybe yours.

Preseason No. 1 is never a sure thing, but some years it seems more likely than others that the top dog can end up there when everything’s done in January.

This is one where it looks less than likely because there are so many other viable contenders, starting with No. 2 Alabama and going down to at least No. 8 Texas A&M. A slip-up will be harder to recover from than in others years.

A few years ago when USC was loaded and unsanctioned, the Trojans were kind of like the pre-scandal, healthy Tiger Woods. In those days, you might take USC at the start of the year and bet against the field.

The Sooners are No. 1 for now, but that could change as quickly as Sept. 17, when they visit No. 6 Florida State.

And everyone will be watching.

Reach Dave Reardon at dreardon@staradvertiser.com or 529-4783.