Mike Gundy threatens local media

[HappyCurmudgeon]

Gundy is easily atop the list of dumb redneck coaches I rather punch myself in the throat repeatedly than cover. He really thinks he's on Saban's level.

 

[tapintoamerica]

So what would you do if you're the Oklahoma State beat writer and this happens? And what do you do if you're the editor and your reporter tells you this?

As much as we all would like to say we'd defy The Man and ask whatever we wanted, there's the practical problem of being the one who shuts the whole thing down for everybody. I wouldn't go it alone. I'll admit that.
Now the issue is whether the threat remains or what you'd do if a similar ultimatum is imposed again for a different controversy. I'd be tempted to gather the media herd at the next opportunity and discuss this. If the format is that they make a bunch of players available every Tuesday at 2 pm, for example, I'd try to get several people to agree to ask The Verboten Question at approximately the same time. One per scrum. Then you see what they do about it.
I'd also try to get evergreen stuff while players are available. Bank the quotes in case The Man shuts it down.
The most interesting and unspoken question about this is whether the blackout on media interviews of players would apply to ESPN or Fox, the Big 12's rights holders. I'm going to go out on a limb and say no.

 

[Ice9]

Why don't the writers just boycott? Is that an option?

 

[ncdeen]

Correct. As long as they have their fanboy, team-specific recruiting media to read, fans won't care. And the fanboy media will certainly comply.

Yep, fanboy media make the lives of beat writers a living heck

 

[PCLoadLetter]

If you're not willing to ask the question there is no difference between you and the fanboy media.

 

[tapintoamerica]

If you're not willing to ask the question there is no difference between you and the fanboy media.

True. Everybody's got to ask it. Simultaneously if possible.

 

[Tweener]

You never let the program you cover tell you what you can ask and write about. That's bush league. You don't have to be blatant about it, but I'd definitely test Gundy's threat.

Years ago we covered an athlete who told us he didn't want a certain person covering him. Because access to this individual was very important to our publication, one idiotic editor complied. The athlete then knew he had the power to control the coverage of him and went to great lengths to do so until he eventually retired. Went on for years.

 

[SoloFlyer]

School wants to restrict player access? Fine. I'll write content without their input, and likely without the coach's, too.

It'd be far more analytical, less feature driven. But since I no longer need to carve out time to talk to 18-22 year olds, I can watch film, crunch numbers, mine data from Pro Football Focus, etc. Maybe a former player familiar with the system can provide insight into what we're seeing each week.

And in every single story I wrote, I'd be sure to include the line, "Mike Gundy and Oklahoma State refused to make players available to comment for this story."

They want to play hardball, fork'em. I'm not a stenographer.

 

[Doc Holliday]

fork Gundy. Ask the damn question. See what happens. What a bunch of softass pussies you all are.

I see this shirt happen with Saban all the time and the media literally gang-bangs his ass and he always shuts down the pressers. No way Gundy gets a pass here. And who gives a shirt what the fanboy media jerkoffs do?

Do your damn job or go roof houses or hang dry wall or something you're more cut out for because journalism sure as heck isn't it.

 

[PaperClip529]

Always fun to see online tough guys playing with money that isn't theirs.

I can understand why a smaller media outlet wouldn't mess with this edict. I am curious as to why the Oklahoman and World reporters played along, though. Maybe they figured it wasn't worth the hassle for whatever pre-rehearsed "We're focused on the guys here" quote they'd get from the players. Maybe it was done in the name of solidarity. I'd assume they would have an idea of whether Gundy and his media lackeys would follow-up on that threat. I'd love to hear from some of those reporters.

 

[Cosmo]

Semi-related ...

Years ago, I was covering Liberty basketball -- the year Seth Curry was there -- and they played at Old Dominion in a Bracket Buster game that was televised nationally. 11 a.m. tip. Got up at 6 on a Saturday to drive to Norfolk. When I got there, I was told by the LU athletics director that no one from Liberty would be answering any of my questions because of a dustup the school was having on a completely unrelated matter on the newsside. My response to him was, "Jeff, this is bullshirt, and you know it." He just nodded. (I shouldn't have cursed, that was unprofessional, but I was hot.) The edict didn't come from him, it came from world-class fork face Jerry Falwell Jr.

So we get to the postgame press conference, and I decided to just pepper Ritchie McKay with questions. He was unbelievably polite about it, just saying after every question that he couldn't answer that. He even pulled me aside afterward to apologize, and I told him it wasn't on him and I understood what was going on. In the end, the rest of the Virginia media was trying to figure out what the fork was going on, and Liberty looked really, really stupid (not unusual) for trying to make a farce of the whole thing.

I talked to my ME, and he told me to go on with business as usual. I went to their game the following Tuesday, prepared to go through the same routine again. But Jr came to his senses and realized they looked like idiots and lifted the embargo. And we went on like nothing had happened.

 

[Matt Stephens]

If I'm a reader of that paper, the first question better be about that guy who transferred.

I was speaking in terms of not covering Oklahoma State at all. That's when you're hurting your readers.