Up next: AP

Jenna Fryer now gets to make trips to Darlington and Richmond now. Unless she bails, too. (Those were always "off weeks" for the AP's racing beat writer, because Kurz and Iacobelli would file.)

Although I could very easily see AP dump motor racing except for Daytona, Indy and F1 and AI the rest of the events. Anybody who actually cares who beat at Barber or Bristol probably watched on TV.

 

Pete Iacobelli was the first AP writer I had the chance to meet as a fledgling college journalist, covering Georgia Southern in the Southern Conference basketball tournament in 2003 at the North Charleston Coliseum. Was introduced to him by Tom McClellan, the great Georgia Southern SID who went on to East Carolina before getting out of the biz a few years ago.

 

Another precinct checks in.

 

John Zenor too.

Great guy, does an outstanding job. Might be the biggest smart-ass I know (and that’s saying something, and a compliment).

https://www.cbs42.com/digital-exclu...g-after-26-years-of-covering-alabama-sports/?

 

AP now without full-time sports reporters in Alabama or Ohio. The latter has eight major-league teams (2 NFL, 2 MLB, 2 MLS, 1 NBA, 1 NHL).

 

Was wondering why I was seeing so many AP writers announce retirements.

Also, I believe at least one major Hearst property (Houston, specifically) had a round of buyouts.

 

And Washington, with MLB, MLS, WNBA, NHL, three major universities (counting Gonzaga hoops here) and an NBA team seems inevitable.
You can have an army of stringers for the games, but what about breaking news or enterprise? Just looking for someone not at top scale, I guess.

 

The AP also has cut back greatly on staff photographers (just like most newspapers, sadly).

For years I ran photos from Elaine Thompson and Ted Warren, two AP photographers based in Washington state. They’re both gone and for the past year-plus there’s been just one AP staff photographer for the entire state. A lot of assignments are shot either by the few AP reporters who remain or stringers.

 

Damn. Always had quality copy.

 

What a top-shelf crew of writers.

Newberry was banging the keyboard when I started in college and then Zenor came in after. Have read all the other bylines over the years, too. And a college pal has been in Maine for at least 25 years.

I need a double shot of Geritol and a Doan's pill. Dammit.

 

When I was still in the business and one of the teams we featured was on the PNW, never worried when I saw an Elaine Thompson photo credit.

I think it was the same situation in Arizona about 20 years ago, one shooter and lots of contributions from members. One year when the Suns made a deep playoff run, they assigned a shooter from LA for extra help.