Not going on the road

Honestly, I hate it when I have to write columns on my beat. I'm a nuts-and-bolts reporter. Leave the opinions to someone else who doesn't have to cover the team every day.

Guess it doesn't matter, though. The coaches I think should get fired don't like me as it is - and that's after I just write the facts of what happend all season.

 

How do you <b>know</b> that the quarterback is making poor decisions?

Besides, people who don't offer opinions on radio and TV appearances usually don't get invited back. The beast doesn't feed on "time will tell" and "we'll have to see how that plays out" answers.

 

Uh, what now?

 

It's about $35,000 to $40,000, give or take a Marriott night or two.

 

One of two ways:

1. The coach says so after the game, at which point you pass it along as his point of view; or
2. The quarterback holds the ball too long, isn't reading the defense correctly, continuously tries to force a pass into coverage, etc.

I mean, I understand what you're getting it - you never really know what a bad decision is, because you might not know the alternatives. But sometimes, it's blatantly obvious.

 

Not surprising. If papers like the Rocky Mountain News are closing entirely and others are going internet only or no home delivery on certain days, you know the times have changed.

As stated above, sending a reporter on every single trip of a major league season has to be an enormous expense. One that most bean counters can do without.

Honestly, gang, the more I look at this, I really believe some people have been spoiled for too long. They fly all over the country, live on an expense account, watch games from a press box while snacking on free popcorn and sodas, write a few paragraphs afterward, go on radio and TV and talk about the star players, go to a bar and drink afterward.

Sheesh, please don't call that work in the presence of someone pulling a 10-hour shift on an assembly line or driving a big rig cross country.

 

Oh, not this again. It's not real work. Come on. Have you ever been on a baseball beat in a competitive situation? It's a fucking grind. At the ballpark at 2:30. Don't leave until midnight. A few paragraphs? What paper do you work for? Pre-game notes. First-edition gamer. Rewritten gamer with quotes. Blog posts. Always worrying if the other guy is working the clubhouse better and getting something you're not.

Don't give me this "it's just sitting in the press box eating popcorn" bullshit.

 

The cost is credibility. The Daily Herald was a paper that held its own with the Trib and ST when it came to baseball coverage because it could travel on the road and their writers were quite knowledgeable about the game.

Now, Arlington Heights comes closer to being no better than a suburban daily.

 

No, of course not, I was exagerrating to make a point.

I've actually heard that line probably 1,000 times from others over the last couple of decades. Seems people outside the industry have very little idea what media people actually do. That being said, I wouldn't argue that we --- just like the players and coaches --- are relatively blessed to be able to do what we do for a living. And, yeah, I've met more than one who was more than a little spoiled.

My point is just that ALL businesses are cutting back on travel and other things we often used to take for granted.

 

I guess that would mean we couldn't discuss the subject, because I couldn't agree less.

If I were back in newspapers, and you were unwilling to do opinion and/or analysis, you couldn't work for me. MAYBE 20 years ago (although I've felt this way for a long time). But certainly not these days.

And that's really not a knock; just a very fundamental philosophical difference.

 

Care to elaborate?

I'm in f_t's camp on this, but why is that essential?