parental badgering

Cadet: That's a good starting point, write. But you can't just print it verbatim. Gotta fact-check those.

Yeah, what was I thinking?

 

Dude, she was agreeing with you, and then added additional advice. What's your problem?

 

That happened to one of my writers. He did a feature on someone for something (I don't recall what it was, but I know that he only did it because there was little else going on at the time). He heard from another parent a few weeks later, who said, "So-and-so told me about the story you did on her little twerp, and said that if I called you, you'd take care of me." (Or something to that effect). Fortunately, we were able to nip it in the bud, and the second little twerp never got a story, but if the mother had been more persistant (meaning if she had taken it to my EIC), the story probably would have been written, starting us down a bad, bad road.
The whole thing is unfortunate, really. As much as I complain, I really do like high school athletes. It's just too bad they have to have parents.

 

I don't have a problem.

I agreed with her about the fact checking and then clarified what I was talking about and then she repeated the fact-checking again, addressing me, like I didn't get it the first time. And then said she wasn't addressing me.

I'll chalk it up to lost in the translation but that was my perspective at that moment.

 

Hey guys, come on, I'm supposed to be the one who asks for advice then gets in an argument with people who are trying to give me advice.

 

Pardon me, allow me to express myself more clearly:

Asking for parental submissions is a good place to start when following up on post-high school athletes. That was an excellent point you made, Write-brained.

By asking for parental submissions, the paper has procedural recourse against any parent who claims his/her child was left out of the information-gathering process. The parents had equal opportunity to submit information for consideration.

However, for those who are new to sportswriting or following post-high school athletes from the area, I suggest always following up a parental submission with a fact-checking process through the school's SID, the team coach, the conference media relations office, or even the local newspaper in the area of the college or university.

I, personally, have been burned by parents who have submitted incorrect information. That situation made me exceptionally wary of any information submitted by parents with the intent of receiving publicity. Particularly at the collegiate level, parents tend to be so awe-struck with their children's accomplishments, no matter how small, that they don't always communicate the correct information.

 

Thank you, Cadet. It was lost in the translation ... if I was really being a dick I could've use the obnoxious eye-roll guy ...

 

Not to change the subject, but every so often, if a parent wants me to publish news about their kid who is now a college athlete, I'll ask them to give my contact info to the SID and the parent will have no clue what an SID is or what he (or she) does.

 

Could you put it in layman's terms? Me no brain so good work.

 

Yeah, it's too bad there are people out who to spend loads of their hard-earned money on products of companies who give that to us for printing their logo on flimsy paper used in bird cages. It's too bad there are people out there to continue to do that willingly while the money they spend goes into paying for our families' livelihoods.

Sheesh! :

 

It's too bad there are people out there who can write intelligible sentences. Jesus Christ.

 

Agreed don't pander to mom... unless of course she goes over your head and complains to the sports editor who thinks it makes a great story and assigns you do the story.