pros and college sports vs. preps sports

When terrific writers and reporters get "stuck" on preps, it's usually because they are at smaller or mid-sized papers that don't take pros and colleges seriously. And with the way the job market is frozen solid right now, it becomes difficult for them to move up.

Still, a lot of people who think that the business owes them a pro or college beat aren't even doing anything spectacular on preps. Working hard, yes. Working a lot, yes. Writing features about high school soccer players who help blue hairs cross the street. Capturing the moment in their gamers (probably to the point of being overwrought at times).

But it takes more than that if you're covering exclusively preps to catch someone's eye, in the rare case that there is someone's eye to catch. You have to treat it like a news education beat, to be honest. Administrative intrigue. Issues-oriented enterprise. And so on.

 

The way the industry is going, we're all goign to be covering preps again eventually.

I was covering major league baseball for 11 years and just last month was told: You can switch to preps or you can quit.

 

What did you do?

 

Waylon, that was the point I was making. Also, what you need to remember is that in many places, preps aren't given a lot of space. Sometimes, an excellent prep writer can't do that enterprise news education type of story.
The bottom line is perception and that can be very subjective. Just as I asked earlier about "standards."

 

Bobcat, it's happening like that because papers figure they can get what they need from AP. Hey don't worry. At least your are still working. There's something to be said about that and it's Thank God!!!

 

Well, no I'm not. I quit.

It's not that I felt covering preps was beneath me, but it would have meant covering preps 90 miles from my house (where my paper is based). I couldn't do that commute every day.

Anyway, that's another topic.

 

Now you're being a bit of a martyr. It's been my experience that if a sports writer starts turning around that kind of real news, the paper not only makes room for it, but is giddy to see it happening.

 

Don't know what you mean by martyr. While many papers will be glad to see "real news" in the paper, budget and space sometimes limits what can or can't get in.

 

You're being a martyr because you're blaming everyone but yourself for the fact that you don't have a pro or college beat. Undeserving people have those jobs. Your paper won't let you break news.

Save it.

 

I think you are barking up the wrong tree. I've done my bit on pro, college and prep level. As for undeserving people getting jobs, it happens every day so that's not a big deal. It is what it is, life.
As for breaking news, it's never been a problem for me but I do know of many colleagues who complain about their limitations.
So again, what do you mean by martyr?