Tim Layden says objectivity is dying in sports reporting

I cover primarily high-school stuff, plus professional golf, but I see what is written about college sports and think most college beat writers wind up being fans of the teams they cover.

Often they are under pressure, implied or otherwise, from the schools they cover, who expect reporters to fawn over their teams and their athletes.

You're not there to enjoy the game, you're there to cover it.

 

I feel bad for folks on a college beat. They know what they signed up for, but if they piss off one person they're frozen out on everything, including recruiting and that's more damn important anymore than the on-field stuff.

 

This is so true. It's turned into a fanboy's business like I never imagined 32 years ago when I first got in it.

 

Slightly off-topic, but the whole recruiting thing drive me nuts. I get being excited for a top star coming to your school, but I don't get the excitement for 99.99999 percent of the players who most of the country has never heard about or seen play.

 

This area had perhaps the nation's top recruit in LB Micah Parsons. And after the three years of hype and the will-he-won't-he and the decommitment and the recommitment, all I can think is the kid had better be a three-time All-American before leaving for the NFL.

 

I don't think there is any doubt this exists, especially at small town gigs where sports writers are pals with the coaches. Saw this a lot at a few of the places I've been. Guys are nothing more than cheerleaders with a notebook and huge egos!

 

Not defending college beat writers - but who reads stuff from Local U? Fanboys and maybe the rivals of LocalU. I'm constantly amazed how you hear about every cracked toenail and 'dis in a pro locker room and can't find out exactly why a starter has left a college program.

 

Why they left or why they're suspended?

Usually they're suspended for a positive piss test for weed. Or its grades, but ever since Tom Penders threw one of his basketball players under the bus by telling reporters it was all about grades, that's been frowned upon. I'm not even sure it's legal to do anymore.

 

Ever heard of FERPA? College programs have and they love to hide behind it. Total fucking farce that it is ...

Parents' Guide to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act: Rights Regarding Children�s Education Records - FPCO

 

Recruiting writers are, often, de facto recruiters for whichever school they cover on Saturdays. I'm convinced at some point the NCAA is going to bust a school for the actions of one of them.

 

Look, Jeff Pearlman is showing how he knows more than everyone on this subject again


Guy who covers NFL apparently not allowed to root for his alma mater, got it.
If everyone's going to be such a hardass about this "no rooting" rule on sports you don't cover, I suggest you go through your newsroom and tell all the news-side people -editors, reporters, deskers everyone - to stop posting "GO TEAM" on their social media feeds.

 

Pearlman is the perfect example of someone who I've come to respect less and less because of his miserable Twitter feed. He's a good writer but comes off as so insufferable. I can understand his general point that you shouldn't be a fan of the team you cover -- I'd totally agree with this -- but it's silly to enforce a rule that you can't be a fan of any team. Master doesn't cover Arizona State on a full-time basis so why can't he root for them on Twitter or elsewhere? I believe being transparent about our fandoms and biases is actually better than pretending we are all without bias.