University of Alabama beat writer: The Birmingham News

THe point was, it leaked on an Auburn message board off a weekend in which multiple media people in the state were at the same function as Price, and yet it floated around for several days before anyone acted. In fact, the president of the university of Alabama was already moving toward action before anyone wrote a word. Very slow to react, as usual.

Some of the ones, off the top of my head, that they did break, are:
-- Wimp Sanderson's affair/slapping incident
-- Auburn basketball cheating under Cliff Ellis
-- UAB sex lawsuit
-- Mike DuBose affair

However, Alabama media tends to be reactive rather than proactive. Like that in most places, I'd imagine, but there is more stink to be stirred in that state as the juicy list above shows. The Logan Young case, for example, was out there for YEARS and many people in that state had heard the stories. Not a word was written until it had to be addressed when the issue was forced by outside media.

Alabama media in general is not very aggressive -- and I would say that problem probably rests more in the management offices than in the field. The opportunity is there for somebody to come in and shake things up.

 

A friend asked me to post this to clear up some misconceptions this thread has started to delve into...

*Jelks -- the Post-Herald reported some of the most damaging claims first, and most papers talked to Jelks, unsuccessfully, before he went to the AJC.
*Ramsey -- The News broke that story three months before he went on 60 Minutes.
*Langham -- The News broke that story, ending Alabama's hope to "sweep it under the rug" the week of the 1993 SEC Championship Game.
Yes, a lot of stories do go national. Both schools are national in scope. Do the Indiana papers break everything on Notre Dame?

And on a personal note, ripping on Rubin and Ron is just wrong. Both are outstanding friends and compadres... Might not agree with some philosophical things, but I'd walk through fire for either of them.

 

good post, slappy -- about ripping ron and rubin. they both will go out of their way to help anyone who asks, and I shudder to think about ASWA voting if it weren't for Ron taking charge and setting it up for all sports.
newbies to the industry can also learn a little bit about how to treat the people they are covering from those two as well. you don't have to be a butthole to do your job.

 

Misinformed comment. Period.

 

Yep. Misinformed. The papers there could not possibly be doing a better job. Memphis should mail back all the awards from the Means case.

It has changed in the last 3-4 years. Much better. Still room to improve, though.

 

I just find that assertion odd.

Alabama and Auburn have at least six legit beat writers each. I'm talking about daily people. It's highly competitive. It just is.

To say otherwise is misinformed.

 

ARG, competitive is not the same as proactive. You can be competitive without finding the "big" stories. Sometimes being competitive can keep you from finding them, because you focus so much on the daily "not getting beat" on trivial stuff that you miss the bigger stories. The old beat blinders ...

Like I said, it has improved in recent years as it should have. After Alabama papers were very slow to react to some of the biggest stories through the 1990s and even early 2000s, the mindset had to change.

Enough of this, anyway. Alabama papers, for the most part, do a fine job. I think they could be a lot better with just a bit more. There is so much happening there. Papers like the Birmingham News have the resources and subject material to be great in that circulation division, not just good. There are good reporters all across that state.

And to get back to the main reason for this thread, I think the News made a good hire with this one.

 

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I think Beach Bum is confusing where he read those stories first with which papers actually broke them.

The only one he listed that was legit was the Means thing, and I don't know how you can really hold it against the Alabama papers when the damn HS coach walked through the front door of the CA and started talking.

Other than that, every story was broken by in-state guys. And even the Means thing, the in-state guys uncovered a lot of shit, some of it in Memphis, during the whole saga.

Oh, and I'll say again, the Auburn grades story from the NYT, not a sports story. And I believe damn near everyone on that beat would agree.

 

Another one, too, that walked through the front door. Thamel has said on the record got the info on Auburn got mailed to him. It wasn't like the NYT was looking around for academic impropriety on the plains.

rb

 

Beach Bum is right.

Everyone would agree that the Alabama/Auburn beats are very competitive. But there's a difference between competitive and aggressive. It's not the most aggressive group.