I Saw It With My Own Eyes

[Pete Incaviglia]

College football today. Team from six hours away comes to play team I cover. Paper that covers the team that came to my town sends a photographer and reporter. The photographer is WEARING THE VISITING TEAM'S JERSEY ON THE SIDELINE WHILE SHOOTING!

Worst thing I've ever seen.

Rant over.

[thegrifter]

wow! And just think, he's probably a future publisher or EE.

[Stitch]

I see it every week from people who work at my shop.

[Drip]

College football today. Team from six hours away comes to play team I cover. Paper that covers the team that came to my town sends a photographer and reporter. The photographer is WEARING THE VISITING TEAM'S JERSEY ON THE SIDELINE WHILE SHOOTING!

Worst thing I've ever seen.

Rant over.

Been done. I knew one reporter who couldn't cover his alma mater because he would cheer on press row.

[KYSportsWriter]

I didn't see this instance, but a reporter at a weekly paper here wore gear of the team he was covering at the state softball tourney in June.

He was decked out in a polo and hat, complete with a bag with the logo of said school.

I ran into him a bunch of times when I worked in Frankfort, and it was the same every damn time. Pissed me off, but there was nothing I could really do.

[write then drink]

call the guy out

seriously, tell him he's an embarrassment to the profession

rip the guy until he goes to his car and puts on a jacket or something

that shit is inexcusable

[KYSportsWriter]

But he's "respected" journalist.

And he's been in the biz, like, forever (I think).

[Canuck Pappy]

Saw it today too in Guelph. Although not 100 percent if the guy was shooting for the paper or if he was with the university.

[bigbadeagle]

I covered my alma mater for two separate, lengthy stretches — and that's two separate stretches for my college and two for my high school — and would never, ever stoop so low as to wear anything resembling their colors on gameday.
Of course, one day at the college practice, I wore a T-shirt of the team the college had just drubbed on the road two days before. Coach sees it and says, "What the fuck do you think you're doing?"
The honest answer was I was just trying to get a rise out of him. I think he knew it, too.

[Drip]

Have you ever worn the colors of either team and didn't realize it until you got to the stadium. Happened a lot to me and a few times because I didn't have anything clean to wear.
It's amazing how a lot of people take that shit seriously.

[Tom Petty]

walk up to the person, with a straight face, and say something along the lines of: "it's awesome that bumblefuck decided to hire a public relations guy. they must keep you real busy down at the bumblefuck athletic office, and you must take a huuuuuuge burden off the athletic director's plate. how did you score that job ... and do they pay well?"

[Perennially Overrated]

Photogs are held to completely different standards than print journalists.

Damn near every one I've worked with accepts freebies, roots for the home team, along with other stuff of which a reporter would be crucified.

Not all photogs behave this way, mind you...just enough to make me notice.

[Write-brained]

I agree that the only way to stop the behavior is to shame them out of it in front of as many people as possible.

Confrontation is your friend in these situations.

[slappy4428]

Photogs are held to completely different standards than print journalists.

Damn near every one I've worked with accepts freebies, roots for the home team, along with other stuff of which a reporter would be crucified.

Not all photogs behave this way, mind you...just enough to make me notice.

I can see a photog doing that in a lot of cases. I worked with one guy whose sole question to me during games was "is there any food?"

[Drip]

Photogs are held to completely different standards than print journalists.

Damn near every one I've worked with accepts freebies, roots for the home team, along with other stuff of which a reporter would be crucified.

Not all photogs behave this way, mind you...just enough to make me notice.

I can see a photog doing that in a lot of cases. I worked with one guy whose sole question to me during games was "is there any food?"

And they usually find it.

[Tom Petty]

Photogs are held to completely different standards than print journalists.

Damn near every one I've worked with accepts freebies, roots for the home team, along with other stuff of which a reporter would be crucified.

Not all photogs behave this way, mind you...just enough to make me notice.

I can see a photog doing that in a lot of cases. I worked with one guy whose sole question to me during games was "is there any food?"

And they usually find it.

oh shit that is funny. yes, yes the photogs always find the food first.

[Pete Incaviglia]

Photogs are held to completely different standards than print journalists.

Damn near every one I've worked with accepts freebies, roots for the home team, along with other stuff of which a reporter would be crucified.

Not all photogs behave this way, mind you...just enough to make me notice.

I can see a photog doing that in a lot of cases. I worked with one guy whose sole question to me during games was "is there any food?"

And they usually find it.

oh shit that is funny. yes, yes the photogs always find the food first.

Another football story. This one involving food and photogs. I'm way up in the air in the press box and I look down toward the corner of the end zone in the direction the play is heading, and what do I see? Our photographer sitting on a little stool against the wall of the stadium eating not one but two hotdogs. Eating one with one hand, holding another with the other. All his gearon the ground or leaning on the wall. As the team we're covering is marching toward him mind you.

[SCEditor]

I've got a photographer here who's been in the business for less than a year. Even she's smart enough not to wear colors of the school she's shooting. I always pick at her, because she has so many shirts that are a shade of pink. But even she is professional enough not to wear shirts that are the same colors of the school she's covering.

I have a burgundy shirt that clearly looks like it favors a particular team, but I make sure I never wear it when I cover that particular team. In fact, I was covering a golf tournament today in the same town as that team, and I made sure I didn't wear that shirt, just for that specific reason.

[Tom Petty]

I've got a photographer here who's been in the business for less than a year. Even she's smart enough not to wear colors of the school she's shooting. I always pick at her, because she has so many shirts that are a shade of pink. But even she is professional enough not to wear shirts that are the same colors of the school she's covering.

I have a burgundy shirt that clearly looks like it favors a particular team, but I make sure I never wear it when I cover that particular team. In fact, I was covering a golf tournament today in the same town as that team, and I made sure I didn't wear that shirt, just for that specific reason.

but i'm sure you look handsome in that shirt.

[mike311gd]

I get weird looks in the office around playoff time because I'm cheering the loudest for the schools out of our coverage area.

[JBHawkEye]

Photogs are held to completely different standards than print journalists.

Damn near every one I've worked with accepts freebies, roots for the home team, along with other stuff of which a reporter would be crucified.

Not all photogs behave this way, mind you...just enough to make me notice.

I can see a photog doing that in a lot of cases. I worked with one guy whose sole question to me during games was "is there any food?"

And they usually find it.

oh shit that is funny. yes, yes the photogs always find the food first.

Actually, photogs get there second. They get whatever the TV people don't get first.

In one of the press boxes I was in this weekend, there was a sign that said, "This food is for PRINT MEDIA ONLY."

On a related note to the thread topic, while watching the end of the Jets-Dolphins game, there was a play in the final seconds that was close to being pass interference. On the replay, you could see a photographer arguing with the call, throwing his hands out and yelling something.

[Tom Petty]

Photogs are held to completely different standards than print journalists.

Damn near every one I've worked with accepts freebies, roots for the home team, along with other stuff of which a reporter would be crucified.

Not all photogs behave this way, mind you...just enough to make me notice.

I can see a photog doing that in a lot of cases. I worked with one guy whose sole question to me during games was "is there any food?"

And they usually find it.

oh shit that is funny. yes, yes the photogs always find the food first.

Actually, photogs get there second. They get whatever the TV people don't get first.

In one of the press boxes I was in this weekend, there was a sign that said, "This food is for PRINT MEDIA ONLY."

On a related note to the thread topic, while watching the end of the Jets-Dolphins game, there was a play in the final seconds that was close to being pass interference. On the replay, you could see a photographer arguing with the call, throwing his hands out and yelling something.

that's funny, because the past two places i've been, TV guys are barely smart enough to find their way in the door, much less to the buffet.

[JBHawkEye]

Photogs are held to completely different standards than print journalists.

Damn near every one I've worked with accepts freebies, roots for the home team, along with other stuff of which a reporter would be crucified.

Not all photogs behave this way, mind you...just enough to make me notice.

I can see a photog doing that in a lot of cases. I worked with one guy whose sole question to me during games was "is there any food?"

And they usually find it.

oh shit that is funny. yes, yes the photogs always find the food first.

Actually, photogs get there second. They get whatever the TV people don't get first.

In one of the press boxes I was in this weekend, there was a sign that said, "This food is for PRINT MEDIA ONLY."

On a related note to the thread topic, while watching the end of the Jets-Dolphins game, there was a play in the final seconds that was close to being pass interference. On the replay, you could see a photographer arguing with the call, throwing his hands out and yelling something.

that's funny, because the past two places i've been, TV guys are barely smart enough to find their way in the door, much less to the buffet.

My brother works part-time as an off-ice hockey official (he runs the penalty box). He tells me that at every home game, the sports guys from the three TV stations in town show up for the pre-game buffet, and most leave before the game starts.

I give our photogs shit because every time they go with me to an NFL game, they usually get cold hot dogs down in the photo area, while up in the press box we get a pre-game and halftime meal. They've figured out, though, they can sneak up for the post-game pizza.

[Write-brained]

So eating their food is OK, just as long as I don't wear their colors. Gotcha.

[Tom Petty]

So eating their food is OK, just as long as I don't wear their colors. Gotcha.

yup. pretty much the way i see it.