1. Welcome to SportsJournalists.com, a friendly forum for discussing all things sports and journalism.

    Your voice is missing! You will need to register for a free account to get access to the following site features:
    • Reply to discussions and create your own threads.
    • Access to private conversations with other members.
    • Fewer ads.

    We hope to see you as a part of our community soon!

Should papers from non-World Series cities send reporters to cover the game(s)?

Discussion in 'Journalism topics only' started by lantaur, Oct 21, 2014.

  1. lantaur

    lantaur Well-Known Member

    I asked the question and beyond local angles not sure I've heard a compelling reason for non-playing city papers to be there. I don't buy because it is a big event, as there are so many other ways to get this information.
     
  2. BDC99

    BDC99 Well-Known Member

    As someone said earlier, St. Louis fans probably don't care to read about the World Series at this point, especially with the Royals there. Not worth the expense. But also surprised and depressed to see DMN didn't go.
     
  3. Steak Snabler

    Steak Snabler Well-Known Member

    With the Cowboys 6-1, I doubt baseball news is even registering a blip in the MetroPlex right now.
     
  4. BDC99

    BDC99 Well-Known Member

    Yeah, that's a good point too.
     
  5. Starman

    Starman Well-Known Member

    I am sick and tired of the "preps" argument.

    Anywhere from 70 to 95+ percent of your audience doesn't give a shit about preps. "Hoosiers" is 60 years ago.
     
  6. old_tony

    old_tony Well-Known Member

    Absolutely correct. I remember about 25 years ago the bosses telling us that readership surveys kept saying they wanted more preps coverage. But even back then bosses were idiots.

    When people say they want "more preps" they mean they want more of their kid's high school. And when you cover 100 or so high schools, their kid's high school gets covered about four times a year. So they bitch. You get more bitching than it's worth when you try to appease the "more preps" crowd. And no one's ever happy.
     
  7. jr/shotglass

    jr/shotglass Well-Known Member

    We're never gonna agree on that one, guys. And of course, even if I did, I wouldn't want to.
     
  8. BDC99

    BDC99 Well-Known Member

    I think preps is more popular in smaller towns. And it is true that most people only want to see their kids' names or see how their alma mater did. Nobody at all gives a crap about any school that is not in the immediate coverage area. Why would anyone care about a school in Miami if they live in Orlando? Well, maybe the recruiting obsessives might be interested, but there are specialty outlets where they can get that information.
     
  9. steveu

    steveu Well-Known Member

    My opinion is preps stands for local coverage, and papers lately have been hammering "local local local". I know our shop does.
     
  10. Cosmo

    Cosmo Well-Known Member

    Friday night football and basketball state tournaments. Those are the only things that move the needle when it comes to preps outside of the hardcore friends/family crowd.
     
  11. Meatie Pie

    Meatie Pie Member

    The original thread title was a question five years ago. It no longer is. The realities of the business can no longer be denied by reasonable individuals.

    As for preps: I've never met a single individual who said they went to Journalism school with the dream of someday covering high school sports. I have known readers who said they got the paper for p[reps, but only regarding their specific school.

    If I had worked in a place where preps was the biggest thing going, I would have had razor blade to wrist every day until I got out.
     
  12. Mr. X

    Mr. X Active Member

    What was "the biggest thing going" at the first daily you worked at Meatie Pie? It could well have been high school sports.

    My first daily did cover the region's professional and Division I college teams, but I got the impression high school sports were the priority. With limited resources it could not compete with the metropolitan daily on the professional and Division I coverage. Even if you had a pro beat, you had to cover a Friday night high school football game or work the desk that night.
     
Draft saved Draft deleted

Share This Page