Blogs & Serious Journalism (Why should I give you a tip if it costs me my job?)

I've been meaning to post this for awhile ever since a friend of mine at another school got in trouble for this.  I am interested in hearing what you think, especially since it seems to be an area where a journalist is also writing a blog online for his paper and the results just about got my friend fired.

Here's what happened.

SID from a major school is going to release something with a potential negative side.  He is on the road at the time and before leaving to go home, he sees his beat writer and gives him the courtesy heads up about the story and that they are going to release it later in the day.

Travel problems ensue and by the time the SID gets back to campus, the beat writer has posted an update on his blog, pretty much ripping the school (and the new AD) about what is going to be released.  Only problem is that the info hasn't been released.

When the SID (and AD) get back to campus, the AD is greeted by another staff member with a printout of the blog in hand.  AD turns to the SID and rips him because nobody should be aware of what is going to be released shortly.

Over the next two days, the AD decides to fire the SID for releasing the info before he was given the okay but later changes his mind (partly because you just can't fire somebody without a bunch of meetings and a whole lot of paperwork).  AD loses confidence in SID however and urges him to get another job (reports are that if he didn't find one by the end of the summer, that he would be fired).

Here's my problem.  I have given my beat writer a heads up thousands of times regarding a story that was coming out.  This is a courtesy because I know that the writer is going to have to do a story and I didn't want them to be caught off guard if the release came out at 7 p.m. and they were unavailable.  But why should I give anybody a heads up if they are going to blog it almost instantaneously online and risk my employment status?

Your thoughts would be appreciated.

 

Re: Blogs & Serious Journalism

That's pretty fucked up of the AD to punish the SID in this manner. Obviously the AD doesn't understand the SID's job and the concept of working relationships with the media. This reminds me of the situation in Colorado a few years back...

 

Re: Blogs & Serious Journalism

I think if someone gives you the courtesy of a heads-up, you should keep it out of a blog before the news comes out. There's nothing wrong with writing up a posting, or an update for the paper's Web site, then waiting on the release before hitting "send" if you're worried about being scooped. (I've done that before and never heard any complaints from the people who gave me the info early.) What that reporter did was unnecessarily burn a good guy for nothing.

 

maybe i'm wrong but if you give the beat writer the heads up, can't you tell him the info is embargoed until a certain time? that should prevent him from putting it on his blog. i would think it would be understood by both sides that breaking the embargo like this, even if it's unofficial, will destroy the relationship between the beat guy and the SID?

 

Re: Blogs & Serious Journalism (Why should I give you a tip if it costs me my jo

I agree with Cadet. AD has no right to overreact in that situation. If you can't handle your school getting ripped in the local media, then you shouldn't be in a high-profile public position.

As for your question, SID, you've got to look out for No. 1 in that situation. If it harms your relationship with the reporter, well ... oh well. You can try to make up for it later, in a different circumstance, help him out a little. But you can't reasonably risk your job for anybody else's.

 

Re: Blogs & Serious Journalism

Exactly. Unless the news is earth-shattering (coach getting fired, school being placed on probation, etc.), a writer should understand that what the SID did was a courtesy and not burn him.

EDIT: If I was the SID, I would tell that writer to place his head in an unnatural place and tell him that if he wants a heads-up from now on, he can get it by watching the local television station.

 

Hmmm ... was this at Florida, by chance?

 

When I give a heads up, it is under the assumption that the writer is going to embargo it until the story is released.

I don't blame the AD for being mad. I wouldn't have assumed that the writer would rush to his computer and post a blog so I'd be mad if this happened to me.

Personally, I think the writer was out of line and I would NEVER give him a heads up again.

 

I don't need to tell you or most of the other people on the board this, but that seems to be one of the great chasms in our business. You can be talking to a coach or player kind of buddy-buddy and write something and he or she will be disappointed it was printed because he or she thought it was off the record. Nope.

 

i don't think so...