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Covering games on your own time

Discussion in 'Journalism topics only' started by Stitch, Jul 18, 2008.

  1. I think there are two very distinct threads here:

    1. Going to a big-time game to gather clips and ...
    2. Going to a big-time game to gain experience.

    I advocate the latter, but not necessarily the former. At least not if you can't get up there enough to work some enterprise off the beat, or break a story or two (which is extremely, extremely doubtful).

    But, yeah, there's a whole rhythm and etiquette to the way these events are run that has to be experienced at some point. You never want your first day at a big-time event to be the day you step into the beat for the first time. And, to be honest, no sports editor is going to let that happen anyway.

    I was in the shoes of a lot of the kids on here not so long ago, and I can remember being self-conscious about my preps clips.

    I was able to work some pro enterprise into my applications, some of which I'm sure I worked on on my own time. I was fortunate enough to work at a suburban paper that let its writers dabble in some pro stuff, as long as our first priority remained local coverage. Of course, you had to hope that the managing editor didn't pick up the paper that next morning and see your byline with a "BIG CITY --" dateline on it.

    I just don't want kids to misunderstand what it means to "cover" a college or pro team. Just because you've been to the locker room a handful of times doesn't mean you're ready for a pro beat. But that being said, most of the posters on here seem to understand that.
     
  2. buckweaver

    buckweaver Active Member

    Same here, Jim. Wouldn't have traded it for the world.

    Waylon: I understand what you're saying about "clips," and you're right -- as I pointed out earlier -- if anyone's thinking that these one-off appearances are going to net them something resume-worthy.

    One of the things that helped me during my "free" season with the local NFL team when I was 21 was comparing my stories to other writers who were at the same game. Yes, you can do that at home in front of the television. But for me, it was invaluable to be in the same press box, having the same access, going into the same locker rooms as the Mike Wilbons of the world (who, coincidentally, I met at a Redskins game, had a chance to have a nice conversation with and who treated me like the most important writer there. He didn't have to, but he did.) I learned a lot about what I didn't know, what I could do better -- and what I did do well. It was an eye-opening experience. And the "clips" that I have, while I'd never use them on a resume, were important to me, too.
     
  3. That is an excellent, heretofore unexplored point.

    Also - if you want to learn how to write on deadline, go cover an MLB series or homestand. Unfortunately, that isn't available to everyone, but it's unparalleled where that's concerned.
     
  4. Appgrad05

    Appgrad05 Active Member

    Completely off-topic, but have heard a lot of great stories about Wilbon. One in particular - he was talking to a WaPo intern and gave the intern his number. They thanked him, and he said he would see them next year. The intern was surprised, said they didn't know if they would be back. He replied they would.

    Sure enough, they were.
     
  5. fossywriter8

    fossywriter8 Well-Known Member

    Waylon,
    Thanks for the catch on using "they're" instead of "their." I have corrected it.
    And, no, I'm not being sarcastic about the catch. I do appreciate it.
    (Someone should tell spnited he misspelled "work" as "wrok" though ;) )

    Stone,
    Thanks for calling me "juvenile." It's been years since I've been young enough to be called that and it brought back many happy memories of my youth.
    I have no doubt Waylon is a pro, and I'm sure I can learn many things from the other posters on here.
    Take you, for instance. In our short give and take here, I've already learned I've graduated from "self-righteous little snot" to the much more respected "juvenile self-righteous punk-ass prick."
     
  6. Stone Cane

    Stone Cane Member

    juvenile describes a type of behavior, not an age
     
  7. fossywriter8

    fossywriter8 Well-Known Member

    Actually, it can mean either.
    However, since you used the word in a post first, I'll go with the definition you want it to mean.
    In that case:

    You'd know.
     
  8. crimsonace

    crimsonace Well-Known Member

    Used to do it quite a bit, but got a few things out of it.

    *-As a young reporter, getting to see and feel the rhythm of how a pro locker room works. Sure, I knew I wasn't going to break any new ground, but I tried to put together something decent.
    *-As a reporter for a PM suburban, trying to come up with somewhat new, PMed angle that the major metro didn't cover or feature.
    *-Later in our time, we combined coverage with two other papers in our chain. One guy did a gamer, I usually wrote a column or a sidebar. We also put notes together. It was great experience coming up with sidebar, notes & second-day topics on games -- something I really used in my prep coverage (and prep coverage can get really stale, especially if you get in the profile-preview-gamer rut when no news is happening on your beat).
    *-You will eventually have a "local-guy-goes-big" story, even if it's a dude in Double-A baseball or sitting the bench as a walk-on for a major college basketball team. Understanding how things work can really help you not screw things up when you go to cover them.
    *-Networking. I was a young pup. I met several of the top beat guys in the state at various events, and I learned a lot from talking with them in pressbox meals, sitting next to each other at games, et al.

    The pro-game clips helped sharpen my preps coverage -- especially with big-game coverage.

    I actually did get some pretty good clips out of covering the local NFL team and one-hitting the local auto races, but not until I'd been doing it a few years.
     
  9. dixiehack

    dixiehack Well-Known Member

    I would like to take the opportunity to thank Bart Hubbuch, Eddie Pells, Vito Stellino and Gene Frenette for treating me nicely during my trips to Jacksonville way back when, as well as the assortment of out of town writers I was stationed right next to in the Alltel pressbox. Because I can easily from this thread that I had a pretty decent chance of running into an asshole and never did.
     
  10. shotglass

    shotglass Guest

    Just one thing for all the people who are turning up their noses at those who cover a pro or major-college event without getting the bucks.

    Guarantee these other people that at some point, they're going to get a chance to try a pro or major-college beat. Tell them that there's no way they'll go through their career WANTING that, and never getting that.

    Because, you know, there's that little Catch-22 in this big ol' journalistic world. If you're at a 10K daily, 100 miles from the nearest big event, you're going to be covering Little League baseball and girls' field hockey. The SE isn't assigning you to cover the Ravens-Panthers game.

    And if you're never getting face time at the Ravens-Panthers game, I think some of you had better explain how these people are supposed to compete for the pro or major-college beat they want down the line.
     
  11. Tom Petty

    Tom Petty Guest

    solid.
     
  12. shotglass

    shotglass Guest

    Yeah, I liked that part too.
     
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