Jerk coach or me making a big deal?

to answer your post title...this coach is being a jerk.

 

Flex: I just cannot agree with that.

My opinion is that it's our job to cover the news the readers want/need.

Just because someone is "being a jerk" doesn't mean you stop doing your job.

I think the guy here is not being that much of a jerk, but there are coaches who are. I still wouldn't base my coverage on a team on whether the coach was being difficult.

I would, though, talk to the guy's AD and principal (unless he *is* the AD) about the situation.

 

As someone else posted above this, it's our job to tell interesting stories and report the news. On one hand, maybe a fluff senior feature isn't worth the trouble, but anything with a decent news peg is.

Until about three months ago, I covered high schools, including one that consistently churned out nationally ranked football recruits. There were more than 20 college signees in last year's class, about half of them D1s, and there was a lot of pressure on the coach, the players from the expectations and the coverage of the team from my paper (the local one), the not-too-far major metro and every recruiting reporter in the Southeast. At times, the coach put his kids on lockdown, told them not to talk, told me I couldn't come out to practices and all that jazz.

But rather then let someone dictate what I'm allowed to write - which in this case was something of great local interest - I did every little thing I could to report on them anyway. I worked other coaches, trainers, teammates for leads in conversations and then, when I had something, went to the coach with it for confirmation. When the kids were shielded or didn't want to talk, I called the parents and got quotes and info on their college visits and injuries. And when the parents finally got tired of being called by reporters and stopped talking, I used people in the community who knew them for stories. In fact, I even did one major pre-signing-day story on the fact that one major recruit and his family went quiet in the final week before the decision was announced. Sure, the coach probably wanted to kill me, but we were able to do a hell of a job covering what was a major story while getting a lot of scoops.

The point is, don't ever, ever, ever let fear of a coach or anyone else stop you from going after a story you think is worthwhile. Maybe this senior profile isn't worth picking that fight over, but there are a lot of stories that are worth the trouble, even if you cover high schools and have to deal with that coach every day. Your readers will appreciate it and he'll get over it. The worst thing that happens here is the coach bars you from the press box. In that case, you can either take the fight higher, maybe the principal or school board, to get admittance or just expense the $6 admission fee and sit in the stands if you still want to cover the game.

And the comparison to going around an SID's back is a little off base here because in that situation you assume you're getting access in the first place. If I covered a college where the SID or coach, for the analogy's sake, wouldn't mention a player by name and for seven years forbid players from talking to reporters, yeah, I'd go behind their backs. What are they going to do? Take away your seat in the press box? Write the game from the radio and the box score in that case because you're not adding anything with quotes or getting any follow-up information from interview. And when there's a situation an SID won't comment on or give you access to, well, then you go behind his or her back. How many coaching changes, suspensions and athletic department firings do you first hear about through the official avenues?

 

You're 100 percent right... but we're not talking about in-depth, or highly-evolved, or -- as you put it -- "coaching changes, suspensions, athletic department firings" -- we're talking about fluff features.

YES, I agree, don't be afraid, but you have to temper what's going to make your job possible in the process. If this is the athletic director, you're picking a pretty big fight or something that is NOT one of the stories you referenced, Lobster...

Again, you're 100 percent right, IF the story calls for it. This story, with this coach, who is also the AD, in this situation, does not, IMO. That's what I was trying to get at.

You have to pick and choose your battles, and, relatively speaking, Ilino was asking this board if this was a battle worth picking. My take is still no. Your examples, Lobster: ALL yes.

 

It's amazing that some reporters still treat the prep beat as a big-time pro beat.

The method of not covering a team anymore because your panties are in a twist is laughable as well. Your weekly rag is really putting the squeeze on the coach when you skip out on another formulaic profile.

 

What you just posted is pretty formulaic too. It's certainly not creative or constructive criticism.

 

I suppose some people do it because people enjoy reading it and they'd like to cover something other than preps the rest of their careers.

 

Here's some better advice for the OP. Talk to the coach. A reporter's job is to build relationships with sources. It's a people business. If the coach doesn't talk, try writing the story without him, but don't get some high school kid in hot water with their coach because he/she doesn't know any better. Just don't burn bridges so you can get a routine feature in, because it sounds as if the kid isn't that special to begin with if you're treating it as routine.

If you can write the story, but can't get a comment from the coach, don't mention it. Adding a line that the coach declined comment looks petty.