My First News Story In Seven Years

I'm a current news editor after working in sports for many years and honestly, any sports reporter can do news. But hardly any news reporters can do sports.

 

I respect what news people do -- I sure as hell wouldn't want to track down a mother and father after their kid has just been killed in a wreck -- but I've always thought the same thing. Sports writers have to know a little of everything, from business to medicine to deciphering byzantine rules and regulations.
And if you think about it, turning around a Friday night football gamer is basically writing a breaking news story.

 

I hate ragging on newsies, since I'm one of them now and respect the hell out of what they do (the good ones, at least). But following a year on this side after seven years in sports ... I agree wholeheartedly.

Every week, there's somebody else freaking out -- granted, usually on day-side rather than the second-shifters -- because of some late story or late fix or late-breaking addition. I tell my night editor all the time when she apologizes for me having to blow up a page or story, "Hey, don't worry, I've dealt with a lot worse. Piece of cake."

 

Agree with this also. We have newsies assigned to sports sometimes, and they can't hack it at all. They also call in sick a lot on their sports shifts, which tells you enough about their commitment to anything for the team.

Screw the newsies, we have learned to say.

We sure could use their help, but fuck them if they can't saddle up.

We do agree that they are pussimous maximous, though.

 

Even in sports, in my time at my paper I've had to deal with the deaths of three college athletes and two high school athletes. So we still have to do that kind of dirty work. Our news side would've just taken the police report and topped it with a byline.

I've said it before and I'll say it again: News side people are sheep; we're goats.

(EDIT: Not meaning to paint all news siders negatively; but those with a sports background seem much better-rounded reporters.)

 

I think the vast majority of us here probably have a bit of an inherent bias toward our own kind. But I agree that many of the best news reporters I know do have some sort of sports background. Many news reporters I've worked with have even struggled to cover off for each other, never mind asking them to do sports.

 

These days, sportswriters have to cover real news within the sports beat. Donté Stallworth's hitting and killing a pedestrian is basically a crime story within the sports beat. The machinations of salary caps and luxury taxes test the economic minds of the sportswriter. Covering a county council debate on a new stadium? They have the same arguments about schools and homeless shelters. And let's not forget about Michael Vick and his dogfighting case. Though to be fair, it's possible that cops and courts beat guys may have been assigned to that one. And stats? We have to have a head for numbers too.

Sportswriters may be derided for supposedly being part of the toy department, but they -- we -- have to master a number of areas that some newsies don't. It's a benefit if you can demonstrate that you can write about last night's game and the current murder trial. But most sportswriters should be able to demonstrate that without much effort.

 

Couldn't agree more FT. I recently wrote a budget story about the college athletic department I cover. Lots of numbers and percentages and cutbacks, etc. There was nothing "sporty" about it, other than the fact it was the athletic department's money.