OCR to flood the zone on Angels opener

I almost NEVER laugh out loud at posts here. I did on this one.

 

Our Angels editor, Keith Sharon, approached me awhile back and said he had a crazy idea for opening day. After he explained his news mob idea, I agreed it was nuts ... and maybe just what we needed to draw some attention to our team that covers the Angels for us on all our platforms.

We clearly have seen interest in the Angels that hasn't existed in a long time, perhaps all the way back to October 2002. That interest obviously was sparked on the December day the Angels signed Albert Pujols and C.J. Wilson, and it didn't subside through spring training.

The Register could sit back and let everyone interested in the team figure out where to go for in-depth coverage or it could do something bold --- maybe even a little crazy --- and get people talking about our coverage.

This is not about promoting the Angels. This is about capturing the excitement surrounding the team and opening day. And in the process, we'll spotlight our unmatched coverage of the Angels. No, it won't include a news mob on a daily basis, but it does include three dedicated reporters, columnists, photographers, videographers, a daily Angels page in print, a constant flow of information online and more.

For opening day on Friday, however, we'll deliver all that we can (except a sports editor who scheduled vacation for this week well before the Pujols and Wilson signings). We'll be interested to see what everyone thinks after checking out our coverage.

Todd Harmonson
Register sports editor

 

Here's a Neiman Journalism Lab report on The Orange County Register's plan, http://www.niemanlab.org/2012/04/oc-register-assigns-70-reporters-to-cover-one-baseball-game/

 

From the Neiman report:

. . .but only for one day, mind you -- then it's back to doing things the way we've always done them!

How about this crazy idea - cover the team like this all season, spreading out the resources so that you can give people consistent coverage that will keep them coming back instead of producing a super nova of content that flames out without any coherent plan to build audience over an extended period of time.

 

Yup.

 

Props to the OCR for trying, unlike most newspapers these days.

The fact is everyone in my neck of the woods (which is where the Big A sits) is talking about the season, the team, and opening day.

I'll go out and buy the paper tomorrow for the first time since, well, the last time I went to Denny's for breakfast.

 

They should bring back Enrico Palazzo to do the anthem.

 

How can this not succeed, after all, Keith Sharon practically changed Hollywood after he wrote the 2002 floparoo, 'Showtime'.

 

How did this turn out? Please share the good, the bad and the ugly. What could have been done to make it better?

 

Don't ask me. I went to four spots where newspaper racks congregate near my house, about a 20-minute drive to the Big A just across the line in Riverside County, and couldn't find an OCR rack. Did see plenty of cars and trucks with Angels flags and plates, tho.

 

Since I was staying down the street from Angel Stadium, I was able to get an OCR at the hotel Saturday. As far as the paper goes, I didn't really knock me out. It was an expanded coverage of Opening Day that I would have expected even without the advance hype. A Marcia Smith column was on A1, with game coverage blown out on the sports front, notes and a sidebar inside and a double truck photo package in the middle of the section, though that was all BW.

Of course, I realize a big part of this "News Mob" thing was probably the online product, and I did see some extra stories there.

 

Stats:

http://www.laobserved.com/archive/2012/04/registers_angels_mob_show.php