Sports reporter fired for reporting?

North Adams, Mass. — the timeless SJ-honored cradle of journalism. Not meaning to Grow any ill intentions.

 

I know you're probably trying to make the writer in question feel better, but you don't have a clue what you're talking about. This is a great paper and a great community in which to cut your teeth in the newspaper business. Or at least it was at the time for me.

 

I knew Krystal, and she didn't ask for any of the shit that came her way. She was a good kid and a pretty darn good writer. It's easy for people on a message board, though, to just spout off at the keyboard on things they don't really know a ton about.

 

I couldn't stomach letting one of my guys get canned in that scenario if I had edited the copy before it ran.

 

Wow ... no matter which way you turn, there seems to be something wrong with this whole situation.

I realize the reporter is still learning, so his lesson here is that he has to be more careful in how he approaches controversial situations that involve relying on quotes from minors. You're talking to a child who said she had trouble fitting in. In what way does it really serve a purpose to grind through the details of that? If you're going to let her lob accusations at the school and its coaches, then you have to give someone there a chance to respond, and when you stop and think about how little is actually gained by all of that, it should make you think hard about how much detail you really need. Say enough to get the point across and move on. Remember, you're talking about a teenager here.

As an aside, it's stuff like this that makes me question why it serves a purpose to cover high school sports in the first place. Why are adolescents and their trials and tribulations and their games newsworthy? I realize that in some communities it's a huge-ass deal. I grew up in a place like that, and going to games on Friday nights was a big part of my high school experience. That sort of atmosphere doesn't exist where I live now. Either way, I think the idea of doing "serious" prep coverage is crap. But I digress.

The editor has to be more careful in -- to use the writer's word -- being a filterer. I was troubled by the line that says McCann "somewhat inferior academics and athletics." Somewhat inferior ... exactly what does that mean? I realize that people who live in the coverage area might already know the reputations of the schools, but you can't assume that. When I was an SE, I had an editor above me who was uber-sensitive about any prep sports story that seemed like it was going to kick up controversy. Getting interrogated by him a couple times about stories that I edited was enough for me to disabuse myself of the idea that there was any value in publishing anything like that. Clear cases of wrongdoing, or rules violations -- great. Fair game. But when it's something like this story, and you're covering minors, you have to be cautious beyond measure. Again the question: What is being gained by reporting it this way? You published the he-said she-said details about why a high school girl transferred to a different school. To what end?

And finally, the paper is crap for not standing behind the reporter better than this. The reporter's blog entry says that the editor in chief told him that McCann's superintendent had banned him from the campus. The paper has to put its foot down on that. The editor or publisher has to talk the school down off the ledge and say, "look, we agree the story should have been written and edited differently, but we're not allowing you to dictate that sort of thing to us over one story. We're going to take steps to make sure nothing like this happens again, but this is our staff, and this is who we have available to cover you." That the paper wasn't willing to take any kind of stand illustrates the point I made about the editing of these types of stories. When the supervisor you report to is forced to deal with a scenario like this, you're not likely to get any sympathy. Because as far as an editor or publisher is concerned, it's not a matter of whether it was accurate. You're dealing with minors, and the standard really is, "Is this necessary?"

A frustrating situation for everyone involved, to be sure. And I wish the best for the writer and the editor. These scenarios are no fun, but you learn from each one you encounter, and you won't make these mistakes again.

You'll make different mistakes next time ... just like the rest of us ;D

 

Very good post.

 

I will add that I know Isaac had previously worked for the Santa Fe New Mexican, which is a very good paper with a quality sports writing staff. He is a good writer and, while I didn't know him as well as other New Mexican writers, he seemed like a good person.

As far as the story itself goes, I think Hacker said it best: When it comes to prep sports, you have to carefully decide whether something you quote is worth putting in the newspaper because you are dealing with teenagers. It's not like college and pro sports in which there's big money at stake and athletes and coaches alike generally get held to a higher standard.

The biggest lesson I've learned in my years covering prep sports is that, while you report facts, you have to be careful not to sound like you are putting anybody down. Believe me, it's tough to do that when you cover a team that gets blown out frequently or struggles to win in any sport (and I covered plenty of those teams).

I do agree with Hacker that firing Isaac was overreacting. The editor should have met with the sports editor and Isaac, told them they needed to be more careful about what gets written or quoted, but then explain to the school that, while they will work to be more careful, that the paper will not accept a reporter being banned from campus for one mistake.

 

Agreed.

I've always found the preps coverage discussions on here just sort of strange. I've never lived in a place that gave a shit, and I realize that the are places in this country where it's a very big deal. Still, I can't imagine there's a single place that actually wants Hard-Hitting Preps Journalism. They want stuff for the scrapbook.

The paragraph about the inferior academics was brutal, and it's amazing to me that (a) he wouldn't see anything wrong with it, and (b) any editor read it and didn't immediately flag it. But firing seems harsh, and the reaction of his higher-ups is beyond depressing. Even if I'm the editor and I'm considering firing the guy, the superintendent's threat of a ban probably saves the kid's job. No way do I allow a school superintendent to decide who covers stories for my paper.

 

I agree with those who say Isaac should not have been fired over this. This had the potential to be a real "teachable moment" for both the reporter and his editor, since they both made errors. But by firing the reporter, all that goes out the window. The teachable moment to the staff: make a mistake, piss off the wrong people and we'll hang you out to dry.
It also gives the powerful people in the community -- not just the superintendent -- the feeling they can dictate the editorial direction of the paper with the proper threats, since newspaper leadership has set a precedent of bowing down to the community.

 

I have a strong suspicion that has been the case for a long time and this would in no way be setting a "precedent."

 

You are probably correct.

 

Early in my career I wrote a lot of sentences I wish I could do over. I'm glad I got the chance, again and again, to learn from them. It's really about maturing as a writer, person and journalist. If you don't have good editors helping you, and guarding the increasingly murky swamp between you and your mistakes being read by the outside world, this is one of the things that can happen.