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When the Podunk HS scoreboard/scorebook is wrong

Discussion in 'Journalism topics only' started by wisportswriter, Feb 23, 2010.

  1. zonazonazona

    zonazonazona New Member

    Yeah, i'd love to keep my own book if i could, if i weren't, you know in addition to what i'm being paid for, taking photos, typing the story for a deadline 15 minutes after the game ends, and trying to grill a steak under the hood of my car at the same time...
     
  2. pressmurphy

    pressmurphy Member

    You must have a sweet gig to be eating steak. Rest of us are getting by with Chicken McNuggets cooked in motor oil leaking from the V-6.
     
  3. Hank_Scorpio

    Hank_Scorpio Active Member

    He's lying.

    He's really eating Ramen cooked in rainwater, heated on the radiator, collected from the hole in the car roof.
     
  4. Sorry if I wasn't clear. This is what I was talking about ... in the flow of the game do you make an effort with the official scorepeople to correct something you know is wrong?
     
  5. Point of Order

    Point of Order Active Member

    Yes. It's fine.
     
  6. apeman33

    apeman33 Well-Known Member

    I know of an instance about five years ago where a scorekeeper scored a 3-point goal as a 2-pointer and then later on only scored one free throw when the shooter made both. So this person cost this team two points.

    Want to guess how many points the team lost by?

    The catch: It was the home team's scorekeeper that gave their own team the shaft. And from what I heard everyone in the gym knew the score was wrong but there was no way to convince the scorekeeper.
     
  7. Smash Williams

    Smash Williams Well-Known Member

    I had this problem at a college game earlier this year. I went to the home-school SID (I was covering the road team), and he knew it was wrong, the visiting team SID knew it was wrong, both sets of radio guys knew it was wrong. But the scorekeeper insisted he was right, despite both sets of team books reading differently. It wasn't a close game, but it mattered since the team that got shorted ended up with 99 points, so I mentioned it down in the story.

    At a high school game, I might go up to the official scorer at halftime or between quarters "to check my stats" and see where we're different. But if the official scorekeeper continues insists their version is correct, there's not a lot of recourse.
     
  8. Rhody31

    Rhody31 Well-Known Member

    If Red Hot Chili Prepper is around, I believe he has a great story to go along with this.
     
  9. BillySixty

    BillySixty Member

    I guess I'm in the minority here, but I don't think reporters should be involved with the story at any costs. That includes alerting the scorekeeper when there's a mistake. It's not your job to let them know they messed up. It's your job to report what happens. Maybe a wrong score is what happens.

    I've been at games where the clock continues to run after a foul is called. Sometimes the officials ask me if I noted when it was supposed to stop. I always say I don't want to get involved and cover my notes.

    If you think you have the wrong score written down, there's no harm in checking with the official book. But if there's a mistake, you should not bring that to anyone's attention, nor should you be used in any way that would have an outcome on the official result.
     
  10. HanSenSE

    HanSenSE Well-Known Member

    Just curious ... is this something that can be checked via the game video, with observers from both teams present, of course?
     
  11. reformedhack

    reformedhack Well-Known Member

    Generally speaking, you're correct, but there's no harm in asking leading questions. It all depends on how you go about it -- asking questions that might result in corrective measures isn't the same as inserting yourself into the middle and saying, "You're wrong! I was there! I saw it! I'm right! You're wrong!"

    I look at it more as a matter of reporting what really happened (Podunk beat Prep, 99-95) vs. what someone says happened (Podunk beat Prep, 97-95) based on their own ignorance or inattention.

    I'd do the same thing at, let's say, a county commission meeting. If the recording secretary notes that a motion passed by a 5-2 vote, when I saw for myself that it was a 4-3 vote, I'd certainly ask some pointed questions. But I wouldn't make a scene. And I'd certainly note it in my story if it weren't corrected ... or if I weren't corrected.
     
  12. Shoeless Joe

    Shoeless Joe Active Member

    Anyone who knows for a fact something is wrong and doesn't speak up has been to one too many SPJ meetings. You don't have to staring shouting "you've got it wrong" and yelling to the coaches, but there is no problem in saying to the scorekeeper "you might want to check this" or "are you sure" when it could impact the outcome. That's not interfering.

    It's an extreme example, but if you happen to be covering an accident or fire or something where someone is injured and you can help or you could prevent them from being injured do you stand back and say "I don't want to interfere."

    As far as basketball games and baseball games, I do not keep track of fouls or balls/strikes. That way if I'm asked, I can honestly say I don't know.
     
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