I don't know Paul Newberry ...

[Justin_Rice]

... but this paragraph doesn't belong in an AP game story:

"Love him or deride him as a tainted star, Newton certainly has no peer on the field. It’s unlikely that anyone in the country could lead a team back from such a daunting deficit in Tuscaloosa, where Alabama had won 20 in a row."

 

[cjericho]

well Newberry most likely typed all that but someone at the desk in NY sent it.
i would think this goes on journalism board but who knows.

also the 2nd sentence is good.

 

[black dude with pompano]

... but this paragraph doesn't belong in an AP game story:

"Love him or deride him as a tainted star, Newton certainly has no peer on the field. It’s unlikely that anyone in the country could lead a team back from such a daunting deficit in Tuscaloosa, where Alabama had won 20 in a row."

Maybe I'm missing something, but why doesn't this belong in the story?

 

[Justin_Rice]

... but this paragraph doesn't belong in an AP game story:

"Love him or deride him as a tainted star, Newton certainly has no peer on the field. It’s unlikely that anyone in the country could lead a team back from such a daunting deficit in Tuscaloosa, where Alabama had won 20 in a row."

Maybe I'm missing something, but why doesn't this belong in the story?

It's a game story. ... a game story now with the writer's opinion interjected that Cam Newton has "no peer on the field," and that only Cam Newton could have led a comeback against Alabama today.

Apparently Paul Newberry has a magic machine which allowed him to simulate the game a hundred times over, substituting every every other quarterback in the country for Cam Newton, and thus proving that only Cam Newton could have won that game.

You're an AP writer, writing for an audience of more than just Auburn fanbois. Save the opinion for your blog.


Forgive my rant, and thank God for the cheating allegations that have helped subdue this year's "Cam Newton is the next Tim Tebow" campaign.

 

[Bob Cook]

I have met Paul Newberry on several occasions thanks to my wife's former employment at the AP. Love him or deride him, Newberry has few peers in being nice, funny and a very good writer on very tight deadlines.

 

[MileHigh]

Perhaps so. Too much opinion for a gamer.

 

[John]

I like Paul a lot, but I was a little surprised when I read that. I believe it disappeared in the write-thru.

 

[bydesign77]

I follow Paul on FB, have met him several times when I was in the biz. He probably made a mistake writing that. He typically has solid judgment and writes tight and well 99 percent of the time.

Not to mention he's quite the work horse.

 

[Justin_Rice]

I follow Paul on FB, have met him several times when I was in the biz. He probably made a mistake writing that. He typically has solid judgment and writes tight and well 99 percent of the time.

Not to mention he's quite the work horse.

I've got nothing negative to say about Paul .... just didn't like this particular paragraph, which of course I'm free to edit out.

Got it out for AP lately. ... last Sunday's Redskins-Titans gamer was completely taken over by the Vince Young-is-a-crybaby sideshow, which really didn't help us serve our readers here in Redskins country.

 

[Moderator1]

Paul: Very good guy, very good at his job. Which doesn't take away from Justin's point in any way. I just don't happen to agree with Justin on this one.

I had no problem with it. This ain't the old days. (I also think he is right - Newton has no peer on the field).

 

[playthrough]

Ditto on the good-guyness. But if that's the gamer, it's out of place, in my opinion.

But hey, it's good to have something to discuss about the craft.

 

[murphyc]

Justin, glad you brought this up. I read the game and thought there was a bit too much opinion in it, glad I wasn't the only one thinking that.
That is not to say Paul is a bad writer at all. Never met the guy, but had seen plenty of his stories over the years and not really noticed something like this.

 

[Smasher_Sloan]

Several years ago, AP had a big push to take the "AP-ness" out of game stories. I would imagine that's even more prevalent today.

My guess is the portion cited got him an "attaboy" from HQ rather than a rebuke.

 

[playthrough]

I had no idea about that, Smasher. Interesting.

 

[Gonna Buy me a Dog]

Several years ago, AP had a big push to take the "AP-ness" out of game stories. I would imagine that's even more prevalent today.

My guess is the portion cited got him an "attaboy" from HQ rather than a rebuke.

If it disappeared in the write-thru, then I guess HQ didn't approve.

Personally, I didn't like it. I'm all for sprucing up AP gamers, but that is an awfully broad generalization.

 

[Smasher_Sloan]

Or if it disappeared in the writethru (and I don't know that it did) it could be that Newberry dumped it himself because he believed the same point was made in a quote by someone else.

I don't know the details of this case.

But I can tell you that the AP has been on a crusade to wring the AP formula out of their stories. Perhaps someone who works for them can chime in on that.

 

[HanSenSE]

I've noticed the same, Smasher, and there are times when it's welcome. Perhaps not in a rivalry game, though.

 

[Pencil Dick]

Uh, perhaps I'm missing something here, but it's pretty damn hard to argue that the paragraph in question ISN'T true. The kid at Oregon is a good player, but Newton's done it against opponents from the best conference in the country week after week.

I didn't have a problem with it.

Also, I know Paul well enough to call him by his nickname - "Scooter" - on the rare occasions we run into each other.

 

[accguy]

What I don't know about this case is what version of the game story was this.

Was this the gamer filed at the gun? Or was it in the optional?

Writing a full game story at the gun is not a picnic -- especially when you need to write the winner. It's much easier if you only care about one team, but even that isn't super easy.

All that said, I don't have a major problem with the paragraph. The first sentence could be have been softened just a touch, but I think the second sentence is totally fine.

Part of the job of the writer is to provide perspective in a game story (or at least it should be). This wasn't just any comeback led by just any QB. That needs to be explained.

To the people who don't think it belongs, what if it said this:

"Love him or deride him as a tainted star, Newton has few peers on the field. It’s unlikely that many in the country could lead a team back from such a daunting deficit in Tuscaloosa, where Alabama had won 20 in a row."

 

[Frank_Ridgeway]

I'm OK with this. I don't mind when a gamer offers an assessment that is descriptive. I consider it crossing the opinion line when it suggests an action ought to follow or should have followed -- give someone the Heisman, fire a coach, bench a player.