Spring Break
MU policies inhibit sport journalists
Emile Dawisha
Issue date: 4/17/07 Section: Sports
Athletes may win or lose. But in the world of sports, it's often journalists who get shut out.
The standard-bearers of sports journalism are able to embed themselves in team affairs and come out with the most provocative stories. However, in the four years I've covered Miami University sports, I've learned that due to increased public relations (PR) policing at schools like Miami, to aspire to be an embedded journalist is to indulge in fantasy. This applies especially to student journalists.
Pressrooms have been consumed by a country club culture, in which pizza, pop, joke-telling and stale coach-and-player commentary is in abundant supply. And we student journalists eat that stuff up, all too often regurgitating press release information as sorry excuses for stories.
Buying into this overarching fraternity has corrupted the very essence of investigative sports journalism and has turned many of us - especially student journalists - into wide-eyed, willfully ignorant press cheerleaders.
This culture is safeguarded by the PR people. At Miami, reporters must request interviews with athletes and coaches through the sports information directors (SIDs), a policy which I find completely unnecessary at a mid-major school.
True, every so often, Miami's Athletic Department will become deluged with interview requests - i.e. Ben Roethlisberger's junior season, Miami's hockey team reaching No. 1 nationally in the rankings and Doug Penno's recent buzzer-beater in the MAC championship.
But the vast majority of the time, only a few local newspapers, namely The Miami Student, Hamilton-Journal News and to a lesser extent Cincinnati Enquirer, cover Miami sports on a regular basis, with only a handful of reporters attending press conferences. How many interviews are these players and coaches really fielding?
I can't imagine that Miami quarterback Mike Kokal ever tells himself, "Man, I wish the press would just back up off me."
Nevertheless, public relations has erected a, "Don't call them, they'll call you," barricade between athletes and reporters that at times can seem like the Berlin Wall. On several occasions, requests for interviews have been denied because, "He pitched a bad game and doesn't want to talk to the media," or "He's icing himself up in the locker room. He could be a while."
The standard-bearers of sports journalism are able to embed themselves in team affairs and come out with the most provocative stories. However, in the four years I've covered Miami University sports, I've learned that due to increased public relations (PR) policing at schools like Miami, to aspire to be an embedded journalist is to indulge in fantasy. This applies especially to student journalists.
Pressrooms have been consumed by a country club culture, in which pizza, pop, joke-telling and stale coach-and-player commentary is in abundant supply. And we student journalists eat that stuff up, all too often regurgitating press release information as sorry excuses for stories.
Buying into this overarching fraternity has corrupted the very essence of investigative sports journalism and has turned many of us - especially student journalists - into wide-eyed, willfully ignorant press cheerleaders.
This culture is safeguarded by the PR people. At Miami, reporters must request interviews with athletes and coaches through the sports information directors (SIDs), a policy which I find completely unnecessary at a mid-major school.
True, every so often, Miami's Athletic Department will become deluged with interview requests - i.e. Ben Roethlisberger's junior season, Miami's hockey team reaching No. 1 nationally in the rankings and Doug Penno's recent buzzer-beater in the MAC championship.
But the vast majority of the time, only a few local newspapers, namely The Miami Student, Hamilton-Journal News and to a lesser extent Cincinnati Enquirer, cover Miami sports on a regular basis, with only a handful of reporters attending press conferences. How many interviews are these players and coaches really fielding?
I can't imagine that Miami quarterback Mike Kokal ever tells himself, "Man, I wish the press would just back up off me."
Nevertheless, public relations has erected a, "Don't call them, they'll call you," barricade between athletes and reporters that at times can seem like the Berlin Wall. On several occasions, requests for interviews have been denied because, "He pitched a bad game and doesn't want to talk to the media," or "He's icing himself up in the locker room. He could be a while."
Viewing Comments 1 - 5 of 5
JD Malone
posted 4/17/07 @ 2:47 PM EST
Three cheers Emile.
Emile Dawisha
posted 4/17/07 @ 7:40 PM EST
thx!
Dave
posted 4/17/07 @ 9:37 PM EST
Here is some interesting discussion your article has created:
http://www.miamihawktalk.com/discussion/viewtopic.php?p=371306#371306
Mat
posted 4/17/07 @ 11:25 PM EST
I read those comments on hawktalk. It was nice to see that Clinton Yates is still as condescending and idiotic as ever. Last time I checked wasn't Emile the head of the local SPJ chapter? Doesn't sound like he is exactly lacking in professionalism! And really why can't Shane Montgomery expose his students to Miami Student reporters more? Would it be too much to ask? And what about all the pay for the Miami Redhawks PR machine--what good is all that money if all they do is shut-out student reporters? After all, it's not like Miami has a real team like OSU! Sorry, I couldn't help myself. (Continued…)
Matt Sohn
posted 4/18/07 @ 12:20 AM EST
Whoa... I think it's great to have discourse over columns, but let's stay away from personal attacks of people. Regardless of your feelings about an individual, keep the focus on the issues at hand. (Continued…)
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