- Joined
- Jun 20, 2010
- Messages
- 35,576
- Name
- The Dude
@DJ GELNER
I covered the Rams daily during the "epic" 2011 campaign--Spagnuolo's last season--for insideSTL & 590 (at the time still all-sports).
Despite the awful record, despite the Politburo-like mindset of the old regime out there with regard to the media, despite the ridiculous answers we would get to reasonable questions, I absolutely loved it!
Keep in mind, a lot of times I was up early doing radio spots, researching the week's opponent, then would make the trip out to Rams Park, watch practice, and file a story afterward. Every day of the week (except Saturdays--I worked from home Tuesdays when it's the players' off-day during the season). And then I'd live blog the game on Sunday, wait around after to take interviews, write a post-game column, and have to be up early the next day to talk about the game on air.
If you do it properly, it's a lot of work.
There's a pretty crucial problem, though: no one wants to pay for that kind of coverage. At least when it comes to the Rams.
That season was a labor of love for me--a chance to live out a childhood dream. The pay was low. Really low. It was fine though--I figured with a good season and some exposure, I could start turning it into a more full-time gig the next year.
Then the Rams tanked, interest dwindled, the sponsors bailed on the Rams section, and I wasn't renewed. Not much you can do about that...
In fact, a number of guys covering the team for various outlets also weren't renewed, because quite simply, the money wasn't there. No one wanted to read about (or listen about, or watch about) a bottom-dweller, especially when eyeballs drive revenue.
Still, the TV guys go out there to get their clips. A lot of them moonlight on the radio, so they can discuss what they see out there on air, but each radio station still sends someone to get sound, as far as I know. Keep in mind that the way a radio schedule is arranged, the Rams usually practice across two shows, and don't allow media that arrives late to watch practice (though latecomers can still interview JF and players at the end), so it's tough for a lot of the daily radio show hosts to make it out there consistently.
As far as writing goes, though, it's basically the P-D, Nick writing for ESPN, one of the AP guys, and MAYBE a Fox Sports guy out there any given day. That's it.
Again, it would be great for an enterprising blogger to bootstrap things from the ground up and do it that way, but the NFL (and the Rams) are funny about giving out credentials to people who don't have a tie to an "established" media organization.
How much would you be willing to pay for the type of "in-depth" coverage that you want? Would you pay $20 a year to have someone (or a few people) cover the team day-in and day-out, all through the pre-season, season, and off-season? If so, you'd really only need to connect about 2,000 like-minded people (per reporter) and find some kind of a tie to a mainstream media outlet to do so...and I'd be happy to volunteer.
I do think JT, Nick, Tony and whoever else gets out there do a great job with what they're given in terms of resources and access to the team. Maybe I'm biased because I can "read between the lines" as far as what they're REALLY saying in any given instance, but I think any reasonable, perceptive person can do the same if you listen--really LISTEN--to what they're saying. They can't make it TOO "easy" on people, since being too direct can lead to sources drying up or spreading misinformation (thinking mostly about draft time here). But keep an eye out for subtext, tone, that sort of thing, and you'll start to notice patterns that you had never noticed before, and your knowledge about the team will skyrocket.
I covered the Rams daily during the "epic" 2011 campaign--Spagnuolo's last season--for insideSTL & 590 (at the time still all-sports).
Despite the awful record, despite the Politburo-like mindset of the old regime out there with regard to the media, despite the ridiculous answers we would get to reasonable questions, I absolutely loved it!
Keep in mind, a lot of times I was up early doing radio spots, researching the week's opponent, then would make the trip out to Rams Park, watch practice, and file a story afterward. Every day of the week (except Saturdays--I worked from home Tuesdays when it's the players' off-day during the season). And then I'd live blog the game on Sunday, wait around after to take interviews, write a post-game column, and have to be up early the next day to talk about the game on air.
If you do it properly, it's a lot of work.
There's a pretty crucial problem, though: no one wants to pay for that kind of coverage. At least when it comes to the Rams.
That season was a labor of love for me--a chance to live out a childhood dream. The pay was low. Really low. It was fine though--I figured with a good season and some exposure, I could start turning it into a more full-time gig the next year.
Then the Rams tanked, interest dwindled, the sponsors bailed on the Rams section, and I wasn't renewed. Not much you can do about that...
In fact, a number of guys covering the team for various outlets also weren't renewed, because quite simply, the money wasn't there. No one wanted to read about (or listen about, or watch about) a bottom-dweller, especially when eyeballs drive revenue.
Still, the TV guys go out there to get their clips. A lot of them moonlight on the radio, so they can discuss what they see out there on air, but each radio station still sends someone to get sound, as far as I know. Keep in mind that the way a radio schedule is arranged, the Rams usually practice across two shows, and don't allow media that arrives late to watch practice (though latecomers can still interview JF and players at the end), so it's tough for a lot of the daily radio show hosts to make it out there consistently.
As far as writing goes, though, it's basically the P-D, Nick writing for ESPN, one of the AP guys, and MAYBE a Fox Sports guy out there any given day. That's it.
Again, it would be great for an enterprising blogger to bootstrap things from the ground up and do it that way, but the NFL (and the Rams) are funny about giving out credentials to people who don't have a tie to an "established" media organization.
How much would you be willing to pay for the type of "in-depth" coverage that you want? Would you pay $20 a year to have someone (or a few people) cover the team day-in and day-out, all through the pre-season, season, and off-season? If so, you'd really only need to connect about 2,000 like-minded people (per reporter) and find some kind of a tie to a mainstream media outlet to do so...and I'd be happy to volunteer.
I do think JT, Nick, Tony and whoever else gets out there do a great job with what they're given in terms of resources and access to the team. Maybe I'm biased because I can "read between the lines" as far as what they're REALLY saying in any given instance, but I think any reasonable, perceptive person can do the same if you listen--really LISTEN--to what they're saying. They can't make it TOO "easy" on people, since being too direct can lead to sources drying up or spreading misinformation (thinking mostly about draft time here). But keep an eye out for subtext, tone, that sort of thing, and you'll start to notice patterns that you had never noticed before, and your knowledge about the team will skyrocket.
