tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-86732677250976781582024-03-18T20:55:45.353-07:00Morty's Sporty Blog"The one constant through all the years, Ray, has been baseball. America has rolled by like an army of steamrollers. It has been erased like a blackboard, rebuilt and erased again. But baseball has marked the time. This field, this game: it's a part of our past, Ray. It reminds of us of all that once was good and it could be again."-James Earl Jones as Terrence Mann from "Field of Dreams"Sparkyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11429849085978166498noreply@blogger.comBlogger28125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8673267725097678158.post-73296008382582553422009-08-21T20:58:00.000-07:002009-08-23T12:10:48.793-07:00Summer of Sports ReadingI always complain that I never have free time to read casually. This summer, I decided to change that. I knew I had a busy summer ahead of me, what with working 40 hours a week at the MTC in addition to my wedding and such, but I was confident I could get a couple of books read over the summer.<br /><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><br /><div>You might say I surprised myself.<br /></div><br /><div>From May 1 to August 31, I will have completed TWELVE books. All but one of them are sports-related, so I figured this would be an appropriate forum to let you know what I thought about them. For my review of the non-sporty book, <a href="http://daveandhollymort.blogspot.com/2009/08/dollar-store-book-review-desperate_05.html">check out the married blog</a>.</div><br /><div>As for the other eleven, here they are, in the order in which they were read (At least, I think it's right):<br /><br /><em>1. A-Rod: The Many Lives of Alex Rodriguez</em> by Selena Roberts<br /></div><div>Oy...<a href="http://mortysportyblog.blogspot.com/2009/05/book-review-many-lives-of-alex.html">I've already written about this book</a>. Let's just look at a funny ad instead, eh?</div><div> </div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373235117130472594" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 310px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwkyKUH5bGey957kmpwexS3DfqEFxBYrIn-0aLNGOBsbpxyVsb1_qcAdlLn0qa3qVUyBhU_RW0mLmQatiCj76b4bw0PoVI-fJExwXhJ_8z_ssMDJtHcg3zR_4ZH353pc6ayCIJ0Kt-G58/s400/ARodCup.jpg" border="0" /><br /><div><em>2. American Icon: The Fall of Roger Clemens and the Rise of Steroids in America's Pastime</em> by the <em>New York Daily News</em> Sports Investigative Team</div><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373234603065952114" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 208px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyVm-OXQE_ChJpOU_r1-JkJeLeFSB8uFkiXwfOP3nmjeEYKcl1t2c4KnbHCUsFIppn78e5xbecnhOwYeFbSe2QL97bQJu4JVRzrDjHKIZ1xqnKyITzhSKHMrX37qGTKAIB64zcpDHlHfo/s320/american_icon.jpg" border="0" />This was an engrossing read. Clemens is in the title and on the cover, but he is not the only one whose dirty laundry is aired within the pages. The back stories of unsavory characters like Brian McNamee, Kirk Radomski, Jason Grimsley, Rusty Hardin and many others are intended to give the reader a sense of just how deeply steroids dug into both baseball and the well-being of the steroids dealers and their associates themselves.<br /><br /><div><em>3. The Teammates</em> by David Halberstam<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373235783558549762" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 211px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR45uX9F59ZUOGuf82AKpSZaUP3eeyMnPqBnDfOY_UPLDYTjUrB3hkCwQfGaWDuHLEWeC96lOHO4d94G28KsBI49R-m5M4qMk_g15D2uHjItvf6IzrL3fIRhvTS5p0hiuEy2Lf5XwnLPc/s320/teammates_topstory.jpg" border="0" />After wading through the muck of a couple of scandal-based books, this was a nice change of pace. Bobby Doerr, Dom DiMaggio, Johnny Pesky and the immortal Ted Williams were four men who were clearly destined to be together. This recollection of decades-old stories frames the tragic motivation for their compilation: the imminent death of the Splendid Splinter in Florida. No mention of the cryogenic freezing, though. Probably for the best.</div><br /><div><em>4. The Yankee Years</em> by Joe Torre and Tom Verducci</div><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373234622289537842" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 212px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIw8qlLVR9k515klBJCALdRw0nPIjcsOlmyDSZ-A5Vxf1JHajnSEgoxNEfQaelhuqeKzjoC2URhkCfAaCaaZgKGI2QsFDBSZG8Wug6f021qvX6PfYljZSz5Tw_wXEcyxUsPVzwd_UEUag/s320/book_cover2.jpg" border="0" />A definitive history of the first dynasty I vividly remember as told by its ringmaster. The stories are straightforward: the book starts the week Torre is hired and ends when he refuses to take the Yanks' diminished offer. Lots of in-depth interviews with Torre's players also make this a very vivid story. My personal favorites were David Cone and the Captain, Derek <span style="font-size:78%;">Derek </span><span style="font-size:100%;">Jeter </span><span style="font-size:78%;">Jeter.</span><br /><br /><div>5. <em>Game of Shadows</em> by Mark Fainaru-Wada and Lance Williams<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373235774490680290" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 218px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO0IgXNHCN_G3rNLjP9eSxNWczfWLwSPgxyjdlBD0_weyLQ15lERgxvZSeW9Pr01DoLANBKZDJnUUsJJOhU7_3m_Biglk4Lg-JOkDXxLGWSpJmfjN1SX1GrvEaJHZrEhubazWwOnf0uAI/s320/game_of_shadows_pb_lg.jpg" border="0" /><br />The book that started it all. I saw it in hardcover on a bargain rack at Barnes and Noble for $6 and gobbled it up immediately. If you already hate Barry Bonds, this book will thoroughly satisfy you. Victor Conte and his BALCO cronies don't come off any sweeter; slimier would be an appropriate word.<br /></div><br /><div>6. <em>Hideki Matsui: Sportsmanship, Modesty, and the Art of the Home Run</em> by Shizuka Ijuin</div><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373235749625067698" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 170px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 258px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrSAsqHPMmsEy7JStX6QL3TIBsFd5trG3idiy3e9RLScGvxrj5gyWGoxl7dr0cVMMXe1KFiOUSVVgD-lwQfeHuVsbcCLF4dP65juC1rTCAJCBbJApJW99CNZA-O24ZtyRoviSAtqPyCY4/s320/cover.gif" border="0" />In addition to winning the "Most Intriguing Title" award, this skinny Dollar Tree find is very Japanese: succinct, honorable, modest, and interestingly translated. Maybe it's just because the author is a close personal friend of Godzilla's, but Matsui is essentially beatified throughout as the most honorable Japanese man in America.<br /><br /><div>7. <em>Man in the Middle</em> by John Amaechi</div></div><div><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373237921866976482" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 202px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_Tyr0bS5wHc4DFewl6lsula4l4HGLAtA2Gu83pO1IVXBguSHQD938dxsVrLZxA67hGKANuOaPb_BC6FC-OPF4EUZqVnSrACZl9IRRKIjaZiTmdShxqXbzIUYbQOAId_IxvlIVQj-5nRg/s320/388138957_b03eb908ba_o.jpg" border="0" />Another Dollar Tree pick-up. I remember the firestorm when this book first came out: <em>A pro athlete coming out of the closet? </em>I bought it specifically to see how he handled being in the SLC during his tank job with the Jazz. (He blames it entirely on not meshing with Jerry Sloan's abrasive coaching style. The lesson: Don't let large, sensitive, gay British men near Jerry Sloan. He will single-handedly force them to <a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/a/amaecjo01.html">average 3.2 points and 2.0 rebounds per game</a>...or less.)<br /><br /><div>8. <em>The Punch</em> by John Feinstein<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373237927656321090" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 209px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZRFj11QlRuwwPXmky1Z28OG59TbpffP3GLa3iTJFz5DW3zw8V_sLxw2YxKKPRBowOWokVBWH7_dy8AKkciEcXFP_O3OUWu6YzxqbqPy5Z2r8dhrbs98ZZ_2A0PRi72j22GcgekC_6wMM/s320/x20991.jpg" border="0" />My first Feinstein, which is a Dollar Tree find from nearly two years ago now. Not the smoothest read, but I was amazed that Feinstein could get over 350 pages out of a vicious blow that landed in less than a second. It is a study in contrast: Rudy T's rise to prominence as the Rockets' head coach, and Kermit Washington's fall from grace that has reverberated in his inability to both find an NBA head coaching job and maintain his marriage.</div><br /><div>9. <em>Friday Night Lights</em> by H.G. Bissinger</div><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373235760671568210" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh36JXWFy6ANibHzXRAGfoMPMM_BrnxOsRriOE4AXK9ULG-8OQAiuDrKJ_65DxU5xK5K1KuD7rMA7Ko3Ex9PHw-cRP-d5TmhrQLasjeJyGqbICciSlEMT8AF_z20XhjCqj9pZYbuIZtvRI/s320/friday_night_lights.jpg" border="0" />I bought this from a bargain pile in the BYU Bookstore about two years ago and just now got around to it. I wish I had gotten to it sooner. The book vividly reminded me of the small Texas towns I served in during my mission. The human element in the machine that is Permian High football (and, really, Texas high school football as a whole) is at times heroic and at times tragic. A fascinating study of a small town's struggles to fulfill big-time aspirations.<br /><br /><div>10. <em>Why Not Us? The 86-Year Journey of the Boston Red Sox Fans from Unparalleled Suffering to the Promised Land of the 2004 World Series</em> by Leigh Montville<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373235789192024594" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 214px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ4yPRkF5-W32OiLPhpJM-k45ZSIFMuDkhgGvBvl91fyl4SacbGiJpaUVp5j7VyfE2JIeLFOtTr405l6m1CSJMi8Kyq1QOVrRueHT-mOnH_QCjzuU7-2CNemNOYO0IhosFHW6Li2HuuMw/s320/untitled.bmp" border="0" /></div><div>Yet another Dollar Tree find. I'm glad I found it there, because I would have been upset with myself if I had bought it for $22.95 when it first came out. For me, this quick mash-up just wasn't memorable. You can tell the fans' stories were mashed together very quickly to get this book on the shelves. Maybe I couldn't get into it because I'm a bitter Cubs fan. Oh, well...</div><br /><div>11. <em>Turning of the Tide: How One Game Changed the South</em> by Don Yaeger with Sam Cunningham and John Papadakis.</div><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373233380496079522" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL5bpQjgWDHBoWXSvGtcLHSS_-h95QPKbNY4lNrDqMefZTLCu-SExwCYefyHA2nodfUphXftQO-4d7TC2yTTjATtR9OeMv2_MuJKqpnXmy0sQ6bz5Woj63_pTGU6TrUXj3_peFhDsxmoI/s320/1931722943-z.jpg" border="0" />This was a Wal-Mart $4 purchase. I don't know why I've been so intrigued with the blending of race and sports, but this book is a nice blend of the two. Plus, it's getting me excited for the impending college football season. As I said with Feinstein earlier, I am constantly amazed that writers can get so much material out of just one game or one moment.<br /><br /><div>Now school is starting and the leisure reading will probably stop for the foreseeable future. My next great read? Not sure yet, but you'll hear about it when it happens.</div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Sparkyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11429849085978166498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8673267725097678158.post-20518664495294016462009-08-17T22:15:00.000-07:002009-08-19T22:23:41.211-07:00GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG!<a href="http://secondstringsports.files.wordpress.com/2009/06/kevin-gregg.jpg"><img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 357px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 425px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://secondstringsports.files.wordpress.com/2009/06/kevin-gregg.jpg" border="0" /></a> What can you buy for $4.2 million? I googled it. <a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=%244.2+million&aq=f&oq=&aqi=g1">No, really, I did</a>! Some of my personal favorites: <a href="http://www.pawnation.com/2009/04/28/4-2-million-dog-tiara-puts-the-bark-in-the-bling/">a dog tiara</a>, a whole mess of <a href="http://www.thepeterboroughexaminer.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1703768">pot and pot-growing equipment </a>in Canada, and a shady <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?sid=aG3eP.SrJ9O8&pid=20601088">painting</a> found in an attic. <div><div> </div><div>But no.....the Cubs found something else to spend that kind of money on:</div><br /><div><a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?playerId=5641">Kevin Freaking Gregg</a>.</div><br /><div></div><div>Yeah, yeah. I know it seems like he's still having a better year than Kerry Wood. I know he has 23 saves compared to Kerry Wood's 15 in Cleveland. I know he has 58 strikeouts in 58 appearances and that his WHIP is .08 lower than Woody.</div><br /><div></div><div>I dug deeper tonight after <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Greggers</span> got shellacked by the <a href="http://scores.espn.go.com/mlb/recap?gameId=290817125">LAST PLACE PADRES</a>!</div><br /><div></div><div>Blown Saves: Wood, 5. Gregg, 6.<br /></div><div>Hits allowed: Wood, 37. Gregg, 50.</div><br /><div></div><div>Runs allowed: Wood, 22. Gregg, 30.</div><br /><div></div><div>Losses: Wood, 3. Gregg, 5.</div><br /><div></div><div>Here's the kicker that reared its ugly head tonight in the form of Kyle (Don't call him Billy) Blanks:</div><br /><div></div><div>Home Runs Allowed: Wood, 7. Gregg, 12!</div><br /><div></div><div>12 Home Runs for a closer?!? Unacceptable. Especially when you consider that FOUR have come in August, in addition to three of the six blown saves.</div><br /><div></div><div>At least Gregg has the chutzpah to admit it: </div><br /><div></div><div>"It's just making stupid mistakes. Seeing something in a hitter and not executing it. The bottom line is getting people out. It doesn't matter how you do it. I could throw underhand. If they get out, I don't care. They hit three line drives and they're out, I don't care. The biggest thing is just getting people out and I didn't today."</div><br /><div>Hold off on that underhand, buddy. Please.</div><br /><div>Just to put it in perspective, <a href="http://espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?playerId=5580">Kevin <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Correia</span></a>, the Padres' starter tonight, has also given up 12 home runs this season. He, however, has pitched 140.2 innings as opposed to Gregg's 56.1 innings. It's not like <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Correia</span> is <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Lincecum</span>-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">esque</span> or anything. He's 8-9 with a 4.41 ERA.</div><br /><div>I admire Sweet Lou's refusal to take this lightly: </div><br /><div>"I think we are going to make some changes as far as what we're going to do late innings. We'll see what we do. I'm going to think about it tonight."</div><br /><div>Trouble is, who else do we have? <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Marmol's</span> stuff has fizzled. Maybe we can move <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Dempster</span> out of the rotation? Angel Guzman?</div><br /><div>Whatever the answer is, the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Cubbies</span> need to find it.</div><br /><div>Fast.</div></div>Sparkyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11429849085978166498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8673267725097678158.post-24366441348634917132009-08-13T20:27:00.000-07:002009-08-13T21:32:26.554-07:00Slick Like Vick<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj98Mw1hdri-O7SkYIYfouXf5RrDLfvDSBhj6E3cFpkf9eEPSCYkEMPs0OFCwe5RUmwfusxOGQYpTNrKMFfdL1r-0TlQQVZZqxlJmEsSQty7J90rUJs_VG5-ShhA0tZQVrsZE2GfEfJJLk/s1600-h/vick_01.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5369661648599881650" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 364px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj98Mw1hdri-O7SkYIYfouXf5RrDLfvDSBhj6E3cFpkf9eEPSCYkEMPs0OFCwe5RUmwfusxOGQYpTNrKMFfdL1r-0TlQQVZZqxlJmEsSQty7J90rUJs_VG5-ShhA0tZQVrsZE2GfEfJJLk/s400/vick_01.jpg" border="0" /></a> Photo Courtesy of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Deadspin</span><br /><br /><em>Q: If an animal attacks a PETA supporter, do the rest of the PETA people have to stand there and watch it happen so as not to hurt the animal? Or, would the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">attackee</span> even want to be saved because if he was saved, he would be interrupting the animal's meal?</em><br /><p>This question was posed by an <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Edmontonite</span> named Ronnie <a href="http://proxy.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=simmons/040716">in a mailbag column</a> by Bill Simmons back in 2004. Any time anyone references PETA for any reason, this question pops into my head and I have a good chuckle.</p><p>Let's just say I've had plenty of reasons to chuckle tonight.</p><p><a href="http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5i9MWFBqsCgMR4ys-PkJog4BDd2BQD9A2DJG80">Michael Vick is headed to the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Illadelph</span></a> with a two-year contract. Understandably, the most commonly-used adjective thus far has been "shocked". Listening to the Brian Kenny show on ESPN Radio on my way home from picking up dinner, the reaction was mixed. Some fans were <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">geeked</span>, one said he was turning in his season tickets.</p><p>Here's why I think this is a good move for Michael Vick:</p><p>The Eagles are one of the most stable franchises in a city full of incredibly faithful fans, no matter how boisterously they may boo some days. The team is already full of athletes and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">playmakers</span>: Donovan <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">McNabb</span>, Brian Westbrook, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">DeSean</span> Jackson, and the rookie Jeremy <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Maclin</span>, among others. Despite all of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Andy</span> Reid's so-called struggles, he has shown that he can get all he can from his players. (Well, almost...but really, has ANYONE put a leash on T.O.?)</p><p><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">Anyhoo</span>, Vick can be useful in that kind of system and may be a missing piece to the Eagles' Super Bowl puzzle. They do have to confront the Falcons in Atlanta, however, on December 6. What a reunion that would be...</p><p>PETA, of course, has already said their piece through spokesman Dan Shannon:</p><p>"PETA and millions of decent football fans around the world are disappointed that the Eagles decided to sign a guy who hung dogs from trees. He electrocuted them with jumper cables and held them under water. You have to wonder what sort of message this sends to young fans who care about animals and don't want them to be harmed."</p><p>As much as young Philly fans surely love puppies, they and their daddies would probably love a Super Bowl trophy a little bit more.</p><p>By the way, the answer to that question to start the column? Here it is from the Sports Guy himself:</p><p><em>I'm afraid to say anything right now. Those PETA people are like <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">Scientologists</span> -- you don't even want to look cross-eyed at them. They're terrifying.</em></p><p>**Chuckle**</p>Sparkyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11429849085978166498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8673267725097678158.post-52104511294551655542009-08-12T21:38:00.000-07:002009-08-12T21:58:43.366-07:00Wait 'Til Next Year Already?<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNmuDpC8NGR5OLP_0FttxzCwVAcrtRcGFj3SNY5x8BEKxSIuDcWXdJKt8nGfa5r4MhMvxTZMb52qcZA0eoJamIBJDPRXB3nSf_7DYpEhV8dkQ_P_xGzJJ2FiLCb94rgBXCMO1dGD1gJpI/s1600-h/raul-ibanez-beer-wrigley-thumb-660x562-10524.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5369308247768267170" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 341px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNmuDpC8NGR5OLP_0FttxzCwVAcrtRcGFj3SNY5x8BEKxSIuDcWXdJKt8nGfa5r4MhMvxTZMb52qcZA0eoJamIBJDPRXB3nSf_7DYpEhV8dkQ_P_xGzJJ2FiLCb94rgBXCMO1dGD1gJpI/s400/raul-ibanez-beer-wrigley-thumb-660x562-10524.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>With Holly's recent health scares, you would think I haven't had much time to contemplate on things like sports. Truth be told, it's soothing to think about sports instead of stressing <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">out while</span> Holly is sleeping or resting.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>Well, at least until I think about the Cubs' last week or so.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>Maybe it's dumb bad luck, maybe it's a just couple of potent offenses back to back; I don't know exactly what it is, but the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Cubbies</span> are scuffling. </div><br /><div></div><br /><div>Four losses in a row, seven games dropped over the last ten, a thorough shellacking by the Rockies for three out of four games, a schooling by a 37 year-old in his first Major League start in NEARLY A YEAR, and the impending threat of Cliff Lee on the bump against them tomorrow.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Yeesh</span>.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>It makes <a href="http://deadspin.com/5336293/stay-classy-cubs-fans">the golden shower </a>laid on The <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Flyin</span>' Hawaiian Shane <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Victorino</span> tonight almost justifiable. Almost.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Looking</span> at the<a href="http://espn.go.com/mlb/teams/schedule?team=chc"> schedule for the rest of August</a>, though, gives me a glimmer of hope still: home with Pittsburgh Lite, @ San Diego, @ Dodgers, home against the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Nats</span> and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Mets</span> and starting a series against the '<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Stros</span>. Having a good run heading into September can give us the momentum we need.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>Maybe.</div>Sparkyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11429849085978166498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8673267725097678158.post-63433521971091394632009-07-27T21:32:00.000-07:002009-07-27T21:47:12.438-07:00The Fightin' Primobolans Daily Update: 7/27/09Holly and I went to the new Texas Roadhouse in <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Lehi</span> tonight, so I'm surprised I even have the wherewithal to type, but I guess I found a way. <div><br /><div>A new week, and a huge <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">matchup</span> of division leaders got started tonight! Let's rate the best and the worst from Monday, Monday.</div><br /><div>MVP-Tim <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Lincecum</span>, San Francisco Giants-9 <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">IP</span>, 0 ER, 4 H, 3 BB, 15 K</div><img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 326px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://www.mlbfrontoffice.com/uploaded_images/preset_tim-2-748708.jpg" border="0" /></div><br /><p>Wow. I tell you what, wow. The Freak strikes again with another dominant performance. Granted, it was against the usually toothless <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Bucs</span>, but 15 strikeouts is what it is. I am so glad I took this guy with my first pick.</p><p><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">LVP</span>-Felix Hernandez, Seattle Mariners-5.2 <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">IP</span>, 11 H, 7 ER, 1 BB, 2 K</p><img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 580px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 326px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://assets.espn.go.com/photo/2008/0624/fantasy_a_hernandez_580.jpg" border="0" /><br /><p>Who knew the Jays could make King Felix hurt nearly as bad as this? Couldn't even muster more than 2 K's. OUCH!</p>Sparkyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11429849085978166498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8673267725097678158.post-57598111273838156692009-07-26T18:20:00.000-07:002009-07-26T19:10:44.021-07:00The Fightin' Primobolans Weekend Update and Week in Review: 7/25-26/09Got home late from a fondue function in Sandy last night, so didn't get a chance to update. SO, I'll double dip today, along with providing the new feature: The Week in Review!<br /><div><div><div><br /><div>Let's get to Saturday's action:<br /></div><div>MVP-Gavin Floyd, Chicago White <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Sox</span>-6.2 <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">IP</span>, 6 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 7 K</div><div><br /> </div></div><div><img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 275px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 235px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://thevinceblackshow.mlblogs.com/gavin%20floyd.jpg" border="0" />Not the smoothest line of the day (adding to the fact the bullpen blew the win), but the 7 strikeouts are the reason I keep this guy around. He has 7 K's in each of his last three starts, and just crossed the 100 strikeout mark for the season. </div><div><br /></div><div><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">LVP</span>-Mike Cameron, Milwaukee Brewers-0/3, R</div><div><br /></div><img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/images/02/11/p1_cameron.jpg" border="0" />Only three hits this whole week for Cameron. Might be on the way out unless he gets hot soon.<br /><br /><div>Now for the best and worst from Sunday!<br /></div><br /><div>MVP-Justin <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Morneau</span>, Minnesota Twins-2/4, 2 HR, 3 RBI, 2 R<br /></div><br /><div></div><img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://zkonedog.mlblogs.com/Morneau.jpg" border="0" />An emphatic exclamation point to cap a sensational week for <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Morneau</span>. Doing it at the expense of the red-hot Angels makes it even more impressive. He may just end up as the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Primobolans</span>' season MVP.</div><div><br /><div><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">LVP</span>-Ryan <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Ludwick</span>, St. Louis Cardinals-0/4</div><div><br /></div><div><img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 580px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 326px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://assets.espn.go.com/photo/2008/0518/fantasy_i_ludwick_580.jpg" border="0" /></div><div>Russell <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Branyan</span> went 0/4, too, but I'll always take slighting a Cardinal any day. I drafted <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Ludwick</span>, dropped him when he got hurt, and then picked him up again about two weeks ago. He's done OK since then, but not enough to keep the Cubs out of first place in the Central (<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">Whoo</span>-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">hoo</span>!)</div><div><br /></div><div>And now, let's take a look at the week that was with THE WEEK IN REVIEW!</div><div><br /></div><div>A huge Monday set the pace for a dominating week for the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">Primobolans</span>. Even though the final score against the Utah Lint Trap was 6-4, <a href="http://games.espn.go.com/flb/boxscorefull?leagueId=90515&teamId=7&scoringPeriodId=113&seasonId=2009&view=scoringperiod&version=full">the numbers weren't that close</a>. This is the 6<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">th</span> straight weekly win for the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">Primobolans</span>, still tied for the division lead with the almost equally hot 92. With Movement, who wrapped up their 5<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">th</span> straight win today.<br /></div><div>Now for the coronation for the MVP of the Week!</div><div><br /></div><div>Justin <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_16">Morneau</span>, Minnesota Twins-.333 AVG, 5 HR, 11 RBI, 8 R in 7 games</div><div><br /></div><div></div><img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 353px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 346px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://minnesota.publicradio.org/collections/special/columns/baseball/morneau-05a.jpg" border="0" />Can you believe this guy fell to me in the 4<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_17">th</span> round? Two multi-homer games this week were enough for <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_18">Morneau</span> to beat out Ryan <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_19">Braun</span> for the award.</div><div> </div><div>Next Up: A HUGE <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_20">matchup</span> against fellow division leader GAME OVER.<br /><div></div><br /><div></div></div></div>Sparkyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11429849085978166498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8673267725097678158.post-19068623418853418962009-07-24T22:37:00.000-07:002009-07-24T22:46:29.757-07:00The Fightin' Primobolans Daily Update: 7/24/09<div><div>Went to the Owlz game with Holly tonight. Check out the pics on our married blog: <a href="http://daveandhollymort.blogspot.com/">http://daveandhollymort.blogspot.com/</a></div><br /><div>Meanwhile, here's the update!</div><br /><div>Most Valuable Player: Ryan Braun, Milwaukee Brewers-2/3, HR, 2 RBI, 1 R</div><div> </div><img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 510px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 340px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://www.uncoached.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/braun-seeds.jpg" border="0" /><br /><br /><div>The Braves beat the snot out of them, 9-4, but Braun landed one in the seats to try and make it respectable for the Brew Crew. They, like the Cubbies, have to be groaning about the addition of Matt Holliday to the Cards. Grr.....</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>Least Valuable Player: Brandon Inge, Detroit Tigers-1/7, 1 R (2 games)</div><div> </div><img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 416px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/42254000/jpg/_42254620_brandoninge416.jpg" border="0" /><br /><div>Word on the street is he has a torn left patella tendon, but says he is playing through it and can hit 15 more homers this season. Just get more than one hit in a double-dip, and you and I are just fine, Brandon.</div></div>Sparkyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11429849085978166498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8673267725097678158.post-79604846075995040462009-07-23T21:31:00.000-07:002009-07-24T22:48:09.646-07:00The Fightin' Primobolans Daily Update: 7/23/09Thursdays are one of my more favorite days. Even though I start my first shift at 8 AM, I get off at Noon and then have a three-hour break until my second shift. Usually, this break is pretty uneventful: clean around the house, a bite of lunch, lounge around, etc. <div> </div><div></div><div></div><div>Today, though, I got to catch the 9<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">th</span> inning of Mark <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Buehrle's</span> perfect game on ESPN. I literally jumped off the couch when <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">DeWayne</span> Wise make his SPECTACULAR catch in left center. One of the best catches ever, given the circumstances. Big ups to everyone around.</div><div> </div><div></div><div></div><div>Now, let's get to the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Primobolan</span> update!</div><div> </div><div></div><div></div><div>Most Valuable Player-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Yeesh</span>! Pretty bland day across <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Primobolan</span>-ville. Aw, what the heck? He isn't one of us, but we'll give it to him anyway!</div><div> </div><div></div><div></div><div>Mark <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Buehrle</span>, Chicago White <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Sox</span>-9 <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">IP</span>, 0 H, 0 BB, 0 ER, 6 K</div><div> </div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5361880884729026914" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMZaz62La0bnkNt3-u77XPWXnP1tBtRcCNxp7rxBz3Zht7M2yJSiywdG6T-Er5JplSU6alhXMHHiPR-cCdNknnqK4BqCf4eAHZO5GvSXZAUIC9sbRB7m_wSuRvRnd1X6W7jD_rJ2ABx5I/s400/ap_white_sox_090723_mn.jpg" border="0" /></div><div>The first perfect game I ever remember was Kenny Rogers for the Rangers in 1994. I remember it mostly for Rusty Greer's circus catch to save it in the 9<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">th</span>. This one will be stored in the memory bank for a while, too, thanks to Mr. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">DeWayne</span> Wise. Hope <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">Buehrle</span> hooks you up with <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">somethin</span>' nice.</div><div> </div><div></div><div></div><div>Least Valuable Player-Russell <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">Branyan</span>, Seattle Mariners-0/4 against the Tigers</div><div>No one really did much of anything today, but <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">Branyan</span> got schooled by pitchers names French, Perry and Ni. Ouch. That puts you in <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">LVP</span> territory.</div>Sparkyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11429849085978166498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8673267725097678158.post-35921812451986752262009-07-22T22:52:00.000-07:002009-07-22T23:23:02.290-07:00The Fightin' Primobolans Daily Update: 7/22/09<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwGadr3J0xxXaIi1wAjDBuG4pKLVoW7ec3Z1weT1DCn1PBjzlo5OkoGWx8iw1w2H5lj1p4rBxlSSNjtZifecVw7eLHhALEcfIhUIGv2UqlhbVnq9hPSPqAsShfKQXdXMHLEZbUBy2Rj1s/s1600-h/ALeqM5irYjtZpJU3k2aWaynoxLyZFAnpWw.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5361535244216861442" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 283px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwGadr3J0xxXaIi1wAjDBuG4pKLVoW7ec3Z1weT1DCn1PBjzlo5OkoGWx8iw1w2H5lj1p4rBxlSSNjtZifecVw7eLHhALEcfIhUIGv2UqlhbVnq9hPSPqAsShfKQXdXMHLEZbUBy2Rj1s/s400/ALeqM5irYjtZpJU3k2aWaynoxLyZFAnpWw.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>I have an ESPN Fantasy Baseball team lovingly named The Fightin' Primobolans. I currently hold an 11-4 record, tied for 1st in the Yuri Sucart division. I figured I could use this blog to praise the players who do me good from day to day, and vent about those who came up a bit short.</div><br /><div>Without further ado, here's the winners and losers from today, July 22:</div><br /><div>Most Valuable Player: Marco Scutaro, Toronto Blue Jays-2/4, 2 HR, 4 RBI, 2 R</div><br /><div>I've had Marco since the second week of the regular season, and he's been a real diamond in the rough. Not someone with overpowering numbers, but someone who is consistent. Plus, he's eligible at 2nd, 3rd and Shortstop, adding to the team's flexibility. Tonight was his first multi-hit game since the All-Star break, but he sure made the most of it.</div><br /><div>Least Valuable Player: Ryan Franklin, St. Louis Cardinals-L, BS, 0.2 IP, 4 H, 2 ER</div><br /><div>I traded Mariano Rivera for Franklin about a month or so into the season. Mariano has been phenomenally consistent. Franklin had been, too, until tonight. The Astros just beat the snot out of him tonight. Hopefully, this is just a one-time aberration.</div>Sparkyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11429849085978166498noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8673267725097678158.post-21163992256186286602009-05-10T21:30:00.000-07:002009-07-12T13:45:11.150-07:00Book Review: "A-Rod: The Many Lives of Alex Rodriguez" by Selena Roberts<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.latina.com/files/0505arod_article.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 362px; height: 261px;" src="http://www.latina.com/files/0505arod_article.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Sports Illustrated</span> writer Selena Roberts' report on Alex Rodriguez's steroid use from 2001-2003 and Rodriguez's subsequent confession created a media firestorm this past February. If you scroll down long enough, you'll find my reactions to the whole saga, particularly ESPN's <span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">exclusive</span></span> interview with the Yankees slugger.<br /><br />The latest product of that firestorm is in the form of a (blatantly) unauthorized biography of Rodriguez as written by Roberts herself entitled <span style="font-style: italic;">A-Rod: The Many Lives of Alex Rodriguez</span>. The release date was moved up to last Monday, May 12, after portions of the book were leaked to the media.<br /><br />The book itself has created even more controversy based on allegations made by anonymous sources that Rodriguez was using steroids as early as high school and has used them since joining the Yankees in 2004. I decided to see what all the ruckus was about.<br /><br />My first observation regarding the book is that it was very hastily written and published. A handful of grammatical errors, as well as missing words in some cases, should be something unbecoming of a senior writer like Roberts.<br /><br />There were also many amateurish similes and metaphors peppering the pages: "flicking his wrist like a lion tamer", "Pitches looked as big and slow as soap bubbles", "like a cat pawing at yarn", etc. Closer to Mad Libs, if you ask me.<br /><br />Roberts' research and interviews were quite extensive, and she devotes five whole pages to listing all of her sources (except those who who requested anonymity, of course). Because the research was so thorough and varied, I expected some in-text citations to clarify it all, but none appeared. The credibility of her research is not necessarily diminished, but I would have preferred seeing which quote came from which interview, particularly when Rodriguez himself was quoted.<br /><br />With regards to the 19 anonymous interviewees, I understand the desire to make some concessions to get juicy information, but 19 times? Really? What do these sources have to lose by making themselves known? Is the clubhouse really that sacred that publicly violating it would bring more shame than what Rodriguez and others did to the game? Would other reporters have granted anonymity so many times to make such a damning argument?<br /><br />My final verdict: A quick read which was quickly written to quickly smear someone who (by Roberts' language throughout the book) probably deserved it.Sparkyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11429849085978166498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8673267725097678158.post-18514946841493960562009-03-25T14:40:00.000-07:002009-07-12T13:45:11.150-07:00Paging Steven Stills...After grappling for two weeks on whether to write about the Jon Stewart/Jim <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Cramer</span> showdown and its ramifications, I decided to pull a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Jarom</span> 1:2 on the issue: "For what could I write more than my fathers have written?"<br /><br />Since I'm more of a sports journalist guy anyway, I found an appealing story nonetheless.<br /><br />The <em>Washington Post</em> recently hired Chico Harlan to serve as their beat reporter for the Washington Nationals, the still-fresh Major League Baseball team.<br /><br />Trouble is, he'd rather be writing about something else.<br /><br />In an <a href="http://www.washingtonian.com/blogarticles/people/capitalcomment/11866.html">interview with <em>Washingtonian</em> magazine</a>, Harlan expressed that he did not see the Nationals beat as his life's calling:<br /><br />“I don’t like sports—I am embarrassed that I cover them,” Harlan said. “I can’t wait to stop. It is a means to an end and a paycheck.”<br /><br />Understandably, Nationals fans (though in small supply) <a href="http://deadspin.com/5180736/even-nationals-beat-writer-realizes-writing-about-the-nationals-is-an-awful-job">expressed their outrage </a>over the fact that the <em>Post</em> would alienate baseball readers with a writer who admittedly hates the game.<br /><br />But...<br /><br />Could his refusal to get into the details of the sport itself actually provide more objective coverage? The Post's other baseball writer, Tom Boswell, is <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">notorious</span> for his love/hate relationship with the fledgling Nationals, who have yet to finish over .500 since their move to Washington.<br /><br />Harlan thinks he can.<br /><br />“My approach might drive hard-core fans crazy because I might not get inside for that <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">nitty</span>-gritty play-by-play,” he said. “The passion I can drum up is wanting to capture what is unique about each game. I am interested in the characters more than anything.”<br /><br />Obviously, every reporter will at some point have a beat or do a story outside of their hopes and dreams, but does it hurt one's credibility by making it public?<br /><br />For me, all journalists ought to follow the mantra of Steven Stills:<br /><br />"And if you can't be with the one you love, honey, love the one you're with."<br /><br />Maybe I can snag that Nationals job in a couple years...I'd take it!Sparkyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11429849085978166498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8673267725097678158.post-19056124212250859792009-02-26T12:30:00.000-08:002009-07-12T13:45:11.151-07:00Jim Calhoun vs. Ken Krayeske...WHO YA GOT?<object width="480" height="295"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/xokthY5zuPU&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/xokthY5zuPU&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="295"></embed></object><br /><br /><br /><br />The #2 ranked University of Connecticut men's basketball team defeated #10 Marquette last night to give head coach Jim Calhoun his 800<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">th</span> career win, one of only seven men's college basketball coaches to achieve such a feat.<br /><br />It was at his press conference after his 799<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">th</span> win over South Florida Saturday, however, that earns him a spot on the blog.<br /><br />Among those in the press conference that night was blogger Ken <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Krayeske</span>, a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">UConn</span> law student. His blog, <a href="http://www.the40yearplan.com/">The 40-Year Plan</a>, focuses mainly on issue affecting his beloved Connecticut, particularly how to dig out of a $2 billion budget deficit.<br /><br />As you can see in the above video, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Krayeske</span> prodded Calhoun about his $1.6 million salary, making him the highest-paid Connecticut state employee (<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">UConn</span> is a public school), and whether that is the best thing for the state.<br /><br />Calhoun, with a reputation for press conference tirades, apparently could not believe that such a question was being asked in this setting and ripped into <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Krayeske</span>, refusing to give a serious answer.<br /><br />Not surprisingly, reaction came swiftly.<br /><br />Connecticut Gov. M. Jodi <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Rell</span> <a href="http://blogs.usatoday.com/gameon/2009/02/governor-of-con.html">was not pleased </a>with Calhoun's tirade:<br /><br />"I think if coach Calhoun had the opportunity right now, he would welcome a do-over and not have that embarrassing display," <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Rell</span> told reporters, adding that Calhoun's tone was what upset her most.<br /><br />The Hartford <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">Courant</span> <a href="http://www.courant.com/news/opinion/editorials/hc-calhoun.art.artfeb26,0,7579610.story">posted an editorial</a> saying that the question was an appropriate one, even if the setting was not ideal.<br /><br /><a href="http://msn.foxsports.com/cbk/story/9267722/Surprised-by-Calhoun">Jason <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">Whitlock</span> of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">FOXSports</span>.com</a> said Calhoun's tirade was "stupid" and "brainless".<br /><br /><a href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29387879/"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">Krayeske</span> himself </a>said he was "thrilled" that his blasting by Calhoun got the amount of press it did.<br /><br />"It <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">wasn</span>’t me who created this. He happened to respond in that way," <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">Krayeske</span> said. "We have to question the amount of importance placed on athletics," he said. "I always wanted to have this discussion on a national level, and here we are."<br /><br />Despite this <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_16">groundswell</span> of support for <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_17">Krayeske</span>, there were many who took Calhoun's side, as well.<br /><br />Michael <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_18">Wilbon</span> of the Washington Post and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_19">ESPN's</span> "Pardon the Interruption", in addition to calling <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_20">Krayeske</span> a "weasel" defended Calhoun.<br /><br />"Calhoun has won two NCAA championships and come close to winning two others. What, some bozo comes into a press conference and gets to challenge <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_21">everybody's</span> salary? If I was Calhoun, I'd have served up this clown on a platter. He's earned everything he's gotten and will get in the future."<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_22">CBSSports</span>.com writer Gregg <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_23">Doyel</span>, who ironically <a href="http://www.cbssports.com/columns/story/9014921">wrote a scathing 2005 article </a>about Calhoun and some supposedly shady recruiting methods, said he had no reason to defend the coach this time, but <a href="http://www.cbssports.com/columns/story/11429923">did anyway</a>.<br /><br />In addition to refusing to put <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_24">Krayeske's</span> name in print and calling him a "grandstanding attention hound", <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_25">Doyel</span> wrote this:<br /><br />"For his troubles, the attention hound got blown up, which is exactly what he deserved. He's the one, not Calhoun, who walked down the wrong dark alley and picked a fight. Shame on the guy who started the fight -- not the guy who finished it...There was only one thug in that exchange. And Calhoun knocked the thug on his [expletive]."<br /><br />Here are my observations on the incident:<br /><br />*Calhoun invited <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_26">Krayeske</span> to speak to him in private about the situation at the 0:37 mark. After having read <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_27">Doyel's</span> description of his private meeting with Calhoun over the 2005 article, I believe him. Many people say this in vain, but I think Calhoun would have responded more favorably to that question in a private setting.<br /><br />*Notice the reaction of the other journalists in the room when <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_28">Krayeske</span> tells Calhoun "If these guys covered this stuff, I wouldn't have to do it." Such disdain for their alleged comrade. I think it seems like just another salvo in the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_29">Bloggers</span> vs. "Real" Journalists tussle. The rift seems to be growing wider and wider, but is the blog takeover inevitable?<br /><br />My final verdict: <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_30">Krayeske</span> may have a point, but he needs to pick his battles (and the battlefield) a bit more carefully.Sparkyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11429849085978166498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8673267725097678158.post-64414565822212497692009-02-18T09:50:00.000-08:002009-07-12T13:45:12.620-07:00The Continuing Saga of Alex Rodriguez<div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_EKTNcO2MJ8FIRGT0hoZRjCctILTbK19L5qkqYl_u8MrSnlEOyXUYAjKn87TecN8OxF9-oCh4s3EbjjtvoJ1-S81C5xGQUWsY3WfFHl_NEgeix5D9AUr5zVgqKnrYhju9YZgs2MhzOUkQ/s1600-h/back021809.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5304197989086603890" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 251px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 281px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_EKTNcO2MJ8FIRGT0hoZRjCctILTbK19L5qkqYl_u8MrSnlEOyXUYAjKn87TecN8OxF9-oCh4s3EbjjtvoJ1-S81C5xGQUWsY3WfFHl_NEgeix5D9AUr5zVgqKnrYhju9YZgs2MhzOUkQ/s400/back021809.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicSCK76MEUqBhwZZggCTDzSuWDnfUc1L3xo542rZpmmrXlVdLO-HBt3Qiw5WaqnQwQ7ZLyesTzxxPkFaW-fYT4o1Mc2fKn-_ch0S7-5nXSsjAMiyv4jipFlgYWRdfLrYTHFsf2nIjgUN1J/s1600-h/gal_front_02_18.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5304197987809374482" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicSCK76MEUqBhwZZggCTDzSuWDnfUc1L3xo542rZpmmrXlVdLO-HBt3Qiw5WaqnQwQ7ZLyesTzxxPkFaW-fYT4o1Mc2fKn-_ch0S7-5nXSsjAMiyv4jipFlgYWRdfLrYTHFsf2nIjgUN1J/s400/gal_front_02_18.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><div>It's the sports story that just won't go away.</div></div></div>Sparkyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11429849085978166498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8673267725097678158.post-80149227176643776842009-02-13T15:22:00.000-08:002009-07-12T13:45:11.151-07:00A-Roid and Journalistic Ethics: Where to Begin?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUmLWp8KiY4icope_WiGMR2miX4u1MPNI7hlX8SUnjF7QjLwOJpJchIuyAHPt_VBJXJKPPeN8mN4yVb7OOBH_uv_2yJXVmsrVeBSmhbVLkgpLaGk7HyQmsBFHkRc39pv5gG4McnuyPf5Nd/s1600-h/0216_large.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 307px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUmLWp8KiY4icope_WiGMR2miX4u1MPNI7hlX8SUnjF7QjLwOJpJchIuyAHPt_VBJXJKPPeN8mN4yVb7OOBH_uv_2yJXVmsrVeBSmhbVLkgpLaGk7HyQmsBFHkRc39pv5gG4McnuyPf5Nd/s400/0216_large.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5302427030983424434" border="0" /></a><br />As an aspiring sports journalist, I had an entirely different level of fascination with the revelation that Alex Rodriguez of the New York Yankees tested positive for steroids in 2003, when he was with the Texas Rangers.<br /><br />Selena Roberts and David Epstein of Sports Illustrated <a href="http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/baseball/mlb/02/07/alex-rodriguez-steroids/index.html">first broke the story</a> Saturday on the SI website, which he confirmed on ESPN Monday. What a scoop! Journalism at its' finest: digging, scratching and clawing to find the truth! Not even the news pixie herself, <a href="http://deadspin.com/5148732/remember-a+rod-has-never-taken-steroids-according-to-a+rod">Katie <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Couric</span></a>, could get A-Rod to admit it!<br /><br />To what extent, however, did Roberts dig, scratch and claw? According to A-Rod, a bit too much.<br /><br />"What makes me upset is Sports Illustrated pays this lady Selena Roberts to stalk me," Rodriguez told Peter <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Gammons</span> in an<a href="http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=3895585"> <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">exclusive</span> interview with ESPN</a> (More on this later). "This lady has been thrown out of my apartment in New York City. This lady has, five days ago she was thrown out of the University of Miami police for trespassing. And four days ago she tried to break into my house while my girls are up there sleeping, and got cited by the Miami Beach Police. I have the paper here.<br /><br />"And this lady's coming out with all these allegations, all these lies, because she's writing an article for Sports Illustrated. And she's <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Hit-Run-Many-Lives-Rodriguez/dp/0061791644/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1234273262&sr=8-1">coming out with a book in May</a>." (Actually, Alex, the publication date <a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3905149">just got moved up</a> to April 14...<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">hmmm</span>) "And really respectable journalists are following this lady off the cliff, and following her lead. And that to me is unfortunate."<br /><br />So, is Selena Roberts a crazy A-Rod stalker? Why don't we ask her via the <a href="http://www.newsday.com/sports/ny-sprobers0210,0,4352753.story">Major League Baseball (<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">MLB</span>) Network</a>, <a href="http://www.observer.com/2009/media/who-s-lady-meet-selena-roberts-rod-s-worst-nightmare">The New York Observer</a> and <a href="http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/writers/selena_roberts/02/08/arod.q-a/index.html">SI.com</a>, shall we?<br /><br />From the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">MLB</span> Network interview, as reported by <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Newsday</span> (NY):<br /><br />"'I've never set foot in the lobby of Alex's New York apartment. I've never set foot on his property. It's pure fabrication,' said Roberts, who did say she drove by Rodriguez's house after receiving permission from Miami Beach police to drive on public property near A-Rod's house. The Miami Beach police have a "miscellaneous incident" report of that conversation, but Roberts was not cited for anything.<br /><br />"Roberts also asked for and received permission from security at the University of Miami to enter the school's workout facilities and talk to Rodriguez on Thursday.<br /><br />"'I think it's a diversion, a shoot-the-messenger type of thing,' Roberts said."<br /><br /><span>Roberts told the <span style="font-style: italic;">Observer </span>the following<span style="font-style: italic;"> </span>with regards to the above quote: </span><span><br /><br />“It’s not at all close to what happened. I wrote it off: It’s a diversionary tactic to throw blame on the messenger. He’s probably upset with me and maybe he wants to divert the attention to the credibility of the article, which is not in dispute.”</span><br /><br />Roberts told SI.com this:<br /><br />"In a meticulous process, we verified and re-verified our information, because this is a human being here, so you absolutely do not want to be wrong. We made a decision to confront Alex with the evidence we had regarding his positive test, and give him a chance to explain. He chose not to."<br /><br />So, what about Roberts' methods and motives? Are they a product of the modern era of journalism, or is she <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">kickin</span>' it old school?<br /><br />Now back to the <span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">exclusive</span></span> interview on ESPN. (I swear that was said about 20 times during the hour of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Sportscenter</span> on Monday during which it aired.)<br /><br />Why the lovable Peter <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Gammons</span>? ESPN has loads of excellent baseball writers, including Tim <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Kurkjian</span> and Buster <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">Olney</span>, who <span style="font-style: italic;">covered the Yankees for The New York Times<span style="font-style: italic;"> for pity's sake?</span></span><br /><br />SI writer Jeff <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">Pearlman</span> offered his opinion <a href="http://jeffpearlman.com/?p=1016">on his blog</a>:<br /><br />"The reason <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">Gammons</span> scored the interview with [John] Rocker (ten years ago) a decade back is the same reason he scored one with A-Rod today: He’s the Larry King of sports television. Softball questions, limited inquisitiveness, an easy time for all involved."<br /><br />Specifically responding to how <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">Gammons</span> did not react to A-Rod's rant on Roberts, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">Pearlman</span> said this:<br /><br />"I’m not sure if <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">Gammons</span> was jealous of Selena for scoring a huge story, but he had to—absolutely had to—follow up Rodriguez’s presumably ludicrous accusations with a question or two or three or 10. 'Alex, are you saying Selena Roberts literally broke into your building? Alex, can I see the paper you’re referring to? Alex, you rip Selena Roberts’ reporting? But <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_16">wasn</span>’t she, ahem, correct?'"<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_17">Gammons</span> gave his answer in an e-mail to the sports blog <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_18">Deadspin</span>:<br /><br />"I think in retrospect, I should have interrupted the A-Rod rant. My first question asked if Selena's story were true, he essentially admitted it was, and I believed she was therefore vindicated. I usually don't get into grudges, and felt he was promoting her book, which will be her response. I was trying to get Alex in his own words, but Jeff's criticism has merit that I accept."<br /><br />Does this mean <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_19">Gammons</span> is going to start getting tough on his interviewees? It probably won't matter, since he will probably never cover as big a story as this in his remaining years.<br /><br />Nevertheless, A-Rod has confessed and apologized. Does this make him a sympathetic figure? Will the media respect him a bit more?<br /><br />Not the New York Post.<br /><br /><a href="http://deadspin.com/5150943/a+rods-self+centered-misguided-prickishness-is-astounding">This photo of A-Rod</a> preparing for the <span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-style: italic;">exclusive </span></span>ESPN interview at his home was published in the Tuesday edition of the Post and its website. However, A-Rid saw it as an invasion of privacy and had it removed from the site.<br /><br />I can understand his beef with Roberts, but with the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_20">photog</span>? Really?<br /><br />The intrigue is just beginning on this story, both in the world of sports and journalism. I see it as a primer for what I need to be thoughtful about as I pursue a story like this in my sports journalism career. On the other hand, no matter how thoughtful I am, will it even matter in the mind of the player or team? Won't they just see me as an annoying reporter?<br /><br />Is that fair?Sparkyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11429849085978166498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8673267725097678158.post-18586605216495941142008-12-23T13:59:00.000-08:002009-07-12T13:45:11.151-07:00The Coach and The SportswriterThe semester is over, but da blog rolls on! Frankly, this story to me was too big NOT to blog on.<br /><br />Anybody who follows sports knows that the NFL's Detroit Lions are on the verge of history. Bad history. <a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/recap?gameId=281221008">They lost Sunday to the New Orleans Saints 42-7</a> to fall to 0-15 with one game to play in the season. No NFL team has finished a season winless since it was expanded to 16 games in 1978. To add insult to injury, <a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=3785366">a pesky flu bug has passed through the team</a>. (Sick of losing?)<br /><br />After Sunday's game, Lions head coach Rod Marinelli held his post-game press conference. Columnist Rob Parker of The Detroit News was there. Parker has asked Marinelli throughout the season about his defensive coordinator, Joe Barry, who is also Marinelli's son-in-law.<br /><br />This question, however, was markedly different.<br /><br />Parker asked, "On a light note, do you wish your daughter would have married a better defensive coordinator?"<br /><br />Marinelli ignored the question in the moment, but the sense of a personal attack has been a talking point throughout the sports media. I was listening to the Dan Patrick radio show when <a href="http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/danpatrick/">Adam Schefter of the NFL Network made an appearance</a> and blasted Parker for becoming the story rather than reporting it.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081222/OPINION03/812220369/1343/OPINION0307">Parker published an apology in his column Monday</a>, saying that his relationship with Marinelli is "different". He also added the following:<br /><br />"What might have seemed like a personal attack wasn't...Who knows, Marinelli, a straight shooter who never goes off script, might actually have given us a funny quote. He didn't. My attempt failed. And because of that, my attempt at humor may have seemed slighted, cruel, and even insensitive. For that, I apologize."<br /><br />Parker <a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=3787809">also appeared on ESPN's "First Take"</a>, a morning show which he frequently contributes to, to explain his position. (Click the video)<br /><br />Marinelli <a href="http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081222/SPORTS0101/812220417/1343/OPINION0307">finally broke his silence Monday</a>, saying Parker crossed the line "big time", saying that going after his daughter was out of bounds.<br /><br />"I just think anytime you attack my daughter, I got a problem with that -- in a room of stink, and as a man, and it was premeditated," Marinelli said. "I think there's something wrong with that, yeah."<br /><br />When asked if he had read Parker's apology, Marinelli responded: "I didn't read it, I was just told a little bit about it, and I don't accept anything."<br /><br />Marinelli also told the media that any attempt to stir him up, as he believes Parker intended to do, is futile: "I can shoulder anything you bring -- easy. I can shoulder anything you bring."<br /><br />In our class, among others, we talked frequently about the relationships between journalists and those they cover. Did Parker assume too much about his relationship with Marinelli? Is Parker's question be out of line, no matter how close he and Marinelli would be?Sparkyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11429849085978166498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8673267725097678158.post-19980851837607312932008-12-01T12:53:00.000-08:002009-07-12T13:45:11.151-07:00Citizen Journalism and the Mumbai Attacks: "We're All Journalists Now"Many around the world are referring to the tragedy in <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Mumbai</span> as "India's 9/11". The blood, horror, and carnage spread by the terrorists does frighten us now, just as it did seven years ago.<br /><br />In a sense, modern technology made this act of terrorism even more frightening. Because of Twitter, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Flickr</span> and other services, people around the world were thrust into <a href="http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/11/26/first-hand-accounts-of-terrorist-attacks-in-india-on-twitter/">first-hand accounts</a> of what was going on, while the big media outlets tried feverishly to keep pace.<br /><br />Imagine what it would have been like if Twitter and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Facebook</span> had been around on the REAL 9/11. People in the towers or on the planes would have been able to let us all know what was really going on.<br /><br />The question is: Is this necessarily a good thing for journalism?<br /><br />Robert Creamer, a political organizer and strategist, is a contributor for The <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Huffington</span> Post. <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-creamer/thanksgiving-text-message_b_147279.html">He blogged about two colleagues of his who <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">texted</span> them from <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Mumbai</span>.</a> As he pondered the significance of this event and its coverage, he identified two key points:<br /><br />"First, experiencing terrorism -- attacks on innocent civilians -- from the stand point of the victims themselves really drives home in no uncertain terms that it is completely morally repugnant.<br /><br />"Second, our experience Thursday demonstrated once again how dramatically technology has forced us all into the same neighborhood."<br /><br />But is this a neighborhood in which we really want to be? Does it do us any good to see raw pictures of dead and bloodied bodies in the streets? Will reading about cold-blooded murder from those who see it firsthand draw people to the news, or push them away?<br /><br />Even more pressing of a question: Will it inspire future attacks?<br /><br /><a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mira-veda">Mira Veda</a>, an Indian recording artist, <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mira-veda/mumbai-massacre-more-cove_b_147092.html">posted her comments on The <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Huffington</span> Post as well</a>, saying that more coverage of the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Mumbai</span> terror will lead to more attacks.<br /><br />"The ruthless terrorist attacks aimed at high profile luxury establishments in <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Mumbai</span> were specifically orchestrated towards Britons and Americans to get premium media coverage."<br /><br />"The tactical and strategic gain for the perpetrators creates an ominous future of fear for us but seems to produce favorable results for them. Every news channel, print media and virtual medium is bombarded with the same message: Fear. Mission successful."<br /><br />That fear seems to expand with the fact that the terrorists were using modern technology to their advantage. The Courier-Mail out of Queensland, Australia is reporting that <a href="http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0,23739,24726093-954,00.html">the terrorists used <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">BlackBerrys</span> </a>in order to track the news feeds and international reaction of the goings-on.<br /><br />It is rumored that Indian authorities even <a href="http://www.inquisitr.com/9863/report-indian-government-trying-to-block-twitter-as-terrorists-may-be-reading-it/">asked those on Twitter to stop reporting </a>on the anti-terror operations, so as not to aid the terrorists.<br /><br />Amy <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">Gahran</span>, a writer on P<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">oynter</span>.org, is <a href="http://www.contentious.com/2008/11/27/tracking-a-rumor-indian-government-twitter-and-common-sens/">exploring the rumor on her blog</a>. In the meantime, she <a href="http://www.poynter.org/column.asp?id=31&aid=154820">wrote a column on <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">Poynter</span></a> regarding "Responsible Tweeting". She seeks to educate Twitter users in the finer points of journalism. Essentially she is saying that this request, true or not, is a milestone for citizen journalism.<br /><br />Again, I wonder if this is necessarily a good thing. What I see on the nightly news or the cable networks is at least edited and somewhat censored (or at least warned about) so I can avoid the graphic nature if I choose to. Being thrust into the scene via Twitter and such puts me in an uncomfortable spot as a news viewer.<br /><br />Perhaps the most poignant piece on this issue comes from Forbes magazine. <a href="http://www.forbes.com/2008/11/28/mumbai-twitter-sms-tech-internet-cx_bc_kn_1128mumbai.html?feed=rss_news">They called the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">Mumbai</span> attacks "<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">Twitter's</span> Moment", </a>thrusting it into the mainstream of journalism. Referring to the rumored self-censorship, Forbes declares:<br /><br />"If it's true, it's a breakthrough. It's the sort of challenge journalists covering combat have long grappled with: What information should you share? Who decides what you can write? To what end?"<br /><br />These are questions we have grappled with in our class, and likely still will. To paraphrase Rowdy Roddy Piper, just as we think we have the answers, citizen journalism changes the questions.<br /><br />The Forbes article (and thus, this blog post) comes to a conclusion we have also come to in our class, and that I have admitted personally from the beginning.<br /><br />"We're all journalists now. Let's just hope none of us wind up being combat reporters, as so many in <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">Mumbai</span> did this week."Sparkyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11429849085978166498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8673267725097678158.post-33605757741952965662008-11-21T12:44:00.000-08:002009-07-12T13:45:11.152-07:00Reunited, And It Feels So Good<div>The Santa Rosa (CA) Press Democrat featured an article Thursday about a <a href="http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20081120/NEWS/811200327/1348/NEWS09?Title=A__Deep_Throat__reunion">happy reunion of epic journalistic proportions.<br /></a><br />Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein are epic journalistic figures for their reporting of the Watergate scandal that brought down President Nixon. A high-up source nicknamed "Deep Throat" supplied information to the reporters as they progressed in the investigation.<br /><br />"Deep Throat" went public with his story in 2005. He is Mark Felt, now a sprightly 95 years old. Under Nixon, he had been the No. 2 man in the FBI, and looked to succeed J. Edgar Hoover.<br /><br />Last week, Woodward and Bernstein went to Felt's home in Santa Rosa, California to thank him for his service. Interestingly enough, it was Bernstein's first time actually meeting Felt. Woodward had always met with the shadowy figure.<br /><br />"It was a private visit-- a closing of the circle," Bernstein said. "We are both very glad we did it. It was evident he was glad."<br /><br />This story reminded me of the glory days of investigative reporting. In many respects, it is a shell of its former self as more and more of it becomes trivial drivel.<br /><br />Is it because of 24-hour news and the constant need to feed the beast, as we watched in class today? Is it fear? Are today's reporters too soft?<br /></div>Sparkyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11429849085978166498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8673267725097678158.post-14326571417575548122008-11-13T18:37:00.000-08:002009-07-12T13:45:11.152-07:00ESPN: Kickin' It Old SchoolSo, remember my blog post about ESPN not reporting the alleged Brett <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Favre</span> info-sharing story? If not, continue to scroll down. The last thing I wrote in that article was my anticipation of what <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">ESPN's</span> ombudsman, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">LeAnne</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Schreiber</span>, would have to say about the whole thing.<br /><br /><br />Well, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Schreiber</span> has spoken.<br /><br /><br />In her latest column published this week, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Schreiber</span> praised ESPN for <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">excersing</span> "old-school journalistic ethics" with regards to the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Favre</span> story.<br /><br />Still, though, the perception that the network was favoring or protecting <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Favre</span> is hard to overcome. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Schreiber</span> asked <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">ESPN's</span> news director Vince Doria his reasoning for delaying the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">Favre</span> coverage.<br /><br />"When a story involves criminal allegations or issues that impugn character, and when there is no track record of similar behavior by the individual targeted by the story, we don't report it without further confirmation on our part," Doria said. "We felt this story called <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">Favre's</span> character into question, and we couldn't confirm it."<br /><br />So, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">Schreiber's</span> final verdict is summed up <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">thus</span>:<br /><br />"ESPN had a genuine old school moment. If ESPN had them more often, it would have a better chance of winning the perception game."<br /><br />So, do you agree? Does true journalism include holding off on reporting character-damaging allegations towards those with seemingly good character? What about the John Edwards story as a precedent?Sparkyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11429849085978166498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8673267725097678158.post-11024300663926373102008-10-28T14:14:00.000-07:002009-07-12T13:45:11.152-07:00World Series: Tainted by Television?As all us baseball fans know, the World Series is currently in a state of stormy limbo.<br /><br />Game 5 between the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Philadelphia</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Phillies</span> and Tampa Bay Rays began Monday night in Philadelphia, and is still not over. It was suspended in the middle of the 6<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">th</span> inning due to a nasty winter rain, which has continued today, even turning into snow in some parts of Philly. The game is scheduled to resume Wednesday night.<br /><br />This comes on the heels of Saturday's Game 3 delayed by 91 minutes for rain and not beginning until nearly 10 PM Eastern time.<br /><br />The decision to suspend the game ultimately was in the hands of Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig. There is mixed reaction not only to his decision, but a number of factors that some say tied Selig's hands.<br /><br />One main culprit being pointed out is the game's late start (8 PM Eastern). The weather was pleasant during the day on Monday, and the forecasts leading up to the game suggested it would be so up until the evening. So, why not just switch the game to the afternoon?<br /><br />The media, particularly the Fox Network, that's why.<br /><br />Phil Sheridan of the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Philadelphia</span> Inquirer <a href="http://www.philly.com/inquirer/sports/20081028_Phil_Sheridan__Tainted_by_television.html">boldly wrote today </a>that the game was a "farce" and should have been stopped when the rain first began in the 3rd or 4<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">th</span> inning. He emphasized the point that in a regular-season game, the stoppage would have come quickly, or the game would have been moved. But, since Fox insists on scheduling games to start in prime-time, there was nothing that could be done.<br /><br />"In October, the game went on," Sheridan said. "And Major League Baseball should be ashamed for allowing its most important game of the year to deteriorate into an embarrassing mess because of slavish obedience to its pimp, the Fox Television Network."<br /><br />Oh, snap!<br /><br />Gary Shelton of the St. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Petersburg</span> Times, hometown paper of the Rays, also <a href="http://www.tampabay.com/sports/baseball/rays/article877382.ece">expressed his displeasure </a>(albeit less brash), saying this:<br /><br />"Doesn't Major League Baseball think more of its sport than that? After a while, isn't someone concerned about the players' safety? Is the love of ad revenues so great? (Check that. It's a silly question.)"<br /><br />Well, of course, the newspapers of both teams are going to be upset with <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">MLB</span> and Fox, but no one from Fox itself is going to have the fortitude to call them out on it, right?<br /><br />Wrong.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">FoxSports</span>.<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">com's</span> Senior Baseball Writer, Ken <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Rosenthal</span>, <a href="http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/8726170/Selig,-MLB-could">called out his own bosses</a>. Here are a few of his gems:<br /><br />"I can't believe I'm writing this, but Major League Baseball needs a reminder and maybe even a kick to the head."<br /><br />"World Series games should not start anywhere near 10 p.m. ET."<br /><br />"Yes, I work for FOX, but someone please tell me: How exactly was the late start good for the game?" (Referring to Game 3)<br /><br />So, what do you think?<br /><br />*Does the media have too much power in sports?<br /><br />*What reaction will Fox have to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">Rosenthal's</span> loyalty to the citizen over his own employers?<br /><br />*Does this impact Fox's journalistic credibility? Do they want any?Sparkyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11429849085978166498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8673267725097678158.post-27230918934277245312008-10-24T14:58:00.000-07:002009-07-12T13:45:11.152-07:00Trash-Talking Reporters?It seems that the Brett <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Favre</span> story I blogged on earlier in the week is evolving into a war of words featuring Jay <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Glazer</span>, the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">FoxSports</span>.com reporter who first broke the story.<br /><br />In <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/sports/columnist/mccarthy/2008-10-23-weekend-tv_N.htm">an interview</a> with USA Today's Michael McCarthy, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Glazer</span> is still ticked about <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">ESPN's</span> handling of the story, as was revealed by <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">ProFootballTalk</span>.com, who <a href="http://www.profootballtalk.com/2008/10/22/espn-butchers-the-favre-story/">still aren't satisfied </a>with <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">ESPN's</span> coverage of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Favre</span>.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Glazer</span> went so far as to say that he viewed that ESPN internal memo as a personal attack. His goal now is to make ESPN "miserable". Here's what he suggests:<br /><br />"It's disappointing. What we should do as a result is start keeping score. If they want to talk about credibility, let's keep score, starting from Week One of last year, and see who broke what, who was right and who was wrong. I don't think they'd want that."<br /><br />Sounds like a journalistic <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">slobber-knocker</span>, eh?<br /><br />McCarthy later referred to a piece in yesterday's issue of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">SportsBusiness</span> Daily (I'd link to it, but you need to shell out a load of money to subscribe. I figure y'all could save some dough). Writer John <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">Ourand</span> interviewed <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">ESPN's</span> director of news, Vince Doria. He thought that <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">Glazer's</span> story was an attack on <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">Favre's</span> character, and that is why ESPN waited to independently confirm it.<br /><br />"This was never about ESPN saying the story was wrong. Jay <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">Glazer</span> is a fine reporter," Doria said.<br /><br />We all know that we live in a journalistic world where the scoop is king. Reporters take pride in breaking stories, to be sure. Is there a conflict of interest when a reporter's pride/ego is hurt? Does it affect his reporting? Could his <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_16">priorities</span> shift from reporting for public good to reporting out of vengeance? If so, how will it affect his credibility?Sparkyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11429849085978166498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8673267725097678158.post-86465855417252259912008-10-22T09:07:00.000-07:002009-07-12T13:45:11.152-07:00ESPN Sends, Then Retracts DO NOT REPORT Memo for Favre BombshellIf everyone else is reporting on a story, does that mean you ought to report on it, too? You'd think so, but an interesting case is developing within the Worldwide Leader in Sports.<br /><br />It all began this past Sunday when <a href="http://msn.foxsports.com/writer/Jay-Glazer-FOXSports.com-Senior-NFL-Writer?authorId=228">Jay <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Glazer</span></a> of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">FoxSports</span>.com reported that legendary <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">quarterback</span> Brett <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Favre</span>, now with the New York Jets, had contacted the Detroit Lions before their game with <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Favre's</span> old team, the Green Bay Packers, on September 14.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Favre</span> is alleged to have given the Lions <a href="http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/8694746/Sunday-Scoops:-Is-Favre-guilty-of-insider-trading?">inside information</a> on how to stop the Packers. It didn't really matter, since the <a href="http://scores.espn.go.com/nfl/recap?gameId=280914008">Packers still won 48-25</a>.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Favre</span> has denied the report, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">texting</span> Sports <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Illustrated's</span> Peter King, saying it was "total BS". Lions coach Rod <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Marinelli</span> has officially not commented on the situation. Those who have commented on it include every major sports outlet nationwide.<br /><br />Except ESPN.<br /><br />It would seem odd that the self-proclaimed "Worldwide Leader in Sports" wouldn't jump all over this story. It was odd enough that Mike <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">Florio</span> <a href="http://www.profootballtalk.com/2008/10/21/espn-continues-to-ignore-favre-story/">openly questioned ESPN </a>on his blog at <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">profootballtalk</span>.com. Just hours after that initial posting, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">Florio</span> <a href="http://www.profootballtalk.com/2008/10/21/espn-issued-internal-do-not-report-warning-on-favre-story/">received an internal ESPN memo</a> from an anonymous source.<br /><br />Under the heading **DO NOT REPORT**, the memo said the following:<br /><br />“Yesterday, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">FoxSports</span> reported that Brett <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">Favre</span> spent 60 to 90 minutes before the Week Two game between the Lions and the Packers educating the Detroit coaching staff regarding the Packers’ offensive strategies. WE HAVE BEEN TOLD BY RELIABLE SOURCES THIS REPORT IS NOT TRUE. We did NOT report it yesterday.<br /><br />"Today, the NFL responded to the report, saying even if <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">Favre</span> did this he did not break any league rules. We are NOT reporting it today, because that would mean airing the erroneous report. DO NOT REPORT IT.” (Emphasis included in original)<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_16">Florio</span> went on to denounce this explanation, saying that, if anything, ESPN should have made itself look good compared to a competitor by reporting the inaccuracy of the story.<br /><br />And then came today, in which <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_17">Favre</span> met with the media for his weekly press conference.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_18">Favre</span> told reporters that he was called by his friend and former Lions president Matt <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_19">Millen</span> for an invitation to go hunting. Besides general talk about football nothing else was discussed.<br /><br />"I didn't give him any game-planning," <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_20">Favre</span> said. "I haven't been in that offense in over a year. I don't know what else to tell you. It was pretty simple."<br /><br />Now that <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_21">Favre</span> has talked, <a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=3657242">ESPN has lifted its ban on the story</a>.<br /><br />Why the sudden change? <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_22">Florio</span> received <a href="http://www.profootballtalk.com/2008/10/22/espn-finally-embraces-the-hot-favre-story/">another internal communication from ESPN </a>today saying that the story was "hot". <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_23">Florio</span> remains skeptical about ESPN, stating that if they still believe it's false, why did they wait to report it.<br /><br />So, in relation to our class, some interesting questions are raised:<br /><br />*Does <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_24">ESPN's</span> prominence in the sporting world obligate them to report on a story such as this? Do they owe that to their viewers?<br /><br />*Was ESPN taking the moral high road by not reporting the story?<br /><br />*Shouldn't ESPN be lauded for waiting to verify the story through their own sources? Why is <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_25">Florio</span> so skeptical?<br /><br />When <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_26">ESPN's</span> ombudsman writes on this, it will be interesting to see what happens.Sparkyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11429849085978166498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8673267725097678158.post-5137642906128430442008-10-16T15:28:00.000-07:002009-07-12T13:45:11.153-07:00Vince Young Has His SaySo, remember my last blog post about <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">ESPN's</span> ombudsman talking about how the media treated Vince Young? You should, since it's just below this post...<br /><br />Anyway, Young had his own say today after his Tennessee Titans had practice. The interview was conducted by <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">MSNBC's</span> Tom E. Curran, and appears on the <a href="http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/27202696/"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">MSNBC</span> page</a>, as well as a summary on <a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=3645647"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">ESPN's</span></a>.<br /><br />In essence, Young seems miffed at the media, as this quote seems to suggest:<br /><br />“I feel like they’re writing my legacy,” Young said. “They’re writing my story. I’m a great guy, a great humble guy. I’<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">ve</span> done a whole lot in my career in just three years and for [the media] to do stuff like that to try to make me look bad for some reason — I don’t know why — but they’re just writing my legacy.”<br /><br />When asked specifically about his supposed mental instability, Young had this to say:<br /><br />“I don’t want to talk about that. That’s something else the media made people think like that. I know who I am, everyone knows who I am as a person. They know good and well, I <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">ain</span>’t trying to commit suicide or all that kind of crap.<br /><br />"<em><strong>It was just a story everybody wanted to write. It was hot and everybody need [sic] to make their money, feed their viewers.</strong></em> I always get the bad end but I just brush that off and use that as motivation for myself.” (Emphasis added)<br /><br />So, does Young make a fair point? Did the media sensationalize his condition to get more viewers, or were they simply reporting what they felt to be true? Will this affect his legacy, as he seems to suggest?Sparkyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11429849085978166498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8673267725097678158.post-64393596917652683602008-10-13T18:23:00.000-07:002009-07-12T13:45:11.153-07:00Examining privacy in a see-all, tell-all media environment (with Football!)As you've probably figured out by now, I love sports. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Sportsy</span>-sports-sports.<br /><br />Anyway, one might think that the elements in journalism wouldn't apply as much in the sports world. Truth is what happens on the field or the court. A sportswriter needs only to convey what went on at the game, along with some post-game interviews mixed in, right?<br /><br />Well, just as news has become a 24-hour a day medium, sports has done the same, and more space needs to be filled on the tube and the web. As such, sports news has had to change and become a more sound form of journalism. Recently, sports networks and their websites have even hired ombudsmen to critique the journalistic quality of their programming.<br /><br />This post sparks from an article by <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">ESPN's</span> ombudsman, <a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/columns/story?columnist=schreiber_leanne&id=2826887">Le Anne <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Schreiber</span></a>, formerly a sports editor for the New York Times. You can read it <a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/columns/story?columnist=schreiber_leanne&id=3641652">here</a>.<br /><br />The debate revolves around Vince Young, quarterback for the Tennessee Titans. He suffered an injury in this season's opening game on September 7. Happens all the time, right? Well, Young has had some on-the-field struggles during his brief pro career, and he has told the press that it has had a negative effect on him mentally, even to the point of considering retirement. This injury seemed to add to his mental strain.<br /><br />On September 8, the day after Young's injury, he went to watch Monday Night Football at a friend's house. Trouble is, no one from the Titans knew that's where he was. Titans coach Jeff Fisher called Nashville police for help in finding where Young was, concerned about his state of mind. Young was later found to be no threat to himself or others.<br /><br />Why would Fisher do this? ESPN obtained a copy of the police report the following Friday, September 12, which described that Young's therapist had c<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">oach</span> Coach Fisher that Young had mentioned suicide and left the therapist's office with a gun. ESPN then published an article on their web site entitled <a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=3584636">"Fisher reached out to police because therapist said Young mentioned suicide"</a>. The story also was covered on various ESPN TV programs.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Schreiber</span> writes, "There was a 36-hour period when viewers and readers, taking the story at face value, flooded my mailbox with serious questions about the journalistic ethics of publishing information from a therapist about a person's mental state."<br /><br />The police report, as it turns out, happened to be very poorly worded. Coach Fisher later said in <a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=3586215">an interview with <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">ESPN's</span> Chris <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Mortensen</span></a> that Young has no personal therapist, but visits with one that works for the team, Sheila Peters. He also said that Mike Mu, Young's local marketing manager, had called Peters on the Monday night in question and told her that Young had mentioned suicide.<br /><br />So, even though it wasn't the therapist that released the information, it was still some serious privacy invasion by ESPN, right? Not so fast, says <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Schreiber</span>. She explains that ESPN didn't break the story. The police report was first obtained legally by the local paper in Nashville, which then went on the AP wire. At that point, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Schreiber</span> says that ESPN "had an obligation to assess the information as best they could and present it responsibly to their audience."<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">Schreiber</span> also describes how the executive editor of ESPN.com, Patrick <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">Stiegman</span>, did not want to rush the story, and warned his writers to not jump to conclusions. They needed to persist in corroborating the police report. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">Schreiber's</span> final verdict was that "ESPN could not and should not have kept that information out of the news."<br /><br />So, do you agree with <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">Schreiber</span>? Does any news organization have an obligation to publish a story that they obtained in such a way? Is this even really news?Sparkyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11429849085978166498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8673267725097678158.post-61532196093297650122008-10-07T20:21:00.000-07:002009-07-12T13:45:11.153-07:00Tales from Sports Journalism with Dan SheldonDan Sheldon joined Salt Lake City's <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">KUTV</span> Channel 2 in September 2005 as a sports reporter and anchor. He reports on weekdays, anchors the sports on weekend mornings, and co-anchors "<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Talkin</span>’ Sports", a half-hour sports show on Sunday nights at 10:30. His <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">KUTV</span> profile website can be found <a href="http://www.kutv.com/content/aboutus/newsteam/story.aspx?content_id=502ca4d4-58ae-4e78-b77f-b41ac28b7982">here</a>, and his blog <a href="http://www.kutv.com/content/blogs/sports/dansheldon/default.aspx">here</a>.<br /><br />The reason Sheldon got into journalism is what he calls "the search for truth". In the world of sports, it would seem that truth is just what the box score tells you, but Sheldon says some digging is still required.<br /><br />"Whether that's doing some digging to see if steroid use is a significant danger to local high school athletes or cutting through the spin to see if the Utes really have moved past what happened last year with Wyoming, all of it boils down to the search for truth," he said.<br /><br />When it comes to his definition of "good" journalism, Sheldon says it's "aggressive, accurate storytelling that informs the viewer". <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">KUTV</span>, he says, does well with this, always striving to be "right" rather than "first". These views of journalism have remained constant since he began his college studies in journalism.<br /><br />Even though his views remain the same, Sheldon recognizes that the profession is changing.<br /><br />"Until we all figure out a way to best utilize the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Internet</span> (and monetize it properly), jobs are at risk," he said.<br /><br />When it comes to citizen journalism, Sheldon feels that, in Sports, the passion of fans makes it difficult for a fair and balanced report.<br /><br />"I think people know and appreciate the difference between, for instance, a sportswriter filing a report online and a fan blogging about his favorite team," he said. "I believe both have a place while serving different purposes."<br /><br />For those aspiring journalists out there, Sheldon's simple advice is this: "You really have to want it."<br /><br />"Once you get your foot in the door though, there's amazing thing that happens in that first job," he said. "If you work hard and are dependable, you'd be blown away by how far ahead you can get just by showing up and being consistent. It takes more than that as you move up the ranks, but those qualities will get well on your way."Sparkyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11429849085978166498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8673267725097678158.post-38807914300789559792008-10-04T11:19:00.000-07:002009-07-12T13:45:11.153-07:00Cost-Cutting Hits Close to Home?In between sessions of General Conference today, I found a story on the web site for the Deseret Morning News that is fitting after our discussions about cost-cutting in journalism.<br /><br />As you can read here: <a href="http://deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,700263712,00.html">http://deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,700263712,00.html</a>, a longtime Utah anchor has been pulled off the air. Randall Carlisle from KTVX Channel 4, Salt Lake City's ABC affiliate, will not be returning ot the air after 17 years in Utah.<br /><br />Carlisle said he was not told specifically why his contract won't be renewed, but other clues suggest the reason why. KTVX was sold by Clear Channel this spring to Newport Television LLC. a Kansas City group. In mid-June, 15% of KTVX's workforce was laid off, and the programming schedule was changed in mid-August to eliminate the 4 PM newscast.<br /><br />He holds no ill will towards KTVX, saying "It is what it is." He would like to remain in Salt Lake City, but can't find new work until his contract officially ends in December.<br /><br />So, is Carlisle's dismissal part of a cost-cutting venture, or merely a coincidence? Given all we have discussed over the last week, in addition to watching "News War", it is something worth a ponder, to be sure.Sparkyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11429849085978166498noreply@blogger.com0