[NU Sports] great, just great

Sat Mar 31 13:25:45 CST 2007

As a recent Medill (and WNUR) alum and a public radio reporter who sometimes has to ask confrontational questions or report confrontational facts, a few points:

  1) Medill and WNUR reporters have just as much a right to cover NU sporting events as everyone else.  Period.  End of story.  In fact, Mark Murphy (and his administration) deserves a huge amount of credit for going out of his way to work with WNUR to expand their relationship.  Under Rick Taylor, WNUR was treated with healthy doses of scorn and ignorance.  That WNUR was able to broadcast the Lacrosse championships and College World Series on a meager budget is thanks in large part to Murphy and his staff.

  2) So why are the students getting on Coach Roy's nerves?  Simple - experience, or lack thereof.  Most Medill and WNUR students are practicing journalism at the highest level of their life - and for the first time.  In my opinion, they should stick to beat reporting and ditch the opinion pieces.  Columns are the hardest to write, since they require a mix of evidence and opinion.  The most common mistake (among experienced as well as young columnists) is neglecting the "evidence" part.

  And if you need further proof that young reporters should stay out of the column-writing business, check out this gem by a kid just starting his sophomore year at NU from just before the 2000 football season:
  http://www.wnur.org/sports/analysts/ba081000.html
  Hmm...Stauss over Kustok, huh?  How'd that one turn out?

  So...some advice to any current students on this list: No one's going to hire you for your columns.  Earn your chops writing an amazing feature on the challenges Carmody faces, and be sure to get some quotes from people who think he should stay and people who think he should go.  Let each side make its best argument -- and let your readers decide for themselves.

  3) Alan's hit on one of the most difficult issues to balance as a reporter: How confrontational should you be?  I think you can ask a tough question politely, and most people will understand you're just doing your job.  On the other hand, if they give you the run-around, I think it's perfectly fair to say, "I don't think you're answering my question."  Or if they're saying something you know for a fact to be untrue to say "But that's just not true" and cite your source.

  On the other hand, being confrontational just for the sake of being confrontational is just for ego's sake.  It's stupid and unless you're on cable TV or commercial talk radio, it simply doesn't work.  (Of course, even on cable or talk radio, it's still stupid.)

  Okay, rant's over.
  -- Ben

"Abrahamson, Alan (NBC Universal)" <alan.abrahamson at nbcuni.com> wrote:
  I get my best stories that way usually, too. When I was in my first year
out of Northwestern, working at the Jackson (Mich.) Citizen Patriot, a
sheriff's sergeant schooled me in the way things work -- it being his
view that you caught more flies with honey than vinegar.
But that's not the way it works for some of my colleagues. And that
includes student journalists ...
Go Wildcats -- Alan

-----Original Message-----
From: Roy Lamberton [mailto:rstetson at capps-assoc.com] 
Sent: Friday, March 30, 2007 9:11 PM
To: Abrahamson, Alan (NBC Universal); szeller at comcast.net;
nwu-sports at tssi.com
Subject: RE: [NU Sports] great, just great

Yeah, you're right, it shouldn't matter, its just that the Daily and
WNUR seem to always lead the charge against the coaches.

I know journalists are supposed to question everything, but I get my
best stories when I'm not calling for someone's head on a platter.

rsl

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Roy S. Lamberton - Senior Associate
Computer Applications & Support Associates and Publisher of Purple
Reign, The Scout.com Northwestern University Site
(http://www.purplewildcats.com)
AIM Handle: CoachRoy74
======== Go Cats - Beat 'em All =========== "You have a Republic Madam
--
If you can keep it" - Benjamin Franklin
============================================

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Abrahamson, Alan (NBC Universal) 
> [mailto:alan.abrahamson at nbcuni.com]
> Sent: Friday, March 30, 2007 6:50 PM
> To: rstetson at capps-assoc.com; szeller at comcast.net; nwu-sports at tssi.com
> Subject: Re: [NU Sports] great, just great
> 
> 
> Coach Roy, you know I have the greatest respect for you. In this 
> instance, I want to say as gently as possible it's not the least bit 
> relevant that the student journalists get a press pass to cover NU 
> events.
> The student journos know that. 
> So do the Medill profs. 
> And so does the Wildcat athletic administration. 
> - Alan
> 
> 
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nwu-sports-bounces at tssi.com 
> To: szeller at comcast.net ; nwu-sports at tssi.com 
> 
> Sent: Fri Mar 30 18:18:34 2007
> Subject: RE: [NU Sports] great, just great
> 
> Its interesting that the loudest voices in the media calling for Bill 
> Carmody's head are the writers for the Daily [see today's issue] and 
> WNUR.
> 
> They haven't started to lobby for Fitz to fire everyone just yet, but 
> I wonder where the animosity towards our athletic leaders comes from 
> since they get a pass to all the coverage events.
> 
> Even the latest football coverage put McGee in a bad light - he's just

> like anyone else who pleaded out a traffic offense.
> He actually got off easier than my son who also had a reckless driving

> ticket and wound up on the hook [probation] for a year. He still won't

> drive over the Bay Bridge.
> 
> rsl
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
> Roy S. Lamberton - Senior Associate
> Computer Applications & Support Associates and Publisher of Purple 
> Reign, The Scout.com Northwestern University Site
> (http://www.purplewildcats.com)
> AIM Handle: CoachRoy74
> ======== Go Cats - Beat 'em All =========== "You have a Republic 
> Madam --
> If you can keep it" - Benjamin Franklin 
> ============================================
> 
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: nwu-sports-bounces at tssi.com
> > [mailto:nwu-sports-bounces at tssi.com] On Behalf Of
> szeller at comcast.net
> > Sent: Friday, March 30, 2007 12:57 PM
> > To: nwu-sports at tssi.com
> > Subject: RE: [NU Sports] great, just great
> > 
> > 
> > Given the perception that 83.2% of sportswriters are NU alums, it 
> > makes more sense that our local college football columnist 
> > (non-alum) in the Conta Costa Times bashes NU every chance he gets. 
> > There must be some resentment there!
> > 
> > Sort of like the "Northwestern mafia" in Hollywood on the episode of

> > the TV show "Joey".
> > 
> > Scott Zeller MD
> > Med '86
> > 
> > 
> 
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> nwu-sports site list
> nwu-sports at tssi.com
> http://romaine.tssi.com/mailman/listinfo/nwu-sports
> 

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