Media Coverage

[CarrollVermin]

So the Chicago Tribune and to some extent, the SBT are upset about player availability after the game yesterday. The Trib has made it a central issue of their coverage apparently.

Wanted to get your thoughts on this. Is it fair for BK to come under fire for not making the players the media wanted available after the game or is BK in the wrong?

 

[Kak7304]

Smart move by BK considering the way the game ended. The media would have tried to bait the players into stirring up controversy where there is none.

 

[PADOMERNUT]

I was just discussing this with someone. I follow a bunch of these guys on twitter. Instead of reading their thoughts on the game this morning, this is the crap I have read.

In my opinion, Brian Kelly's job is to win football games, run a clean program, and represent the University. It should not be his job or responsibility to make some beat writer have more access to players.

Do I know the reasoning behind only having 2 guys available to the media? No. Do I give a crap especially since we are 2-0? Hell no.

Sounds like sour grapes to me.

 

[RyCo1983]

If I was a college football coach, the press would rarely ever have a chance to talk to my players.

I'm good with BK doing so.

 

[irishfan]

I don't think Golson was really hurt to the point where he couldn't have gone out there for the last drive, and I don't think Kelly wanted him answering questions about that.

I'm guessing from there, Kelly figured he couldn't just keep Golson away from the media, so he just didn't let anyone talk to the media except the captains.

 

[CarrollVermin]

I'd love to see the media push Saban like that as well.

 

[ACamp1900]

I don't think Golson was really hurt to the point where he couldn't have gone out there for the last drive, and I don't think Kelly wanted him answering questions about that.

I have wondered about that, if EG wasn't hurt bad, or at all... then I don't know what to think about Bk right now...

good news is a win is a win... get at least one of the next two and they should be able to have a decent win loss record this year (HUGE accomplishment with this schedule and the number of young guns at key positions).

 

[OrlaNDomer]

Its getting annoying seeing the media outlets on Twitter retweet each other about the lack of availability. I want to hear what the players have to say just as much as the next guy, but if BK doesn't want them to talk Im perfectly okay with that.

 

[phgreek]

My sentiments are, SOOO what. It is not unreasonable for the captains to represent the team to the media.

If BK started blacking the media out for long periods of time...I think thats cause for concern, and the seed from which bad grows. Not doing that. They have/had access to players to write an article.

Some writers see game drama/situations unfold, and play it out in their head...write their articles...THEN go to the press conference looking for anything the affected player(s) might say to support what they've already written...I think we may have some of that. The juicy drama is EG and TR switch...and I'm guessing people were sitting on articles ready to go looking for quotes...ERRRR...sorry!

Not on BK to support bad journalism.

Beat writer is not an easy gig...but whose job is?

 

[kmoose]

Wanted to get your thoughts on this. Is it fair for BK to come under fire for not making the players the media wanted available after the game or is BK in the wrong?

I think it depends on why the players were not available. Were they getting extra treatment in the training room? Or were they just kept away from the reporters to keep the controversy down? BK does have an obligation to make players available to talk to the media. What he is NOT obligated to do is make whatever players the media wants available, whenever the media wants to talk to them. It sounds like he made only the captains available? In that case, he has fulfilled his job duties. The media may not like it, but he's done what he is required to do.

 

[JoeyGetherall]

I think he was protecting a young QB which is smart.

Like kmoose says he doesn't have to give the media exactly what they want. The captains should suffice.

Someone mentioned Saban. Saban would bend them over for something like this. Though to that point he doesn't have to deal with a giant like the Tribune. The Tuscalossa and Birmingham papers aren't exactly critical of the Tides program and probably are deathly afraid of Saban.

Remember when Urban went off on the press a few years back? SEC football baby.

 

[Ultimate Penn St. Hater]

Smart move by BK considering the way the game ended. The media would have tried to bait the players into stirring up controversy where there is none.

Exactly

 

[Ultimate Penn St. Hater]

I think it depends on why the players were not available. Were they getting extra treatment in the training room? Or were they just kept away from the reporters to keep the controversy down? BK does have an obligation to make players available to talk to the media. What he is NOT obligated to do is make whatever players the media wants available, whenever the media wants to talk to them. It sounds like he made only the captains available? In that case, he has fulfilled his job duties. The media may not like it, but he's done what he is required to do.

It does seem like half of the team was hurt.

 

[tommyIRISH23]

I have wondered about that, if EG wasn't hurt bad, or at all... then I don't know what to think about Bk right now...

good news is a win is a win... get at least one of the next two and they should be able to have a decent win loss record this year (HUGE accomplishment with this schedule and the number of young guns at key positions).

I am not really buying that Golson couldnt play. Did you see the camera go on him during the game? Someone asked him a question and he looked confused/stunned. Now, I was angry and perplexed at the call to bring TR in, but the more I thought about it, the more it makes sense. EG was having trouble all day identifying coverages, and reading the defense during the play. It only got worse when Eifert and DD went down. Quick slants/screens..etc are what is needed to attack a defense exploding the interior of your line, and Golson just couldnt see that fast enough, its not a knock on him, just a reflection of his inexpierence. There is no way he wouldve been able to run a 2 min drill with no timeouts (bc he burned them all during the game out of confusion). At best, we wouldve ended up in OT and at worst we wouldve given Purdue the ball in a position to win. Purdues strategy played right into TR's strengths, it was a great call to put him in the game at that time. He methodically dinked and dunked ND into field goal range.

Golson is the man, and the future. But he's still young, this is ND and the pressure cooker demands wins. Imagine if ND wouldve lost in OT or worse EG threw a pick 6/sack/fumble and purdue kicked the game winning field goal?

Danny Hope siad that they were licking there chops about the though of having to face a rookie QB with his best weapons sidelined during the 2 min drill to win the game.

BK made the right move. Checkmate

 

[jcun]

There are newspapers in Chicago? I didn't notice...

 

[NoJusticeNoPeace]

They need to quit whining.

 

[palinurus]

I don't think Golson was really hurt to the point where he couldn't have gone out there for the last drive, and I don't think Kelly wanted him answering questions about that.

I'm guessing from there, Kelly figured he couldn't just keep Golson away from the media, so he just didn't let anyone talk to the media except the captains.

This is what it is, imo. Even though Kelly said afterwards that he wasn't using Golson's hand as an excuse (so, basically, admitting that it wasn't purely an injury thing when he put Rees in), he didn't want this to be a case where the hounds chase Golson with a lot of questions, and the focus moves from a nice team win to "how hurt were you?' "could you have played?" "What did coach tell you?" "should you start?"

A completely defensible move for a coach trying to protect his team and an 19 yr old kid under even more scrutiny than usual.

 

[Grahambo]

Absolutely a good move. Protect the players/team.

 

[tommyIRISH23]

This isnt "Keeping up with the Kardashians", there is no reason that players should be "expected" to speak with the media. They arent getting paid or endorsed. Kelly needs to go Saban on these fools so they dont start this crap again

 

[irish1958]

If I recall the Chicago Tribune called a Dewey victory in 1948. It does appear they have cleaned up their act!

 

[ndfi78]

I would be fine if they blocked all of those hacks from the Chicago Tribune permanently .

 

[stlnd01]

Given the circumstances, I think "protecting" Golson and Rees on Saturday after the game was probably a smart move by Kelly (though it wouldn't have killed him to put Kyle Brindza or Stephon Tuitt out there). And if it was just that, I don't think you would have heard a ton of griping from the Eric Hansens and Brian Hamiltons of the world. They get it.

But apparently earlier last week, Kelly & co. also cut back player interviews. And they've been pretty tight with assistant coach availability for some time. That's going to rankle reporters (who are professionals with a job to do just like Brian Kelly), especially if they sense a pattern. And the most effective way for them to change the pattern is to publicly raise a stink. That's what's going on here. It's a two-way street.

I understand the desire to control the message, but at some point, when you interfere with the press' ability to tell your story, it's going to bite you in the *** one way or another. Always does. And at some level, Notre Dame must know that the finest ambassadors for its football program are its football players. Putting them out front is never not a good idea, unless you really don't trust them, and I doubt that's the case here.

 

[Rhode Irish]

I am a firm believer in the Patriots PR strategy, which essentially states that the media is scum and they are only to be dealt with under threat of censure, and even then they should be dealt with in the most hostile and evasive manner possible. What the hell good has the media ever done for a football team? It is a complete one-sided relationship. The football teams allow the newspapers to actually sell some papers, and then the papers turn around and sensationalize everything and make the team look bad any chance they get, in order to sell more papers. If I was ND, I'd tell the Trib especially to play in traffic.

 

[stlnd01]

]What the hell good has the media ever done for a football team? It is a complete one-sided relationship.

Seriously?
If not for "the media," Notre Dame would be a MAC school. The Four Horsemen? That came from a newspaper man. All those AP titles? Who do you think the AP is? And if ESPN dumped college football, Brian Kelly and everyone else involved with the entire sport would take an 80 percent pay cut. It's a two-way street. Always has been.

 

[Rhode Irish]

First of all, this isn't 1926. There are plenty of ways for the football program to get exposure without dinosaur media. The program can run its own media operation. If the Trib pretended like Notre Dame football didn't exist, it would hurt them more than it would hurt us.

Second, they can cover the team by reporting what happens on the field, and they can supplement that coverage with whatever access the team chooses to give. If that is one post-game Kelly presser each week, they should thank Kelly profusely for being so generous with his time.

ESPN could broadcast games and show highlights without harassing players and coaches in the locker room after games. The media is entitled, acting as if they have some right to badger players and ask annoying questions like a football game is a G8 Summit. In the internet era, plenty of alternative outlets exist for fans to follow their teams. A site like One Foot Down doesn't depend on player interviews for their coverage, and they do 1000X better job covering the team than the Trib. If ND wants to get something out involving Kelly or a player, they can do it via UND.com.

If newspaper coverage were so important to a sport's survival, what happened to boxing and horse racing? It is the sport that sells. The teams have the leverage. I think teams should freeze the media out of the locker room completely. As a fan, I am more interested in the good of the team than I am in the media's access. I don't feel I gain much from player interviews anyway, and if the media is just going to use its access to ask teenagers "gotcha" questions and try to stir up controversy within the team, I would prefer they just get bent.

[Edit:] Also, just to add one other thought: in the era when the media actually was important, their relationship with their subjects were much more congenial. Pre-Watergate, the media didn't view itself as hall monitors. They had relationships with their subjects (in sports and in other arenas) that was not predicated on them creating controversy and trying to embarrass people. Maybe it is just the type of person that is drawn to that kind of work, or maybe they teach it in journalism class, but reporters tend to be the worst kind of douche bags on God's green earth.

 

[WakeUpEchoes]

Seriously?
If not for "the media," Notre Dame would be a MAC school. The Four Horsemen? That came from a newspaper man. All those AP titles? Who do you think the AP is? And if ESPN dumped college football, Brian Kelly and everyone else involved with the entire sport would take an 80 percent pay cut. It's a two-way street. Always has been.

Probably would have agreed with this 10 years ago. It's true that maybe the media has supported ND's relevancy in years past, but its moreso by consumer demand. And honestly, just thinking about beat writers from the Trib licking their chops to trip up a sophomore in college in a post-game question and have it effect the locker room makes me too upset.

 

[BGIF]

Probably would have agreed with this 10 years ago. It's true that maybe the media has supported ND's relevancy in years past, but its moreso by consumer demand. And honestly, just thinking about beat writers from the Trib licking their chops to trip up a sophomore in college in a post-game question and have it effect the locker room makes me too upset.

Kinda like Wienke sandbagging a teammate before Clausen had played a game for ND.

Weis shutdown access by SBT.

 

[PANDFAN]

I am a firm believer in the Patriots PR strategy, which essentially states that the media is scum and they are only to be dealt with under threat of censure, and even then they should be dealt with in the most hostile and evasive manner possible. What the hell good has the media ever done for a football team? It is a complete one-sided relationship. The football teams allow the newspapers to actually sell some papers, and then the papers turn around and sensationalize everything and make the team look bad any chance they get, in order to sell more papers. If I was ND, I'd tell the Trib especially to play in traffic.

excellent! i agree 100% it does nothing but possibly cause some tension or problems.

 

[stlnd01]

First of all, this isn't 1926. There are plenty of ways for the football program to get exposure without dinosaur media. The program can run its own media operation. If the Trib pretended like Notre Dame football didn't exist, it would hurt them more than it would hurt us.

Second, they can cover the team by reporting what happens on the field, and they can supplement that coverage with whatever access the team chooses to give. If that is one post-game Kelly presser each week, they should thank Kelly profusely for being so generous with his time.

ESPN could broadcast games and show highlights without harassing players and coaches in the locker room after games. The media is entitled, acting as if they have some right to badger players and ask annoying questions like a football game is a G8 Summit. In the internet era, plenty of alternative outlets exist for fans to follow their teams. A site like One Foot Down doesn't depend on player interviews for their coverage, and they do 1000X better job covering the team than the Trib. If ND wants to get something out involving Kelly or a player, they can do it via UND.com.

If newspaper coverage were so important to a sport's survival, what happened to boxing and horse racing? It is the sport that sells. The teams have the leverage. I think teams should freeze the media out of the locker room completely. As a fan, I am more interested in the good of the team than I am in the media's access. I don't feel I gain much from player interviews anyway, and if the media is just going to use its access to ask teenagers "gotcha" questions and try to stir up controversy within the team, I would prefer they just get bent.

[Edit:] Also, just to add one other thought: in the era when the media actually was important, their relationship with their subjects were much more congenial. Pre-Watergate, the media didn't view itself as hall monitors. They had relationships with their subjects (in sports and in other arenas) that was not predicated on them creating controversy and trying to embarrass people. Maybe it is just the type of person that is drawn to that kind of work, or maybe they teach it in journalism class, but reporters tend to be the worst kind of douche bags on God's green earth.

The sport sells because people are interested in it. People are interested in it, at some level, because of the stories of the players and coaches involved. Journalists tell those stories. When you interfere with that, in the long run, you hurt your brand.

Yes, Notre Dame can - and does - run its own media operation, but if you want to reach more than just the hardcore types on boards like this , you need to work with the broader (mass) media. That still means TV and newspapers. The blogs are great, and they do a wonderful job analyzing Xs and Os. But everything they write about the stories of players? That originates with the press.

I agree you don't tend to get much from post-game interviews with college athletes, and like I said, I agree that Kelly was probably smart to keep the heat off Rees and Golson on Saturday. We can all point to a story of some jerk reporter tripping up a 19-year-old kid. But if this is a longer-term trend, he's making a mistake. People get tired of hearing from the head coach and can see through the canned edited videos on UND.com. The magic of this game is in the players.

Edit:
I don't know what you do for a living, Rhode, but unless you run a soup kitchen I suspect there's plenty of douchebags in that line of work, too. And if you think journalists are just "to embarrass people," I don't think you know much about how the good ones actually do their jobs.

Sincerely,
A professional newspaper reporter.

 

[Old Man Mike]

If I was a head coach, I'd never have anyone talk to the media just after a game except the captains. They are the captains for a reason. They represent the mature "big picture" "all about the team and its future" guys. During the following days, once all the game actions and issues have settled, once all the wild emotional swings have subsided, once the staff and the players have thoroughly talked and gotten back into normal rhythm, MAYBE then I allow the "other guys" their 45 seconds of fame.

The idea that the media [in general] in doing much of anything except trying to dig up controversies to sell their papers or their programs or themselves is somewhere between mind-numbingly naive to intellectually dishonest. And to think that Notre Dame needs any particular media coverage to "sell" our program is laughable. It's a very big "communications world" out there, and probably no single potential recruit reads the Chicago Tribune. Soon in this changing world, no one at all will read it, which is why it is turning into a gossip rag. [Plus the CT has shown recently a nearly unrelenting hostility towards the University taking every shot they can at it and not letting go].

Kelly is a pragmatic master. Three loud cheers. Hail the leader!!!