The JS Sports Staff [Latest: Witrado leaves for Sporting News, replaced by Todd Rosiak]

[OldSchoolSnapper]

"Also who cares if the players are asses? Then tell the public that they are being reclusive and unwilling to give their perspective."

 

Yes, because that will be sure to get you very far in interviews with his friends on the team. And Doug Melvin will be so happy and forthright with you. If you think reporters just walk in the locker room like hard asses and print whatever they want without thinking about it, you're even more out of touch than I thought. Without access you can't do your job. Piss off one guy, you piss off the whole organization. You won't have access.

 

"If they continue to not speak to to you, so what? You can draw conclusions from their attitude, on the field demeanor, responses to other reporters."

 

You would have the worst stories in the country. Not to mention it is perfectly legal for any player or team to bar an individual reporter from access. Your lack of understanding the value of building trusting relationships in that job is more than sufficient proof that you would never be able to do it.

[OldSchoolSnapper]

Last, "And since when is making forty grand a bad job when all ameneties are paid for."

 

I'm not sure what this has to do with anything. Most any job will reimburse you when you go out of town. Tom doesn't get a meal allowance when the Brewers play at home. I'm not sure in Tom's case, but I can tell you right now with certainty that MANY papers have stopped paying for meals altogether. He may be able to get in on the pregame hospitality spread, but it wouldn't surprise me at all if Tom has to buy all his meals out of pocket. When the Trib and Times are filing for bankruptcy, that's not that surprising. That would be one of the first things for ownership to cut.

 

What are the other "amenities?" The plane ticket he needs to get to St. Louis? Big deal, at what job would you need to pay for that yourself? And his hotel room? I'm sure he'd rather be in, you know, his bedroom, with his wife, than living out of Holiday Inns for eight months.

 

I honestly think the average fan pictures a beat writer and thinks it entails enjoying the game from your living room with a burger and a beer, only you get to write a story about it afterward. And then get Ryan Braun's autograph.

[trwi7]

I'm sure he'd rather be in, you know, his bedroom, with his wife, than living out of Holiday Inns for eight months.

You make a lot of good and interesting points, but this one I just can't buy. You know what profession you're getting into. You know you're going to be on long road trips if you're a baseball beat writer.

[OldSchoolSnapper]

I'm not arguing that, but getting into it at 21 is different than living it at 42 and missing all your kid's baseball games because you're at JJ Hardy's. No matter how ready you think you are for that, you're not. Being told about the sacrifices you will have to make 10-15 years down the road doesn't prepare you one bit for when you actually have to make them, that is true for many jobs...it's the reason many people end up miserable with their careers once the family dynamic is added to the picture.

[DougJones43]

If it's such a horrible existence then somebody like Tom H. should do something else. I'm sure somebody with his credentials and experience, or even Witrado for that matter, could find a different job fairly easily, where he could spend more time at home, etc.

 

Unless maybe the gig really isn't all that bad, there are perks, and he does enjoy them? Either that, or he's obviously a masochist...

 

Call me heartless. Tell me I don't understand. But I don't like hearing sob stories like this when it's completely a matter of choice. Lots of people have hard jobs that don't pay well. Many people can't find work at all. If these guys didn't get some satisfaction from the "status" and perks that come with a job like this, they wouldn't do it, because really, they don't have to.

[JonnyLungs]

My favorite is when blogs (not naming any names here) littered with spelling/grammatical errors blast Haudricourt/Witrado for their own English errors.

[Invader3K]

I agree with both sides. I have worked in media (radio, though, not print), and it's not exactly an overly rewarding industry. But, I remember in college classes they would have DJs and such from local stations come in and say, "This isn't a good business to get into if you're in a committed relationship," etc. I took that advice well and made sure to stay in the area...and eventually got out of radio when I decided it wasn't something I wanted to do long term because I knew it wouldn't be the best for me and my wife. And I was in sales, not on-air...so it's not a direct correlation, but I think some of the same lessons apply.

 

Most people who stay in media into their 40s are there because they truly do enjoy it, and are willing to continue making the trade offs necessary. So I won't feel sorry for them in that regard. People in their 40's and 50's can make career changes if they really want to.

[Kaukauna]

I love reading your posts, OldSchool -- extremely well-written and thoughtful and clearly someone who knows the journalism life.

 

I will echo essentially everything he said. There are a lot of misconceptions about the field, but then again, there are misconceptions about a lot of fields. People assume resident doctors are rolling in cash immediately, for example, and that teachers never have to work in the summer. People think the natural atonement for these "realities" (long hours for both professions, for example) is justified. Maybe it is, maybe it isn't -- certainly every job has those drawbacks.

 

In what I've observed of Witrado (both reading his stuff and meeting him), there has definitely been an attitude that I can't stand. He has been aloof to readers and those he meets in person. I do not perceive that he understands how much improvement he needs in writing, but that could be a product of JS leadership as well as his own personal outlook. What frustrates me about him professionally is that he's a young kid not far removed from college -- shouldn't he be the template for a modern journalist ... accessible, unique, funny, etc.?

 

His coverage is so mundane (I compare it to a first-year journalism student) and his chats reveal an air of cockiness and superiority. It surprises me that Tom Haudricourt is the one with the tweets and the more in-depth blog posts and the daily radio chats on ESPN radio (I realize Witrado is on the air a couple times a week on 1250). Witrado simply looks like the rookie AAAA backup right now, and this isn't the venue for learning a craft.

 

Nobody handles online chats worse than Tom, but I will always maintain that he works as hard as anyone covering the Brewers. He asks the tough questions, he pursues leads, he intimately knows the club's history. Could he open his eyes more to the benefits of blogs and take a more delicate tone with those he perceives as dumb fans? Of course. Do I excuse him a little for being jaded as the primary beat guy for many years of a bad baseball team? Sure. He goes too far sometimes (Badger Blogger), but it never fails to amaze me how vilified he has become in circles such as these. His stories give readers everything they need -- news, quality writing, an occasional negative tone (shared by the readers), qualified perspective and depth.

 

Yes, it's a sweet gig in many ways. I think even Tom and Anthony would tell you that if you really had a conversation with them. Maybe I'm wrong -- but of course, we all talk about how much we dislike our jobs or some aspect of it, even if we have it pretty good. They love being at the park and with the team. In the few games I've had the privilege to cover, I love every second of it. It can be stressful, it can be long hours, and if I did it every day like they did, there would certainly be some bad days thrown in. There might be things I do differently, but at least with TH, I still feel he is the best and most qualified person to cover the Milwaukee Brewers.

[yogallardo43]

I am a senior who is looking to get into the Journalism field. I can understand what Old School is saying about some of the problems related to pay. I fully expect to make little money when I get out of school. The problem I have with your posts is listed how horrible TH and AW jobs are. If you are going to point out a bad job in the journalism field, talk about the person who doesn't make it. Talk about the guy who makes 30K covering Podunkville sports. But please, don't tell me how bad Tom H has it. Writing for the Brewers would be an absolute dream job for me. I know I am only 21, but I know that I would never retract that statement. I know what I am getting into. I know it's a tough market with low pay a lot of the time. To be in Tom H's situation would be amazing. I would love to make that "sacrifice."

[Menace II Sobriety]

Menance,

 

Rivals and BA compared to newspapers are two totally different animals. Rivals and Scout are thriving; newspapers are dying. And when I say this I'm not ripping on what those guys do, but the affiliates for Rivals, the guys who cover each team, have more a "fanboy" role than the average beat writer for a paper. Totally different markets, totally different job.

I quit reading right there, this is what happens when I add on to a topic I don't really care about. My buddy worked for the Oshkosh Northwestern, a little in FDL, Waupun and Hartford or Hartland I can never get them straight.. My only point was no matter how well you think you know the market their are other revenue streams out there. My buddy slid my name into the pitching lines a few tiimes. Whatever you guys know all;my point was that you can transition into different media streams if you are willing. Hal McCoy does not have to retire; he can not adapt. As far as how much my buddy makes at rivals that is 3 raises in in 4 years. They just don't give out that pay.

[foamboy1]

I've almost always received responses back from Bob McGinn, the Packer reporter extraordinaire.

[BrewCrewForever]

While agree with most that Witrado is a hack and does not seem to care much about his job, I really like Haudricourt and always have. Sure he is the "prince of darkness" but I enjoy reading his material and appreciate is constant blog post updates and twitter updates. Not to mention anytime I have emailed him with a question or made a comment he has always responded and been professional about it. I also like his bits on the D-List and Homer on 540 ESPN.

[wisportswriter]

First, let me acknowledge the bump. I realize this post is coming way late, but I stopped posting here a year ago (for various reasons), decided to check back in and see what's been posted about the MJS staff (I've seen/been involved in those threads in the past), came upon this thread and wanted to add my 2 cents.

 

I know a lot of posters here have very strong opinions about the MJS staff and sportswriters in general, and I fear many of those opinions are too strong to change.

But if you believe anything you read in this thread, please listen to the posts by OldSchoolSnapper and Kaukauna. They are terrific posts and really are 100 percent dead on.

 

The flip side some of you have pointed out ... yes, most of the time sportswriting is a great job. For all the bad -- and believe me, there is plenty of bad -- there is also plenty of good. I hate the pay, the travel, the hours, the loss of a social life. But I love being a storyteller, love reporting, love being involved in sports, which I have loved essentially since birth.

 

Where Snapper and StinkyTown are coming from is, so many times we hear people talk about what an amazing job we have, how it almost gets romanticized. That happens because all the fans see is that we "get to go to games for free and talk with the athletes and coaches." To a fan, that sounds like an incredibly good time. To us, that is a long, hard day at work.

 

yogallardo43:

I understand where you're coming from, because I know exactly where you are: you're young and still more fan than journalist. A lot of us were at some point, and we all felt the same way you do now.

But that doesn't last for long. And that's OK, because it really can't. Not if you're going to do the job well.

Tom's job may seem like a dream job to you. But ... I've been a lifelong Brewers fan, and I currently work at a mid-sized daily in Dubuque, Iowa, covering mostly preps. And you know what? If the MJS called me up this afternoon and offered me Tom's job, I would not take it and I wouldn't even hesitate for a single second. That's the honest to God truth.

 

And that, again, is the crux of the point.

Yes, to many it seems like what sportswriters do is so much fun.

But it's not. It's a job, and it's a darn hard one.

Can you still enjoy it? Can you still love it? Absolutely.

But not because you get to interview Ryan Braun and sit in the Miller Park press box and watch baseball for free.

[TooLiveBrew]

Ok -- so today was the first scheduled day of Brewers Spring Training workouts. TH & AW both reported this morning that the rain in the Phoenix area made it questionable as to whether or not the workouts would take place. Now it's nearly 6p CT, and their Brewers blog has provided no update. TH had time to post the entry "Getting to Know: Trent Oeltjen" this afternoon, but neither he nor AW had time to post something as simple as "Workouts cancelled due to weather", or "Despite rain, Brewers get in first workout sessions"? If you're rushed for time, a simple "Brewers open ST workouts, more to come later" post would suffice. But honestly, what would stand in the way of reporting on activities today? You're getting paid to cover ST for crying out loud.

 

Thank goodness we have Adam McCalvy, who apparently recognizes the fact that Brewers fans would actually like to know whether or not their team did anything today. Link, posted at 2:11p CT today (with quotes from Gallardo, Macha, & Hoffman). I realize this discussion has been just about beaten to death, but I do think the JS guys owe it to their readers to get updates like this posted. It just reeks of laziness & lack of attention to detail imho. Maybe it's my own fault for not relying on McCalvy's blog more in the first place, but that is definitely the place I will be heading from now on when I want information on the Brewers.

[BuckyBrewer61]

As someone who has agreed with some criticisms of Witrado in the past, I have to say that a couple of his last blog posts on jsonline were pretty nice pieces. His blogs on Gomez and Dillard/Peterson gave some nice insight into a couple key additions to the Brewers and gave a glimpse into some of the stories to watch (new CF, new pitching coach with last year's awful staff) over the spring. Let's face it, the people reading that blog are people like us who want to over-analyze everything when there's really not much to analyze this time of year, so if we are going to be critical, we might as well give credit where it's due as well. Hope to see more of this good work from Anthony.

[Invader3K]

I agree. I just read his posting on Carlos Gomez and it was pretty decent. Maybe someone lit a fire under his butt to do his job a little more thoroughly. I'll certainly take this over some of his work from last season.

[RyDogg66]

The internet has spoiled us. 10 years ago we would get an update every Sunday. Now when it is raining and we dont get updates on the rain we are upset. Im not picking on you TLB, you speak for all of us, I am just pointing it out. It irks me when I hear "baseball fans" complain and say they wont watch the games on TV if they are not in HD. Good thing you arent living in my house and slumming it with an "old fashioned" television or you would never see a game. Im all for ripping poor reports from our reporters, or poor production from FSN, but sometimes our complaints are pretty nit-picky as a result of our advancement in technology.

[berniebrewer4life]

I'm usually not one to rip on TH, but did anybody else read his article on Macha and think it was only a big "haha, told you i was right", to Ken? Seems kinda petty to me, but maybe it's because i read it at midnight.

[Flood Pants]

Yes, to many it seems like what sportswriters do is so much fun.

But it's not. It's a job, and it's a darn hard one.

This is a great post. It caused me also to think about the way we react to baseball players. Granted, it's different for them, as they "may" make millions and lead a very glamorous life. But ultimately, the sport is their job and I imagine it's often hard and taxing for them. And if ever they complain about anything, we fans call them "babies" and never fail to mention how "they're being payed millions to play a game," as if we're entitled to criticize them. Next time you feel like saying that, ask yourself "have you ever had a hard day at your job?

 

The grass is always greener on the other side.

[trwi7]

From Witrado's blog.

It seems like if isn't him screwing himself like he did in his first call-up

How did he screw himself in his first call-up? By telling Macha not to start him?

What an idiot that guy is.

[TuesdaysWithRillo]

The internet has spoiled us. 10 years ago we would get an update every Sunday. Now when it is raining and we dont get updates on the rain we are upset. Im not picking on you TLB, you speak for all of us, I am just pointing it out. It irks me when I hear "baseball fans" complain and say they wont watch the games on TV if they are not in HD. Good thing you arent living in my house and slumming it with an "old fashioned" television or you would never see a game. Im all for ripping poor reports from our reporters, or poor production from FSN, but sometimes our complaints are pretty nit-picky as a result of our advancement in technology.

Well said and very humorous. Thanks for putting things into perspective.

[endaround]

From Witrado's blog.

 

 

It seems like if isn't him screwing himself like he did in his first call-up

How did he screw himself in his first call-up? By telling Macha not to start him?

 

What an idiot that guy is.

On last night's broadcast Schroeder was talking about how Gamel was always hurt and had a real chance to make the team this spring in a back up role. There is something in the air be it just the press box or if its coming from off the record talks.

[TuesdaysWithRillo]

From Witrado's blog.

 

 

It seems like if isn't him screwing himself like he did in his first call-up

How did he screw himself in his first call-up? By telling Macha not to start him?

 

What an idiot that guy is.

On last night's broadcast Schroeder was talking about how Gamel was always hurt and had a real chance to make the team this spring in a back up role. There is something in the air be it just the press box or if its coming from off the record talks.

I'll take option A on the exam.

[logan82]

I didn't really like Witrado's choice of words. Screwing is a word I would expect to be used on a message board, not by professional writer. That is unless that writer's job is to review porn.

 

From previous interviews with Macha, it sounded like Gamel had a real chance to make the team. If that is true,shame on Melvin.

[TooLiveBrew]

Plus, the typo is pretty bad. Was "if" supposed to be "it"?