The New York Islanders and their "Blog Box" made its debut during the team's home opener against the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday night. Si.com's Richard Dietsch was there:
There was a moment late on Saturday night at the Nassau Coliseum when blogging, journalism and public relations collided with the force of a Dion Phaneuf open-ice check. In a cramped interview room after New York's 3-2 win over the Buffalo Sabres, Islanders defenseman Chris Campoli was asked if the referees had treated his team unfairly. Before Campoli could answer the question, Chris Botta, the team's public relations director, interjected a warning.
"Let me remind you, Chris," Botta said, grinning, "we can get fined even by a question from a blogger."
Excuse me if I stifle a groan here. Over the course of the entire 2006-07 season I spent in the press box with the Washington Capitals (35 games overall), I was never identified as a blogger. I was simply treated like any other member of the working press and was granted the same access and privileges -- including access to the visiting locker room if I wanted. Of course, that also meant I had the same responsibilities, which meant staying out of the way of the beat writers who had deadlines to meet, moving if I was blocking a camera angle, as well as making sure I didn't step on team logo on the center of the locker room carpet.
And it also meant not cheering from the box and leaving my Capitals hat at home. More on that later.
Over time, my own blog, Off Wing Opinion, was granted other privileges, and I was able to secure spots on the glass for a team of three volunteer photographers I recruited. Just like me, they were expected to comport themselves as professionals. And after most of a season, Ellen Blanchard, Kate McGovern and Allen Clark were treated just like any other photographer working the game.
In other words, if you didn't know Off Wing was a blog, you'd never know that any bloggers were actually working the game. It was all very seamless, and a real tribute to the professionalism of the Washington Capitals, the team that granted us the access. This season, the team has granted access to even more bloggers, all wearing the same laminated press passes the beat writers and photographers wear.
But if you had taken a trip to the "Blog Box" on Long Island on Saturday night, you would have seen something quite different: A group of fans segregated from the rest of the press who were only allowed guided access to Islanders players and no access to the visiting locker room at all. Most galling of all, many of the box bloggers trooped down to the Islanders locker room wearing Islanders jerseys.
If you want to get a taste of what the working media thinks of the grand experiment, just stop by SportsJournalists.com, where they cued the laugh track with a discussion slugged, Blogger Bashers Rejoice:
As someone who has defended the idea of increased media access to bloggers, it's with a heavy heart I must report that according to SI.com, several of them mingled with the working media during postgame interviews while wearing Islanders jerseys ...All throughout the SI.com piece, you'll see claims about how this "experiment" -- one that comes complete with a couple of academics from a university in Pennsylvania who ought to be ashamed of themselves -- is some sort of incredible innovation in sports media.
Team blogs are kind of like Fox News. You go there knowing you're getting one side of the story ...
Sigh ... desperate marketing ploy ... some things will never change in hockey.
That's actually the last thing that this deserves to be called. Instead, we ought to call it for what it is -- a glorified fan club. That this farce is sponsored by Eklund, the least credible voice in sports blogging today, only makes the joke complete.
Don't get me wrong, as I don't blame the Islanders fans who managed to win a spot in the box for going along for the ride (though I'm curious why a blog like Islanders Army, one with an established track record, couldn't be found a place at the table). After all, who wouldn't want a chance to go to the game and talk to the players? But the folks that are involved need to know that they're being used by Eklund and the Islanders, and in the process, doing more damage to the credibility of sports blogging than they can understand.
Previously on FanHouse:
Naked Truth and Toronto's Mini-Video Ban
Maple Leafs Say No to Digital Video
An Unexpected Idea for the Islanders Blog Box
Unmasked & Anonymous: Answering Ethical Questions About a Blogger Named Eklund
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Reader Comments ( Page 1 of 2)
1. Why isn't there room for both? That is, completely professional and credentialed bloggers like yourself, as well as completely biased bloggers who go to games wearing jerseys and just want to have fun but therefore have limited access?
Or are you worried that teams will look at credentialing bloggers as an either/or scenario, doing it like the Caps or doing it like the Islanders, but never both at the same time? (Which could sadly be how most teams think, I don't know ...)
A "blogger" is just someone who uses blogging software. Not all blogs even have a pretense of being objective, much like not all sports radio shows have the pretense of being objective. A homer sports radio host who's buddy-buddy with his player guests doesn't diminish what the guys at NPR are doing, it's just different.
Posted at 2:19PM on Oct 9th 2007 by Matt W.
2. Nicely done, Eric. You've been in the press box many more times than we at On Frozen Blog have. That being said, even we weren't identified as bloggers (expect of course since "blog" is in our name) and had the same rights and responsibilities as everyone else.
The big difference is that Ted Leonsis only owns one team. I can't thank Ted and the Caps enough for the faith and trust they have placed in all of us.
Posted at 2:45PM on Oct 9th 2007 by Gustafsson
3. Hi Eric -
The reason the access that Off Wing Opinion had and the reason why it worked is because of your leadership and clear expectations of those that worked with you. In addition, you also had the clear prescence of where you fit in the pecking order.
If I ever had the access to my team, the PR department would not even know if I was a blogger or a full-time press reporter. In other words, I would know my role - those that wore the Islanders jerseys clearly did not know how to conduct themselves.
Because of the growing pains over there, it would potentially make it more difficult for other teams to attempt to do the same thing...not that I would have any problem being in a cramped press room in Glendale, AZ (because it most likely is not cramped), but I can certainly see/hear the "I-told-you-so" comments from those against the whole idea.
Along with you, I didn't like how Botta outed the blogger, but it looks like the bloggers didn't help themselves either.
FWIW
Posted at 3:32PM on Oct 9th 2007 by PB
4. Wow, I would really like to have been a fly inside the skull of one of the bloggers as he thought about what to wear to the game. What kind of mental degradation must one have suffered to make the choice to wear a team jersey? I wonder if those guys realized, once they got there or once they headed down to the locker room, that they had screwed up royally. Kind of like if you've ever gone to a dinner that you thought was casual and everyone else is dressed up. It would be funnier if it never crossed their mind the entire night.
Besides, if these guys are gonna be real sportswriters, they need to wear a shirt that they won't mind dropping a meatball sandwich on.
Posted at 4:38PM on Oct 9th 2007 by JEThompson
5. They wore jerseys to the press box and locker room? *groan* That's sure to set things back a few years right there.
Bloggers need to understand that if they're going to obtain professional-style access to the team, they need to bring a professional level of conduct to their effort. Back in 1997 & 98 I recieved press passes from the Detroit Red Wings while working for a hockey site that's no longer around, and the agreed-upon guidelines were easy to follow:
1) Dress business casual
2) Let the deadline guys get there quotes first before asking questions, and
3) Act like a journalist, not a fan (no autograph requests or cheering).
Posted at 4:43PM on Oct 9th 2007 by The Forechecker
6. Eric,
While I have the utmost respect for you and the work that you do, I disagree with your opinion about this subject. Why do some people try to limit the meaning of the term "blogger" with a narrow definition? In my opinion, a blogger is just someone who blogs, as Matt suggested above. They could be fans, comedians, prison convicts, movie stars, politicians, home-makers, or just neurotic people looking for attention. Not all bloggers want to act like journalists, dress like journalists, or be journalists. Some sports bloggers want to be fans but still want write about the sport that they love. They might not want to be objective. They might not want to be fair. Maybe they don't want to quit their day jobs and be journalists, but they still want to write about their respective teams. What's wrong with that? Why is this wrong?
In my opinion, if the Islanders want to designate a special area for fan bloggers to sit separate from the legitimate press, then all the power to them! As a matter of fact, it's probably a great idea to do it that way. This way, they don't bother the professionals and each group can do their own thing without getting on each other's nerves. I have read several of the posts of these bloggers, and none that I noticed seemed offended or upset that they were segregated from the press, or kept out of the visitor's locker room. They all seemed perfectly happy with the arrangements, so what's the problem? If this works for the Islanders and works for the individuals involved, why is this a failure? Since this is the first time something like this has been done, (a separate fan blogger's box), I really don't believe that there is a right way or a wrong way to do it. I think that the word "experiment" is perfect for what is going on here and I applaud the Islanders for giving it a try. Hopefully, more teams will follow suit. I just wish that journalists and "bloggers turned journalists" would be a little more open-minded, more accepting, and more supportive of fans who love to blog and write about their teams, but don't necessarily want to be professionals.
Thank you for your time and this forum.
Posted at 5:31PM on Oct 9th 2007 by Bubba
7. Why can't there be room for both? I don't want to go to an Islanders game and leave my jersey home. I'm a fan first and a writer (if you can even call it that) second. Heaven forbid the Islanders recognize that and have two sets of rules and access for each group. Eric, if you want a big boy's press pass from the Islanders I'm sure they would give it to you, you just have to ask. I'm well aware of the Blog Box rules and I'm OK with them which is why I applied for the Blog Box and not a normal press pass. Some access is better than no access, right?
You bloggers with full access press passes are acting exactly like the traditional media did when you got your passes - acting like the Blog Box is some kind of personal insult to your own work.
There are too many blogs out there to lump them all together. Some like Eric are writers first, fans second but I think the majority of the bloggers out there are fans first, and writers second. The Islanders have recognized this and established a clear distinction and rules for the two groups to co-exist.
Posted at 5:37PM on Oct 9th 2007 by murph
8. There was no failure on Long Island. All went quite well. No clashing of egos, no uncomfortable moments, no problems with "real media." Actually, I know some of them. It has been a very rewarding experience so far and I believe it will continue to be so. However you chose to describe the selected members of this experiment is your right. But each writer was chosen for a reason, non of which was to compete with the mainstream writers. Perhaps you should wait before judging it a failure. You may be surprised at the success the "fan" writers in their jerseys actually attain. There's room for everything in cyberspace. And there was room enough in the tiny press room as well. Just as with the new season, I think everyone should take a "wait and see" attitude.
Posted at 10:38PM on Oct 9th 2007 by 7th Woman
9. What I find interesting is that according to the standards Dwyane Klessel sought to establish with the Professional Hockey Writers Association for blogger credentials, I'm not sure many of the "Hockey Buzz Blog Box" Islanders writers would have qualified:
1. The site must need to be in existence for over a year. (Credibility)
2. The site either sell advertising through a recognized Ad Agency or have obtained "Media Liability Insurance." (Accountability)
3. The site must be able to prove a minimum of 100,000 pageviews per month over at least 4 months.
4. The individuals given credentials must abide by a “Contract of Conduct” that will ensure each reporter understands, and will adhere to, the basic rules of the press box, press conferences, practices, and locker rooms. (Safety)
Posted at 10:56PM on Oct 9th 2007 by Greg Wyshynski
10. "...just wish that journalists and "bloggers turned journalists" would be a little more open-minded, more accepting, and more supportive of fans who love to blog and write about their teams, but don't necessarily want to be professionals."
See, there's a difference between being a professional and being professional. The Islanders don't believe these bloggers can act professionally, so they keep them away from the working media so they can cheer openly and they hide them from the visitors' locker room because God-forbid they ask the wrong question in front of the visiting media.
The way the "blog box" has been constructed and sold, I don't see any reason why these fans shouldn't be able to turn around and ask for an autograph or take a photograph with the players they've just spoken to. It happens all the time in the locker room, especially with fans who wear their teams jerseys inside the room. If it doesn't happen...well, then why aren't the fans acting like fans?
I read fan blogs as much as read writers like Eric MacErlain and Mirtle. It's some of the most vibrant writing about hockey on the Web. But as Eric said: This is an extended fan club, nothing more. And the problem comes when a blogger who doesn't want to simply be placed in the fan club box is painted with the "blog box" brush by some NHL PR hack who read SI.com and thinks this guy is going to interview Sidney Crosby while wearing his jersey.
Posted at 11:09PM on Oct 9th 2007 by Greg Wyshynski
11. I love criticism - it's what makes the world go round and makes the little intricacies or problems get noticed and often repaired.
As one of "those bloggers who decided to wear the home team’s jersey", we were DIRECTED to wear team colors. Did I feel strange, yes and no. I felt proud to be in the position I was as a fan and a season ticket holder. Did I feel strange in the press conference wearing a jersey - maybe, but in the end it didn't really matter as what I wear doesn't affect my views on the team. I have often been critical when it is needed.
If you read the quote Richard included from yours truly, you would notice we were all very much aware that there was protocol to be followed - despite the fact we all did not really know the exact rules. We hung out in the back of the room, interviewed the player after the press and were respectful in general for the opportunity.
Am I a professional journalist? Heck no, but I do have writing and some press experience, heck I am even published! I don't believe that the Isles don't think we can act professionally - they are just very fan oriented. I completely understand the criticism however, and have made the decision not to wear "the team colors" tomorrow night.
Just for the record, I am yet to sit in the area designated for us, I sit in my season ticket seats and make my way downstairs after the game.
Michael Schuerlein
www.islesblogger.com
Posted at 6:06AM on Oct 10th 2007 by Michael Schuerlein
12. "I don't believe that the Isles don't think we can act professionally - they are just very fan oriented."
I see...and since you're not "fans" of the visiting team, that must be why the Islanders are hiding you from its locker room.
I figured it might have something to do with not wanting a horde of jersey-clad fan club members, who aren't respected enough to sit with the working media, invading the road team's room. Maybe I'm wrong...
Posted at 8:07AM on Oct 10th 2007 by Greg Wyshynski
13. The Islanders were looking to do something new, not something the Washington Capitals have done. The question is, why would you start a blog-reporter element and then have your bloggers act like neutered reporters? The whole idea is to get a fans perspective on the game on the ice, as well as giving them limited access to players and team personell. Thats the job here. I for one am excited to be a part of the blog box as I have been an Islander fan since the 77 season. They have the blog box in the crowd because we are fans, not because we are reporters. I think reporters should actually sit in the stands from time to time to get a real feel for the pulse of the game and the crowd so maybe they can incorporate just a little bit of what it was like before they became more than fans. That kind of passion is missing from so many reports and radio personalities that spend so much time around the game and players that the passion for the game itself is missing.
FCT
Posted at 9:28AM on Oct 10th 2007 by FCT
14. I can see the "different strokes for different folks" argument here, and we might benefit from using new terms here. In soccer, we have long-established fan sites and other independent media that pre-date the concept of blogging, and they haven't switched over from an HTML-and-FTP model. They're all in the pressbox (at least in D.C.), and most of the time, they're more professional than some of the alleged pros.
So perhaps you have "independent media" for folks like Eric who are striving for and often attaining professional standards. Then have a separate "fan media," and note that the guys could be blogging, podcasting, scribbling on Facebook, whatever.
But even if you're "fan media" -- come on, people, leave the jerseys out of the working press areas.
Rewind to the Mike Gundy incident. When he finished his screed on the evils of Jeni Carlson, the media and society in general, he stormed off ... to applause. Who was applauding? Does Oklahoma State hand out credentials to all the Buddy Garrity types who follow the team? That's a scene we don't want repeated.
Quick note to Greg -- 100,000 per month? Yikes. I know some newspaper blogs that don't come close to that. But it's just because the FanHouse never links to them. :)
Posted at 9:58AM on Oct 10th 2007 by Beau Dure
15. The Isles are not attempting to integrate the bloggers and the rest of the media. In fact, it was clear from the start that the Isles were establishing the Blog Box as a forum for *fans* to write about the team in a semi-official capacity. This is vastly different from what the Capitals have going on, and comparisons are unfair and misleading. The Islanders are making it clear that this is a group of fan bloggers, not a group of people trying to get their foot in the door of the hockey journalism business.
The notion that somehow the Blog Boxers are patrolling the locker room looking for pictures and autographs is absurd. In addition, the notion that these blogs are like "Fox News" is laughable. I've read many critical comments on the blogs and even if the majority of the information is slanted, so what? That's the point. Otherwise, they would have asked Ranger fans to participate. Worse, maybe journalists who don't understand or have a passion for hockey.
We need bloggers who write with a passion about the teams they love, not bloggers who can sit quietly in their business casual outfits.
Take a deep breath and relax. You're coming off as a spoiled insider. Nobody is coming to take away your toys.
Posted at 10:35AM on Oct 10th 2007 by Barney
16. I applied to be a part of the NYI Blog Box for one reason - I recognize hockey is a dying sport in the US and needs unconventional, grass-roots initiatives to rebuild support. Few, if any, NHL teams have done more than the Islanders to reach out to its fans. Frankly, I feel your article was a bit self-serving. If you can get past the wall of journalistic elitism you've built around yourself, you'd recognize that any well-intentioned attempt to help repair this sport is a good one. The coverage, or lack thereof, from the traditional media has only contributed to the slow death of the game. I commend you for what you've done over the years, but don't lose sight of what I'm sure were your original motivations when you started writing. I don't pretend to be "legitimate" media, nor would I want to be. The way the team has set up this arrangement thus far enables us to be both fans and bloggers. This is an important distinction. If you were there with all of us on Saturday night, I really believe you would have left with a different impression.
Mike Carey
http://islandersnhl.blogspot.com/
Posted at 10:45AM on Oct 10th 2007 by Mike Carey
17. "I don't pretend to be "legitimate" media, nor would I want to be."
But that's the point -- if you have a blog, you should be as legitimate as anyone else coming to cover the game. That's the spirit of the alternative media: As a fan, as a writer, as a blogger, you're providing the public with a service. You might have to wear a tie to the game, but it doesn't mean you have to act like a suit. The goal should be to enlarge the tent of NHL media, to include anyone with a publication that meets minor standards of consistency and honesty; to the point where a "fan with a blog" is given the same access as mainstream media.
Whether that blogger wants it or not is another issue; but this segregation by the Islanders is limiting, rather than supporting, that growth.
To Beau: I used to be on a season credential to United, and I agree -- that press box was filled with more alt media than a Bright Eyes concert. And they had the same access that a writer from the Washington Post had.
And yes, 100,000 per month. That's one of the reasons many bloggers felt Dwayne Klessel might not be the right man to lobby the Pro Hockey Writers Association on their behalf.
Posted at 11:07AM on Oct 10th 2007 by Greg Wyshynski
18. I think that there's a potential problem here. If the Islanders bloggers are willing to be seen as simply fans or part of the Islanders' PR machine, then it's no problem. If they wish to be seen as "independent", or presenters of news, than no, it won't work.
There's a reason that there's a "no cheering in the press box" rule. If that rule is broken, than you're no longer a reporter but a fan, and what you're presenting isn't news (i.e. factual) but an opinion. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but if that's the case, then the Islanders bloggers are going to face a double battle for legitimacy. First being "non-traditional media", and second being labled, accurately, as fans first and "reporters" second. Meaning there's no difference between them and some schmo sitting in his boxers watching the game on TV and voicing his opinions, other than the access to the locker rooms.
Maybe it's because I worked as a reporter previously (although not in the sports area), but I would have serious concerns over accepting that type of deal.
Maybe I'm old fashioned, but it just seems like there's a line being crossed here. For those that posted who sit in the stands and THEN blog/report, I'm fine with that. But being encouraged by the team to wear jerseys (i.e. act like fans), it's going to make you beholden to the team at some point. Or, it at least will give the APPEARANCE of that. So, are you not writing negative things because you don't believe that anything negative is happening? Or are you afraid of being banished from the "blogger box" and losing the related benefits?
Be careful. You risk putting yourself in a no-win situation here.
Posted at 11:31AM on Oct 10th 2007 by TG
19. I don't really have a problem with a team giving access to "fan bloggers," encouraging them to wear team colors and giving them controlled access to the team. I think that's great...I'd fit more into that category far more than the professional one.
But I agree that doing so causes problems for professional bloggers who want a seat in the press box. Teams need to to allow the journalistic blogger standard media access...not just the ones employed by newspapers...if the fan bloggers are getting controlled home team access.
Posted at 11:34AM on Oct 10th 2007 by Lauren
20. Wow, some bloggers are so caddy.
Great read, because it just goes to show that the infighting of bloggers and ridiculous soapbox judgments do more to destroy our rep than any Blog Box ever will.
Rock on, kiddies.
Posted at 11:52AM on Oct 10th 2007 by B.D. Gallof