Some NHL Teams Don’t Want Bloggers Anywhere Near Their Players

Posted by Dan Levy.

There’s this odd misconception in the world that blogs are only written by fans. It’s hard for people in the media who get paid to do their job (and, by and large get told what teams/topics to cover) to understand that people who write blogs are not necessarily doing so while wearing a jersey with their faces covered in temporary tattoos of the team’s logo. Sometimes, independent media is certainly nothing more than a fan’s ramblings, be it everything from mindless homerism to insightful criticism and commentary.

More often than not (at least more often than in the past), independent media is borne out of a need for fans to get more from their local coverage. Certainly in the case of the NFL or many successful MLB teams, there will be more “fan blogs” than independent media sites looking for a different angle of coverage. Traditional media gravitates to what’s popular, which is why there is usually no lack of coverage for the major sports. It’s difficult for an independent site to get recognized and credentialed from an NFL or MLB team. They have so much coverage, adding more independent voices isn’t likely.

This season, Phillies fans could vote in a bracket-style contest with 64 different Phils blogs taking part (and they left some out)! There’s no way the Phillies would be handing out credentials to 75% of those sites. Frankly, most of the writers at those sites wouldn’t even want the credential. But those that do…those that write their site more from the mindset of independent media and less like a fan…wouldn’t it be smart to include them?

That’s really more of a question for the other American sports. Baseball and Football don’t need to be as progressive as, say, MLS or the NHL. Even the NBA has smartly embraced blogs and social media (at least more than other traditional sports). For this point, however, let’s stick with the NHL.

Greg Wyshynski of Yahoo’s Puck Daddy is a blogger. He writes a blog. Does ANYONE think of  his blog as a silly fan site? Or, for that matter, any number of new media sites that have come up in response to the crippling lack of coverage from mainstream media (namely, newspapers)? There’s more to it than that (although I suspect if you’re reading this, you already know that).

Many hockey blogs, it seems, have grown from a complete lack of dependable coverage at the traditional media outlets. The blog writers, and readers, were looking for more in-depth analysis and more consistent breaking news that the traditional outlets were suddenly willing to offer. Why not create it themselves?

Major media companies have started to gobble up more popular websites, and companies like SB Nation and, gulp, Bleacher Report continue to find more legitimacy in the world of sports media by leveraging these “fan blogs” into an amalgam that resembles media. The line between “fan blog” and independent media is far more blurry than most anticipated.

While the league has seen the importance of embracing (or at least trying to understand) this new media, Wyshynski reported today that some teams may not feel the same way:

Credentialed bloggers usually enjoy the same access as a newspaper or radio reporter on a game night: a seat in the press box, fresh popcorn and access to the teams’ dressing rooms for postgame interviews. They cover the game, pass information to their audience, and have done so for the last several years without many incidents of unprofessional behavior, despite approaching the coverage from a fan’s perspective.

Yet several prominent NHL franchises, including the New York Rangers and Edmonton Oilers, have strict “no blogger” policies in their arenas. They don’t see them as working journalists, and they certainly don’t see a need for them to have access to cramped locker rooms after the game.

Not a surprise that two of the more traditional franchises may be against a more progressive form of coverage. It would be more surprising if, say, the Atlanta Thrashers had an issue with new forms of coverage. But it is disappointing that some teams have told the league that they do not want bloggers to be allowed inside their locker rooms during road games. If the Rangers are playing the Capitals and the Caps army of blogging media wants to talk to a player after the game, they may not be credentialed to do so.

One option, per the Puck Daddy report, is that teams will allow bloggers to stand in a holding area and will provide players for comment. Wyshynski pointed out that this is the plan the Islanders have used for their bloggers since 2007. It’s worth noting that it’s also not unlike a “mixed zone” session that soccer teams employ for all media. Get who you get but get them quick because they’ll be walking past you before you realize it.

More from Puck Daddy:

New media has helped change the way fans consume NHL news, views and information. But it’s clear that some teams are ignorant of the maturation of the alt- media, and have no interest in engaging those bloggers and their audiences to influence their coverage with an open-door policy. Because it’s much easier, and perhaps satisfying, to slam it shut.

Which is why one Western Conference team, during this week’s call, said no bloggers are getting in their building “without a ticket.”

Wonderful. And entirely progressive for a league that, let’s face it, could use the help in growing the brand. Outside of Pittsburgh, Chicago, Philadelphia, Detroit, Washington and a few other markets that I’m sure someone will point out I missed, how many teams are suffering from an abundance of coverage?

Please check out Wyshynski’s article. It’s worth the entire read and entirely fascinating. And well written. I almost can’t believe he’s a blogger.

Posted on August 26, 2010 at 1:22PM

This Post tags: Blogs, Media, NHL, Puck Daddy

 

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1. Ken

   
   08/26 2010

   “Wyshynski pointed out that this is the plan the Islanders have used for their bloggers since 2007.”

   Please note that this is the plan the Islanders used initially for their bloggers in 2007. After a couple of months, the credentialed bloggers were let loose from their holding area and joined the MSM in the post-game scrum.

2. Dan Levy

   
   08/26 2010

   Noted. Thank you. I must have gotten confused in all the different notes. I thought it read that they still used a “modified” pen system.

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