What would you do?

By Staff     Jun 17, 2007

It was hard not to put myself in Brian Bennett’s shoes upon reading his tale of credential-yanking at last week’s NCAA Super Regional in Louisville, Ky.Bennett, a reporter for the [Louisville Courier-Journal][1], was in the press box, plugging at his laptop to produce a live, running blog of a contest between Louisville and Oklahoma State. The NCAA wagged its finger at him in the fifth inning, [taking his credential][2] and asking him to leave the press box.”I continued blogging until the bottom of the fifth inning,” he wrote in his Courier-Journal [column][3] last Sunday. “An NCAA representative came to my seat on press row and asked for my credential and asked me to leave. I complied.”Being a journalist, especially in sports, is a very thankless job. The hours can be insane and demanding, and the pay can get you down. To some on the outside, it looks like the dream gig – getting paid to watch and write about sports while sitting right next to the action. In reality, it’s a job you do for the love of it. So when I read of Bennett’s tale, I closed my eyes and thought: What if during the San Jose Regional back in March, someone came up, tapped me on the shoulder during the second half of KU’s neck-and-neck tilt with UCLA, _while_ posting live updates to several readers following them online, and told me to pack my stuff and go, because, well, my services are no longer welcomed.I’m not a seasoned veteran in this business, and thinking about it, I probably would have overreacted and vented some frustration with my words. The first question out of my mouth would probably have been: “What’s the difference between me doing this sitting here courtside and doing it back at the hotel room?” Doing so in public and in front of colleagues would not be the professional thing to do, but it’s understandable to see how that reaction could come about. When your job is thankless enough as it is, you can have a tough time with someone reminding you of that forcefully.I, like most who read this story, side with Bennett. You could play it off and say that’s my opinion just because a large part of our award-winning [gameday coverage][4] from the months of September through March relies on doing the same thing he was banned from the box for. But really it’s because the NCAA gives off with this action that it is not adapting to the changing face of journalism.Let’s face it, the Internet has changed everything. If you come to think about it, a lot of people call themselves journalists, even if they’re not paid as such for their services. Some go on a message board and call themselves journalists. Some write blogs dissecting the genius behind reruns of _Full House_ while eating Cocoa Puffs in their parents’ basement and call themselves journalists (That has to happen somewhere, right?).Basically, the title ‘journalist’ has lost some luster, because the Internet has given it’s liberties to so many people.KU associate athletic director Jim Marchiony was quoted in Saturday’s Journal-World as saying that no written policy exists within the school’s department regarding things such as live blogging. Therefore, it’s not enforced, and I can still do so from courtside at Allen Fieldhouse and the cozy confines of the eighth floor at Memorial Stadium.What the NCAA is doing by throwing journalists away from its events is telling them that their promotion of college athletics is not welcomed. What’s the difference between reading the details of how far a homerun flew the next day and minutes after it clears the fence? The details don’t change. Once it leaves the park, it’s a fact. That was an example used by the _Courier-Journal’s_ attorney, Jon L. Fleischaker.Even though sports writers aren’t always positive, one thing they do for organizations such as the NCAA is tell the general public why they should care about said sporting event and why it’s important.Does kicking one journalist out make a difference as far as getting the word out? No. Not by a longshot. But journalists stick together. And telling Brian Bennett that his services are not welcomed is just like telling his colleagues in that press box the same thing all at once.I would have loved to have been a fly on the wall in that press box for nothing more than to hear the conversation between those colleagues once Bennett was removed.Thinking of what that exchange was like again put me back in those shoes in the HP Pavilion in San Jose three months ago.I still think my reaction would have been the same as it was a few paragraphs ago. After all, wouldn’t yours be, too, if the NCAA was charging you $30 a day to get wireless Internet access in the arena?So, what would you do? There’s plenty of comment space below.**_KUSports.com editor Ryan Greene can be reached at rgreene@ljworld.com, or by phone at (785) 832-6357._** [1]: http://www.courier-journal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/frontpage [2]: http://www.usatoday.com/sports/college/baseball/2007-06-11-reporter-ejected_N.htm [3]: http://www.courier-journal.com/blogs/bennett/2007/06/ejected-and-dejected.html [4]: http://www2.kusports.com/gameday/

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