Why isn’t there more coverage of women’s basketball tournament? Response from New York Times

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New York Times public editor Margaret Sullivan addressed the issue of the lack of coverage for women compared to the men in their respective NCAA basketball tournaments. Several women readers voiced their complaints.

Sullivan writes:

The readers have a valid point about coverage so far: The women’s coverage has been minimal. Let’s look back over the weekend’s offerings.

Saturday: Coverage of the men’s tournament included one section-front article, and seven inside feature stories, a men’s roundup article and a notebook. There was nothing on the women’s tournament, which was to begin later that day. (By contrast, there was plenty of preview coverage of the men’s tournament.)

Sunday: Coverage of the men’s tournament included two section-front articles and a full-page photo display inside, along with two inside articles. For the women: an Associated Press roundup article and “agate” – the small-print game results.

Monday: For the men, one front-page article, four inside articles and a roundup, all written by Times staff members. For the women, an Associated Press roundup and the women’s agate. (A feature article on both men’s and women’s tournament travel was on the front page but did not involve substantial coverage of athletes, teams or games.)

Sullivan asked Times deputy sports editor Sam Dolnick for a response. Dolnick said:

By any and every measure, the women’s N.C.A.A. tournament attracts less general interest than the men’s tournament. If our job is in large part to gauge newsworthiness, then it wouldn’t make sense to allocate the same resources to both tournaments. That’s not to say that we ignore the women’s tournament — far from it. This year we will have five reporters fanned out across the country, including some of our best and most senior writers. That’s probably more coverage than we’ve ever had before.

Dolnick also added there are occasions when the Times actually gives more coverage to women’s sports over men. Namely in the Olympics where the women events are more compelling and have a larger following.

A side point — the N.C.A.A. tournament shouldn’t be used as a barometer for our interest in women’s sports in general. There have been times when we cover women’s tennis, and women’s World Cup soccer, and women’s figure skating, and women’s gymnastics, more closely than we cover the men. That’s simply because we found the women’s competitions there to be more compelling — and that’s the measure we always use in assigning coverage.

Sullivan’s conclusion:

But I also believe that there’s something circular here that is important and should be acknowledged: Intense media coverage of sports is one of the reasons that there is so much popular interest.

Does The Times need to bring the same resources to the women’s tournament as it does to the men’s? No, I don’t think so. But the level of interest has been disappointing so far. As a former high school and college hoops player myself (I sat the bench with considerable skill on Georgetown’s junior varsity team), I’m eagerly looking forward to seeing women’s coverage ramp up soon.

Sullivan has a point about coverage driving more interest in a sport. Clearly, though, there is a much greater following for the men’s game, even among women.

Would more coverage for the women’s tournament change that? Probably not.

 

 

College perspective: DePaul journalism students weigh in on changing landscape of sports media

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I had the pleasure to teach a graduate level sports journalism class at DePaul University during the winter quarter. I know, the students should ask for a refund.

The course focused on all the different platforms for sports media and how stories get covered. It was a very lively class. If an outlet is looking to hire some good young journalists, please get in touch.

For the final, I had the students write on this topic: What do you see as the biggest change in sports media and how do you think it will impact the industry in the future?

One of my students contacted Deadspin editor Tommy Craggs for her report. Even though Craggs isn’t exactly a big fan of Sherman Report, I appreciate him talking to her.

They came up with some interesting observations and quotes. I thought I would share. Here are some excerpt from the students in alphabetical order. (Sorry, Courtney):

**********

Montezz Allen:

Back in the day, people got their news from the paper.

You’d pour a hot cup of coffee in your favorite mug, sit back and read the newspaper. The feeling of having a physical paper in your hands was heavenly. Flipping through each page and digesting each story gave you instant gratification. It was a habit. You’d zip straight to the sports section for stories and stats.  And if you had kids, the comic section performed miracles. You just couldn’t wait to digest your day-old news.

The news cycle stopped after 24 hours back then. The papers were put to bed by midnight. Sports reporters had a deadline. They filed their stories before that deadline, everything was sent to the factory, it was printed, and then poof – it’s your newspaper. Hot off the press and ready for delivery.

Those days are done. They’re over. Finished. Cherish the memories. They’re never coming back.

“You now break stories on social media,” said “The Shadow League” Sports Columnist and on-air talent, Rob Parker.  “In the old days, you wanted to say it for your newspaper. It was a way to get people to buy your product. Those days are over. You can’t wait. You have to put news out immediately or risk getting scooped on social media.”

******

Sal Barry:

For some, Twitter became a vital tool in the journalist’s toolbox. Bill Hoppe, the Buffalo Sabres beat writer for the Olean Times Herald, used Twitter to help grow a readership.

“It helped me a lot because my paper didn’t have a big web presence back then,” says Hoppe, who joined Twitter in 2009. Making things more difficult was that his newspaper’s website eventually went behind a pay wall.

“So Twitter helped me make a name for myself,” he explains. “I was able to establish myself because I was able to connect with people in a way that I otherwise wouldn’t have; give them updates and become — I hope — a decently-known beat writer because of it.”

Many sports media professionals were loathe to join Twitter initially.

“I hated it at first,” says Jeff Nuich, Senior Director of Communications at Comcast SportsNet. “I didn’t want any part of it, but one of my colleagues said ‘you got to do it.’ The reach of social media is incredible.”

Nuich explained how Twitter is now a key part of sports teams’ communication strategy. When the Bears decided to not re-sign Julius Peppers, this tweet was sent out by @ChicagoBears at the same time as their press release:

 #Bears have informed DE Julius Peppers they are terminating his contract.

That tweet, in turn was referenced by several websites, including NFL.com, when reporting the story. In a sense, Twitter has become the “newspaper of record” for online media.

*******

Jacob Berent:

Believe it or not, high school broadcast rights are even a tug-of-war battle, and I’m not just talking about your “game of the week” broadcasts either. The struggle between the two competing forces in high school broadcasting in Chicago land are a microcosm of emerging trends in the industry as a whole. The National Federation of High Schools (NFHS) Network is run by the high school sports governing body of the same name, and assisted by PlayOn! Sports, while their competitor, High School Cube, is backed by the Chicago Sun-Times.

“They’re our biggest competitor,” says Mike Piff, a play-by-play and producer at High School Cube. “We broadcast all the games for free, whereas they’re different. You can pay a subscription fee, or it’s free with a certain cable package thru Comcast. They have more games in more states and sometimes beat us out for rights, but I like our free model.”

Emerging technology has made possible broadcasting an entire state’s Friday night football schedule over the Internet a reality. Breakthroughs in video and live-streaming technology have turned a great number of people into broadcasters.  Oh the power of the Internet.

*******

Nicole Capone:

Social media sites like Twitter, are one of the major forms of media where sports news is broadcasted and obtained by fans. Laurence W. Holmes, a 1997 DePaul University Graduate and current on air personality for WSCR, agrees that Twitter has changed the sports media world.

“Twitter has kind of revolutionized what we can do as far as being a well-rounded media member,” says Holmes. “I see my biggest jump in followers on Twitter during Bears games. And that’s because at the games that I’m at, I’m tweeting stuff that people can’t see, stuff that you’re not necessarily seeing on TV. I love the reaction during games. It’s like watching a game at a bar, but the bar is Twitter or Facebook.”

Twitter and Facebook are sites that everyone can involve themselves in at any point in time during any game.

“Everyone’s involved in it, but you can still lead a discussion like a radio show, but on social media,” says Holmes. It revolutionized the way information gets to fans. It is a huge valuable tool if you understand how to connect with your followers.”

********

Eric Domingo:

Social media has become a great outlet for teams and leagues, but a huge problem for journalists. What happens when a team owner no longer wants his players to get distracted by journalists? What happens when a team owner wants their organizations to do the publicizing and not news outlets?

In 2011, Ted Leonsis, owner of the Washington Capitals, Wizard and Mystics, spoke about the impact of social media and how well versed his organization has become on the web.

“I’m an extrovert, and I get my energy and my input from fans,” Leonsis said. “I think this new media is like oxygen. Get used to it. I think that there is no more steering wheel in the hand of The Washington Post. I used to live in mortal fear about what they would write. Now, I don’t.”

Leonsis is looking to internalize social media and wants his teams to be their own media company. The Washington team owner gets 40 to 90,000 people coming to his blog a day and he likes how unfiltered social media is and how it’s an outlet to reach his target audience.

“When someone goes to find out something about me or a team or a player, and they go to Google and they type that in, I want to learn how to get the highest on the list, and I’ve done that. I don’t want The Washington Post to get the most clicks. I want the most clicks,” Leonsis said.

*******

Jaclyn Driscoll:

Due to particular characteristics of the site, some credited journalists believe it is diminishing the quality of news. Criticisms stem from the sarcastic tone, negativity, and some even say, a lack of basic journalism skills.

Craggs vehemently disagreed with these arguments stating, what people “don’t realize is how much crap was in the sports section of newspapers. There was stuff that was just there to promote the interest of the leagues being covered.” When looking particularly at Deadspin, Craggs said, “Despite what some idiots think, this isn’t some radical shift. We are a tabloid as they always were.”

Credited sites such as Sports Illustrated, New York Post, and CBS, have been targeted for “bringing it down” by Deadspin. But their favorite is ESPN.

“ESPN is our death star,” stated Craggs. “ESPN dominates conversation. The closest equivalent would be if New York Times and CNN band together and somehow bought exclusive rights to the State of the Union Address. It’s ridiculous.”

Ed Sherman, a free lance reporter for many well-established sports organizations, author, and creator of The Sherman Report, disagrees with certain aspects of Deadspin. One particular story that Sherman criticized was their coverage of the Manti Te’o scandal. He “praised the reporting, especially how they used social media to uncover the sordid tale,” but was one of many to knock the use of an “80-percent sure” quote from a source giving the possibility that Manti Te’o knew about the hoax. However, this is just one example. Made possible by Internet and social media, it is no secret that Sherman and Deadspin employees hold much different ideas of good journalism.

Craggs said, “People like Ed Sherman, don’t understand why we are doing this. He thinks we are doing it to be punks, but there is a reason why someone needs to be doing this. It’s bigger than that.”

*********

Christian Jones:

While online sports blogs are very prevalent, and some do a great job, others have a big issue with credibility. Adam Rittenberg, a blogger for ESPN, said:

“There’s a lot out there, and you need to sift through what is legitimate and what is not. It’s wrong to paint all blogs as not credible because many do credible work, whether it’s through reporting, advance statistics, event coverage and more. So it really depends on the blog and the people contributing to the blogs. Obviously, blogs with the backing of major news organizations (ESPN, New York Times, and Sports Illustrated) will have an easier time gaining credibility, but there are plenty of independent blogs that produce legitimate work.”

The negatives of online blogging are many. The blogs that do not have to think about the image of a multi-million dollar company. Blogs can be uncensored and stew hatred towards a player or a team. Just as ESPN can influence the audience into an opinion towards a player, blogs can do the same.

The difference comes in the presentation, ESPN will not use foul or abusive language to address an athlete, but blogs will say whatever they want. Blogs report on news and gossip, truth and rumors. As long as the story interest the public.

******

Kelsey Miller:

Students know that the job of a journalist will continue to evolve. It is not just writing and reporting now, but gathering information, shooting, editing, writing, social media updating and a number of other duties. Seasoned journalists may feel threatened by the new generation of journalists who may be more technologically literate. Experienced journalist Beth Mechum of the Shirley Povich Center for Sports Journalism at the University of Maryland does not feel threatened by the changes.

“I haven’t really seen any instances that I can think of where technology has hindered seasoned reporters because the basics of good reporting stay the same across mediums,” said Mechum. “The only thing I can think of where this would happen is if the only way you could reach a subject is through Twitter or Facebook and the reporter doesn’t know who to use Twitter. Part of being a good reporter is being intelligent, a keen observer and adaptable – these are all qualities that would make a reporter “tech savvy” enough to do his or her job well.”

Many online news outlets are not famous for breaking major news stories. Derek Poore, visiting professor at the University Of Missouri School for Journalism, told me how he would go about breaking major stories if he were CEO of a major online news organization.

“Don’t take first-hand social media postings as gospel, for one,” said Poore. “Verify, verify, verify. Emerging tools and startups are breaking new ground on how to verify the authenticity of early reports that emerge on social media during a breaking news event. All journalists should take advantage of those tools and develop new skepticism about what they read online. But it’s not too different from a reporter being skeptical of a first-hand news source and using other sources to verify.”

********

Courtney Terlecki:

With the decrease in newsroom sizes and the ability for anyone to be a journalist, one person now does the job of what would have consisted of several people previously.

“I was a one-man band throughout my whole career,” said Comcast Sports Net reporter Aiyana Cristal. “This day in age you’re going to have to be able to do it all. You just learn other jobs and that makes you more versatile.”

The rise of social media and the ability of journalists to take on multiple media platforms haschanged the way fans view journalists in terms of this idea of branding.

“The key development is clearly the opportunity for writers to self-brand, not beholden to whomever publishes them,” wrote Huffington Post sportswriter Alex Stewart. “This is impossible these days without social [media], as a blogger points out: ‘It was very obvious that to build a reader base I would need Twitter.’”

Established sports journalists can now leave the news organization in which they were employed and potentially further their career because of branding.

“I said, you know, if I didn’t work here I could probably quadruple my freelance income,” said Tim Cronin, who is now a freelance writer. “And as it turns out, I did a little better than that the first year from the paper, so I was right.”

Sports Emmys: Ted Turner to receive Lifetime Achievement honor; ESPN leads way with 30 nominations

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The Sports Emmys just announced nominations for the big night in New York on May 6.

A highlight of the evening will be awarding the Lifetime Achievement Award to Ted Turner. Now there’s one speech  I won’t want to miss.

Remember people thought Turner was crazy when he decided to air Atlanta Braves games nationally on his WTBS Superstation? The move proved to be visionary, changing the entire path for sports on TV.

CBS Sports Chairman Sean McManus, who served on the committee, actually was surprised to hear Turner hadn’t won the honor previously.

“When his name was brought up, it was instantaneous,” McManus said. “Everyone went, ‘Of course.’ Look at what he’s done for the world of sports. It was a no brainer.”

As for the awards, here’s the link for the nominations. ESPN leads the way with 30, followed by Fox with 18 and HBO with 15. HBO’s 24/7 series had seven nominations.

As usual, there are flaws in the process. How can Ernie Johnson not be included among best studio analysts? Why is David Feherty in that category for Golf Channel? He’s an analyst, not a host.

No Al Michaels, Jim Nantz for outstanding play-by-play? No Charles Barkley for studio analyst?

And there’s more. Discuss.

Outstanding Sports Personality – Studio Host
James Brown

CBS/Showtime
Bob Costas

NBC
David Feherty

Golf Channel
Greg  Gumbel

CBS
Dan Patrick

NBC/NBCSN/DIRECTV

 

Outstanding Sports Personality – Play-by-Play
Marv Albert

 TNT/tbs/TruTV/CBS
Mike Breen

 ABC/ESPN
Joe Buck

 FOX
Bob Costas

 MLB Network
Mike Emrick

 NBC/NBCSN

Outstanding Sports Personality – Studio Analyst
Cris Collinsworth

 Showtime
Al Leiter

MLB Network
Rick Neuheisel

PAC-12 Network
Harold Reynolds

MLB Network/FOX
Michael Strahan

FOX
Tom Verducci

tbs/MLB Network
*

Outstanding Sports Personality – Sports Event Analyst
Cris Collinsworth

NBC
Gary Danielson

CBS
Kirk Herbstreit

ESPN
Tim McCarver

FOX
*

Outstanding Sports Personality – Sports Reporter
Pierre McGuire

NBC/NBCSN
Ken Rosenthal

FOX
Lisa Salters

ESPN
Michele Tafoya

NBC
Tom Verducci

MLB Network

Prediction: Bob Knight won’t be back at ESPN next year

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Yep, that should just about do it for Bob Knight at ESPN. Yet another interpretation on the word “rape” by the former coach should end his broadcast run at the network.

I’m betting you thought it already ended.

Yesterday during an interview with Mike & Mike, Knight talked about how the NBA has “raped” college basketball.

“If I were involved with the NBA I wouldn’t want a 19-year-old or a 20-year-old kid, to bring into all the travel and all the problems that exist in the NBA. I would want a much more mature kid. I would want a kid that maybe I’ve been watching on another team and now he’s 21, 22 years old instead of 18 or 19, and I might trade for that kid. On top of it all, the NBA does a tremendous, gigantic disservice to college basketball. It’s as though they’ve raped college basketball in my opinion.”

Of course, the Knight file on rape still includes that famous Connie Chung interview.

”I think that if rape is inevitable, relax and enjoy it.”

The ESPN discipline police had to be brought out to have a chat with Knight. John Ourand of Sports Business Daily issued this tweet:

“We spoke with him. ESPN regrets the use of the word.”

I’m betting that’s the last straw for Knight at ESPN. The network is barely using him anyway.

When Knight was hired in 2008, he was all over ESPN’s coverage of the NCAA tournament. Now he is hardly seen. In fact, during the week of the Final Four, he will be an analyst on the NIT finals.

Perhaps it is because Knight doesn’t bring much to the table these days. Check out this clip that ran on Awful Announcing.

There have been several controversies involving Knight’s tenure at ESPN. When Knight is making news during the NCAA tournament for his use of the word rape, that’s a sure sign for Bristol to say, “Enough is enough.”

I would be shocked if he is back next year.

 

 

 

 

Blackhawks, press box colleagues remember Tim Sassone, a true pro on the beat

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This is a sad, sad day for sports media in Chicago. Tim Sassone, the long-time Blackhawks writer for the Daily Herald, passed away this morning at the age of 58.

Damn.

In an era where it seems to be all about calling attention to yourself, Sassone quietly, but earnestly went about the business of covering hockey. Mark Lazerus of the Sun-Times noted he started on the Hawks beat in 1988, the year Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane were born. Quite a run and legacy.

The outpouring of tributes to Sassone underscore the respect and admiration people had for him in the press box. I compiled a collection via Twitter and Facebook:

Toews via Lazerus of Sun-Times: “It’s not an easy thing to see. Obviously, there’s the Blackhawks family — the players. the people that work in the office, the people that make this thing go every day. And I think people like him are a part of that, that write so many good things. He’s such a huge part of the Blackhawks story, especially the last little while. It’s sad to see it happen to someone who’s so close to all the action like that.”

Mark Lazarus: Remembrances poured in from around Chicago and the hockey world on Twitter for a man whose “Gruff” nickname and refreshingly honest media persona belied one of the friendliest, most likable — and to younger journalists, most helpful — people in hockey and in journalism.

Tracey Myers: Thoughts and prayers to the family of Tim Sassone. We lost one of the best in our business. Miss you, Gruff; rest in peace.

Chris Kuc:  Tim Sassone was not only a terrific journalist, he was a great man and even better friend. I miss him already.

Bruce Miles: The Daily Herald and everyone who knew him lost a great one today in Tim Sassone, our longtime Blackhawks beat writer. Tim battled illness the last couple of years. He was among the most respected hockey writers in North America, but he also skillfully covered many other sports, including helping me out on the Cubs beat. He was a great friend. I don’t use this term for many, but he was “the beat writer’s beat writer.” Hall of Fame person and newspaperman.

Herb Gould: Tim Sassone gone? I cannot fathom this. Spent 5 years chasing #Blackhawks pucks with him. Like a brother. Awful. Awful. Awful.

Lindsey Whilhitte: Just crushed to hear the news about my friend and former Herald teammate Tim Sassone. Spent the day with him in Philadelphia when the Hawks won the 2010 Cup. On almost no sleep, he did radio interviews across North America in the morning, wrote multiple stories during the day and night (including a game story that won national awards) and we were just about the last people in the building along with the cleaning staff. Long but rewarding day. I have a treasured photo of him jammed in the corner of the service elevator at 2 a.m. alongside the cleaning ladies and their wares — and the wry look on his face is priceless. A consummate pro and a good man. Damn.

Len Ziehm: I’ve just learned of the death of Tim Sassone, known nation-wide as the Blackhawks’ beat writer for the Daily Herald. To me he was much more than the best beat writer the Hawks ever had, he was also a pro’s pro on the newspaper front. We spent nine years covering the Hawks together and a few more when we did Wolves’ games. But I especially remember how he so capably filled in during the Ryder Cup at Medinah when he was pushed in at the last minute to write the lead story on the final day. Quite a task but Tim, as always, was up to it. A great family man and dedicated journalist, the world needs more Tim Sassones. I considered him a good friend, and I’ll certainly miss him.

Tim Cronin: Saddened and shocked that Tim Sassone has died today. Wonderful person, dogged reporter, brilliant writer.

Roman Modrowski: So shocked and saddened to learn of the passing of long-time Daily Herald Blackhawks beat writer Tim Sassone. He was one of the kindest, most genuine and professional people I have ever met. I’ll never forget as a young writer at the NWI Times, covering the Hawks part time, and Eddie Belfour had made headlines with a meltdown during a game. The next day, Belfour told Hawks PR he would only talk to the Chicago writers, Sass and the Trib and Sun-Times writers. Sass said he wouldn’t do it unless I was included. He didn’t have to do that, but he felt it was the right thing to do. Belfour relented because it was Sass, and I was part of the interview. That was Sass. Always thinking of others. And he always had a smile. What a loss.

David Schuster: So incredibly sad to learn of the passing of one of the solid pros and real gentlemen in our business. The Daily Herald’s Tim Sassone was Chicago hockey. He knew the game and business inside and out but he was also a friendly gentle person. Tim battled his illness with quiet dignity before finally succumbing to it. He never complained and he remained upbeat throughout. Tim will be greatly missed. R.I.P.

Mark Potash: When I was re-introduced to #Blackhawks coverage in 2009-10, I re-learned hockey by reading and talking to Tim Sassone. He was the best.

Judd Sirott: Tim Sassone was the dean of the Blackhawks beat writers. He was a must read. A great man; a great pro; a great character. Sad news today.

Cheryl Rae-Stout: Very sad to hear about Tim Sassone’s passing, he was a pro’s pro. For my money, the best hockey writer in the Chicago area. He grew up where my husband was from and we shared many stories about the “Feast” in Melrose Park . Tim was so proud talking about his son (who is the same age as mine) and their love for sports. My heart goes out to his family and his co-workers at the Daily Herald.

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Not making this up: ESPN, NBC complete trade involving Michelle Beadle, Premier League, Ryder Cup

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NBC and the Golf Channel just announced that it will air all the Ryder Cup matches this September from Scotland. Previously, ESPN had the rights to the Friday matches.

Now this is where it gets complicated. Apparently, it involves some sort of trade between NBC, which owns the Golf Channel, and ESPN. Geoff Shackelford at his site actually broke down the details in January:

As reported here last month, NBC/Golf Channel is acquiring Friday Ryder Cup coverage in return for improved Premier League highlight rights for ESPN’s various highlight shows. Also part of the trade was a talent component, Michelle Beadle is returning to ESPN after a short and unsuccessful stint at NBC Sports Network.

I can report from multiple sources that Beadle was the final piece of the second trade between the networks, the last involving Al Michaels, Friday Ryder Cup coverage and Oswald the Lucky Rabbit.

Huh? What? This really happens?

Any other trades in the works? How about NBC gives ESPN the use of Johnny Miller for three days of First Take in exchange for Stephen A. Smith analyzing the Stanley Cup playoffs on NBC Sports Network?

Discuss.

 

Jim Kelly and daughter: Power of picture tells all you need to know

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In case you haven’t seen, this is a picture posted by Jim Kelly’s daughter, Erin, on Instagram.

It really tells you all you need to know about the love of a daughter, and the fear too, as her father awaits yet another surgery for cancer this week.

The pictures has gone viral, showing the immense power of social media. Hopefully, some of that positive energy will help Kelly win his fight.

 

Q/A with John Feinstein: Latest on life in Triple A; His process and why he continues to write books

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My latest column for the National Sports Journalism at Indiana is on John Feinstein and his latest book.

Here are some excerpts:

********

When John Feinstein arrived at the Indiana campus in 1985, he merely was an ambitious young Washington Post sportswriter looking to do an interesting behind-the-scenes book on Bob Knight. After struggling to find a publisher (“Who wants to read a book about a Midwest college basketball coach?”), he was thrilled to land an advance of $17,500.

Little did Feinstein or anyone else know that “A Season on the Brink” would zoom to No. 1. It set the stage for him to become the bestselling sports author of all time, with more than 10 million books sold.

“The Franchise” is out with his 23rd non-fiction book: “Where Nobody Knows Your Name.” It is a terrific read about life in the minor league Triple A. He chronicles the frustration, even heartbreak, of many young players and former big league veterans who are stuck in baseball’s nowhere land.

Once again, Feinstein taps into a familiar formula: Finding and telling good stories. He introduces you to characters at the beginning of the book. In the end, you feel their joy and pain. A highlight of the book is Feinstein telling the tale of a Triple A umpire. You realize it isn’t just players who aspire to make it to the Bigs.

His good friend, Dave Kindred, summed his work as an author with this line when Feinstein received the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame’s media award: “He is sportswriting’s John Grisham, a storyteller whose brand is so strong, his name goes above the book’s title.”

*******

Writing a book isn’t what it used to be. The publishing industry is struggling.

Feinstein: No, I’m not making as much money as I used to make.

Nobody is, that’s for sure.

Feinstein: Exactly. I don’t take it personally.

So why do them?

Feinstein: Because I still love the idea. My biggest frustration as a newspaper reporter: I never had enough time, I never had enough space. The famous story about me at the Post, I called in, I was at a Davis Cup final and I was screaming at the editor, “You can’t just give me 24 inches, I can’t write this story in 24 inches. I’ve got to have at least 40.” He goes, “That’s fine, John, write 40, we’ll use the best 24.” That was my newspaper and still is.

I still love really, really getting into a subject. I really love figuring out how guys think.

Bob Woodward has been my mentor for so long. When I went to do “Season on the Brink,” I had lunch with him. He said, “When you finish reporting this book, you should know more about Bob Knight than anybody on Earth. That’s your goal. You may not need it, but the closest you come to it, the better your book is going to be.”

I’ve always kept that in the back of my head. Every book I do, I try, unsuccessfully but I try, to walk away knowing more about the subject and the people involved than anybody on Earth, and I enjoy that process. I still love the process. I sound like a friggin’ coach now.

********

You wanted to a put a face behind the players who get listed as being sent down in the one-line transaction lines?

Feinstein: Exactly, and how when we read the agate and it says so and so sent down so and so out righted to Tidewater or whatever, Norfolk now. Somebody’s life just changed and somebody else’s life changed because they got called up. That’s what I wrote about in the introduction was just what you just said, all these guys whose names appear in the agate. There’s one guy I wrote about, Chris Schwinden, whose name appeared like 22 times in 2012. I ended up with the anecdote with the guy J.C. Boscan who got called up to the Braves for the first time after 14 years. There was a celebration in the clubhouse. The next day there was one line: Atlanta Braves recall J.C. Boscan from International League. That moment was the highlight of J.C. Boscan’s life, and it was one line of agate.

Why has this formula worked for you?

Feinstein: Because I think everybody can relate more to somebody like J.C. Boscan than Miguel Cabrera. I played baseball. I never got past high school baseball. If I’d gone to a D 3 school, I might have been good enough to play on that level, but I was a high school baseball player. J.C. Boscan is 100 times better than I ever thought about being as a baseball player, and yet he’s not a star. He’s not a millionaire. He’s not in the headlines.

You know, Jeff Greenfield wrote a review of the book in the Washington Post. It was a good review, and he started it by saying, imagine if you spend your whole life being the best athlete, being the best at what you do, and then hitting a ceiling when you’re an adult. That’s what this book is all about.

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Is there a next John Feinstein book on the horizon?

Feinstein: As long as they keep letting me do books, I’ll do them. I’m doing a book on Dean Smith, Mike K. and Jim Valvano. I already know the name, “The Triangle.”  This is one I’m really looking forward to doing. I wasn’t born to do this book, but I lived it.

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Here is a link to the entire Q/A.

Also, here is the link to listen Feinstein’s show on the CBS Sports Radio Network.