Voice of the Mid-Columbia | Kennewick, Pasco and Richland, Wash. |
 |
 |
 |
Ever wonder why the Herald does something? Or how? Or "what were they thinking?" Now you can find out. Executive Editor Ken Robertson and Managing Editor Rick Larson will do their best to explain what happens in the TCH newsroom - and why. |
Print
E-Mail
tool name
closeMonday, Jun. 08, 2009
Newspapers the backbone of local sports reporting
By Ken Robertson, Herald Executive Editor
Jason Moore of West Richland took Tri-City broadcasters to task in our Sunday letters to the editor column because of “absolutely no radio or television coverage for any of our kids participating in state tournaments” on May 29-30.
Since the Herald’s sports staff spends much of the spring criss-crossing the state to cover district, regional and state events, I have to admit I’ve never given much thought about how broadcast outlets assign their ever-dwindling resources.
We’re far too busy managing how we’ll handle everything.
Stretching the Herald’s seven-person sports staff to cover an ever-expanding menu of professional, collegiate and high school men’s and women’s sports is always a challenge. In my 33 years in the Tri-Cities, we’ve added three pro or semi-pro teams, women’s sports have proliferated and become as important as men’s and, once Pasco opens Chiawana High School this fall, we’ll have added two high schools.
The Herald sports staff has expanded by three people over the past three decades, but on a typical spring sports weekend our staff covers several events and takes 70 or more phone calls from high school coaches across the Mid-Columbia.
The culminating weekend of the state competitions, we had staffers covering state baseball at Safeco Field in Seattle, softball in Tacoma, soccer in Lakewood, Star Track XXVII in Tacoma, tennis in Kennewick and the Fever af2 football game at the Toyota Center. Plus, one of our longtime sports stringers was in Cheney for the 2A and 1A-2B-1B state track meet.
Newspaper critics, especially those in the blogosphere, regularly rant about how outmoded the newspaper model is and how they can’t wait for newspapers to go the way of the dinosaurs.
These critics think all the information that a newspaper gathers will somehow make its way onto the web and onto various broadcast outlets.
Broadcast coverage of the final weekend of spring sports may have demonstrated what a great model that would be.
The newspaper and the newspaper website had the scores, stats, photos and stories on local athletes. That’s what we do, and we do it better than anyone else.
In print and on the web.
w Ken Robertson: 582-1520; krobertson@tricityherald.com
Stay updated with the latest news from the Tri-City Herald with an RSS feed: http://www.tri-cityherald.com/1309/story/97842.html
@Nyx.CommentBody@