Sports coverage, a topic of discussion
It has come to my attention that some of the residents of the outlying areas beyond Pierce County are not happy with the sports coverage.
I understand completely. Readers went from Matt Mullally, who is absolutely passionate about sports, has played sports, knows the ins and outs of sports, and can practically write the sports from his head, to me, a mom whose four boys did not play school sports. Mullally knows the terminology, he knows how to describe a play and sounds just like a sportscaster in his writing. I write sports with a definite feminine touch because that is part of who I am. I can and am learning to write better sports as I go along, but it is doubtful that the coverage will ever reach Mullally’s standards. He is outstanding in his sports coverage.
My talents lie elsewhere. I have worked really hard on the sports pages but have had to eliminate, temporarily, some of the outlying areas of coverage just to keep up. Due to the fact that I am the only writer at this paper and there are only 24 hours in a day, I need time to write the other stories in the paper, as well as go on interviews, keep up on current issues facing this county, take photos, approve bills, keep costs down, write reports to the company who owns the Tribune, and address a myriad of other issues on a daily basis.
Not being a sports fan, except for the Minnesota Twins baseball team, my knowledge is limited. I am learning as much as I can about sports and sports writing. The coaches have all been wonderful in helping and correcting me so that I can learn. I think I might even enjoy sports someday, now that I have talked to students and learned why they participate in their chosen sports.
What I should have said “up front” is that it will take me a full year or two to learn every sport the schools in this area participate in. Now that I am catching on to the fall sports, it is time for the winter sports to start, a whole new learning curve.
I ask for your patience in the sports area. I can promise you, I will give it my best shot. With the economy the way it is, it is doubtful that we will hire a separate sports writer, as I was used to having in my former job. Although this may be an option further down the road, we will have to wait and see.
I know that I can’t please everyone all the time, but I am committed to doing the best job I know how to do. The staff here is awesome and works very hard to produce a good product. After all, unlike some occupations, our names are on our product. We take pride in what we do and we work long hours to get the job done by deadline; every week. We admittedly make some mistakes, which we quickly admit, correct, and move on.
Also, once the paper leaves our hands on Thursday, it is in the hands of the publisher to print. Sometimes, errors occur which we have no control over. We would appreciate your tolerance as we continue to iron out the kinks along with our publisher.
If residents and staff of the paper work together, we can have a newspaper to be proud of. Thanks for all your help so far. Rugby and its surrounding areas seem like wonderful places to live and work. I am looking forward to meeting more of you.