The fate of journalism and reporting as sports return amid the COVID-19 pandemic
Professional sports have officially returned across the United States for the first time in over four months amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Some leagues, such as the NBA, appear to have made a successful comeback. Other organizations, such as MLB, are struggling to get the plane off the ground.
Sports, not surprisingly, look very different in the novel coronavirus era. One area in which the sports world has dramatically changed is through the way in which players, teams, practices, and games are reported on and covered by journalists.
At the onset of the outbreak back in March, leagues and teams began shutting down locker rooms and clubhouses to members of the media in order to protect players and coaches from possible transmission of the virus. When interviewing or asking questions during press conferences, reporters were mandated to remain at least six feet away to promote social distancing.
Now, as sports begin to awaken from their hibernation and slumber, media access will be unlike anything we’ve seen before. And that might not be a good thing for both fans and the fate of journalism.
At the NBA’s bubble in Walt Disney World, only a handful of reporters have been given in-person access to the practices and games. That pales in comparison to the hundreds and thousands of journalists who report on the league daily and are now confined to covering the NBA from their couches.
Media members inside the bubble are given in-person access to press conferences, too. However, they are strictly prohibited from the locker rooms, as well as from approaching players and coaches for unauthorized interviews or discussions around the arenas and hotels on Disney’s campus.
Any non-press conference media availability must be pre-approved by the team or league.
For those who are not in the NBA’s bubble, reporters are all but limited to press conferences on Zoom to ask questions and get additional color for their stories.
The protocols are fairly similar for journalists covering MLB too. Unlike the NBA, MLB is not operating in a bubble and is allowing teams to travel from city to city for games.
Some outlets, such as ESPN, are only allowing reporters to travel for games if they are within driving distance and do not involve boarding public transportation, such as an airplanes and trains.
However, some media organizations are discouraging its journalists from traveling for road games to reduce potential exposure to the virus—thus forcing them to cover games and report stories from their home office.
Baseball reporters who are on scene at stadiums face several limitations similar to NBA media members. Journalists are confined to the press box upstairs upon arrival to the ballpark, unable to go on the field pregame for batting practice and chats with players and coaches.
Once the game finishes up, reporters hop on Zoom for the postgame press conferences, which are being conducted with players and coaches just a few floors below at the ballpark. Needless to say, locker rooms and clubhouses are strictly off limits.
These guidelines will certainly be similar for reporters covering other professional sports, such as the NHL and NFL.
From a public health perspective, preventing any unnecessary contact between teams and media members makes complete sense. The COVID-19 testing protocols are not completely identical between players/coaches and reporters.
Therefore, it’s totally understandable to minimize any risk of potential transmission and exposure of the virus during a global pandemic.
However, limiting media access to players and coaches isn’t necessarily a good thing for fans, as well as for the longevity of sports journalism.
The best stories rarely come about via press conferences, scrums, and other controlled media availabilities. Players and coaches are typically more scripted and buttoned up during these sessions, where anyone covering a team, league, or game can use their quotes for stories.
Usually the best content, info, and nuggets from players and coaches come during small, one-off conversations with reporters in the locker room, around the arena and stadium, or in other locations away from practices and games.
The best stories are developed through strong professional and personal relationships when the cameras, microphones, and recorders aren’t on.
Now, with Zoom press conferences serving as the be-all and end-all to getting interviews with players and coaches, we might not get the same level of great storytelling and reporting as we previously would.
Worst of all, it could set a dangerous precedent and slippery slope for professional sports leagues and teams to continue limiting media access—even once the COVID-19 pandemic has passed.
Teams and leagues are constantly seeking to “control the narrative,” and permanently curtailing the media availability of players and coaches to reporters would help them achieve that goal.
And it shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone that “controlling the narrative” isn’t the same as telling the full truth of a story.
It also cannot be forgotten what the current state of journalism is in this country. Downsizing and cutting costs have become the new norm in the media world, and that has only been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Many reporters and editors, especially in sports, have been laid off and furloughed. Buyouts have become more common too, as any financial margin of error that these news organizations once had is all but gone.
Not to mention, journalists are constantly under attack by many across the country for being “the enemy of the people” and propagating “fake news.”
The journalism world is already in a vulnerable position. Now is not the time to further decimate the business.
As we’ve seen during the hiatus of sports, reporters and editors are as creative and imaginative as anyone. And they’ll continue to produce the great stories and work that they do.
But limiting media access to players and coaches, even after the public health crisis, will be a detriment to fans and journalists.
