Local Duck Media FAILING Us?

[AfriDuck]

I'm going to make people mad here. I'm mad. Or as my wife says, disappointed and frustrated. Too many syllables for me.

 

Mad at whom? At our local Duck media. Not all, some. Specifically, the talking heads and off-screen interviewers of our coaches and players. Mad about what? About the quality of their content.

 

I've read, watched, and listened. I've come up with reasons and excuses for them. In the end, I've concluded some of our media folks aren't doing their jobs very well.

 

No argument from me, the media's content is their choice, or the choice of who pays their salaries. But ultimately, don't WE pay their salaries? Isn't good content just good business?

 

OUR media should ask, listen, and respond for us, how we would, if we were highly skilled interviewers. That's what we pay them for. Our  media should also reflect our hope and energy for, encouragement of, and, yes, BELIEF in our Ducks.

 

Want an example of what I see is good content? Watch Greg McElroy of ESPN interview Dan Lanning on  10/25: 

 

 

When did you last see anything like that from local media? 

 

Me neither. On the few occasions I actually hear an ungarbled question from local media, it often sounds like a gotcha, or complicated/confusing, or self-serving, or softball, or all four. Sometimes, almost combative. And delivery of the question is usually stilted and stiff, dry as dirt. Like a stick is stuck somewhere. Honestly, it often looks and sounds tinny, amateur, mediocre. Not always, often. Coach and player interviews, both.

 

In contrast, take a look at anything Dawg (careful, not dawg). Two quotes say it for me, 'Dawgs's family, y'all!', and, 'On Saturdays, not only Athens shuts down, the whole State shuts down.'

 

I want THAT. Everybody pushing the cart the same direction, with all they've got.

 

Our Ducks are getting really good, maybe great. More than that, we love our Ducks, or as Charles says, 'beloved.' Our media needs to reflect the quality of our team AND our love. It's circular, it SHOULD be a positive feedback loop. Always.

 

Duck media folks, you don't have to re-invent the wheel. Better media is out there, instantly available. To study, adapt, improve, evolve. Use our Ducks as your inspiration. YOU are your competition. Get better, one step, one day at a time.

 

OBDF has clout. People think seriously about what we say here. That's a step to doing something about it.

[ICamel]

I agree with you!

 

Prior to the purchase of the Eugene Register-Guard, the coverage of University of Oregon sports was excellent(for the most part).

 

Since Gannett(USA Today) bought the Register-Guard, the coverage of Duck sports has been abysmal. I cancelled my online subscription.

[AnotherOD]

My thought is there are quite possibly more articles than ever; but, the amount of "nothing-burger" articles is at an all time high.

 

My guess is that it is part of the new media landscape; and, it is something that is gonna be here a while, that is, a lot of (relatively) low pay media producing content to produced nickels based on page hits rather than dollars based on established media platforms producing product to sustain their more established media positions. Just the nature of media today in the phone and internet era.

 

[Charles Fischer]

You are completely correct, and I will guarantee that it will not change.  Why?  Because this is how the Athletic Department has set things up...they want suck-up, feel-good articles all the time and if you are critical--your access will be limited.

 

That and how they allow interviews for most of the media, as everyone is recording the same interview as it happens.  Thus if YOU ask a great question?  Everyone else has it in their article before you have yours published, thus what makes you unique in your skills benefits everyone who is not deserving.

 

Most press conferences are primarily softball questions, complemented by coachspeak and blah-blah.

 

Yours-truly interviewing offensive guard Cam Hunt ten

years ago when you could have a private interview.

                       Not my best profile, but you get the idea.

[Charles Fischer]

On 10/28/2022 at 3:52 PM, AnotherOD said:

My thought is there are quite possibly more articles than ever; but, the amount of "nothing-burger" articles is at an all time high.

Boy is that the truth.  A desert with lots of sand...

[Just Ducky]

 Seems to me they keep asking the same questions over and over. 

 

 I see frustration in Dans face and he seems eager to get out of there every post game interview.

[Log Haulin]

I just watch the games and chat with you guys mostly. Coach isn't going to tell me anything I can't figure out from the Game and OBDF.

 

Everything else is between him and his team. He will not be disclosing it to the rest of us. 

 

 

[Dr Hilarius]

I can’t remember the last time I learned anything new about the Ducks from anywhere other than Fishduck articles and this forum. 

 

The only reason I ever read articles from elsewhere is to see if the rest of the world has figured out what we already know. 

 

And for that, I owe a great debt of gratitude to our fearless leader, @Charles Fischer

[Log Haulin]

On 10/28/2022 at 5:46 PM, Dr Hilarius said:

I can’t remember the last time I learned anything new about the Ducks from anywhere other than Fishduck articles and this forum. 

 

The only reason I ever read articles from elsewhere is to see if the rest of the world has figured out what we already know. 

 

And for that, I owe a great debt of gratitude to our fearless leader, @Charles Fischer

kissing up to charles

 

I agree100%. The members here have a high football IQ. Mine has increased significantly from this forum. Has made Saturdays a lot more fun.

 

[David Marsh]

Cristobal on years one and two I felt was quite open in his media interviews and then they got real cagey. 

 

Lanning is personable but he doesn't give any details about ... Anything really. 

 

As for the local media... I feel that Adem Grief and Tyson Alger did a great job with their content. But they have both long since moved on. 

 

Oregon live sits behind a paywall and frankly it isn't worth paying. It's not that good. 

 

DuckTerritory is ok... But their forum is awful and I don't feel they really give that much insider content these days. So I don't think I'll be renewing. Also they have plenty of free content. 

 

ScoopDuck is better I feel mostly because there are more sub only stories and they do a lot better job I feel in being consistent in their inside info posts. 

 

Granted... Most inside info these days is just recruiting news. Their sources inside the program give them info on recruiting but at the same time there is basically an agreement they won't release info that they want to keep private. It's the arrangement for us to get anything. 

 

Scoopducks forum is a bit better ... But not much to be blunt. 

 

If you want thoughtful stories it's Canzono's new site which I think is pretty good and feels more free and organic than his Oregon live stuff. But some people can't stand canzono, I don't always agree with him but I usually find him interesting. 

 

Then there is fishduck which I'll be honest I have aajor personal bias about... But if you look at any of those previously named forums we are the sourge of the earth and only slightly better than Canzono. Those forums don't want any opinions other than that of the majority. 

 

But there aren't too many options right now. Most sites aee news sites and only report what happened and don't actually analyze it. 

 

[jrw]

Since the internet (aka, everything is free) killed local newspapers, all journalism - sports and otherwise - has suffered badly. There simply is no longer the revenue being generated to pay for the quantity and quality of journalists that we need. It's pretty simple and well documented.

 

Until someone can figure out how to monetize journalism again - and good luck with that - expect more of the same, if it doesn't get  even worse.

 

On another note, I think Rasheed Wallace had sports reporters figured out back in his Blazers' days. No matter what he was asked, he'd respond with the same thing, "Both teams played hard". After a while, reporters left him alone, which is what he wanted.

Edited October 29, 2022 by jrw

[Charles Fischer]

On 10/28/2022 at 5:46 PM, Dr Hilarius said:

I can’t remember the last time I learned anything new about the Ducks from anywhere other than Fishduck articles and this forum. 

 

The only reason I ever read articles from elsewhere is to see if the rest of the world has figured out what we already know. 

 

And for that, I owe a great debt of gratitude to our fearless leader, @Charles Fischer

 

On 10/28/2022 at 6:02 PM, Log Haulin said:

kissing up to charles

 

I agree100%. The members here have a high football IQ. Mine has increased significantly from this forum. Has made Saturdays a lot more fun.

 

That is very generous from you both and THANK YOU.  Just for that....we have an article early tomorrow morning of DazeNconfused and I giving our items to watch for in the Cal game.  Not much blah-blah from us!

 

     In the end...the sites control me.

[JDuck]

Got Fishduck, don't need nuthin else