News Article: TBN: Another beauty from Harrington
- Thread starter N.Y. Orangeman
- Start date
Sabretip
Registered User
That, in a nutshell, nails it succinctly. Reading through the questions Harrington wants to ask, most of them have already been spelled out by Murray before - and the rest are the kinds of naïve questions that try to trick management into throwing someone under the bus (i.e. Hodgson, Cassidy, Johnson) so the reporters can then go to that person for a rebuttal/response. Do they really expect the Sabres - or any other team - to tip their hand as to firm personnel decisions? Nevermind that a lot of what the Sabres decide to do this summer will be a reaction to what has yet to happen on other fronts they can't control (i.e. who will become a free agent? which other coaches will become available? will Colorado re-sign ROR? what will the salary cap be and what impact will it have on different teams having to dump players?). Does TBN expect Murray to have answers for any of these? If not, they have to realize all they'd get are generalities and hypothetical responses - which are just as easily arrived at by anyone who has followed hockey.
Most of the other teams' season-ending pressers are essentially just gloss-overs of how the team's emotions / moods are in the aftermath of their season ending. We already know how frustrated Murray was with the past 2 seasons and wants to put them behind the organization.
As fans, of course we want to know some juicy details of what the Sabres will do but it's unrealistic for anyone to expect the team to reveal their strategies for all of the competition to hear. I have no problem with the team foregoing a PC - all I care to hear anyways is Murray and when things occur, he explains himself more fully than Regier ever did. Anything that Black or Pegula would say is just fluff.
They already are irrelevant in the grand scheme of things. Most people use twitter for the source of the late breaking news. That being said, TBN does have press access, something fans do not. Hoppe (Olean) and Vogl (TBN) are both solid beat reporters. The editorializing by Harrington, Sullivan, and Gleason where they inject their opinions and try to stir up controversy in order to sell papers and drive traffic are what drive most fans mad.
Sure, he poses those questions in his diatribe, but in the presser he'd just bloviate on and on about tanking and integrity. Harrington would never ask a serious, honest question...at least not one that he thought of himself.
I read an article on the Sabres from the hometown paper and I'm questioned? Ok...sure.
"It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it."
Aristotle
I don't click their stuff, but I don't blame you for knowing thine enemy.
While looking up some Sabres highlights on youtube I came across a tv show these 3 clowns have. It was an anger filled hate on for the Sabres, sounds pretty much like what is in the article. Is this a show that airs on cable in Buffalo?
Matt Ress
Don't sleep on me
The organization and local paper have clearly created a chasm between each other. Without finger pointing, I'll say that long term, a large media outlet is a helpful tool for an NHL team to garner interest from the "casual fan." And, an NHL team is an interesting subject for a local paper. It's usually a mutually beneficial relationship but, has become a battle: the Sabres allowing limited access and, the BN calling them out publicly.
The question moving forward is, do they resolve or move in different directions. The Sabres could see TBN as a useless PITA but that could be an overstatement.
The question moving forward is, do they resolve or move in different directions. The Sabres could see TBN as a useless PITA but that could be an overstatement.
Clock
Registered User
- May 13, 2006
- 22,225
- 73
Right on. They're journalism's (and I use that term very lightly) version of "LOOK OVER HERE! PAY ATTENTION TO ME!"
Seriously, who cares about their indignation?
Pondslider
Registered User
Why would they have a press conference about the future before they have a coach? They had a press conference right after the season ended when they fired Nolan. There's nothing else to say until there's a new coach.
Silly and Bucky have a show on MEtv (WBBZ) that Springville station that shows old reruns all day.
I agree that they obviously have an ax to grind most of the time, I think them complaining that the owner wasn't available for the year end presser a few years back was a bit ridiculous. However I think that Harrington does make a few valid points and if they were coming from someone else we might be a little more open to it.
The Nolan presser was hastily assembled on the weekend, it wasn't a year end presser, it was about the firing of Nolan. Most teams do a proper year end presser, that was not.
I think there should be a year end presser and a lot of the questions that were brought up, and yes a lot of them are topics from here, are things most fans would want to know.
The distaste people have for TBN has been rightfully built up but I think this is a rare occasion when they aren't completely off the mark.
The Nolan presser was hastily assembled on the weekend, it wasn't a year end presser, it was about the firing of Nolan. Most teams do a proper year end presser, that was not.
I think there should be a year end presser and a lot of the questions that were brought up, and yes a lot of them are topics from here, are things most fans would want to know.
The distaste people have for TBN has been rightfully built up but I think this is a rare occasion when they aren't completely off the mark.
Pondslider
Registered User
Fair enough, but there will be a press conference when they hire a new coach. There may be a press conference after the draft. Free agency starts in July, so they'll probably talk to the media a lot. There will potentially be a press conference to announce signing Eichel. Then rookie camp and training camp are not far off. There is going to be a ton of opportunity to ask questions when the team will be better prepared to give answers.
old kummelweck
Registered User
- Nov 10, 2003
- 25,256
- 5,359
I agree. People may not like Harrington, but his job is to cover the Sabres. If they aren't giving him an opportunity to get his dumb questions answered and he has a column to write, then this is what happens.
Go back and replay how utterly disrespectful they were to Ted Black and I would shut TBN off completely. They acted like complete childish hacks. Sabres owe them less than nothing. Period.
Husko
Registered User
I'd love it if the response was an hour long appearance on WGR
Make Mike H call in with the uneducated masses to get his question answered
"Hi, my name is Mike, I work for the Buffalo News, and I have a journalism degree. I have a question for Tim"
Djp
Registered User
Not justifying Harringtons argument/rant......
Its a fair complaint that the Sabres haven't had a year end new conference. I can understand why they don't, because they don't have a head coach so it would make sense to say we will wait till we hire a new head coach before having one.
Its a fair complaint that the Sabres haven't had a year end new conference. I can understand why they don't, because they don't have a head coach so it would make sense to say we will wait till we hire a new head coach before having one.
They were disrespectful but the TBN is not the only media outlet asking for this. Multiple media outlets are asking for the end of year presser.
Push Dr Tracksuit
Gerstmann 3:16
- Jun 9, 2012
- 13,249
- 3,321
if the comments were coming from someone else there wouldn't be the expectation that the person would then take the opportunity and use to be a public embarrassment, the buffalo bird cage liner has fallen so far into the realm of schlock journalism that I have 0 faith that a press conference attended by their hacks could be anything but another attempt by that paper to make themselves the headline over the Sabres, they've been given several opportunities to interact with the team and each time they've attempted to use that platform to manufacture controversy, what stinks is that there are some quality journalists outside of the ****** City Paper and they're losing their access too
Its people like him that make me want to be a journalist so bad. ******** who've completely destroyed the integrity of reporting and writing. Its pathetic. Its not only a pathetic opinion but its a middle finger to the people who take pride in writing proper articles and not just over the top clickbait ********.
Stop reading his crap. Please.
Stop reading his crap. Please.
I'm concerned that there wasn't an end of year presser in general, not that TBN can't get access. I think one of the things people are missing is that they aren't the only organization asking for it.
And you are exactly right, the issues they have created are impacting other media, which I think is a larger problem. How much of this loss of access though is because of the way TBN has acted versus the team wanting to control the message? They continually put out their own content on the internet, own a local sports talk show, and in general have begun to control their message a bit more. This is a larger problem we are seeing in this information age, even people covering the last two Presidential administrations have seen their access shrink.
Is the press in general losing access because the hacks at TBN or because brands/companies/organizations/politicians want control over their messaging and coverage?
Husko
Registered User
Make Mike H call in with the uneducated masses to get his question answered
"Hi, my name is Mike, I work for the Buffalo News, and I have a journalism degree. I have a question for Tim"
"I have 2 comments and then a question"
Seriously where do people learn to frame themselves the way some callers do?
It's a natural response. How many times do you need to get bit before you stop putting your finger in the dog's mouth?
Informational control is a win-win for the Sabres. Less getting their words twisted and more making fans (consumers) think what they want. Every time players or coaches talk to the media, they are taking a huge risk something will get spun. They are walking into a snake pit every time. Bill Belichick and Greg Popovich say almost nothing to the media. They do it not because they are A-holes like many people think, but because they are minimizing risk. It's no coincidence that they're also two of the greatest coaches of all time.
Of course this is a lose-lose for the fans. Less access and only one side of the story. TBN (and a million other media outlets) have put all their chips into sensationalism because thorough split testing has shown that's what gets the most clicks, thus ad revenue from impressions. Now they need to face the consequences of organizations limiting their access. Why let the troublemaker into the club every night?
What I hope happens on a macro scale is that organizations shut the door on media and have full informational control. This should make the public irate and call upon journalists to do their damn job with professionalism. There is an imbalance towards the media. We need the imbalance to go towards the information keepers, and then a push in the other direction to balance it out. I hope my kids don't read crap like this article when they're my age.
