What makes a good story? Access.
Earlier in the year, I wrote a feature on the crew team for the Voice and it ended up painting a negative picture of crew at Georgetown—not because that’s the reality, but because Sports Information would not give me access to the athletes or coaches on the crew team who would have given the story depth and balance. The Voice received letters to the editor from people reasonably upset by the biased nature of the story. I didn’t want it to be biased, but Sports Information gave me no other choice.
Last week, I wrote a short feature on the rugby team. I watched a practice, talked to the players and their coach on the field, exchanged e-mails with them, and sat and had two interviews in which we chatted casually. I got a million of those types of stories; it was my favorite article I’ve written in four years on the paper.
The rugby team couldn’t wait to tell me not only why they were willing to give their time to the team, but why they couldn’t imagine Georgetown without it. I never got those stories from the crew team. I went into both features the same way, with little to no knowledge of the programs or the athletes; I was a blank slate.
The difference was that crew is a varsity sport, while rugby is a club sport, not officially with the school. That meant that I was free to contact anyone on the rugby team I wanted. For the crew team, I had to work through the school’s Sports Information office. I e-mailed and called the team’s SI rep, who set up and sat in on my interviews.
I gave SI nearly two weeks notice before the story. After daily emails and phone calls, I finally met two of the coaches on the Friday before the story. Apparently, all the players were unavailable or out of town. I was allowed to e-mail questions to SI, who would relay the athlete’s e-mails back and forth to me. I did not receive my first athlete interview until Tuesday and had no time to follow up. In the meantime, I had contacted former rowers, the only part of the crew team I had access to. Instead of giving balance to the story, these negative interviews became, by necessity, the meat of the story. While rugby told me their stories, crew could not.
I know that the crew team has stories too. On the 20th birthday of a friend of mine, she ended up drunkenly passed out in the bed of a member of the crew team. This was unlucky for the bed owner—he had a girlfriend who wouldn’t have been pleased to find another girl in his bed. But luckily for him, a teammate of his was there to carry my friend across campus to her room.
It’s a story about chivalry and friendship, but it’s also about the intense bonds that teammates form and the sacrifices they’re willing to make for each other. It’s the type of story I would have liked to have included in my crew feature.
I have had some positive experiences with SI in which they have been very helpful and flexible, but like other Voice reporters, I have often faced unnecessary difficulties working with them. I understand in some ways where they are coming from—the basketball team must be media savvy, and the last thing they need during the Final Four are scores of e-mails and phone calls from the Hoya and the Voice. But SI needs to trust that, as student journalists, we also follow an ethical code.
When Sports Information’s leash is too tight and the job isn’t getting done, it does nothing but ruin an opportunity for Georgetown’s athletes to share their achievements. It also trivializes the work of student journalists, from calling SI repeatedly to researching athletes and teams. Sports Information sent me the message, whether intentional or not, that student journalism doesn’t matter and doesn’t have a role at Georgetown. There is no reason that the Washington Post should have more access to Georgetown student athletes than their fellow students, especially because only our scruples prevent us from contacting them in person.
In the end, the crew story was biased in its one-sidedness. Crew didn’t look great, and no one won. Sports Information needs to realize that part of their job is helping student journalists get their story, as well as making their athletes look good.
After the whole ordeal, I doubt the Voice will cover crew much in the future. Student athletes work so hard, especially the crew team, and their talent and camaraderie is notable. This needs to be recognized, and I think students would be interested in hearing their stories. It would be nice if they were at least given the chance.
