7 replies to this topic

[BSLChrisStoner]

BSL: Pete Gilbert On The Future Of Sports Coverage On Local TV
http://baltimorespor...erage-local-tv/

[SportsGuy]

First and foremost, I want intelligence, in what I am seeing.  Thus why I avoid watching people like Skip Bayless.

 

Now, I don't doubt the certain level of entertainment they provide and I also don't doubt that I require more out of the "experts" than a lot of fans require.

 

But honestly, if you don't capture my attention with legit knowledge, good reporting or good interviewing (all of which are few and far between), I have no interest in what you have to say.

 

We have better conversations on here than I see almost anywhere nationally...especially about baseball.  No one knows anything about baseball, even the people paid to talk about it.

[BSLChrisStoner]

Thoughts here?

[Mike in STL]

It's really a shame that they cut the budgets in the sports departments at local news. Channel 2 did away with sports completely, right.

I guess my first question would be how much is cord cutting effecting local news and ratings? Your younger demographic gets their news online. Keep the two or three minutes on television the same highlight and sound bite segment as usual. But do an extended version, 10 minutes maybe, availible online, through an app, Facebook live, I don't know. In that segment have a guest and talk about whatever is relevant or "hip". Or make it an interview segment. I remember John Buren on 13 had Art Donovan on every Friday I think, and they chatted about sports and Donovan told stories for 10 minutes or so during the 6pm news, and it was fantastic.

I think too much of what goes on isn't really news, and the sports block should get some of that time back they lost. I don't think they need go to weather 4 times in a half hour. Twice in an hour should suffice as most people get the weather on their phone too.

I don't really have an answer to what will keep local news sports departments running, other than keep doing great work. Local news reporters are sort of like a guest in someone's home for an hour. Pretend you are in that one person's home and not 100,000 homes. Kills me when radio hosts call people "You all out there in radio land". Be personable, be someone people will miss when your not on and look forward to seeing when you are.

[RShack]

I can't think of the last time I watched local news... of which sports gets maybe 5 minutes...

 

Local news is just fluff and irrelevant stuff, plus some video of somebody who's suffering or mad about something.  If they did anything worth watching, I'd watch it.   But they don't.

 

Maybe it's better where you guys are...

[Nigel Tufnel]

The thing that local news has that fans don't is access to the players.  It would be great to see a short interview with a player ever day - they could go over an important play from last night's game, for example.  Note sure how easy it would be to get the players, or the teams, to go for that, though.

[Mike in STL]

I can't think of the last time I watched local news... of which sports gets maybe 5 minutes...
 
Local news is just fluff and irrelevant stuff, plus some video of somebody who's suffering or mad about something.  If they did anything worth watching, I'd watch it.   But they don't.
 
Maybe it's better where you guys are...

Local news is pretty good in Baltimore. A lot of it very relevant. If it bleeds it leads fills a lot of time because it is Baltimore after all. But they keep you up to speed with what you need to know in city, state, world issues without the bias spin.

I favor the local news because cable news is news in the sense that debate shows on ESPN are news. 90% of it is not really news. Yeah they give you the headline. But then go to one, two, four people with an R or D in front of their name and try to sell their biased narrative to the viewer.

Much rather get the story without the bias analysis to follow. That's just me though.

Keep in mind larger markets have better local news because talented reporters promote to the larger markets from backwoods wherever, to a small town, to a mid-market town, then to a major city.

[Mike in STL]

The thing that local news has that fans don't is access to the players.  It would be great to see a short interview with a player ever day - they could go over an important play from last night's game, for example.  Note sure how easy it would be to get the players, or the teams, to go for that, though.

They usually show clips from post game sound bites in the locker room from the players who played a role that day. Timing to do it live isn't good. Morning they are sleeping. 5-6pm news they are in BP, 11pm game is wrapped up. O's players will sometimes be a guest on the radio around 2-30M when they are just playing ping pong in the clubhouse or something.