Blogger Credentials

And you might be under estimating Castelini. But do those guys want access to the players? It would change your outlook toward them. Clayton is actually quite pleasant in person, at least in front of a room of fans.

"Slyde (after quitting his job to follow his dream)"

1. How would getting press credentials help get me two chicks at the same time?
2. Would they provide me with a Dental Plan?

Actually, I am not a big proponent of bloggers getting press credentials.  The reason is because there are already 3 sources for the exact same story out of the dugout.  Bloggers fill a niche for the fan that you can't get from newspapers, which is a place for unfiltered opinionation.  I think that you will find that with most bloggers, if given daily access to the clubhouse, one of three things will happen:

• The blogger's site will shift into more of a rah-rah site as he/she starts to become closer to the players.
  
• Players stop talking to the blogger because the blogger remains honest and actually calls a player out on his/her site.
  
• The blogger remains a complete professional and essentially gives us the same thing as the beat writer on a daily basis.
  

I'm not saying it wouldn't be cool to hear stories from JD's trips to the dugout, but I'm just not certain it would be what we all dream it could be.

That being said, I would like to see the Reds give a little more access to bloggers.  The big advantage that blogs have over newspapers is that  their space is virtually unlimited.  That means that they can print whole interviews and have long drawn out discussions.  Look at what Blez does at AN with his interviews with Billy Beane.  I'd like to see some of that type of stuff with Krivsky, Castellini, and some of the players.  That's something that I think would work well with and really enhance a fan site.

1. if the girls thought it would get them closer to players you'd get the girls.
2. I think we need to recruit a dentist onto the site who would be a friend to all the Redreporters.

I would like to see bloggers given access to interview opportunities. I think the players would be a little different with them given the fact that the entire interview has room to be posted.

And what ever your dream may be, beit this or something else go for it. Life is too short to get stuck doing something you have grown to dislike for 30 years. Trust me on that one!  

this topic makes for some interesting pondering for me, especially since I covered the Reds quite a bit. Frankly, I'm not sure how I feel about it, but at the risk of drawing the wrath of those here, I think I'm against credentials for bloggers.

While I think some bloggers would do quite well, there are logistics to consider, I suppose. Remember, the clubhouse doesn't have just the media from the Cincinnati and Dayton papers. Media from Lexington, Louisville, Columbus, Huntington, Ashland, etc. are there, too, in a space already crowded. Many times, if you don't get in on the first interview, you don't get that interview at all because some players don't stick around for long. There also are daily deadlines to consider.

The regular media likely figure four years of journalism school should count for something in the form of player/manager access that the general public doesn't have.

Also, as a writer, I'm not sure I'd want some potentially untrained yahoo possibly provoking a player and/or manager just because said yahoo didn't like the call for a pitchout in the third inning of a 12-2 game. I'm not saying most bloggers are likely to do this. Quite the contrary. In fact, some professional members of the media pull such stunts. When that happens, often the interview ends right there, essentially blowing it for the rest of us.

The competition aspect doesn't bother me. Competition generally makes writers work harder and keeps them sharp.

Maybe I'm too old school. Maybe not. I'll have to think on it more. For now, that's my two cents worth.