Erin Andrews is the measuring stick for female sports reporters. TV, print, whatever, it’s always “You’re going to be the next Erin Andrews!” She’s the most recognizable woman covering sports.
Guys harass her and she hides on the sidelines. When she doesn’t have a live hit, she’s in the ESPN tent, out of sight. I’ve passed her on the sidelines, finally said hi, and she extended her hand and said “Hi, I’m Erin!” with a warm grin because she doesn’t come with arrogance. We talked about how it’s tough for her to date and then we got back to work. I like her. I don’t know her, but in my brief times around her, she’s pleasant. I felt sad when some asshole taped her in a moment when she had her guard down. Fuck it, I cried. I was angry at what they did to her, I was angry all over again at the small things I’ve been through, and I was upset by acknowledging it was her in the video, she opened herself to national news by sticking up for herself.
I’ve been looking forward to Thursday. Not only is it the start of my favorite season–COLLEGE football–I hope I’ll spot Erin. I want to tell her, “Never let the bastards get you down.”
I want to ask her why the hell she’s going on Oprah as well, but all summer people had their say on message boards and blogs. I guess it’s her turn to speak uninterrupted. Probably not the decision I would have made, but I’m not in her shoes.
This is a softball entry, I know. But E, never let the bastards get you down.
Second thing: I’m a decade younger than my coworkers, and they talk about “how it used to be.” At media luncheons, hey LUNCH was served with an open bar occasionally, and access for the type of buddy-buddy story-telling that doesn’t exist anymore. Now I need a meal ticket to eat (two inch by one inch strips of colored paper so I can get a sandwich and some water for my shift…)
With less than five years on the job, I’m watching myself become obsolete. I’m a middle-man getting cut out because schools, coaches and athletes can speak for themselves on websites and twitter. Games are on TV. They have their own camera crews, so highlights are on a school’s website. Raw interviews are online. Doing live shots with post following a game make sense because of the immediacy, but shit….sports reporters are getting cut out of the picture. My job is fading.
I know the rule: Be friendly with players, but not friends….but we’re barely acquantences at this point. To some degree, I need to know their struggles, their history, their interactions with other players, their sense of humor, so maybe I can crack the PR-speak and get a real soundbite from these guys. I need to know them and they need to know me.
Looks smart on the part of the teams…controlled access with the message they want to send fans, a well-planned propaganda machine, without the criticism media provide or the angles schools don’t want to acknowledge. I’m watching a machine move that has me in awe of its power and fearing its reach. The writing is on the wall baby.
