Blog Box vs. Press Box: Separate But Equal?

There is no question blogs are changing the way the average Joe gets his news. But what happens when bloggers and traditional reporters face off for access and credentials? We’ve seen some interesting plays in the sports industry in recent weeks. Are sports leagues and teams ready to let bloggers into the game?

Last week the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) ejected a Louisville Courier-Journal reporter from a college baseball game for writing a live blog. Next thing you know, we're looking at a possible suit that could set a precedent for how news is controlled and reported, and subsequently, how teams embrace bloggers. As of yesterday, according to Associated Press, the NCAA had backed down on its policy.

Interestingly, around the same time the NCAA blogger was ejected, the NHL’s New York Islanders broke the blogging ice with the introduction of the “NYI Blog Box.” But a letter from the Islanders PR department encouraging fans to blog on – from their own separate box away from “scribes and broadcasters” – has folks questioning the Islanders’ attempt to engage serious sports news bloggers.

The popular sports blog, Deadspin, was intrigued by the Blog Box idea and checked Islanders’ Vice President of Communication Chris Botta in a recent interview.

Deadspin: You seem to be selling this more as a fan-interactivity type thing than any sort of recognition of bloggers as a new medium to cover the games.
Botta: On major bloggers…who already have established blogs with decent audiences, my hunch is they will not apply for fear of being accused of going to the dark side, the official team website side. But as we mentioned, we have thick skin and we're not censoring…I want to make clear this is fan-interactivity AND a recognition of a new medium. I hope we made that clear in the press release, but I'll check.

Yes, there is “fan-interactivity,” and kudos to the Islanders for braving the blogosphere to engage passionate fans and create traffic online. And, yes, there is “recognition of a new medium,” but perhaps the more critical question – using the Islanders as an example – is whether it’s a true embracement of the new media?

Will Leitch, editor of Deadspin, shared his take with PRWeek,

"You have to give them credit for at least trying something. But it should not really be confused with any credentialing at all, this is a fan thing. [In their release] the team should have said: ‘Hey fans, you can pretend to be a reporter for a night.' It's hardly a breakthrough for bloggers."

For the time being, bloggers still look like the underdogs in this match-up, but as the medium continues to grow, the playing field should level out. And then, maybe, bloggers and MSM will coexist in the same box.