Celebrity Sightings
By
Amanda
Posted at 11:26 pm
We were sitting in the last row of section 4 today, which was apparently a great spot to notice people walking by in the walkway.
I called C. Trent over when he walked by just before the National Anthem. We chatted for a moment before he headed off for the press box. You'll be glad to know that he really is better looking than the photo on his blog. Significantly less Igor-like.
Hal McCoy also walked by later, but I didn't stop him to chat. He doesn't have a blog, after all.
Rob Butcher came by, and I couldn't pass up the opportunity to flag him down. Butcher's a character that I've always found sort of intimidating, but the Reds legitimate media always have such nice things to say about him that I thought it was time to introduce myself.
I wasn't asking for a press pass, but I mentioned that I'd heard that other bloggers had, to which his response was “never going to happen.” When I asked why, he said they were too hard to control.
So, you legitimate media types ought to be happy to know that you're apparently easy to control.
I said “hi” to Bob Castellini when he walked by. The woman with him actually seemed to recognize me, and I've seen her in the stands, which makes me think that she has an excellent memory for faces. How nice.
Though it was a crummy game, the evening of celebrity sightings was topped off when Javy Valentín waved to me when I called out to him after the game. Short of a win, what more could you ask for?
thanks… i think
nice to meet you and glad you flagged me down
i think rob’s point is professionalism (not that i doubt you’d be professional, but folks like ‘mr. redlegs’ who posts on my blog gets autographs and the such)
butch is the best, though, although very direct, which rubs some people wrong, but we all love him because of it. no b.s.
“Easy to control.” Freudian slip, I guess. 😛
He has to know that giving access to bloggers wouldn’t have to be an all-or-nothing thing. Just because he let in someone who was professional doesn’t mean he’d have to open the door to every person who comments on your site.
I dunno, man, I’m failing to see what’s so awesome about him. It’s probably different when the first thing he has to say when he meets you is not “I don’t like your kind.”
Are there ML teams other than Oakland that give bloggers the time of day?
The Reds are in the dark ages with everything else, why assume this would be any different?
RHM is right; they don’t have to throw open the door to everyone. It makes me think that Butcher has a fundamental misunderstanding about the nature of the blogosphere…which is understandable. I can’t fault him for it, as it’s a relatively recent phenomenon, but I question the blanket statement that it is “never going to happen.”
For what it’s worth, during the day, I am a state court Judge. I don’t think they would have to worry about whether I would act in a professional manner.
Oh well. I didn’t start blogging so that I could get access. I did it because I like talking about the Reds.
One more thing…
I’m MUCH more interested in getting to meet Rosencrans! I’ll be up there Monday, maybe I’ll be fortunate enough to run into him!
I agree w/Chad “never going to happen” is a bit finite. Using the term too hard to control means that there are too many bloggers to keep an eye on – least they stray and bother the players. BTW the most positive comments, other than C. Trent’s, about Rob and his job come from the players and the Reds FO. It’s no doubt a well paid job, but sometimes a thankless one – it sometimes seems to be one of hall monitor.
IF there was a way to have a “professional” (whatever professional means) blogger status or something to make bloggers (esp. ones with sites) more legit the press pass might be more forthcoming. IIRC didn’t the writers from Reds Report (the trade paper) have trouble getting into the press box at one time?
there’s also the pandora’s box of who you credential once you start credentialing — and what kind of prescident you set.
Bullshit. Choosing whom to let in and when is his job. He’s free to ignore his own precedents as he sees fit.
rob takes that job seriously. you must set precednets and not just go wily nilly who you pick — you have to have a set policy — or lawsuits could be next.
i would agree that ‘never’ is too harsh and maybe a little shortsighted. but i understand where he’s coming from.
Lawsuits? I guess if a guy can sue over not getting the Mother’s Day giveaway, anything can happen, but that’s not a reason to completely close off an opportunity to interface with fans.
I might remind you that I wasn’t even asking for any access. The only thing I was doing was introducing myself. The “never going to happen” and “I don’t like bloggers” comments were volunteered.
He said, “I don’t like bloggers”? Seems to be back to that “control” issue.
Yep, he did say that. To be fair, though, he *was* on the spot. If he’d had time to think about how the words would be perceived, he might have chosen different ones.
Or maybe he wouldn’t have. What do I know?
Really, despite how it might read, it was a perfectly pleasant exchange. He was a touch more defensive than I would expect about blogger access, but wasn’t antagonistic or anything.
Someday things will change. When newspapers cease to exist as we currently know them and bloggers provide the majority of news coverage, he’ll see the light.
Even if he doesn’t, eventually he’ll retire. He’s got 15 years on me; I can wait him out. 😛
“He was on the spot and may have chosen different words” is not a valid excuse [i]for professional spokesman.[/i] Responding to questions off-the-cuff is a very good percentage of his job.
It’s a new and still-developing type of media. Change takes time. The main issue for the team is that we as bloggers are completely independent. No type of corporate control, and that’s scary. Plus, if your image of bloggers is guys like Mr. Redlegs, as Trent says, then you would credential bloggers either. (Unlike Trent, I don’t need an editor, as I can spell correctly) 😉
Except I wrote “would” instead of “wouldn’t.” Sheesh. Way to squish a point.