Media coverage

[crusadermoe]

I mean "bad basketball" in the 80s and early 90s when the community wasn't bonding with the team.


Since then it has typically been a very good team in a small town, and sometimes its been very impressive such as the 1994-2003 decade.
[size=78%] [/size]

[humbleopinion]

Ironically, I finally got a notice from The Times about Beacon Basketball last night -- kind of a pre-game, I guess.  It announced that the game had been canceled.

[valpopal]

There was a good article by Paul in this morning's paper offering a review of Valpo's development as a team during non-conference play.

[humbleopinion]

There was a good article by Paul in this morning's paper offering a review of Valpo's development as a team during non-conference play.

I have already sent a message to The Times thanking them and encouraging more such stories.

[usc4valpo]

Valpo basketball in the 80s under the munchkin were very rough times.

[justducky]

There was a good article by Paul in this morning's paper offering a review of Valpo's development as a team during non-conference play.

A sub heading in his article was (Krikke and Kithier better on their own). We touched on this (more from the offense side) early in the season while reaching no firm conclusions. The problem with both playing together has been that if the opponent goes small and if Matt stays man to man then neither can adequately cover a smaller, quicker fourth guard. We have surrendered a lot of easy dribble drive baskets before removing one from the floor or less frequently going with some zone.

How will Matt and the team approach this during the Valley schedule? Is there enough offensive chemistry between the two which could offset the defensive negatives? Will we have to play more zone to enable two of our best players to occupy the floor together?

[wh]

There was a good article by Paul in this morning's paper offering a review of Valpo's development as a team during non-conference play.

For those keeping score:

The NWI Times began this season's coverage of Valpo men's basketball with its long-standing tradition of pre-game, postgame, and feature stories. Somewhere over the past 8 weeks, feature stories disappeared, followed by game day previews. Finally, unexpectedly, our most recent home game went uncovered for presumably the first time in decades. Our beloved beat reporter described it as a horse-and-buggy moment in the evolution of global media (my paraphrase).

In the midst of our despair, suddenly and equally unexpectedly, a miracle happens - a feature story appears out of thin air. Not a postgame story, or a game preview, but the least likely of all candidates - a feature story - rises from the dead.

This is a bizarre turn of events that begs the following questions:
Why the sudden change of heart?
Is this a temporary reprieve or a complete reversal?
Did someone from the university get involved?

[Just Sayin]

Perhaps they got wind of this thread of Valpo fans.

[NativeCheesehead]

I've always enjoyed Paul's stories on the team and hope there's a venue for them in the future. That being said, the decline of The Times has been quite a long time in the making. We can talk about local news in general, newspapers specifically, etc, but The Times lost my subscription years ago during the city of Valpo's odd dalliance with China at the beginning of the last decade. Story after story of our Mayor and city officials traveling to China, looking for a 'sister city' and bringing Chinese exchange students to both Vu and VHS. The stories in The Times may just as well have been press releases from the mayor for how they were worded, with nary a critical question to be asked. I actually wrote an email to a couple of reporters/editors on the topic and never received a response. Probably nothing wrong with the whole thing but it just felt odd that nobody in the local media felt the need to ask questions about the motivations behind it.

[Valpo89]

There was a good article by Paul in this morning's paper offering a review of Valpo's development as a team during non-conference play.

For those keeping score:

The NWI Times began this season's coverage of Valpo men's basketball with its long-standing tradition of pre-game, postgame, and feature stories. Somewhere over the past 8 weeks, feature stories disappeared, followed by game day previews. Finally, unexpectedly, our most recent home game went uncovered for presumably the first time in decades. Our beloved beat reporter described it as a horse-and-buggy moment in the evolution of global media (my paraphrase).

In the midst of our despair, suddenly and equally unexpectedly, a miracle happens - a feature story appears out of thin air. Not a postgame story, or a game preview, but the least likely of all candidates - a feature story - rises from the dead.

This is a bizarre turn of events that begs the following questions:
Why the sudden change of heart?
Is this a temporary reprieve or a complete reversal?
Did someone from the university get involved?

I have absolutely no inside information on this, but as a former employee/correspondent here are my educated guesses to your questions:

Why the sudden change of heart? - I don't think it's a change of heart. I think the new, young, not-from-area sports editor is doing what he can to shift the focus from post-game coverage to featurized coverage. The article by PO was basically just his thoughts on what he's seen so far this season. If you notice, there were no quotes from anyone as it was probably written during the Christmas hiatus.
Is this a temporary reprieve or a complete reversal? I don't think it's either. It's just part of the new philosophy - less game coverage, more "in-depth" analysis or features
Did someone from the university get involved? Absolutely Not. No one at the university is going to change the mind of anyone at the newspaper on how things are covered. Not a chance.

I'm as dismayed as everyone at the lack of coverage. The guys in charge are all about online "clicks." VU basketball does not generate the same number of clicks as most local prep sports.
There's only so much money in the correspondent budget to pay PO. So, they have to decide, will we get more bang for the buck if we have PO write a volleyball feature on three Crown Point graduates, or cover Valpo U. against William & Mary.

I'm not saying I agree with it, but that's the way it is now.
And I believe WH was mentioning pre-game articles this year - actually, I think those ended quite a while ago.

When I was covering the team as a correspondent (which ended in 2015), I was able to write pre-game articles and cover the games. When I was a full-timer, I would cover the games and write columns with Sean Hayden writing game stories and other features. Unfortunately, there are no longer any full-time writers. NONE. Only editors and a stable of correspondents. Newspapers have been in a downward spiral for a long time. I would venture to guess that most of you on here are well over 30 years old and still care about newspapers. Well, most people under 30 don't care. They care about Twitter and other social media platforms, and they don't care about reading a whole game story. Yes, I agree that's sad. But it's the way it is and makes me happy that I left the newspaper business as a full-timer almost 23 years ago.

[Just Sayin]

I've always enjoyed Paul's stories on the team and hope there's a venue for them in the future. That being said, the decline of The Times has been quite a long time in the making. We can talk about local news in general, newspapers specifically, etc, but The Times lost my subscription years ago during the city of Valpo's odd dalliance with China at the beginning of the last decade. Story after story of our Mayor and city officials traveling to China, looking for a 'sister city' and bringing Chinese exchange students to both Vu and VHS. The stories in The Times may just as well have been press releases from the mayor for how they were worded, with nary a critical question to be asked. I actually wrote an email to a couple of reporters/editors on the topic and never received a response. Probably nothing wrong with the whole thing but it just felt odd that nobody in the local media felt the need to ask questions about the motivations behind it.

https://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/porter/valparaiso/plan-to-enroll-chinese-students-at-valparaiso-high-withdrawn/article_c8f229bc-6fe5-5c9a-94a9-970366252b0a.html

https://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/post-tribune/ct-ptb-valparaiso-promenade-st-0308-20170307-story.html

https://www.ci.valparaiso.in.us/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/2145

https://www.pressreader.com/usa/post-tribune/20140211/281479274308643

[Pgmado]

There was a good article by Paul in this morning's paper offering a review of Valpo's development as a team during non-conference play.

For those keeping score:

The NWI Times began this season's coverage of Valpo men's basketball with its long-standing tradition of pre-game, postgame, and feature stories. Somewhere over the past 8 weeks, feature stories disappeared, followed by game day previews. Finally, unexpectedly, our most recent home game went uncovered for presumably the first time in decades. Our beloved beat reporter described it as a horse-and-buggy moment in the evolution of global media (my paraphrase).

In the midst of our despair, suddenly and equally unexpectedly, a miracle happens - a feature story appears out of thin air. Not a postgame story, or a game preview, but the least likely of all candidates - a feature story - rises from the dead.

This is a bizarre turn of events that begs the following questions:
Why the sudden change of heart?
Is this a temporary reprieve or a complete reversal?
Did someone from the university get involved?

I have absolutely no inside information on this, but as a former employee/correspondent here are my educated guesses to your questions:

Why the sudden change of heart? - I don't think it's a change of heart. I think the new, young, not-from-area sports editor is doing what he can to shift the focus from post-game coverage to featurized coverage. The article by PO was basically just his thoughts on what he's seen so far this season. If you notice, there were no quotes from anyone as it was probably written during the Christmas hiatus.
Is this a temporary reprieve or a complete reversal? I don't think it's either. It's just part of the new philosophy - less game coverage, more "in-depth" analysis or features
Did someone from the university get involved? Absolutely Not. No one at the university is going to change the mind of anyone at the newspaper on how things are covered. Not a chance.

I'm as dismayed as everyone at the lack of coverage. The guys in charge are all about online "clicks." VU basketball does not generate the same number of clicks as most local prep sports.
There's only so much money in the correspondent budget to pay PO. So, they have to decide, will we get more bang for the buck if we have PO write a volleyball feature on three Crown Point graduates, or cover Valpo U. against William & Mary.

I'm not saying I agree with it, but that's the way it is now.
And I believe WH was mentioning pre-game articles this year - actually, I think those ended quite a while ago.

When I was covering the team as a correspondent (which ended in 2015), I was able to write pre-game articles and cover the games. When I was a full-timer, I would cover the games and write columns with Sean Hayden writing game stories and other features. Unfortunately, there are no longer any full-time writers. NONE. Only editors and a stable of correspondents. Newspapers have been in a downward spiral for a long time. I would venture to guess that most of you on here are well over 30 years old and still care about newspapers. Well, most people under 30 don't care. They care about Twitter and other social media platforms, and they don't care about reading a whole game story. Yes, I agree that's sad. But it's the way it is and makes me happy that I left the newspaper business as a full-timer almost 23 years ago.

I wrote the article from a business computer in the lobby of a hotel in Hudson, Wisconsin. I didn't bring my laptop on vacation and got the assignment after I had already left home.

I've got some ideas on things to do after the holidays.

[justducky]

I wrote the article from a business computer in the lobby of a hotel in Hudson, Wisconsin. I didn't bring my laptop on vacation and got the assignment after I had already left home.

It kind of read like that too! Maybe not your best effort but not bad for the time you were given and the space you were allotted.  Imagine what you could do if they allowed you to explore an issue in detail? We might actually learn something? 

[wh]

Ruthless hedge fund manager and corporate raider Alden Capital took control of the Chicago Tribune in 2020 and gutted staff and local coverage at all its papers (including the Post Tribune). Now it's gutting Lee Enterprises holdings, including the NWI Times.

I now get it. Both papers are dead men walking the green mile. Local coverage of Valpo basketball is dead and buried. It's all explained in the articles below.

The Hedge Fund Vampire That Bleeds Newspapers Dry Now Has the Chicago Tribune (and PT) by the Throat
FEBRUARY 5, 2020 5:54 PM

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.vanityfair.com/news/2020/02/hedge-fund-vampire-alden-global-capital-that-bleeds-newspapers-dry-has-chicago-tribune-by-the-throat/amp

Lee Enterprises (owner of NWI Times) Rejects Takeover Bid From Hedge Fund
12/14/2021

https://www.omahadailyrecord.com/content/lee-enterprises-rejects-takeover-bid-hedge-fund

Though unsuccessful in their takeover bid, Alden Capital is still the no. 1 share owner in Lee.

[valpopal]

I was pleased to see that this morning's NWI Times contained absolutely no coverage of last night's Valpo game at UNI! 

[humbleopinion]

I was pleased to see that this morning's NWI Times contained absolutely no coverage of last night's Valpo game at UNI! 

My thought exactly.  As I opened the paper this morning, I figured there would be a 100 pt font about it.  If it had been Drake, you can be sure that we would have read all about the performance of region Bulldogs players.

[vu72]

Ruthless hedge fund manager and corporate raider Alden Capital took control of the Chicago Tribune in 2020 and gutted staff and local coverage at all its papers (including the Post Tribune). Now it's gutting Lee Enterprises holdings, including the NWI Times.

I now get it. Both papers are dead men walking the green mile. Local coverage of Valpo basketball is dead and buried. It's all explained in the articles below.

The Hedge Fund Vampire That Bleeds Newspapers Dry Now Has the Chicago Tribune (and PT) by the Throat
FEBRUARY 5, 2020 5:54 PM

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.vanityfair.com/news/2020/02/hedge-fund-vampire-alden-global-capital-that-bleeds-newspapers-dry-has-chicago-tribune-by-the-throat/amp

Lee Enterprises (owner of NWI Times) Rejects Takeover Bid From Hedge Fund
12/14/2021

https://www.omahadailyrecord.com/content/lee-enterprises-rejects-takeover-bid-hedge-fund

Though unsuccessful in their takeover bid, Alden Capital is still the no. 1 share owner in Lee.

The Chairman of Lee is a Valpo grad.

https://lee.net/about/executive-team/

[valpo tundra]

In the late 90's and early 2000's, I subscribed (paid) to a newspaper that was mailed to me that had a hyper focus on VU athletics. From what I remember, it was written and published primarily by one guy, Dick Harlan. He was totally independent from the local media and the university, just a big Valpo booster. His son is still in the area and has been a high school volleyball coach since a short stint of writing about local athletics in the Times. Maybe Paul can do a hybrid approach for all Valpo Athletics with a focus on Men's Basketball? He could produce a weekly or monthly print newsletter, on-line daily articles, and his periodic podcast to cover all bases.  It could be paid for via subscriber payments and local businesses. He did say, "Covering college athletics is all I've ever wanted to do", so let's see how resourceful he is. Anybody here willing to provide some seed money?

[Chairback]

Or... the university can beef up its marketing and communication of the program internally.   

If you are not a die hard Valpo fan, how do you know when there is a game?  You'd have to search yourself.  I know they send out emails the day of or before a game to a list they have of people who have purchased online before.  But they are not Capturing new fans. 

Why can't the University produce their own show on Valpo basketball. Not the five minute quick videos,  but a true coaches show.  Purdue produces one and promotes it internally and it's fantastic.

All they need to do is put a little effort behind it and it will go along way. The scary part is there's a lot of smart people there and they're not doing anything.

[FWalum]

Why can't the University produce their own show on Valpo basketball. Not the five minute quick videos,  but a true coaches show.  Purdue produces one and promotes it internally and it's fantastic.

Purdue Fort Wayne has a coach's show much like West Lafayette, that is hosted and paid for by a local restaurant. No reason VU couldn't do something similar. I actually arranged for Homer and Todd to be on the local show one of the last times Bryce and the team were in Fort Wayne to play the Mastodons.

[FWalum]

In the late 90's and early 2000's, I subscribed (paid) to a newspaper that was mailed to me that had a hyper focus on VU athletics. From what I remember, it was written and published primarily by one guy, Dick Harlan. He was totally independent from the local media and the university, just a big Valpo booster. His son is still in the area and has been a high school volleyball coach since a short stint of writing about local athletics in the Times. Maybe Paul can do a hybrid approach for all Valpo Athletics with a focus on Men's Basketball? He could produce a weekly or monthly print newsletter, on-line daily articles, and his periodic podcast to cover all bases.  It could be paid for via subscriber payments and local businesses. He did say, "Covering college athletics is all I've ever wanted to do", so let's see how resourceful he is. Anybody here willing to provide some seed money?

I said basically this exact same thing much earlier in this thread. There are many ways to support Paul's production of content on VU basketball and potentially other VU sports. This can be done through Patreon and other methods of support. I really thought that this would be welcomed by this community, but instead not one single person, until now, said anything in support of this model to improve consistent coverage from a proven source. I love the Union Street hoops podcasts and would very much like for this to be expanded, potentially to YouTube videos or some other method of coverage , but the only way to do that is to actually make it worth Paul's while to produce more consistent coverage.

Many of us subscribe to ESPN+ so that we can watch Missouri Valley and Valpo basketball games. Wouldn't it be worth a few extra bucks a month to support Paul's excellent coverage?

[Chairback]

Anybody see any advertising on todays game?  How do people know there is a game today?

How does someone who has never been to a game, or local SIU alumni made aware. 

[valpopal]

This morning's NWI Times had no coverage (perhaps thankfully) of last night's loss to Southern Illinois, but there was an ad by the newspaper promoting upcoming "Times Family Night" VU games against Bradley and Loyola.

[humbleopinion]

Maybe Paul can do a hybrid approach for all Valpo Athletics with a focus on Men's Basketball? He could produce a weekly or monthly print newsletter, on-line daily articles, and his periodic podcast to cover all bases.  It could be paid for via subscriber payments and local businesses. He did say, "Covering college athletics is all I've ever wanted to do", so let's see how resourceful he is. Anybody here willing to provide some seed money?

It seems that encouraging Paul to cover Beacon sports independent of The Times may be the only way that we can get his insights in print (other than what he shares with us on this board).  I, for one would be willing to support such action financially -- at least as much as I support ESPN to get coverage.  Perhaps commitment from others on this board would give him the necessary encouragement to follow the teams and provide us information and perspective that we appreciate.

[justducky]

Perhaps commitment from others on this board would give him the necessary encouragement to follow the teams and provide us information and perspective that we appreciate.

Is the demand sufficient that it can be implemented and executed with a sufficient payout for Paul? If there is I am all for it but top of my head I'm somewhat in doubt. Younger fans need to figure this out for fossils like me to be drug along for the ride.