We need referees in the press box.
According to the New York Times in a Dec. 20 story that I missed:
The NCAA issued new rules this week that will allow credentialed press to blog live NCAA championship sporting events. The rules, however, limit the number of times reporters can post live blogs depending on the sport they cover.
The Times says under the new rules, a reporter can blog three times per quarter and once at half-time for NCAA football games and five times per half and once at half-time for NCAA basketball games.
And oh, yes, overtime is covered. Two live posts are allowed per overtime period for basketball.
In baseball, live-blogging is allowed once per inning.
The rules require that live-bloggers must link their posts to the NCAA’s Blog Central site and include an NCAA sports log on their blog sites.
Whew, I thought writers were going to have to use NCAA approved software and wear Nike official blogger softwear.
Actually, this is an effort on the part of the NCAA at improving its anachronistic policies. Previously, there was a no live blogging allowed rule. I suspect the conferences will follow the NCAA’s lead and adjust their rules. The “live” coverage debate is about protecting the franchise to license coverage of games for TV. The NCAA seems to think — and maybe at the sports network encouragement — that blogging a game will be detrimental to the interests of the TV networks that pay a bezillion to colleges in order to float in beer and SUV commercials. That specious argument has always left me thinking they ought to lose their right to sell the High Life.
The latest rule change is a woeful reform that will be welcomed only by those sports writers that can only seem to find the time to “blog” once a week or two.
One wonders what the NCAA will do with Twitter? That’d cause a shiver. It’s been suggested.
(via Martin Stabe)