PFWA Newsletter Vol. XL, No.7
Date: Tuesday, November 24 @ 13:39:40
Topic PFWA News
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Dear PFWA membership:
It has been a busy four months. Several Internet sties have reported some of the issues we have faced. Yes, T.O. is talking. Yes, the Jets were fined $125,000 for violations of the league's injury reporting policy. Yes, we have had complaints about conference calls.
I can't state this enough: Greg Aiello, Michael Signora, Brian McCarthy, Randall Liu and Corry Rush have been extremely helpful...
Dear PFWA membership:
It has been a busy four months. Several Internet sties have reported some of the issues we have faced. Yes, T.O. is talking. Yes, the Jets were fined $125,000 for violations of the league's injury reporting policy. Yes, we have had complaints about conference calls.
I can't state this enough: Greg Aiello, Michael Signora, Brian McCarthy, Randall Liu and Corry Rush have been extremely helpful to our cause. I also have to say that, as PFWA president, I have gained great respect for the job the PR staffs in this league do. Every PR person I have talked to -- in most cases to get a player to cooperate with league rules -- has done his or her best to solve the problem without involvement from the league. It hasn't always worked out, but not for a lack of trying by the PR staffs. We have had the league intervene with two players this year. Both players, I am happy to report, talked after receiving a letter from the league.
I would like to remind you that we can't help if we don't know about a problem. I have a list of a few things that won't be resolved until the offseason when we hope to get Commissioner Goodell to tweak a couple of rules and make a couple of phone calls on our behalf. As we all know, some GMs and coaches try to find ways around the rules, and sometimes, they succeed. So we hope to eliminate the loopholes and make them adhere to the letter of the law as well as the spirit of the rules. If you have any suggestions about anything that can be improved in the offseason, please let me know. Specifically, I would love to hear from you if you have a suggestion on how we can improve the conference call situation. I have received more complaints about this -- teams turning down the writers' first (or second) choice for the call -- than anything.
SUPER BOWL XLIV INFORMATION
The Super Bowl XLIV Media Center will be located in Fort Lauderdale at the Greater Ft. Lauderdale/Broward County Convention Center. The Media Center will open on Sunday, January 31. For those covering the Pro Bowl, there will be a workroom available at the Media Center beginning on Friday, January 29. Media covering the Super Bowl will be housed at the following hotels listed below. The rate is $240 per night for five or more nights and $270 for four nights.
Comfort Suites Airport & Cruiseport, 1800 S. Federal Highway, Fort Lauderdale
Courtyard Ft. Lauderdale Airport & Cruise Port, 400 Gulf Stream Way, Dania Beach
Embassy Suites Ft. Lauderdale, 1100 SE 17th Street, Fort Lauderdale
Hilton Ft. Lauderdale Marina, 1881 SE 17th Street, Fort Lauderdale
Hyatt Place Ft. Lauderdale Airport-North, 1851 SE 10th Avenue, Fort Lauderdale
Hyatt Regency Pier Sixty-Six, 2301 SE 17th Street, Fort Lauderdale
Renaissance Ft. Lauderdale, 1617 SE 17th Street, Fort Lauderdale
Sheraton Ft. Lauderdale Airport & Cruise Port, 1825 Griffin Road, Dania
Westin Beach Resort, 321 North Fort Lauderdale Beach Boulevard, Fort Lauderdale
The AFC and NFC Champions will arrive in South Florida on Monday, February 1. There will be media availability on Monday at the team hotels: AFC - Marriott Harbor Beach, Ft. Lauderdale. NFC - InterContinental Miami. All players and coaches will be available on Tuesday through Thursday as in years past, with Tuesday being Media Day at Dolphin Stadium. The head coaches will be available at the Super Bowl Media Center on Friday morning. The winning head coach and Most Valuable Player will be available on Monday morning following the Super Bowl at the Super Bowl Media Center.
The press seating for media on Super Bowl Sunday will be as it was for Super Bowl XLI. There are three indoor seating areas that constitute approximately 120 seats total. The majority of media will be seated in the auxiliary table section located adjacent to the largest of the three indoor seating areas, creating the feeling of one big press box. All indoor and outdoor seating areas will have access to statistics and other services.
If you have not already applied for Super Bowl and Pro Bowl credentials, please do so immediately. The deadline was approximately one week ago, but applications may still be submitted at www.nflmedia.com. Please contact NFL Director of Media Relations Michael Signora with any Super Bowl or Pro Bowl-related questions.
PRO BOWL INFORMATION
The 2010 Pro Bowl will kick off on Sunday, January 31 at 7:30 p.m. at Dolphin Stadium in South Florida. Pro Bowl practices will begin on Wednesday, January 27 and continue through Saturday, January 30. All practices are open to the media. Media availability will take place daily on the field immediately following practice as well as in the locker room at the team hotel, the Marriott Harbor Beach in Ft. Lauderdale, upon return from practice. The practice schedule is as follows:
Wednesday, January 27 at St. Thomas Aquinas High School, Ft. Lauderdale
9:00 a.m. - AFC
10:30 a.m. - NFC
Thursday, January 28 at St. Thomas Aquinas High School, Ft. Lauderdale
9:00 a.m. - NFC
10:30 a.m. - AFC
Friday, January 29 at St. Thomas Aquinas High School, Ft. Lauderdale
9:30 a.m. - AFC
10:30 a.m. - NFC
Saturday, January 30 at Lockhart Stadium, Ft. Lauderdale
9:00 a.m. - NFC
10:00 a.m. - AFC
Upon arrival at practice, media will report to the media check-in desk and receive a credential granting them access to practice as well as to the locker room at the team hotel. Pro Bowl game credentials will be distributed upon arrival at Dolphin Stadium on Sunday. The media check-in desk will be operational beginning at 3:30 p.m. To assist in your coverage of the Pro Bowl, quotes will be distributed throughout the game. As in years past, there will be no formal postgame press conferences. Media will be permitted on the field with five minutes remaining. Players will be available to media on the field at the conclusion of the game as well as in the locker rooms. The Most Valuable Player will also be available on the field postgame.
WHO ARE YOU?
Not many of our writers are "national" writers any more, but those who are obviously don't know every player's face on every team. I'd like to remind the PR staffs that the league mandates that the visiting locker room (as well as the home team's) must have names and numbers above every locker until the postgame media session has concluded. Some of the national writers have reported that the rule is not always being followed by road teams, forcing them to find a team employee to ask who's who. This isn't always easy, especially after a loss.
WORTHY OF PRAISE
Jason Cole sent along a note of thanks to the Patriots, specifically Stacey James, Aaron Salkin and Bill Belichick. Aaron stayed at the facility with Jason until he was finished at 11 p.m. to make sure Jason didn't have any problems getting out. … David Richard pointed out an audio link that Neal Gulkis and the Browns PR staff uses for their out-of-town conference calls with the opposing coach and player every week. David is hoping that other teams will adopt this "cool innovation." … I'd like to thank Stacey James for making Tom Brady available on four national conference calls. There were nine writers on the first call, two on the second, seven on the third and 12 on the fourth. The last two were before the London game and before the game vs. the Colts. Brady did six conference calls this year, one more than the rules state he had to do. … Kudos to the Texans for making Dr. James Muntz, a team physician, available to discuss the swine flu after a Texans player was diagnosed. … I got emails from writers amazed the first time Bob Lange sent out MRI results for several of the 49ers players. It was very detailed information on each player. (The results of a MRI on 49ers RB Frank Gore show a right ankle strain and a right hind foot sprain that will sideline him for approximately three weeks.)
The Eagles are doing a great job with information regarding Brian Westbrook's concussion. … Kudos to the Cowboys PR staff, which organized a media bus to Southlake Carroll High School in less than an hour Sept. 16, so we could watch practice after unexpected bad weather forced the Cowboys indoors. … Randy Covitz of the Kansas City Star sent along his thanks to the eight PR staffs from the original AFL franchises for supplying, on short notice, usable mug shots of the eight members of The Foolish Club to accompany a special section story. … Thanks to Craig Kelley and the Colts for getting Peyton Manning to the podium so quickly after night games. In some instances, I don't even think the Colts have had the 10-minute cooling off period before Peyton starts talking. It doesn't matter whether the Colts win or lose either. Peyton is out there. So thanks, too, to Peyton, who deserves kudos for helping us to the utmost.
Bernie Wilson, who covers the Chargers for AP, sent along kudos to Chargers PR assistant Jamaal LaFrance, who went above and beyond for Bernie last week. Jamaal got Antonio Gates for Bernie and then even transcribed the answers for Bernie. "While too many people in the NFL are all too eager to throw up walls when it comes to dealing with the media, Jamaal has always understood that it's really not that hard to have good relations with the media, which in turn can go a long way toward positive publicity for the team," Bernie said in an email.
THIS AND THAT
Sadly, the newspaper business has lost another great one. Brian Allee-Walsh reports that as of Nov. 16, he no longer is employed by the New Orleans Times-Picayune. He was there for 32 years. Brian says that the T-P has been "really good" to him and gave him an offer he couldn't refuse. He landed at NewOrleans.com and will cover the Saints for the remainder of the season. "I feel real good about my decision and am thrilled about the future," Brian said in an email. "I know one thing: I ain't ready to hang up my spurs." Brian's new email is balleewalsh@aol.com and his new cell is 504-232-3014. … Gene Duffy, a freelancer in Houston whom you may remember from his many years at the Houston Post, finally has returned home after 40 days in the hospital. He had a defibrillator installed in his chest. I recently talked to him, and he said he was still pretty weak but recovering. "If it wasn't for my friends, I wouldn't be alive," Gene said. The Houston Texans presented Gene with a game ball from their win over the Titans. Tony Wyllie and his staff took the ball, which Gary Kubiak had signed with a personal note, to Gene in the hospital. … Congratulations to Paul Kuharsky, whose wife Teresa escorted Simon into the world Oct. 16. It is the couple's first child.
Terry Bannon has left the Chicago Tribune. After a decade of making NFL picks for the paper, Bannon reports that he is keeping them alive at www.terrybannon.com. Drop him a line. … The Dallas Morning News hired Gerry Fraley to cover the Cowboys. He started last month, joining Todd Archer, Bill Nichols and David Moore on the beat. … Calvin Watkins left AOL Fanhouse to work for ESPN Dallas. He has been joined there by blogger Tim MacMahon, who left the Dallas Morning News. … Albert Breer left The Sporting News to cover the NFL for the Boston Globe. He joins Patriots beat writers Adam Kilgore and Monique Walker with the Globe. The Globe has made Chris Gasper a columnist on Boston.com. … Tom Curran left NBCsports.com to cover the Patriots for Comcast Sportsnet. … Thomas George has left NFL.com for AOL Fanhouse. … Clarence Hill of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram missed a Cowboys game for the first time in 199 games, dating to 1996. He was on furlough for the Cowboys' victory over the Seahawks.
RELIEF FUND
Brian Allee-Walsh, despite having taken a buyout, just sent a $500 check to Mike Sando for the PFWA relief/hardship fund. Brian was instrumental in starting this fund for us a year ago after being touched by our assistance to his family during Hurricane Katrina. It is designed to help members affected by natural disasters. "I will never -- NEVER -- forget what our membership did for me and my family after Katrina. It still makes me tear up thinking about our generosity," Brian said. Please make checks payable to the PFWA and send them to Mike Sando at 16908 13th Ave. CT E, Spanaway, WA 98387. His email is mikejsando@gmail.com.
Respectfully yours,
Charean Williams
PFWA President
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