Why does Sydney media hate rugby league?

[BuffaloRules]

Union in Australia should be a cautionary tale for the NRL in so far as the game shouldn't be complacent. The NRL need to be more bold.

I'm not suggesting that the NRL get complacent, but Union is not really a valid comparison...

I can recall when I was a youngster Union internationals in the early 80's being played in front of 10K crowds at Concord Oval..

Union had a window of prominent public success from about 1984-2006 but this was for the national team only, and never had any real grass roots week in week out following...

Its different to RL that has always been the No 1 code in Sydney for 100 years...

The AFL have needed a lot of things to go right for them this year to get even what I consider a relatively modest amount of publicity versus the NFL semi finals in Sydney... i.e both Sydney teams to finish in Top 4 and play each other week 1 of the finals... doubt they can expect that to happen every year..

Even if the GWS Giants win it this year, there is a chance they might run into a Sharks fairy tale that will suck a lot of oxygen out of their build up and final... I recall that this happened to some extent when the Swans won their first GF in 2005 and ran into a Sydney going crazy over the Wests Tigers exciting finals run and maiden premiership..

 

[Sydney Knight]

Funny thing is if RL did die, what would these journos do for work? Can you imagine Rothfield trying to find another job with his Beetroot cheeks

That's why he keeps things tight with David Gallop

 

[taipan]

Funny thing is if RL did die, what would these journos do for work? Can you imagine Rothfield trying to find another job with his Beetroot cheeks

I'm sure Liquorland would employ him as a procurement manager.Or a tester at a Lion and Nathan brewery.

 

[PARRA_FAN]

I often ask myself the same question, cant really get a decent answer.

Its been happening for years but I reckon it started around the early 2000s with the whole Canterbury drama.

It was hard to avoid, every second page in the paper was about the Bulldogs and even in the news and dragged on for at least a month.

From then on, it was like every major story in the paper and news has just been about off field dramas. Yes Rugby League has had plenty but they seem to forget the great stuff that's happened on the field.

Seems to have gotten worse over the last few years hence why Ive stopped buying the papers, even when the prices went up as well.

I don't watch the news on 7 or 9 as much, if not at all. Fox Sports I occasionally watch but even then there's more negative RL news there as well.

And this AFL loving in Sydney is getting a bit much. Yes it was the first time an all Sydney final was played in Sydney but to say AFL is taking over Sydney is a bit of a joke.

You ask AFL experts in Victoria about the game on Saturday and they tell you it was one of the worst finals played. And they would laugh the fact that Melbourne easily attracts more down there.

Sydney media seems to have ignored every other sport in Sydney. NRL, Rugby, Soccer.

Not a big fan of Rugby, but you wouldn't know if the Wallabies were playing last week.

I said this before but it nice hearing from Roy Masters about how jurnos don't say enough about on field stuff and are too busy talking about off field stuff.

 

[The Charlatan]

Why do they hate League? Because they are ambulance chasers who'd rather sensationalise poor behaviour and non events in the game than report on what makes the game good. Let's not forget that Uncle Rupert nailed his colours to the mast when News said that AFL was a better aligned product for the News brand.

 

[madunit]

As alluded to earlier. Rugby League sells.
Bad news also sells.

Combine the two and you have a never ending cash cow.

If you want positive stories about the game, go to dedicated RL Media that only focus on RL, such as RL Magazines and websites.

You can imagine just how hard it is to get into that industry when you love the game. I gave up many years ago and work as a freelancer now.

I have no issue with anyone criticising the game, so long as it is constructive and combined with an idea/solution to make things better, because that at least shows some care for the sport.

 

[madunit]

furthermore, Rugby League journos never had their names attached to their work in the papers, most of those articles were positive stories/match reports etc.

Nowadays, the journalist is the story as much as the story itself. That in itself is a massive problem.

If a newspaper took the authors name off all the pieces printed in the paper and online, you'd probably see a reduction in shit journalism across the board.

 

[The Charlatan]

furthermore, Rugby League journos never had their names attached to their work in the papers, most of those articles were positive stories/match reports etc.

Nowadays, the journalist is the story as much as the story itself. That in itself is a massive problem.

If a newspaper took the authors name off all the pieces printed in the paper and online, you'd probably see a reduction in shit journalism across the board.

Not necessarily a bad thing if you know if it's an article by an ambulance chaser, and you can save yourself the time reading said article.

 

[madunit]

Not necessarily a bad thing if you know if it's an article by an ambulance chaser, and you can save yourself the time reading said article.

thankfully, they are usually all limited to the same publication.

 

[insert.pause]

furthermore, Rugby League journos never had their names attached to their work in the papers, most of those articles were positive stories/match reports etc.

Nowadays, the journalist is the story as much as the story itself. That in itself is a massive problem.

If a newspaper took the authors name off all the pieces printed in the paper and online, you'd probably see a reduction in shit journalism across the board.

yep, there's no better self promoter then a telegraph 'journo', they think they are celebrities. The majority are now columnists, not reporters, which means the byline becomes the brand, it's all about the journalist, not the subject. Unfortunately, once that happens the game becomes a punching bag to self-absorbed egos.

 

[madunit]

that's right. So if the NRL went and banned News Ltd journos from all RL games/pressers/players/officials/clubs etc they would just run opinion pieces bitching about the game incessantly, or would become the herald sun and just talk about AFL exclusively.

While the NRL would survive because newspapers are fast dying platform, it's a risk they won't take.

So they are stuck with them. And News Ltd knows that.
On a sidenote, that company name has never been more apt than it is now.

News Limited.

 

[T-Boon]

The problem is the cultural inability of Rugby League players and worse coaches & CEO's to communicate well with the media.

In comparison to other codes and AFL in particular our coaches still look openly hostile towards questions in press conferences, they look like they just want to get out of there, they look uninterested (or worse incapable) of giving insight into game plans or strategy or anything of that nature.

The players take the lead from the coaches and can barely speak except in cliques.

So the media, getting not much from club land, muck rake and fill the void of conversation with gossip and bad news stories.... or AFL stories (the AFL can't get enough of it).

RAM nailed it, the AFL are so much more pro active with this stuff. I didn't even know about the media room set up at Etihad...this is the sort of thing the NRL needs to do. It needs to change the whole culture of communicating with the media.

Coaches & CEO's and players need to front the media and actually be willing to talk about things - control what is getting talked about better.

 

[LeagueXIII]

GWS won't threaten league simply because they will never have the chance of taking advantage of a Super League type situation which is what propelled the Swans....and to a lesser extent Brisbane Lions.

I recall when the Swans would pull 30,000 plus in the 80's with Capper and they said back then the Swans would take over, ten years latter they were on their arses, same as the Lions are now.

When the GWS are going badly no one will give a toss.

 

[magpie_man]

I wouldn't actually know how the Sydney media treats RL as I pretty-well exclusively go to nrl.com for my RL news.
Outside that, I'll read nearly everything by Peter Fitzsimons and Roy Masters and the occasional article by Andrew Webster, but that's it for me.
Ditto for RL match highlights: nrl.com all the way for me. World News Australia and ABC radio Sydney for other news.
I'm very happy in my bubble

 

[taipan]

I wouldn't actually know how the Sydney media treats RL as I pretty-well exclusively go to nrl.com for my RL news.
Outside that, I'll read nearly everything by Peter Fitzsimons and Roy Masters and the occasional article by Andrew Webster, but that's it for me.
Ditto for RL match highlights: nrl.com all the way for me. World News Australia and ABC radio Sydney for other news.
I'm very happy in my bubble

Peter FitzSimons!!! This git predicted in 2004 the Storm would not last ,due to a Melbourne S15 team coming in. His silence since then is deafening.

 

[magpie_man]

Peter FitzSimons!!! This git predicted in 2004 the Storm would not last ,due to a Melbourne S15 team coming in. His silence since then is deafening.

Admittedly he's a bit of a pompous, sanctimonious wowser but a darn good writer too.

 

[Perth Red]

Classic example in today's smh

The AFL hierarchy in Melbourne must be laughing out loud as their long-term plan to challenge rugby league's dominance across Sydney starts to deliver results.

True, not many TV viewers tuned in to see the five-years-young GWS Giants beat the Swans at Homebush on Saturday afternoon.
But 60,000 fans did turn up as NRL supporters had to wait till Sunday for a local match.

Australian football will have yet another opportunity to be the main sporting focus in Sydney this weekend given the two rugby league finals are in Townsville and Canberra respectively.

As such, the Swans will be the main attraction once more when they tackle the Adelaide Crows at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Saturday night.

To make matters worse for the NRL, rugby league is struggling with match-fixing allegations raised by the Herald in June, as well as player links to criminals and poor behaviour such as egging of cars.

As if that weren't enough to deter parents and young would-be players, on the weekend we saw on-field referees both ignore a player's kick to an opponent's body and do nothing about a head butt in a scrum.

There have been claims of bribes in a junior match in Wollongong, too.

And so it goes on..

http://www.smh.com.au/comment/smh-e...e-battle-for-credibility-20160911-gre0w4.html

 

[The Mad Hatter]

It's all in the language.

GWS Mumford goes after Buddy Franklin about his mental health. Apology given, sheepish in press, all good, carry on.

Ennis rustles some Raiders' jimmies by mocking their clap. Cue a week of negative headlines, disrespect, etc.

 

[Flapper]

"mental health". if the strong rumours surrounding that bloke surrounded a Rugby League player they would be at the very least alluded to heavily in print, more likely splashed across the front page.

 

[The Mad Hatter]

"mental health". if the strong rumours surrounding that bloke surrounded a Rugby League player they would be at the very least alluded to heavily in print, more likely splashed across the front page.

Despite that, Mumford is applauded for his apology. Fmd.