May is a beautiful time of year. It's when cherry trees in Northeast Ohio flower, when lawnmowers and barbeque grills creakily re-emerge for weekend use, and when lawyers in expensive suits emerge from the darkness of their caves and preen in front of fan sites, showering them with gifts of cease and desist letters, as well as various other threats.
The emergence of blogs has created the opportunity for any fan to generate a site celebrating his team in just a few minutes. This is a great avenue for self-expression, and for displaying passion for both your team and your writing.
It also creates lots of targets and work for the lawyers. NFL teams go after any copyrighted images, phrases or terms that they can find. In the case of the Bengals blog listed above, they went after the phrase "Welcome to the Jungle", trademarked team images, and photographs.
The hassling isn't isolated to one team or blog. The above-linked example of a Bengals blog is far from the only one, and I've heard rumors of Browns fans sites getting hit with this sort of thing as well.
As is the case with many lawsuits, there's more than enough foolishness on both sides to go around.
Granted, we've only heard one side of the story, but it seems that the NFL, rather than educating bloggers and webmasters, simply goes after them with a bludgeon, threatening them into compliance rather than educating them on what's allowable and what's not.
It's an act of total arrogance, of course, with the NFL and their franchises doing a great job of turning hyper-dedicated fans into cynical observers.
The NFL and the Bengals don't care, though. They don't need a handful of fans. They're expendable. At least, that's the message I'm receiving.
If I ran that blog, I would probably be upset, too... but... let's face it, there's only so much naivete that one can swallow before starting to choke.
A couple of notes for the blogger, or those who believe the same things he does:
You will not get credentialed. NFL teams will not credential internet-only sites or sites which are not affiliated with a print publication, TV, or radio. The OBR is credentialed because we have a print magazine, which is far more critical than our relationship with FoxSports.com. The only web-only sites I've seen get access to the Browns press box are ESPN and Cleveland Live, the latter which is affiliated with the Plain Dealer and has business relationships with the team.
There are some good reasons for this, including the capacity of media rooms, and professionalism. It's hard enough for professional reporters to come away with the information they need to hit deadlines without wading through a crowd of hobbyists and fans. The sidelines are already crowded with photographers.
When the OBR received credentials, we paid the money and hired reporters and photographers with decades of experience. We had to sacrifice. We had to create a real business model. I can't tell you how many times I've felt personally bashed for running a subscription service. But it's something you have to do if you want to provide news rather than just commenting on it.
As someone who has invested hundreds of thousands of dollars into developing a professional news organization, I guess I wouldn't be happy if every blogger who asked was allowed to drop a "media" badge around their neck. Expecting teams to credential you because you run a blog simply isn't realistic.
Teams don't need the "publicity" from a blog. I don't even to need to expound on this. The NFL doesn't need you. They're clumsy for ticking you off with ham-fisted legal threats, and it doesn't help their image, but their bottom line isn't impacted by your blog one bit. Half the local papers could drop coverage for the AP wire and I doubt it would impact them at all. If you need more information on how this works, even with credentialed news organizations, read this.
A publicly available image is not in the "public domain". I see this everywhere. Bloggers confuse being able to surf to an image on the internet with it being available for their use. It's not. On the OBR, we pay money to the Associated Press and Getty Images for licenses to use their images. That doesn't mean carte blanche, either - the licenses are fairly strict.
I can't tell you how many fan sites or blogs feel they can get around this by "thanking" the photographers for the images. They don't want your appreciation - they want your MONEY. If you want the rights and privileges of professionals, then act like professionals. Don't steal copyrighted images and licensed trademarks. If you have borrowed one and are asked to take it down, then do what's right.
I see "fan sites" littered with ads and stolen photos. They're just asking for it.
In other words, get real.
As someone who started in this business with an unabashed "fan site" in 1996, I can understand all the feelings you have when the team you love seems to turn against you.
But you have to go into this with your eyes open. NFL clubs are more than just businesses - they're local monopolies who have no problem driving the demand for their product. If you want to run a fan blog, you'll need to compromise frequently, particularly if you try to profit through it in some way.
If you want more than that, then be prepared to do more. Be prepared to jump into it as a full-time vocation and spend a lot of money carving out a niche against well-heeled and sometimes brutal competitors who will do everything they can to hide your existence from fans.
As someone who has changed his economic standing to chase his dream, I can attest that it is not for the faint-hearted. I've thought about getting out many times. You can invest years and your life savings and still be flicked away like a gnat.
The sports media business is like any other - it is not a hobby, and it does not reward naivete.