Time For NYI To End Blog Box, Revoke All Amateur Media Credentials

Simply put it was a bad idea from the beginning that I felt was made up of good intentions at the time or I never would have sent the team an e-mail offering this website to be included to help them in October 2007. 

In retrospect it was the teams media relations giving up trying to get the Daily News, Post or Times to spend money on full time coverage. 

I made my suggestion on 5/8/2008 to have the team pay the writers to travel with the team on the road if that's what it took with it dismissed for countless reasons. By 12/5/2008 the same former media relations coordinator was calling for all NHL teams to host media on the road.

Whatever. So much for that enhanced Newsday coverage. (insert joke here)

I have written about my blog box involvement many times here from Nov 2007-May 2009 which is available for everyone to reference in the archives. Never was a free ticket or pass accepted (or anything else from the team) or did I ever sit in the box, that was my specific condition for being included.

Never received one e-mail telling me what to write by the team or that would have been posted here with a response to immediately take my link off the Islanders website.

Now it's time for the Islanders organization to correct it's mistake, and push the newspaper editors to spend their limited budget money assigning a full time beatwriter to cover the club with a daily updated blog like all other NHL teams.

No more blog box, no more amateur media credentials issued.

This team has a website to interview it's players, it has media relations people to sit down with newsppaer editors, and figure out a way to cover every single game.

No one is stopping amateur writers from writing on-line, but the days of a few of them having access inside the Nassau Coliseum or Barclay's Center should end.

Dan Martin, Peter Botte, Kevin Allen, John Rolfe, Phil Mushnick, Ben Hankinson, player agents all responded to my e-mails with the discussions posted here over the years.

I never asked the team for help or needed to be a blog box member to receive/send e-mails, no one does.

One item in one entry was edited about Peter Botte.  He contacted me about a game related mistake in an article he wrote that I pointed out, he said he had a family issue, and would appreciate it if I changed my entry so I did out of courtesy.

Yes, the same Peter Botte, who in 2014 is reduced to snarking the team on twitter at a paper who does not have the budget to assign a full time writer, while he lobs softballs at the laughingstock Knicks was that sensitive about things written on a blogger hosted website? 

Dan Martin asked me not to post our e-mail discussion. I did. 

Mike Sielski wrote, and said he could not answer my questions about his LaFontaine hit-job, then went to the Buffalo News to interview/sell himself with his mistake filled article.

Ending the blog box/amateur access should also end some of the amateurs with credentials from other outlets to invent so much sourced based gossip from other teams practice facilities about a New York Islander team, who's games those editors will not spend money to cover. 

All due respect to the blog box members, time to pay for tickets, no more access to locker room.

Contact players by e-mail ask for written interviews for your blogs/sites.

Anyone can read a newsppaer on-line with a direct quote and post it on a blog/website.

It's worked here since 2007, and before that since 2000.

Time for full time Newspaper coverage to return. There will never be an acceptable excuse for the cut of coverage to begin with. With no more amateur bloggers, excuses will be gone for no full time professional newspaper beatwriters when/if this franchise moves to the Barclay's Center beyond these publications own financial issues.

NYI Fan Central Notables

First of all my Thanks once again to Alex and Steve from Hockey Night on LI for inviting me to appear on their season opening program. As always I had a great time talking New York Islander hockey with them and they do an exellent job with the program. They will be on again Saturday at 3:30pm with the second of the double-header home opening weekend.

At the time we did the show yesterday, we did not know the lineup or injury situation as even folks in the media did not know until the club took the ice.

All Hockey Night on LI programs are featured on the sidebar of NYIFC for those who could not listen live.
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My Point Blank: Mr Botta as always had a ton of upstanding updates for the opener, the weekly radio show he does at 1050Espn will be on tape delay Saturday from from 5:30 - 6:30 pm and include Islander general manager Garth Snow among the guest.
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On the blog box front to this point the club has not announced it's newest addtions to the group. I noted they took out the bloggers who decided not to return so I guess they are ready to add the new members in when they can.

Last year I was the last blog added in November and at the time I was told because of all the work behind the scenes it took a lot of time to put the blog box together so for those waiting for an answer please be a little patient.

I will add the feeders to all the new members blogs when available so you can read everyone's latest entries here. My suggestion was they add a lot of blogs because you cannot have enough hockey content, I would go at least twenty deep.
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On the poll front the basement is off to an early lead with Comeau on the sidelines making my sixth place projection not look very good. It's early and I suspect he will win over this coach but it's not the best of starts.

I understand folks have been virtually posioned by the media about this club, all I know is they were in sixth last January and made four of the last six playoffs with about as flawed a club you can have and still did not come apart until they won another six games in a row to be right there at the trade deadline.

I have seen enough Islander seasons where they were double-digit points out by thankgiving, we saw that in 05-06 by the end of the year.

Of course for those who watched the opener they saw a club that hardly looked like a fifteenth place team.
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Finally New York Islander Fan Central is making a small change of it's own that should be visible now for everyone.

We have claimed our own domain with the official name changing to
www.newyorkislanderfancentral.com

Hopefully blogger still lets folks redirect from blogspot for those who have bookmarked or link directly here but just in case I thought I would tell everyone so you know where the find us in case it does not work the same for you.

A few words on the blog box program

Islanders website: Announced they are accepting applications for additions to their blog box program with what they are looking for with a little background.


NYI Fan Central Comments:
I know there are a lot of folks here reading this blog and some may expect here I may write something that's a lot of fluff praising the club because my blog was accepted last October/early Novemember.

Nothing would be further from the truth nor would I waste anyone's time doing a blog about it if that were the case.

One of the things I suggested to the club at the end of the season was to get as many folks as possible involved in the program and add as many bloggers as they can because it only helps grow the teams message.

I highly encourage anyone considering filing an application to do so because the folks involved with this program with the club have been nothing but first class, whether it be Mr Witt, Mr Botta, (now Mr Bernstein in some manner) or anyone else from the team.

As a person who does this blog from my own perspective they took my blog under the premise I would be doing it not as a participating member or someone who sits in the box but as someone who goes to games and does things my own way just as the other folks to a great job doing things their own way. I have no desire to become a journalists but feel this club needs as many New York Islander fans as possible to break into the business.

In my estimation there are a lot of great blogs out there beyond the other twelve that would be outstanding additions.

Whether I'm part of the blog box program moving forward is not a huge deal to me (even though the club said they intended to keep the link earlier) but what is important to know is these folks have been honest and up front from day one and if your on the fence about sending in an application I would highly recomend you do.

I would guess most of the other tweleve blog box members would feel the same but I'm sure they will tell your their own stories about this. I wanted to let you know where I stand if your considering sending in an application.

My only problem is seeing how many feeds I can add into the blog box widget at NYI Fan Central on the sidebar so you can get the latest from everyone but I promise I will find a way.....LOL

Islanders blog box

I created my own blog box recently with every Islander blog on one reader for anyone who wishes to view the outstanding work by all members of the Islanders blog box and just do not want to click on thirteen different links.

Every blog offers excellent work and a different facet of the New York Islanders that makes for great coverage of our team.

Feel feel free to share this or put it on your own site/blog so you can keep up with everything written.

Hockey Night on LI/Blog Box Update

Just finished up Hockey Night on LI here with Alex and Steve who do an excellent job with the show and was a lot of fun. My thanks to them for inviting me on the program once again where we wrapped up the Flyers game, talked about the trade deadline, core of the Four among several things.


Hockey Night on LI is featured on New York Fan Central on the sidebar but for those interested in listening to the show today.








Recently I did a blog and shared some things about the blog box and a dilemma I had with regard to coverage and where I draw the line with what I wish to post here from the other twelve bloggers. After some hard work behind the scenes I feel I have finally found a solution.

I created my own Islanders Blog Box for everyone to read anything one of us post on our blogs. The new feature on this blog links the feeders to all thirteen blogs and shows the lastest entries.

Feel free to share this feature and enjoy the latest from all the blog box members which will now be a permanent fixture on the sidebar at New York Islander Fan Central.