Pam Oliver is bad at reporting... or is she?

by JasonB on Dec 17, 2007 12:08 PM EST in News Comment 4 comments

Did everyone else catch that bizarre sideline report by Pam Oliver during the game on Sunday? It struck me as really odd the moment she did it. She said she had a quick conversation with McNabb before the game but then prefaced it with "I got the impression..." Here is what she said.

"Donovan really seems to believe that his days in Philadelphia are numbered. When I spoke with him before the game, I got the impression that Donovan is a little hurt by what he sees as an organization distancing itself from him and an organization that's overly concerned about the negative fan reaction to him. But Donovan told me point blank: My knee is not an issue. The next place I go, I will win, and also that he will keep a smile on his face for as long he's in an Eagles uniform."

It was so odd because she first started by saying she got an "impression" about certain fairly inflammatory things but then only attributed one quote to McNabb. Now that one quote is interesting enough because it appears as though he does expect to be gone in the near future... but now McNabb is denying he said any of it.

"I am denying I said it. Make sure you get it right," McNabb said after helping the Eagles (6-8) snap a three-game losing streak and keep the team's slim playoff hopes alive.

"If I'm here, or wherever it might me, I'm going to give all that I have and I did that today. I'm going to continue to do that. You hear things and you get tired of answering questions, but I stand up here like a professional and I do it."

"Again, I hope to be back next year and I look forward to being back next year," McNabb said. "I've said time and time again that I'd love to be here eight more, nine more years. Is that possible? We'll see. I have no control over that."

So he does seem to again note that "wherever I am" idea again. It was odd to deny you said something and then basically re-iterate what Oliver had quoted you on.

I'm just not really sure what to make of this little situation. Clearly he said something to Pam Oliver and in all likelihood he was expressing some sort of frustration. Whether she got the wrong impression or got his quote wrong is up in the air. But something is certainly up and I don't for a minute think she simply made it all up.

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Wonder...

What Spikes injury does to him being here next year.

700 Level

by 700 Level on Dec 17, 2007 4:55 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Not much in it

Martorano was harping about this on midday today. I think part of the issue here is that reporters and fans are scrutinizing the details of the wording much more than McNabb is. Basically he first heard about this as reporters were throwing questions at him post game, so he denied saying his days were numbered or that he was hurt, but I don't think he got the nuance that Oliver was carefully wording her report to make him seem to say things he didn't.

Oliver will fall back on her half-lawyerly worded report, I'm sure. She went out of her way to lead with carefully worded, inflammatory speculation. It's wildly unprofessional, but pretty typical to journalistic standards today. Worst of all, other news outlets will pick this up as if she was reporting fact.

I don't think it's a big secret that McNabb feels distant from both the organization and the fans. The organization has stepped up for him recently: both Banner and Reid have strongly backed him. At this point, though, I think McNabb can never bridge the gap to the fans. Even when he tried a little at the beginning of the season, it only held the wolves off for a few weeks.

by Behan on Dec 17, 2007 5:15 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Most sideline reporters are worthless

because their is a huge conflict of interest. Their employer (Fox, NBC, etc.) has a business relationship with the owner (NFL, NBA, etc.) of the event they are "covering." Ever wonder why their questions sound so much the same - "What do you have to do to improve in the second half?" or "How did scoring - fill in the blank - feel?" Nothing hard-hitting or controversial. But the thing they love to do is feed a storyline - and that's what Oliver appeared to do on Sunday. Do you remember how Joe Buck started the game on the Eagles first possession? He talked about how Feeley moved the offense better and fans in Philly are disgruntled about McNabb and then he said "some think this might be the last games of McNabb's career in Philly." Then Oliver gives a report in which her impression is that McNabb thinks he's going to be out of Philly next year. Coincidence? probably not.

In a Delaware Online story today in which the reporter talked to Oliver, she said she didn't take notes or record the conversation because she wanted to keep eye contact with McNabb while he warmed up. This is a bit of a dubious statement considering she also said that McNabb knew the conversation was on the record. If it was on the record, then how can she not record what McNabb said in some fashion for verification purposes. As someone who has worked in journalism, you always try to take notes of some kind just in case a source comes back and says that you libeled them. Oliver didn't do this, which, I think, says a lot about her as a reporter.

Still, my guess is that McNabb probably did say something similar to Oliver because he wanted to get it out in the media that he thinks he might be gone. He probably chose Oliver because he knows he could deny it and most of the public would probably think: "Oh, it's just a female sideline reporter."

And also in the Delaware Online story, Oliver said she held back some of the more critical statements McNabb made. If so, why not publish them now. Once again, another reason sideline reporters are worthless.