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|| SportsShooter.com: Member Message Board
Paying for Media Center Food??
Ed Coombs, Photographer
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Available upon | NY | | Posted: 5:53 PM on 10.09.09 |
->> This is long winded but I thought I would give everyone all the info-
A while back I received this from California Speedway that is hosting this weekend's NASCAR race:
"Dear Media Members:
The Communications Department at Auto Club Speedway is looking forward to hosting each of you at Southern California�s Inaugural Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup race � the Pepsi 500 � on Oct. 11. Below are a few notes we wanted to bring to your attention before you arrive in Southern California.
CREDENTIALS:
Credential applications for the Pepsi 500 are now posted at www.autoclubspeedway.com/mediacenter. This is a non-secure site and can be accessed without a password. On the site you will find the Pepsi 500 Application, Credential guidelines, event logos and contact information.
MEDIA LOUNGE:
Auto Club Speedway will charge anyone dining in the Media Lounge (media, team PR reps, photographers, etc.) $25 for meals during the Pepsi 500 Weekend. The cost includes all meals for the weekend (lunch and dinner on Friday, Saturday and Sunday) as well as snacks throughout the weekend.
Our hope is this new policy will keep non-working personnel out of the Lounge, thus making sure there is plenty of food available for legitimate media covering our event.
A few notes on the above:
* Each accredited media member who pays will receive a pin which can be placed on a lanyard of your credential holder or your hard card. One pin will be good for the entire weekend.
* Check or cash ONLY will be accepted on race weekend.
* A security guard will be stationed outside the Media Lounge door and will be looking for that pin. Please make sure your pin is visible and please treat our security as you would want to be treated. Should you lose or misplace your pin, see someone at the front desk in the Media Center for a replacement.
* You will NOT need to access the media lounge for water/coffee/snacks. As always, we will provide coolers in the Media Center Deadline Room, Terrace Press Box, Sky Box Press and Photo Center and coffee in the Media Center Deadline Room.
* We will be providing a healthy food option each day including fruit and salad along with new, upgraded main courses.
We welcome any questions, concerns, input from our valued media members. We hope to provide a pleasant work atmosphere as you continue your coverage of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.
We look forward to seeing you in October.
The Auto Club Speedway Communications Department"
Today I received this from a member of the American Auto Racing Writers & Broadcasters Association, of which I am a member-
"I would like this e-mail to be distributed to all AARWBA members.
As some of our members may be aware, California Speedway (nee Auto Club Speedway) has decided to charge for meals during the upcoming Cup weekend, October 9-11.
I wish to encourage AARWBA member not to pay the $25, and instead to seek other alternatives.
The issue at play is not the food, but rather the unmitigated greed and a disguised attempt to charge us for access, the first step in a “slippery slope.”
If the track had stated that they would no longer serve meals (due to economic considerations), this e-mail would not be relevant or necessary. But turning the Media Center into a profit center is just plain wrong.
The track is owned by International Speedway Corp (ISC), and they are making plenty of money. A few years ago, the fall race had a gross margin in excess of $30 million. But that’s apparently not enough for the controlling shareholders.
]
The only logical explanation for the instituting a policy to charge media for food is that the controlling shareholders do not want to see a reduction of their dividend, and hence their lifestyle. All of us are taking major hits in this economy, but if they’re successful in this attempt, what else will the controlling shareholders feel we should pay them?
Can you imagine not being allowed to bring your computer or camera to ISC tracks, unless it bore an ISC sticker? And having to pay an annual license fee of, say, $2500 for the privilege? Guess what, folks, that is what will be next.
Impossible you say? Then why do the teams have to pay ISC an annual license fee, in some cases approaching $5000, when they use their own golf carts or other ancillary equipment when they race at ISC tracks?
But that’s not all: the spectators are taking it in the shorts, in more ways than you can imagine, but that’s the subject of another email. So, the media be damned, the spectators be dammed, and so, too, the sponsors.
How would you like to be the Auto Club of Southern California paying a reported $5 million annually for track naming rights or Pepsi shelling out $2 million for title race sponsorship and being associated with a sports property that increasingly alienates people?
Did Auto Club and Pepsi really sign up for a diminishing relationship, such as angering and alienating the media, or aggravating spectators by eliminating the temporary mass transit station (outside the backstraight) for those fans who do not want to be stuck in ill-advised “traffic planning?” Or worse, affiliated with a track where the General Manager was recently fined for not filing two years worth of conflict-of-interest forms with the State of California, for a Governor Schwarzenegger-appointed post?
Why should I have any inclination to include Auto Club or Pepsi in any story I write? Why would I want to embarrass them further?
The argument that “times are tough economically” doesn’t wash. Until I see the controlling shareholders of ISC in the breadline, I have no sympathy. Their mismanagement does not mean I should pay for their mistakes, now or in the future.
Send the message that this is not an acceptable policy -- don’t pay their $25 tariff. The food is not the issue; it’s what they will do to us in the future, if we do not draw the line in the sand. Now.
Also, if you’re so inclined, dash a note to representatives of the track’s “partners,” stating how you feel about this situation:
Rick Lalor (Automobile Club of Southern California) - lalor.rick@aaa-calif.com
Jeff Filiberto (Pepsi) - jeff.filiberto@pepsico.com"
I am not attending this weekend but if I was I would not pay because if I am paying I would rather get what I want. It is good to see they're supplying water.
Thoughts?? Is the guy from AARWBA a little too touchy? I thought he made good points. |
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Delane B. Rouse, Photographer, Photo Editor
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Washington | DC | US | Posted: 6:09 PM on 10.09.09 |
->> To me, it's all about the food...not about access. Hell, go stand in line, pay $6 for a hotdog and $5 for fries and miss your deadlines.
How much profit does he think they are making for 6 meals (lunch and dinner on Friday, Saturday and Sunday)? That's 4.16 per meal not including the snacks. |
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Patrick Fallon, Student/Intern, Photographer
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Columbia | MO | USA | Posted: 6:10 PM on 10.09.09 |
| ->> I recall paying $5 for dinner once at the STAPLES center before a Kings game. It was an awesome meal... |
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Adam Vogler, Photographer, Photo Editor
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Kansas City | Mo. | USA | Posted: 6:17 PM on 10.09.09 |
| ->> I rather doubt this is an attempt to make a profit when your charging $25 bucks for 6 meals, but I guess it depends on what the food is. I think of the media meal as a courtesy rather than an obligation or right. Its nice when they do it but I could care less. Hell the Kansas State Track Meet doesn't even give you water in the non-air-conditioned press box. |
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Chuck Liddy, Photographer
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Durham | NC | USA | Posted: 6:39 PM on 10.09.09 |
| ->> Ed, I think you guys (auto club dude) are barking up the wrong tree on this one. There are lots of pro sports that charge for the media meals. And when you get right down to it as Delane and Adam mentioned you would be hard pressed (read:IMPOSSIBLE) to eat at any facility I have ever been to get six meals for $25. I think the venue is making a point by trying to keep the freeloaders who DO jump in those media food troughs out. I personally see no "slippery slope" here. In fact I know some folks who would say this is actually very ethical because the "media" isn't receiving "special treatment. |
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Ed Coombs, Photographer
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Available upon | NY | | Posted: 6:52 PM on 10.09.09 |
->> Folks- generally I miss most meals at a race track because I am working. Many in the media center stay there almost all weekend and write. This is not that big of a deal in my mind. My biggest concern is staying hydrated. It gets damn hot at some of the tracks and having drinks available, at something less than $4 a bottle, is something I care about. The food, not so much.
Thanks for the comments |
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Dennis Wierzbicki, Photographer
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Plainfield | IL | USA | Posted: 7:01 PM on 10.09.09 |
->> Covering pro sport events, my experience is many charge for meals, and a few don't.
I don't think I've ever been charged for food or refreshments at an NCAA event.
And, I agree that $25 isn't too bad for 6 meals, FWIW. |
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Jack Megaw, Student/Intern, Photographer
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Pittsburgh | PA | America | Posted: 7:11 PM on 10.09.09 |
->> At the in the Media Centre at the G20 Summit the other week the convention centre charged event prices for food. $8 sandwiches, $3 bottles of water...not fun!
-Jack |
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Jeff Stanton, Photographer
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Princeton | IN | USA | Posted: 7:13 PM on 10.09.09 |
| ->> I guess you could solve this problem by packing your own lunch and drink, do your work and go home. |
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Sam Santilli, Photographer, Photo Editor
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Philippi | WV | USA | Posted: 7:36 PM on 10.09.09 |
| ->> DeLane, I think Ed's point is a slippery slope. Are they charging for food, or for the media pass? If the fee goes to $50 next year, we wil;l know. Brown bag to a $30 million event...priceless! |
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Sam Morris, Photographer
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Henderson (Las Vegas) | NV | USA | Posted: 7:38 PM on 10.09.09 |
->> Their reason for instituting the fee may be valid. Because of budget shortages, UNLV has stopped serving meals in the press box before their football (and likely basketball) games. Result: the only people left in the press box seem to be working journalists.
And $25? My guess is that isn't even covering the cost of the food (depending on what they serve). If the letter writer is thinking that by not paying for the food they are going to send a "message" to the track, I feel he is mistaken. |
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Dave Miller, Photographer
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Darlington | PA | | Posted: 7:58 PM on 10.09.09 |
| ->> Any Pirates or Penguins games (Pittsburgh) I've covered I pay to eat in the media area. Usually $6.00 or so. If I can't eat at home I'll take it given the alternative. It's not mandetory to get into the room, but if you want to eat you pay. |
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Will Powers, Photographer
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Denver | CO | USA | Posted: 8:54 PM on 10.09.09 |
->> Rockies and Dbacks charge for meals $10. Sometimes it is worth it sometimes not so much. $25 for 6 meals seems reasonable.
Some of my news clients advocated for charging for the meals so that the media would remain objective. I wouldn't sell my credibility for a free meal, but where is the tipping point? At a lobster dinner would they get more favorable coverage? |
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George Bridges, Photographer, Photo Editor
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Washington | DC | USA | Posted: 9:22 PM on 10.09.09 |
->> I know some media organizations that take the "no free stuff" rules to media meals. If the meal is offered free then at the end of the season the media organization will make an estimate of how many meals its writers and photographers had and the costs and then write a check to a charity the team supports. They don't want to appear to be taking anything free from someone they cover.
I know at first when the Washington Nationals started charging for meals I was not so sure about the $10. But in the press box it was all-you-can eat for $10 while in the stands a single hot dog and soda was $9. I'd rather pay the extra dollar for a meal that includes salad, fruit and a cooler of water where you can grab a couple bottles to carry to the field with you.
My experience over the years is that many of the free meals are not worth what you paid. :-) |
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Jose Carlos Fajardo, Photographer
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Walnut Creek | CA | U.S.A. | Posted: 10:59 PM on 10.09.09 |
->> At the Raiders vs. Broncos game two weeks ago they served Chinese food with some sort of pancake sticks. At first we all thought it was fish sticks. It was free. I would of gladly paid the Raiders money not to serve this. The days of Media receiving free stuff (food, pins, etc.) are coming to an end.
And you're right, $25 for the three days of food is a pretty damn good deal.
At the 49ers they serve sandwich box lunches. At Cal football they serve gourmet sandwiches with potato salad. At Infineon Raceway they serve hot food with cheesecake. At Sharks they serve a great dinner with dessert. Stanford women's basketball, a group of ladies make homemade food and bring it to the game.
In the end, we all still get to do what we love. Enjoy it!
p.s. can you pass the salt. |
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Tim Huntington, Photographer
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Monterey | CA | USA | Posted: 2:05 AM on 10.10.09 |
->> I've covered AMA Superbike racing here since it started a few years ago and have taken advantage of their free lunches (and occasional breakfast, but they never did dinner for the Superbikes).
The line that intrigued me in this was:
"Our hope is this new policy will keep non-working personnel out of the Lounge, thus making sure there is plenty of food available for legitimate media covering our event."
For Superbikes, the deadline media room, media lounge and photo room have always had security guards on them checking that credentialed media were the ones entering those rooms. |
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Wesley Hitt, Photographer
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Fayetteville | AR | USA | Posted: 6:51 AM on 10.10.09 |
| ->> I do not feel it is my right to eat for free at sporting events and $25 for six meals is not bad but saying they hope it will keep non-working personnal out of the media center seems weird. Why not just stop non-working personnal from entering the Media Center? |
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Mark J. Terrill, Photographer
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Simi Valley | CA | USA | Posted: 7:13 AM on 10.10.09 |
| ->> I agree that $25 for six meals isn't bad, but what if you're covering just one day and having just one meal like I am. That's where I have a problem with the policy. |
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Rob Ostermaier, Photographer
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Newport News | VA | USA | Posted: 9:28 AM on 10.10.09 |
| ->> Redskins have been charging for meals and internet access for years. |
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Nick Doan, Photographer, Assistant
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Scottsdale | AZ | USA | Posted: 12:55 PM on 10.10.09 |
->> This thread is sort of amusing. Do I think the guy complaining about $25 for food is going overboard? Yes. Does $25 for 6 meals seem reasonable? Absolutely.
I do the grocery shopping and cooking for my family, and I'm hard pressed to come up with a meal for any of us for less than $5 that doesn't involve Peanut Butter and a loaf of Bread. And, that doesn't include unlimited snack access.
On another note, maybe we as sports photographers are being coddle a little too much. On Presidential election night, I was covering John McCain's camp, and access to the press center, which was a decent meal and great dessert, snacks, drink, and pizza after the concession speech cost I think $90 per person. (I'm sure there was some other services involved.) And, running internet access lines to the lawn where he gave his speech was hundreds of dollars.
Compared to that $25 for 6 meals and unlimited snacks... Hell, I'd pay that in my own house if I could. |
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Mark Loundy, Photo Editor
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San Jose | CA | USA | Posted: 2:15 PM on 10.10.09 |
->> When I was shooting in LA, I have to admit that the free food at Dodger stadium made me slant my coverage in favor of the Dodgers over all of the other National League teams that called Los Angeles home.
I'm only human.
--Mark |
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Dann Wunderlich, Student/Intern, Photographer
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Chicago | IL | US | Posted: 5:26 PM on 10.12.09 |
->> Well here at Mizzou they just started to charge for the meals at $6.50 a meal
you buy six meals at Faurot at that price and you are paying almost $40 (39 to be exact) |
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Dann Wunderlich, Student/Intern, Photographer
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Chicago | IL | US | Posted: 5:26 PM on 10.12.09 |
->> Well here at Mizzou they just started to charge for the meals at $6.50 a meal
you buy six meals at Faurot at that that price and you are paying almost $40 (39 to be exact) |
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Nhat V. Meyer, Photographer
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San Jose | CA | USA | Posted: 6:16 PM on 10.12.09 |
| ->> Jose... This season Sharks raised their media food price from $5 to $10 per game, so I'll be eating beforehand or bringing a Subway sandwich with me or else walking up to a concession stand and buying a burger or pizza for the same price... I didn't mind $5, but $10 seems like a lot for cafeteria food... it was free up until 2005... Stanford Women's bball has, by far, the best food... |
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Rodrigo Pena, Photographer
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Beaumont | CA | USA | Posted: 6:25 PM on 10.12.09 |
->> I paid the $25 this weekend. I hoped that I might get a break because I was only going to be there one day. The nice lady at the counter recommended that I go to the concession stand just down the way if I didn't want to pay the $25. At least we had options. Other places charge to eat. Some places don't even offer food. We're lucky to have food. But I do understand that it's hard to pay for something that in the past has always been free. The price is very reasonable if we cover the whole event, but to be fair they should come up with a better system. When we sign up we could pay for meal tickets for however many days we're gonna be there.
You should have seen the LACK of people in the media lounge this year. I know some people that have freeloaded in the past. This fee definitely kept them away. lol! |
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Les Stukenberg, Photographer, Photo Editor
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Prescott Valley | AZ | USA | Posted: 6:46 PM on 10.12.09 |
| ->> I only have one thing to ask about this topic, why should anyone expect to get free food when they are working? I am sure like many of us during the course of my week, I pay for my own breakfast, lunch and dinner. I don't expect my employer or the assignments I go on to provide food. Yes I have gone to events that do provide media food either free or at no charge. Come on you members of the American Auto Racing Writers & Broadcasters Association $25 for 6+ meals is like getting a blue light special that you really need at Kmart. Pay to eat! |
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Jeff Mills, Photographer, Photo Editor
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Columbus | OH | USA | Posted: 7:18 PM on 10.12.09 |
->> Free food is a great perk when you can get it but I hardly think its a requirement to do the job.
Do I enjoy my hot dogs, bbq sandwiches , iced coffee, McFlurry etc at Ohio State games ? Heck yeah I do, and I make darn sure to get there far earlier than I need to just so I can relax and share a meal in the press box with some friends I hardly see other than game days when our schedules put us in the same place at the same time.
95% of the other assignments I have during the week though don't have free food. I can't remember the last high school football game I've gone to that has given me as much as a hot dog.
When I used to work in an office we didn't have a free buffet setup every day. You'd either go out to lunch, or bring food from home. We had a water cooler and a coffee machine and that was it. Thats how it works for the rest of the world.
I'm not knocking free food, I darn sure take advantage of it when I can, even skipping a meal at home because I know I can get to the stadium or arena early and just eat there for free. During the winter when I'm doing a few hockey and basketball games a week if I can get 3 or 4 free meals instead of cooking at home or going out to eat that is extra money in my pocket.
Heck, I think I'd probably be a better photographer if they didn't have that free food, because instead of sitting around stuffing my face, I'd be out with a camera in hand looking for different shooting ideas. Instead of rushing to the bathroom at halftime because I drank too many iced coffees I'd be shooting something lol.
Long story short, free food is a great, but can we really say we need or deserve to be given free meals at a stadium to do our jobs ?
If next week I didn't get my Oreo McFlurry before kickoff would my images suffer ? I hope not |
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Matthew Sharpe, Photographer
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Oxford | MS | USA | Posted: 9:14 PM on 10.12.09 |
->> I had a journalism professor in undergrad who insisted that taking a free meal was unethical because it would slant the coverage. Now, I disagree with that sentiment, especially from a photography standpoint. However, like many above have said, it's nothing more than a perk, so enjoy it while it lasts.
All I ask is that any team or venue simply notify all credentialed media in advance of events that food is no longer free. Nothing irks me more than surprise changes. |
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Darren Whitley, Photographer
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Maryville | MO | USA | Posted: 9:44 PM on 10.12.09 |
->> When I was a college student, the food at Mizzou basketball games used to be in short supply. If you were late to the media room, you were lucky to scrape cheese from the cardboard pizza boxes. K-State had terribly pathetic food too. Iowa State had the most generous spread.
I paid for meals at St. Louis Cardinals and Blues games. Thing is, the meal is a distraction from doing your job. While many stock images could have been made, I was snarfing my third cone down in the press room. Stupid me! |
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Joe Cavaretta, Photographer
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Ft Lauderdale | FL | USA | Posted: 9:57 PM on 10.12.09 |
->> at NASCAR you need to check the hours of the chow line before you plunk down your cash. at the tracks where I have worked, Fontana, Vegas and Homestead, they don't start serving until the race starts, which is great for the writers watching the race from the stands, but for those of us who need to be out on the track working during the race...
In Vegas the venerable Sam Morris of the LV Sun used to fire up a grill in the parking lot after the race, cuz the traffic jam was hours long anyway. I do miss that. |
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Chuck Liddy, Photographer
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Durham | NC | USA | Posted: 10:52 PM on 10.12.09 |
| ->> Another caveat to this thread. We had an editor who got on the "high ethics horse" once and started chest beating about us eating the free media meals at sporting events. He was all into how unethical it was....I waited until he was done and asked him this question, "Ah I don't want to be disrespectful but I had always hoped we hired people who couldn't be "paid off" by a crappy meal in the press room". Never heard another word. That said, I spoke with a bunch of folks about this at a football game on Saturday and we were all of the opinion we would have gladly paid $5 for the meal we got (which comes out to about the same for the three day total mentioned here). Crap. $5!!! you can't get a damn pepsi for that in a stadium. |
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Donald Montague, Photographer
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Orlando | FL | | Posted: 12:20 AM on 10.13.09 |
->> i wouldnt mind paying for the food in some stadiums if we could get ride of the box lunch with a bread sandwich (with some turkey and half a slice of cheese) an apple and a cookie.
also for many of us that cover the same team all season we get the same bad lunch every week. how about a little variety. |
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N. Scott Trimble, Photographer
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Lake Oswego | OR | USA | Posted: 3:28 AM on 10.13.09 |
->> $25 for the weekend? Not a bad deal, considering the convenience and the perk of chatting up more business (team PR reps, sponsors, etc). You can write it off as a biz expense. The credential is for ACCESS TO SHOOT! the action of which means you ARE THERE TO WORK!!! if you want to recreate, buy a ticket in the stands.
This seems like a petty thing to bitch about. There are more worthy things to stress these days, like organizations that put wordage into their media credential signoff that they own rights to your work. Bring that up on this site, not if you have to pay for three day old hot dogs. |
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