As football fans, we’re familiar enough with the scenario.
A seemingly soft foul is followed by much weeping and gnashing of teeth; a picture resembling Sauchiehall Street on a Saturday night ensues as foreheads are thrust but braked a whisker short of a full Glasgow kiss. The fans chant ‘off, off, off’, red cards get shown and the miscreants trudge back to the dressing room to a raucous chorus of cheers and jeers.
That’s more or less where we are isn’t it?
Maybe (or maybe not) the media came in with a bit of a late tackle and got sent off for it. Not particularly dangerous, perhaps a few stud marks but no bones broken (mind you, a few earlier misdemeanours may have been totted up).
But there, dear football fan reader, my analogy falls to pieces. It fails because the supposedly sinned-against party in what has become a media versus Norwich City Football Club standoff cannot also be the referee.
Instead, feeling an injustice had been done the club took unilateral action by withdrawing certain media privileges – like its usual invitation for reporters to attend the annual general meeting.
In effect, NCFC picked up its ball and went home leaving erstwhile mates no one to play with.
There may be more that we don’t know about but from past experience, I suspect not. It’s just a falling out and sooner or later shoulders will be shrugged, there will be handshakes all round and who did what to whom and why will be lost in the mists of time.
Except – and here’s the point – I hope not. I really hope not.
Let me tell you why.
Coming from the anonymity of London some 40 years ago to the intimacy of a local newsroom and close proximity to sports reporters for the first time I was (err… how can I put this?) shocked by their journalistic partiality.
The news desk would remorselessly hunt down wrongdoers, the business hacks would metaphorically beat up dodgy businessmen; even a famously forgiving arts editor would occasionally have a go at a puerile Theatre Royal panto.
But the boys fronting the footie coverage at the EDP and the Evening News were Norwich City fans to a fault – following the fortunes of their beloved Canaries came first and was their true vocation, seemingly well ahead of pursuing a career in objective journalism.
With a few exceptions (the later Robert Chase years come to mind) it was all very cosy; the club liked favourable coverage; the papers valued the boost in circulation afforded by the football season. Club managers would pen guest columns and sports journalists would mastermind players’ benefit matches.
I didn’t get it then and I don’t get it now.
A colleague once told me, “It’s because you’re not local.” Your dad didn’t take you to the Carra when you were knee-high to a crowd barrier, he said.
I argued back that the Newcastle Journal was never as soft on the Magpies and even the Mitcham News and Mercury had a pop at Tooting and Mitcham United from time to time. But that didn’t go down too well either. There’s no patriot like a Norfolk patriot, so he may have had a point.
But this I do know.
I’ve worked on both sides of the communications fence, spinmeistering for a giant corporate and digging the dirt for a local paper.
In PR, my (sometimes successful) counsel was to be as transparent as possible and to always tell the truth; especially when it was uncomfortable.
To Norwich City Football Club I’d say pulling down the comms shutters because you got a bit of stick from reporters shouldn’t be such an easily exercisable option; especially at a club where the main criticism seems to be a lack of chemistry and empathy between pitch-side and the terraces.
Don’t invent your own pretend media outlets; just take it on the chin.
Yes, on the one hand, you are a private company and entitled to hold private shareholder meetings. But you know that football clubs aren’t like ordinary private companies.
They have significant stakeholders to whom they need to be publicly accountable. They’re the fans. Their gate money, their Sky subscriptions, their loyalty and their place in the community give them the right to criticise and to scrutinise the football, the facilities, the finances. And, if they feel like it, to be fickle.
The media’s job is to hold your feet to the fire when that responsibility slips your mind. They’re not your comfort blanket; not a layer of insulation from fans’ frustration, not a conduit for such sanitised statements or selected titbits you care to share, and not just there to report who passed the ball to whom and who scored.
Yes, because it’s normal for Norfolk, members of our fourth estate may be fans too. First and foremost though they’re our agents, our PIs, our eyes, our ears and our platform for praise or dissent.
They shouldn’t settle for cushy interviews, mutual back-scratching or, as one former EDP editor put it, a resolution cooked up “behind closed doors”. Client journalism isn’t a good look, especially in the current climate.
Rigour sometimes means a rocky road, but that’s the way it should be.
Both parties need to agree to disagree and enjoy some robust cut and thrust oxygenated by truth and openness.
Otherwise, the businesses of Norwich football and Norwich media will be left to fester in the foetid cesspit of fake news that is already an only too influential internet.
I doubt any of this has anything to do with Delia, I suspect she has taken enough media flak to be worried about it. I can’t believe an octogenarian owner living in Suffolk has anything to do with the current spat. I suspect the problems are at a lower level.
unbelievable comments Mike—–or is it tongue in cheek stuff ?
Everything goes through Delia. If she didn’t agree with their current stance, it wouldn’t be happening.
Specifically Webber?
If I was the local press I would call their bluff and not turn up to their pre or post match interviews play them at their own game bunch of ostriches .
Perfectly put.
An excellent read.
The trouble is that at city you have too many ego’s, people who think they are the best in the business and want the chance to go on to bigger things.
Little ol Norwich was to be their stepping stone and that hasn’t happened, too many people that were doing an excellent job have left and now the ones left keep trying to reinventing the wheel and that was successful.
The main components was fired for a run of poor results and the culprit is still at the club having hired a freebee who has broken records at the club for runs of loses.
Criticism is part and parcel of life grow up and man up or get out of the kitchen.
Good read and indicates the club is no where near as well run as it likes to make us believe.
I hope the current spat with the media is a sure sign the current regime is losing its grip and the transfer of ownership is imminent. ( One can but hope)
And Tom Smith chaired the meeting [AGM] well.
Its a spat between children. Only the innocent- the fans – miss out.
They need a mediator who would castigate both of them.
That was a good read, a great piece of journalism Ken, fair and concise I wonder what Webber and the cook think about it.
Nought to do with Delia. Odd article.
The local media (EDP, EEN, Pink’un) hasn’t done itself any favours by putting most of its reporting behind a paywall (unlike the Suffolk branch of it). But you’re right – it’s appalling that the club thinks it can and should exclude the local media from its shareholders meeting. It should take criticism on the chin and be open about what’s going on – otherwise the disconnect between the club and the fans will get worse.
I’d strongly suspect that this current media standoff isn’t actually Delia’s idea, more likely certain individuals within her executive team. However, if it’s your view that an independent Chair is some sort of antiquated idea, and unnecessary, then you’re in danger of lacking a wise sage, someone with experience who can bang heads together when necessary.
But the problem is Gary that the metaphorical ‘banging of heads’ clearly isn’t being done by the powers that be in this case.
As we say in Norfolk, some people at the club just need to be told to wind their necks in (and I don’t mean the press), it was obvious from being at the AGM who’s calling the shots and it’s clearly not Delia.
Brilliant article, Ken. Thanks for the insight and perspective.
Great read Ken perfect analogy, on Delia I would be surprised if she didn’t know , if she didn’t know that on her behalf is terrible, maybe time for Archant to take the Club to task obviously the Club doesn’t seem to be bothered . So it’s a no holds barred , how it’s going financially and media wise is the Club in the safest hands , until the AGM we all thought it was being run well . Me thinks Delia is listening to the Webbers to much and the bean counter of course
The fake news coming out of Cara is controlled by those at the top, and from a supporters point of view this is partly why there is such a disconnect between the fans and those that run it.
I’ve supported Norwich City all my life right back to the early seventies, I’ve experienced tears of sadness and joy in the early days I’ve attended away season ticket parties and fun days where we were all treated like family yet since the changes in the heart of the club, it’s almost as if it’s we are second class citizens, being ruled by a suppressive communist government. I gave up my home season ticket due to this bullish behaviour which has spread from the board to the terraces. Even the stewards developed a police state attitude. I now attend only the away games, meeting with like minded supporters who have passion to travel to see the players perform and perform they do, The atmosphere is electric and the noise is great. like it should be at ever game, this has tried to be copied at Cara but failed, From what I understand there has been a meeting with the ever growing away supporters group City Elite and positive things were discussed, but whilst this reporting ban is in place it’s worthless, change will be forthcoming but it might be too late for Dean Smith and our promotion hopes this year, and little green frog once said “it’s not easy being green)
This attitude towards the fans is not something new. Mr McNally was a prime mover, ask Kevin Piper.
Anyone at the AGM would have seen the problem.! The way Stuart Webber spoke to the older supporter and share holder was petulant, rude, arrogant and aggressive. The gentleman made the point that Alice Piper’s in-house end of season interview with him let him off lightly, Alice was employed by the club it, her questions were prepared and rehearsed.. She didn’t dare ask the obvious questions like: at a previous AGM you said “we won the lottery and pissed it up the wall”., what lessons should have been learned and what is his penalty for failing, Does Delia stand by her Telegraph interview.?
The fact is it obviously suits some members of the senior management to create a division between the media and club to protect their own interests.