PDA

View Full Version : Dustin Dow in Beijing



xavierdude
08-07-2008, 11:39 AM
That son of a nut. He gets to cover two of the most important things in American sports....that being the Xavier Musketeers and the Olympics. What a tough life! How do you apply for that?!??! HA

Jumpy
08-07-2008, 12:19 PM
I guess this means "FSN Ohio and Xavier..." will remain as his most recent Xavier blog post for the next two weeks, at least. I know it's dead nuts in the middle of the off season, but one blog update per week isn't too much to ask. Hell, how about an update on recruiting? We are going after some of the most highly touted recruits in our history for the class of '09. It probably wouldn't be something that those of us on XH wouldn't already know, but it would be nice for others.

GoMuskies
08-07-2008, 12:25 PM
What is he wearing?

PM Thor
08-07-2008, 12:55 PM
Jumpy, I think you need to point at the main problem here. Newspapers are trying to squeeze more and more out of their reporters and not give them much support. It's the way of the world that newspapers aren't the main source of news anymore, and so they have to get more out of their reporters for less. They are getting spread pretty thin.

GoMuskies
08-07-2008, 01:14 PM
Maybe, but I don't really see an issue sending a beat writer for a school that doesn't have a football program to the Olympics which will wrap up in August. This is a pretty slow time on the Xavier beat.

Frankly, I think it's pretty impressive that the Cincinnati paper is sending someone to China at all. They easily could have skimped on that and just picked up AP reports and syndicated columns.

Jumpy
08-07-2008, 01:17 PM
You probably are right, Thor, but I don't know enough about the industry to speak knowledgeably about the reasoning behind a two week old blog post being the most recent. Regardless of why it is that way, I would just like to see more effort put into the blog.

nuts4xu
08-07-2008, 01:21 PM
That midget will fit right in with the height challenged people in China.

DC Muskie
08-07-2008, 01:55 PM
Frankly, I think it's pretty impressive that the Cincinnati paper is sending someone to China at all. They easily could have skimped on that and just picked up AP reports and syndicated columns.

I think so too, even though I don't know too many people who actually give a shit about the Olympics.

Here's hoping he doesn't leave his mittens in his hotel room like he did in Philadelphia. And you know he brings stuff like that regardless of the season.

Juice
08-07-2008, 01:58 PM
I have been reading his China blog and it has been ok so far. It obviously should pick up when the olympics actually start. He does seem to think that the pollution there is ridiculous, which has been his main story.

wkrq59
08-07-2008, 02:57 PM
Knowing DD personally and having been in his line of work for 40 years, I can offer a few realities:
1)This assignment is one of the plums at any paper, especially a paper in he Gannett chain. GNS is also sending it's No. 1 columnist, Mike Lopresti, to cover the games for all its papers, as Dustin will. So it's quite a feather in his cap and will stand him well when he decides to move on to bigger and better things, as he eventually will.
2)Since he will be covering not only the actions and reactions of the Greater Cincinnatians but the entire U.S. team, he will be in for an unbelieveable amount of work. This is not a gravy assignment, as anyone who has covered national and international events(Super Bowl, World Series, World Cup,NBA finals, NHL Stanley Cup finals and any event with the term "World" involved) knows. Often, reporters will work 20-hour shifts with little break and I know DD was almost dreading the assignment.
3) Newspapers of late have avoided assigning reporters or columnists to the Masters, U.S.Open and the afore-mentioned events for one huge reason--COST. Rest assured Gannett is picking up most of the tab for DD's Olympic coverage.
4)Of late the saturation coverage of TV and internet at such events has diminished the role of the newspaper for "spot news." That means a reporter must always find a feature angle or some sort to work on that has not been beaten to death by NBC or competing entities in the USA. Hence, a sh!t-boat load of sob-sister stories about competing for a dieing uncle, handicapped sibling, niece, nephew, uncle or aunt, terminally ill mom, dad, desceased mom or dad or even second cousin once removed.
All of which leads me to believe DD would rather be sitting at his laptop in Cincinnati writing stories about Xavier recruiting for the 09, 10, 11 and maybe 12 seasons. Or some other XU related story, such as club football, volleyball, soccer of what have you.
And to add to his challenges, he'll no sooner return to the USA when the Xavier stories and need for coverage will increase 10-fold.
Even though we used to be competitors for a brief time and brothers in ink for an even smaller time, I know Xavier is fortunate to have a talent like Dustin Dow assigned as its beat writer, for several reasons. He will always work his butt off on any beat he covers, he will always be fair and he gives a two-ten tinkers damn, which is the most important reason of all. It makes a huge difference when you enjoy the beat you have and are genuinely interested in chronicling its success rather than always looking for its failures and dealing in a sea-swill of negativism.:D

GuyFawkes38
08-07-2008, 03:13 PM
does anyone have the link to his china blog?

GuyFawkes38
08-07-2008, 03:17 PM
Knowing DD personally and having been in his line of work for 40 years, I can offer a few realities:
1)This assignment is one of the plums at any paper, especially a paper in he Gannett chain. GNS is also sending it's No. 1 columnist, Mike Lopresti, to cover the games for all its papers, as Dustin will. So it's quite a feather in his cap and will stand him well when he decides to move on to bigger and better things, as he eventually will.
2)Since he will be covering not only the actions and reactions of the Greater Cincinnatians but the entire U.S. team, he will be in for an unbelieveable amount of work. This is not a gravy assignment, as anyone who has covered national and international events(Super Bowl, World Series, World Cup,NBA finals, NHL Stanley Cup finals and any event with the term "World" involved) knows. Often, reporters will work 20-hour shifts with little break and I know DD was almost dreading the assignment.
3) Newspapers of late have avoided assigning reporters or columnists to the Masters, U.S.Open and the afore-mentioned events for one huge reason--COST. Rest assured Gannett is picking up most of the tab for DD's Olympic coverage.
4)Of late the saturation coverage of TV and internet at such events has diminished the role of the newspaper for "spot news." That means a reporter must always find a feature angle or some sort to work on that has not been beaten to death by NBC or competing entities in the USA. Hence, a sh!t-boat load of sob-sister stories about competing for a dieing uncle, handicapped sibling, niece, nephew, uncle or aunt, terminally ill mom, dad, desceased mom or dad or even second cousin once removed.
All of which leads me to believe DD would rather be sitting at his laptop in Cincinnati writing stories about Xavier recruiting for the 09, 10, 11 and maybe 12 seasons. Or some other XU related story, such as club football, volleyball, soccer of what have you.
And to add to his challenges, he'll no sooner return to the USA when the Xavier stories and need for coverage will increase 10-fold.
Even though we used to be competitors for a brief time and brothers in ink for an even smaller time, I know Xavier is fortunate to have a talent like Dustin Dow assigned as its beat writer, for several reasons. He will always work his butt off on any beat he covers, he will always be fair and he gives a two-ten tinkers damn, which is the most important reason of all. It makes a huge difference when you enjoy the beat you have and are genuinely interested in chronicling its success rather than always looking for its failures and dealing in a sea-swill of negativism

Yeah, Q. That does seem tiring. And being away from your wife for 3 weeks can't be easy (I bet the first week is great though....What's that saying..."It's great to have a family, but in a different city".)

XU05and07
08-07-2008, 03:21 PM
does anyone have the link to his china blog?

Enquirer's Olympic Blog (http://news.cincinnati.com/apps/pbcs.dll/section?Category=blog20&plckController=Blog&plckScript=blogScript&plckElementId=blogDest&plckBlogPage=BlogViewPost&plckPostId=Blog%3a115a09ed-6254-456d-9bde-325010255fc0Post%3aabc49cd6-f88e-4766-8f6f-51c9249e9031&sid=sitelife.cincinnati.com)

Jumpy
08-07-2008, 07:56 PM
Thanks for the insight into the industry, Q. I've always wondered what it would be like to be a writer for a living. I think it was spurred on by my mom, who always tried to get me in the writing field because that was my strongest subject in school. I never gave it a serious thought, though, because I knew the secret to my success. When writing papers, I just regurgitated ideas from my teachers while adding in a sprinkle of BS to fill in the gaps.

American X
08-07-2008, 08:17 PM
I hope he likes the trains as much as the DC Metro. Speaking of Metro, he should be careful. They are quickly 'relocated' in such regimes. If you read his blog, expect of two weeks of how Beijing is ruining his delicate constitution.

Maybe he will take a week off during the middle of the Olympics to go on a trip with his spouse.

Hopefully China's economy has been liberalized enough to stock his favorite brand of hair gel.