Friday, Nov. 8, 2019: Section 5 strips newspapers of credentials

   Leading off today: When I mentioned in Wednesday's blog that a new job was going to cause me to have to focus more on bigger-picture, newsy and quirky items rather than digging into game results, I didn't mean that I wanted big stuff to land on the radar every day.

   Yesterday's huge news -- which got lots of attention nationally -- was formed Bronxville distance runner Mary Cain lashing out at the Nike Oregon Project.

   And today brings us this ...

   Sec. 5 sanctions against newspaper: Section 5 has revoked the credentials of the The Daily News in Batavia and the Livingston County News, the publications reported Thursday.

   The publications were notified of the action in a phone conversation between Section 5 Executive Director Kathy Hoyt and Johnson Newspaper Corporation CEO John B. Johnson. The papers reported no reason was given initially for the sanctions, which occur just ahead of sectional finals in the football playoffs involving several teams in the papers' coverage area.

   In a follow-up email to Johnson, Hoyt cited a Section 5 media policy that says passes are the property of the section and “can be revoked at the sole discretion of the section, the paper reported. Saying "circumstances surrounding events of the past week were unfortunate," Hoyt cited "unprofessional verbal derogatory comments and threats were made."

   Johnson said Hoyt would not respond to repeated requests for details about the alleged threats.

   The source of the problem appears to have been last Saturday's football Class C semifinal between Letchworth/Warsaw and Attica as part of a doubleheader at Honeoye Falls-Lima. Reporter Alex Brasky was joined by color commentator Mike Rose and videographer Chad Kowalik in broadcasting the game, and Brasky said he was assured by the on-site supervisor that space being used by a radio station for the first game would be made available to the paper.

   While testing the equipment, Brasky requested that his setup be moved to another location in the pressbox, and the site supervisor agreed. He said that after the supervisor left to attend another event, the public address announcer told the paper's streaming crew they would have to work from an open-air position outside the pressbox.

   The crew moved, but wind and rain began midway through the third quarter.

   "This is a completely unacceptable result for any media organization to work under after having received credentials for a game, but to have to broadcast under such conditions

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is outrageous," Batavia Newspapers Corp. Pub- lisher Michael Messerly wrote in a email the following day to Shaun Jeffers, the section's coordinator of commun- ications and marketing.

   Brentwood advances on PKs: Brentwood rallied from a two-goal deficit in the first half and rode Alex Garcia's deciding shot for a 5-4 win on penalty kicks after a 2-2 tie with Commack in the Section 11 Class AA boys soccer final.

   Anthony Molina made a diving save in the shootout for Brentwood, which will play Massapequa for the Long Island Championship on Sunday in the NYSPHSAA quarterfinals.

   Eric Maldonado scored with 9:55 left in the second half to force overtime.

   "When we went down so early, everybody thought this thing was over, but we knew we were going to battle back," Brentwood coach Ron Eden said.

   Probably good advice: Social media can be trouble under even normal circumstances, so a South Dakota football coach had some sensible advice after his team scored a 103-0 playoff victory: Don't look at social media until this thing blows over.

   "It was one of the most polarizing mixture of emotions we've ever had at the conclusion of any game," Pierre (S.D.) T.F. Riggs High coach Steve Steele said. "Being so proud of every kid that stepped onto the field for us for giving every play their very best and earning the success that they experienced throughout the game, while also feeling sick for how the other sideline had to be feeling. Knowing what it feels like to be on that sideline really makes your heart hurt for their players, coaches, and community. But at the same time again, you are so proud of each and every Gov that represented our community in a great way as well."

   Steele told his players a lot people would be saying negative things about the game and it would be better if they avoided being pulled into the negativity.