Time to cover Ty's back

Today could be a big day for the PBR.

A huge day.

It's the day when Ty Murray is in Pittsburgh to appeal to sports editors of The Associated Press to grant more coverage to the Professional Bull Riders.

The seven-time world all-around champion is hoping to leverage his recent success on "Dancing with the Stars."

When Murray had opportunities to engage in media interviews about his success on the hit ABC series, he continually used his platform to appeal to the media to pay more attention to the fast-growing sport of pro bull riding.

But after Murray meets with sports editors this weekend, bull riding fans need to follow up.

From my more 25 years of experience as a sports and news writer, I've learned it goes a long way when fans pick up the phone and talk one-on-one with an editor.

As a writer, I learned I could appeal to editors continually on upgrading our coverage of western riding events, and it often was like water splashing off of a bull's back. But let a reader contact an editor in the newsroom (and it may be a good idea to reach a high-ranking editor), and things often got moving.

As a writer of a weekly column on western sports, I'd often give fans the following words of advice: "You need to do more than come to me with your frustrations; you have to persuade an editor who is over me."

And after fans followed my advice, an editor often would come over and ask me to provide more coverage.

I came to understand that newsrooms are like most workplaces. It's one thing if a staff member appeals for a matter to be improved, but it's another thing when a customer calls in and asks for change.

I often found that if I asked for more space for stories, more space for results, or more PBR stories on the front page, it all but came across as whining. But let a reader call in and complain that there was no box score for last night's local PBR show in this morning's paper, then editors often took it more seriously.

So, my advice to you is to know that you have power. You have more power than you think.

You may say, "I once called and asked for more coverage and didn't get it."

My answer to that is you have to realize that prompting newspapers, radio and TV stations, and other forms of media to step up their coverage of western riding events often is an uphill battle.

Many editors have this idea that only a small percentage of their readers are interested. And even in areas in Montana and Wyoming where there's lots of farming and ranching activity, they reason that they don't have anyone on the staff with much knowledge about bull riding and rodeos.

They're in a rut of covering western riding events once or twice a year, and that's when the annual PBR show comes to town or when the annual stock show is in session. Otherwise, it's business as usual. Cover the high-school sports, mostly football and basketball. Cover the local college sports that are sanctioned by the NCAA. And then run an abundance of wire stories on the mainstream sports like the NFL and the NBA.

And that's all fine and good, but it's conventional thinking that needs to be tweaked. We live in a day when there are a substantial number of bull riding fans around the country thanks to the PBR having the fortitude to broadcast its world title races on TV for the past 15 years.

The PBR now features an all-star cast of bulls and riders. Knowing that the PBR is offering a $1 million bonus to its World Champion each year, bull riders certainly are approaching the sport from an athletic standpoint more than ever. PBR results and stats are posted on national TV after every Built Fort Tough Series tour stop and the PBR world title race has become as easy to follow as NASCAR.

The PBR has multitudes of fans with no western riding background who are watching. The Ford Series shows are drawing large crowds in venues in both the heartland and in urban areas.

But it's taking awhile for editors to realize all that, and that's where you, the fan, must step in. You are the customer buying the newspaper. You're the listener who is tuning into that particular radio or TV station.

Even if newspaper editors are not into running a big story every week on the PBR, it wouldn't be a lot of skin off of their noses to run a paragraph or two each week in the sports briefs page, or a box score on the scoreboard page that gives the results of the latest Ford Series even. Ask your local editors to do at least do that much.

In many cases, you can call up the editor and bring attention to the fact that the newspaper goes to many small towns with residents who now are following the PBR. If you are one of those people who didn't grow up with a western background, but you now love the western riding scene thanks to the PBR, then explain your experience to an editor.

We are living in a day when we have to connect with editors. Murray is attempting to do just that on national and international levels. You can do it effectively on the local and regional levels.

You have the power!