Kellogg Buys Travis Ford's Old House

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AlPatino
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Post by AlPatino » Fri Aug 22, 2008 10:04 am

This is routine real estate transaction information published in most local papers on a regular basis. I don't think the Kellogg's have to worry about stalkers or the paparazzi quite yet.
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CrooksisRhyming
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Post by CrooksisRhyming » Fri Aug 22, 2008 10:34 am

nale wrote:
CrooksisRhyming wrote:who? - Derek Kellogg
what? - Bought a house
when? - Not completely clear in story but recently.
where? - 27 Owen Drive in Amherst
why? - Job (new coach of the UMass basketball team)
how? - With $755,000
That's journalism fellas... in the rare occasion that you can answer all of these questions, you do.
Crooks. The point of the story is Derek bought TF's house not Derek bought a house. The simple fact Derek bought a house is not really newsworthy. They would not have published anything about Derek buying a house if it wasn't TF's house.
You are correct those are the questions journalist should ask. However after they find the answers they then must decide which answers are important to or add to the story they are trying to tell. They don't/shouldn't just throw every piece of info they gather into a piece. Those choices are what divides good journalism from average journalism.
Literally, the only change you have to make to my list is "what? - Bought (Travis Ford's) House."

As far as picking and choosing, you are correct. However, this was not some great piece of feature writing in which certain mundane details could be left out in hopes of drawing a more artistic and complete picture of the situation. It was one of those stories that fills space during deadlines, and since it involves two recognizable names, it catches the reader's eye.

Does this add to the story? Yes, I do believe so. Those who have a fundamental understanding of Amherst now know where the house is and can wrap their mind around that part of the situation. There was not a lot of information to be told, so this was as big a piece as anything else.

As someone that still practices journalism, I would have done the same thing. Does that make me an average journalist? Maybe, but any journalist that thinks he/she is good probably has a lot to learn. However, to me, a good story would have included a photo of the house, quotes from the Realtor and maybe even Ford/Kellogg.

Of course, those are the things that can't always be acquired on a daily deadline.

Good stories make you want to keep reading. An average story needs a good headline.
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umass21
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Post by umass21 » Fri Aug 22, 2008 12:19 pm

Heck, I even mapquest-ed Owen Drive. I always wondered where Ford lived...not because I was going to go there, I just couldn't picture where the mansions were located in Amherst. So count one reader pleased with the decision to include the street address.

And IV, why is this being discussed? Because it's August 22.

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Sam Minuteman
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Post by Sam Minuteman » Fri Aug 22, 2008 12:37 pm

More importantly when is he throwing the first Pizza/Keg party for the student section? At least now everyone will know how to get there!!
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nale
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Post by nale » Fri Aug 22, 2008 1:20 pm

CrooksisRhyming wrote: Literally, the only change you have to make to my list is "what? - Bought (Travis Ford's) House."

Does this add to the story? Yes, I do believe so. Those who have a fundamental understanding of Amherst now know where the house is and can wrap their mind around that part of the situation. There was not a lot of information to be told, so this was as big a piece as anything else.

As someone that still practices journalism, I would have done the same thing.
Literally, 'Bought (Travis Ford's) House' is the ONLY thing that makes this a news story. So it is an important change to your list.

Does this add to the story? We disagree here. Telling which section of town would have given the same information to the miniority of readers who have a fundamental understanding of Amherst without giving the exact address. To rest of us it is meaningless either way.

I just feel that printing a public figure address or salary unless it is critical to the story should not be done.

Otherwise I give way to your experience with and knowledge of journalisic practices as my only experience is as a reader. Good to see another view.

It was a minor point about a minor story good for discussion in the off season but enough on this topic from me.

It great that Bailey and Gibbs are now offically part of UMASS program
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Post by CrooksisRhyming » Fri Aug 22, 2008 1:38 pm

nale wrote: Good to see another view.
Cheers, same here.
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Post by Feato » Fri Aug 22, 2008 1:42 pm

sounds like a nice spot. McCutcheon's blurb there was just to spice it up a bit (how often is the AD your neighbor like that?). Wouldn't have been mentioned if he lived further away.

It's a good tidbit piece to keep UMass in the news. Is it big? No. But it fills a space.

Ironic isms make for easy journalism sometimes ;)
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EBox
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Post by EBox » Fri Aug 22, 2008 2:28 pm

Anyone know what Travis Ford's new address is. I'm sure there are those who would love to:

a) put a flaming bag of poop on his doorstep
b) prank call 1,000 pizzas to his house on a nightly basis
c) fork his lawn

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Post by UMass87 » Fri Aug 22, 2008 3:53 pm

cox'n wrote:On the other hand, Ford paid about $675,000.00 for it three years ago when the housing market was at its height. Even with the improvements, it's a bit of a surprise that TF made money on the sale. ....
Zillow.com appraises it at $981,500 which gives an idea of how useful zillow.com is.

I don't remember those houses (or that street) and from the look of the street it's probably all new McMansions.

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Mark 80
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Post by Mark 80 » Fri Aug 22, 2008 6:34 pm

If you check out google maps satellite view you'll find it is very new development (Ford's now Kellog's house is not even there yet). Looks like they bulldozed a wooded area to create the lots.
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ShadesOf96and98
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Post by ShadesOf96and98 » Sun Aug 24, 2008 6:26 pm

as a reader, when you find out our last two basketball coaches have lived in the same house and our AD lives in the same neighborhood, do you say "cool. i wonder what i should do today." or do you say "wow, I wonder where that neighborhood is, sounds like the place to be."

I think its safe to say that enough people, if not the majority of people, would go with the latter, making it information that improves the story, like crooks said.

Besides, if anyone with any negative or malicious intentions wants to know where DK or McCutch lives that bad, they've already found this information the same way the journalists have. And even if they hadnt included the address in the story, you could bet these same people would be looking it up online.

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Post by UMass87 » Sun Aug 24, 2008 7:07 pm

Shades - I doubt anybody would argue that it doesn't add to the story - clearly a bunch of us used the information to gather other information. I think some people look at it as a question of privacy and where do you, as a journalist, draw the line. As many have pointed out, the information is already public. Anyone who would use the information inappropriately would, it seems to me, be likely to locate the publicly available information anyway.

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Post by chuff » Mon Aug 25, 2008 4:59 pm

Mark 80 wrote:If you check out google maps satellite view you'll find it is very new development (Ford's now Kellog's house is not even there yet). Looks like they bulldozed a wooded area to create the lots.
No, it was a cleared farm field known as Bartkowski Meadow, pretty much like the field to the southwest, and rented for vegetable production up to the point that it got covered with houses and tar. The town's Agricultural Commission suggested that building houses on it wasn't necessarily the best use of the land, but got thoroughly whacked by Paul Jones' and Bob Pattersnon's lawyer Michael Pill. Pill was going to sue the Town for trying to limit the development in any way. The Planning Board folded, and now Derek and McCutch have big new houses. It's all good.
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Rory
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Post by Rory » Mon Aug 25, 2008 7:33 pm

Whats the over/under on the amount of times Ford even made it into that pool he had built?

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Post by CrooksisRhyming » Mon Aug 25, 2008 10:33 pm

Honestly Rory, I know you posted something, but I wasn't able to read it because of the Ultimate Warrior screaming in my face.
"Wherever I go, I’ll never be bashful about being from UMass, baby.” -Victor Cruz

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