I was talking over dinner with my wife about Sonny Gray, the guy from Smyrna who is now pitching for the Oakland Athletics.
His first start was not a successful effort. The print headline was “Sonny Gray falters in first MLB start.” Online, it was “Sonny Gray falls in first MLB start.”
Win or lose and regardless of headlines, we know everyone, in Smryna and The DNJ, is proud to see Sonny Gray spend time (likely a long time) in the majors. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Chris Young) / AP
That really set my wife off. She pointed out it was his first major league start and he’s from Smyrna and we should be a whole heck of a lot nicer to him. I smiled, tried to make light of it, and rapidly lost my appetite.
After all, who needs accuracy, right?
Today’s print headline is “Sonny Day.” On Page 1. The online headline is “Sonny Day: Former Smyrna standout pitcher earns first MLB win.” As you might deduce, he won yesterday in his second start, and an impressive win it was.
My wife was much more satisfied.
I think though that her reaction exemplifies something missed in journalism.
We have some connections to Smyrna, including family connections, and we live near Smyrna, so it is somewhat like home.
I think in a way, she views Sonny Gray as a hometown boy and nobody likes to see a hometown boy look bad. After all, hometown boy/girl makes good is still one of the most popular types of stories in journalism.