49ers Beat Writer Hates Me, and It’s Not Because I’m a Seahawks Fan
I asked a reasonable question. I got a very unreasonable response (And got blocked). Here’s what happened…
There’s a lot of criticism surrounding the reporting on Kyle Shanahan’s car accident that landed him in a hospital bed on July 14th. A story that big doesn’t normally go unreported for 11 days. When the story finally did break, it was in a clearly coordinated effort between ESPN and the 49ers.
At 12:00pm ET, the 49ers posted their initial statement about Shanahan’s accident.
At 12:01pm ET, ESPN’s Adam Schefter made a more detailed post.
At 12:02pm ET, An article from Adam Schefter and Nick Wagoner posted to ESPN.
Having said that, as Pro Football Talk pointed out, ESPN aren’t the only ones that kept this quiet. The local beat writers didn’t say a word either. It’s hard to believe that the people who eat, sleep, and breathe 49ers, with connections to the local police departments, didn’t know about Shanahan being in a car accident and hospitalized until the team statement 11 days after the fact.
49ers beat writer for The San Francisco Standard, Tim Kawakami, explained on Twitter X that he found out on July 23rd that Shanahan wasn’t going to be at the start of camp, or the press conference he was previously expected to attend.
I pressed Kawakami and asked why he wouldn’t look into why Shanahan was going to miss camp. He said that the team pretty much told him not to worry about it and that they’d give more information soon. He claims he accepted that response. And then before I could respond, he blocked me.
So let me get this straight.
This 49ers “journalist” claims he didn’t know about their head coach being involved in a major car accident that left him hospitalized. And then when he found out that the team’s head coach was going to MISS THE START OF TRAINING CAMP, he shrugged and went “Whatever.” And then was told by the 49ers “Don’t worry about it. We’ll put out something soon.” He didn’t press for any details? He didn’t do any investigative work?
And then when I asked a very fair question - Why didn’t you look into a major situation about the team you cover? - He posts an overly defensive response, and then blocks me.
To me, the funniest part about his response is that he says “Be furious.” and then blocks me. (I love irony)
First of all, I really wasn’t mad and certainly wasn’t furious. I was just asking a question. Ya know, like a journalist.
Second of all, blocking me helped prove my point way faster than going back and forth a few times would have. Blocking me for merely asking a question about his reporting, proves Kawakami is far more concerned about his access to the 49ers, than actual journalism.
This is a major issue in sports reporting right now and a large part of the reason I dived into this field in 2023.
George Orwell once famously said “Journalism is printing something that someone does not want printed. Everything else is public relations.”
Kawakami isn’t a journalist. He’s a cog in the 49ers public relations machine. Going through his posts, on a burner account I had to make, I learned that this is actually a very common move from Kawakami.
He reposts comments criticizing him, gives his response, and then blocks the account so they can’t reply to him. It’s a hilariously cowardly move. Making it more hilarious was Kawakami complaining about being blocked by an Xbox poster (Out of Kirkland, Washington).
Kawakami can block whoever he wants. That’s his right. I can write about it and call him a coward. That’s my right.
Some of you will surely think this post is a rant. It’s not. I’m not even upset. I’m actually happy about it, because he proved my point. This post is intended as both an eye opener for sports fans and a promise.
Eye opener for sports fans: Many (not all) of the beat writers that cover your favorite teams aren’t journalists. They’re a part of the team’s public relations.
Promise: I will always tell you what I think. I don’t care who it turns off (I’ve accepted that I’ll never get a job with ESPN). I work in journalism, not public relations.
-Written by Seattle Mike