The NFL’s Ban on Local TV Camera Coverage Is Absurd

From Techliberation (HT Techdirt):

Last year, for reasons I have not been able to determine, NFL team owners decided to reverse a long-standing policy that allowed local broadcasters to film video clips from the sidelines during football games. Apparently, local TV broadcasters will now have to get that footage from the TV network that broadcasts the game or from NFL Films, which is owned and operated by the National Football League.

For better or worse, those sideline shots you see from your local newspeople on game nights are history. You’ll either see approved NFL footage, or nothing at all.

One of the “reasons” for the policy reversal is easy: The NFL wants total control over all images and video from its games, for obvious financal reasons. The question is whether they’re entitled to it.

I don’t think so, especially because in most cases, teams are feeding at the public trough. In most cases, I believe that sports teams, and their highly-paid athletes, can fairly be characterized as supersized welfare queens. In all cases, sports teams feed on public loyalty. A token of reciprocation to local broadcasters doesn’t seem like too much to ask.

Techdirt asks a logical follow-up question: “Will Sports Teams Ban Cameraphones Next?”