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Jun 14 / Paul Kasabian

Content Standards: How to avoid a poorly produced content citation

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This is the ninth of a 10-part series explaining Bleacher Report’s Content Standards in depth.

At Bleacher Report, we understand our writers have varying backgrounds and experience levels, something the Content Moderation team takes into account when reviewing each writer’s contributions. We have a vested interest in helping writers avoid running into problems before anyone else’s eyes find them.

Wherever you stand on your career path, ample resources and programs are at your disposal to help improve your craft and ensure a successful B/R writing career.

Resources

B/R Writer Tutorial

A must-read for any new sportswriter learning to navigate the murky digital media waters. It contains nearly everything you need to know—from refining your prose and polishing SEO skills to responding to criticism professionally.

B/R Style Guide

Focused more on increasing the professionalism of your copy, the Style Guide walks you through article construction from headline to conclusion, and it contains links to two must-reads on style: The B/R Style Question Clearinghouse and B/R Spelling, Hyphenation and Capitalization Dictionary.

B/R Blog

Writer Program Manager King Kaufman (along with help from B/R staff in posts like this one) posts helpful tips on a daily basis. Whether you’re brand new to the game or a Lead Writer, it’s hard not to review the day’s posts and come away with something new to learn.

The Purdue Online Writing Lab

The holy grail of English grammar. Anything you ever wanted to learn about the nuances of the English language can be obtained here. Note, however, that B/R style can differ from the OWL in subtle ways, so it’s always advisable to cross-check B/R style resources prior to publishing.

Programs

B/R U

New to the online writing game? Join B/R U, where you can learn the nuances of publishing on a digital media platform via our eight-stage curriculum. As long as you’re an approved B/R writer, you can sign up.

Sportswriting Internship

If you feel your writing chops are up to snuff, take a shot at applying to become a B/R writing intern, where you will take on assignments and receive hands-on guidance over a three-month period.  You can check out some of the internship’s most notable success stories here on the blog.

Featured Columnist Program

Think you have the skill, consistency and dedication? Apply for the Featured Columnist program.

Take-Home Note

Absorb as much of this information as you can and always try to improve yourself as a writer.

Paul Kasabian is Bleacher Report’s Content Moderation Coordinator. He can be reached at contentstandards@bleacherreport.com.

Comments are closed.

Filed under How It's Done, Textbook, Writer's Tips
  • Eric He

    Hi,

    I just had my Bleacher Report account terminated today because of citation issues, which was a huge misunderstanding. The information that I put in my article were sent to me by the direct source via a press release.
    It just so happened that the same information that was sent to me by the source was also in an article by the Sacramento Bee, who obviously also used the same press release.
    Nowhere in the B/R content standards does it mention anything about citing a direct source from an email.
    I have sent an email to the Content Standards Team detailing this issue, and I hope to hear back soon.
    I am a dedicated sports writer and have been a featured columnist at BR for about a year.

    I hope to get my account back soon.

    -Eric

    • King_Kaufman

      The Content Standards do specifically mention press releases

      bleacherreport.com/pages/contentstandards-nonoriginal

      Paul Kasabian’s blog post about citing sources on this blog also mentions it:

      Writers are welcome to use information contained in press releases as a jumping-off point for their originally written articles, but all press release excerpts must be properly cited and quoted.

      http://blog.bleacherreport.com/2012/05/31/content-standards-non-original-content-aka-plagiarism/

      • Eric He

        King,

        How would you cite a press release when it is emailed to you as an attachment?
        I was under the assumption that the information was sent to me privately, meaning that nobody else had seen it. I was not aware that other news sources had used the same information.

        I understand that B/R has a no-tolerance policy on plagiarism, but this is a really obscure rule that I was never made aware of. I never had any intent on plagiarizing – I just wanted to use the information given to me directly by the source.

        I’ve emailed the Content Standards team, but have yet to receive a reply. (In fact, I’ve emailed them in the past on several other issues, and they have never replied to my emails).

        This is a huge misunderstanding, and I hope to clear things up.

        Thanks,
        Eric

        • King_Kaufman

          A press release sent to only you is still a press release. It happens all the time. You write, “Entity XYZ said in a statement,” or in a press release. And if it’s not a press release, just an email only to you, the citation is “Entity XYZ said in an email.”

          The rule is not obscure at all. It is: Tell us where the information came from. All of it. If you got something from someplace other than your own head, tell us where it came from.

          You should hear back from the Content Standards team.

          • Eric He

            Ok. I made a very bad judgement in writing that article, and I regret not citing the source. I apologize for tarnishing not only mine but B/R’s reputation,

            I cannot explain how much Bleacher Report has helped me develop as a sports journalist, and I am distraught that it has to end this way.

            I hate do this – but after writing for BR for over two years, achieving FC status for both NBA and NHL, getting over 200,000 total reads, and accumulating 9 top writer badges – is there any possible way that I can get my account back?

            It is really unfair that I will never get to write for B/R again, and it is a shame that all my talents will go to waste.

          • King_Kaufman

            Just to close this conversation, Eric was contacted by our Content Standards team, who explained to him that Bleacher Report would stand by its decision to withdraw his writing privileges indefinitely. “It is the responsibility of all B/R writers to know and abide by our editorial policies.”

            Eric was very gracious in response and wished Bleacher Report well, and we wish him the same.

  • Jessica Gaynes

    I’m having an issue with content about me which was visible for 7 months before I found it in a google search. I’ve only managed to have one of the inaccurate and poorly sourced statements removed. I’m very upset about this, as I can’t get the featured columnist who made said I was a parent (I’m not) and insists on maintaining that “is pretty much out of the television and film business”,though I have repeatedly corrected both of these false assumptions. I have already begun the process of resuming commercial television auditioning after recovering from a major surgery 3 years ago, and saying that I am out of the industry is yet another fallacy. I also worked as an actor throughout my twenties, and then suffered a major injury that made me take a big long break. An actor can still be in the industry auditioning, but that doesn’t mean they have been hired to do anything. This can, in theory, go on forever, and yet claiming that the actor who never works is out of the industry, would once again, be another example of Amber Lee’s faulty reasoning. I would like the false statements about me fixed, as she links to an interview I did last year, that lacks any mention of the beliefs stated on bleacher report, where are they now, nickelodeon hosts article. It’s also bad form for her to ignore me for the past 2 months when I contacted her in the comment section of the article.

    • Jessica Gaynes

      To be clear: I am resuming commercial auditioning in los angeles, as well as new york, as I spend time in both cities on a regular basis. I don’t talk about myself in the present very much, but that doesn’t mean other people should fill in the blanks for me.

      • Jessica Gaynes

        and by the way: commercial actors typically live very anonymous lives. NO ONE should assume anything about an actor just because they don’t see something recent on an imdb resume.

        • Paul Kasabian

          Jessica,

          We sincerely apologize for the error. We have made an adjustment to the slide. Please contact us at contentstandards@bleacherreport.com if you have further concerns.

          Regards,

          Paul Kasabian
          Manager, Quality Control