Rich Moser believes to be an effective sports information director that one needs to possess the ability to help and cooperate with the media. As EIU sports information director Moser knows how important it is to be prepared and ready when certain information on a player, team, or coach is asked for.
“It’s good to have an idea in your head before the questions come, it’s important to have an angle”, said Moser.
One of Moser’s major roles is that of the “Gatekeeper.” He explained that his loyalty is to protect the players before helping the newspapers.
Of equal importance is the ways that information is now getting released. Moser mentioned that blogs, video streaming, and the constant need for updating are just a few newer methods of how information is getting released.
When asked about the diversity of skills a person needs to carry Moser responded with,” You need a widespread amount of experience” and ” to be able to adapt as things change.” Moser also encourages students to pursue internships to gain valuable experience.
Moser was later asked what he thought was Eastern’s major sports departments and he said “Football is this schools bread and butter.”
” We try to cover things equally, but it doesn’t always happen like that.”Moser also mentioned that he has noticed strong contributions from the male and female basketball programs.
Just like any other job things can be good one moment and the next things can fall apart. Moser understands this concept very well. When asked how he handles problems when they arise, Moser responded with ” As the sports information director you have to be able to limit the amount of information initially released.”
Moser knows that he doesn’t hold all the information by saying ,” There is only so much that can be controlled.”
Towards the end of the conference Moser was asked if there was any subjects he would consider “touchy”. He responded quickly with ” Whenever a sport gets cut.”Moser explained that the sports information director needs to make sure that there are specific reasons and documentation to back up the explanation.
