She has all the bases covered
The first in an occasional series about the people behind the Los Angeles Newspaper Group's sports bylines:
One of our sportswriters is justifiably proud to call herself "a Jill of all trades."
As an editor who coordinates sports coverage all over Southern California for the Los Angeles Newspaper Group, I value versatility over pretty much any other quality a writer can bring to the laptop keyboard.
And lately, nobody has proven more versatile than Jill Painter (photo, above right), a Daily News staff writer whose work appears in all of the LANG papers. Tomorrow and Sunday, Jill is scheduled to cover the Dodgers' games against St. Louis, giving beat writer Tony Jackson a couple of days off. That means, in an eight-day stretch, Jill will have 1) written sidebar stories on a couple of Lakers games, 2) written a UCLA notebook covering basketball and football, 3) written her weekly golf column, 4) covered the City track-and-field championships, 5) listened in on a Tommy Lasorda speech to the U.S. Olympic water polo team for a weekend column, and 6) filled in on the Dodgers.
She is not complaining.
"I love covering different events," says Painter, who has been with the Daily News since 2000, and has done extensive coverage of Cal State Northridge, the Dodgers and recently UCLA and golf. "I get a chance to meet so many interesting people. It's never mundane, that's for sure. High school athletes think it's cool to talk to you (of course, not everyone does). Watching Kobe Bryant spin through the lane and dunk is just as mesmerizing as a photo finish in the 100 meters at the City Track Championships.
"The tough thing is I feel like I never know enough about my subjects. Research is a must before starting each day, but if you're not a beat writer, it's tough to develop sources. Sources are based on trust, and if I'm not around a lot, that's a challenge. But I've devleoped contacts with just about every team/coach/public relations person in town. I feel I can be sent anywhere, and I'll come back with a story. I pride myself on versatility, a Jill-of-all-trades, if you will."
What has the past week been like?
"I started the week by joining the U.S. Olympic men's water polo team for a pep talk from Tommy Lasorda. By the time it was over, I was ready to jump in the pool in Beijing, and I've never played water polo!" Painter says. "Next was a golf column on a UCLA golfer who two years ago tried to walk on to the team and was told the Bruins had enough golfers. Two years later, she got a call to join the team, and now, she's scoring points for the Bruins.
"On Wednesday, I watched the Spurs blow a 20-point third-quarter lead at Staples. Kobe Bryant took just three shots in the first half (what was up with that?). Then, he went to work, scoring 25 points in the second half. Mesmerizing, as usual.
"On Thursday, I witnessed a 100-meter dash where two sprinters finished with the exact same time (10.80 seconds), and the race was determined in a photo finish. That was cool.
"Today, it's back to watching Kobe Bryant do his thing, and I'll spend the weekend with the Dodgers. Tommy Lasorda, Kobe Bryant and Joe Torre all in a week.
"And this is work?"
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About this blog
Kevin Modesti watches sports from a new angle since his promotion from sports columnist to sports editor for the Los Angeles Newspaper Group. In his new blog, Modesti not only comments on the big sports stories of the moment-- he talks about what makes them big. Think of it as a conversation with readers about how these stories should be covered.
That is my sister - a Jill of all trades!
I am very proud of her.
Who knew that all of that restless energy she had when she was a child, would point her in this direction for a career?
She loves sports, and she loves her job! It's perfect for her.