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Journalists brand football club ‘childish’ over press conference ban

McClaren newJournalists in Newcastle have hit out at the city’s football club for denying some regional and national reporters access to the unveiling their new manager.

The NUJ’s Newcastle branch has issued a statement branding Newcastle United “childish” after journalists from all outlets – except the Daily Mirror, Sky Sports and the club’s official website – were barred from the conference announcing Steve McClaren’s appointment.

The club have been involved in several previous spats over media coverage – which included a 14 month ban for Newcastle-based titles The Journal, The Chronicle and the Sunday Sun between October 2013 and December 2014.

Sunday Sun columnist Eric Paylor described last Wednesday’s incident as a “PR disaster” for McClaren, with whom he previously had a working relationship while a reporter on the Teesside Gazette.

The NUJ’s Newcastle branch statement reads: “Newcastle United are at it again. Desperately over-sensitive about what people are saying about them, their first reaction is to try to manage and manipulate press coverage – instead of trying to give people some reason to say something more positive about them.

“Their problem, of course, is the football. If they were a bit better at playing football, their fans might have something more positive to say about them.

“But then, they have a lot of form for such childish behaviour. Who are they going to speak to next week – and who are they going to blank? Who will they ask to be their new best friends, and who will they turn their backs on?

“They should take care. To turn their backs on the sports reporters is to risk cutting themselves out of the conversation – driving themselves yet further towards irrelevance.”

Newcastle narrowly avoided relegation from the Premier League last month.

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  • June 17, 2015 at 12:57 pm
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    To be honest they neeed to face the media rather than blocking them

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  • June 17, 2015 at 5:38 pm
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    This is Mike Ashley policy…knows nothin about PR or media…or football!!. Why is the name Ashley so synonomous with cluelessness when it come to the media?!?!

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