Saturday, Feb. 27
10 a.m. — Officers meeting, room tba at Poynter
Noon — Conference planning meeting, room tba at Poynter
4 p.m. — Executive Committee meeting/judging instructions at Poynter
6 p.m. — Cocktail reception at Poynter Institute
Sunday, Feb. 28
All day — Judging, sites tba
Monday, Feb. 29
All day — Judging, sites tba
5:30 p.m. — Reception, dinner, high-powered panel (details below)
Tuesday, March 1
All day — Judging, sites tba
Wednesday, March 2
9 a.m. — judging
11 a.m. (approximately) — Closing Executive Committee meeting, site tba
Free Monday night dinner/panel
The owners of all three major Tampa Bay pro sports teams — the Bucs, the Rays and the Lightning — will join APSE members for a reception, free dinner and panel discussion that evening focused on the Business of Pro Sports. This is one of the rare occasions when all three owners have appeared together on the same stage. And, they’re all looking forward to having a dialogue with APSE and members of the general public about trends and issues in pro sports. (One of the owners even changed an international business trip so he could be here that night).
Here are the details:
WHO: We have the owners of all three major Tampa Bay pro sports franchises. They include: Jeff Vinik of the Tampa Bay Lightning, who changed travel plans to Cuba so he could participate; Stuart Sternberg of the Tampa Bay Rays; and Bryan Glazer of the Tampa Bay Bucs. The Community Conversation audience will include APSE members, regional VIPs and about 125 members of the general public.
WHAT: This will be a moderated panel discussion on The Business of Professional Sports. It will include a Q&A with the sports editors and the general audience.
WHEN: Monday, Feb. 29th. We’ll have a reception at 5:30 p.m., followed by dinner at 6 p.m. and the public conversation beginning at 7 p.m. We expect the event to end about 8:15 p.m. or so.
WHERE: The Poynter Institute for Media Studies, an international school for professional journalists, is hosting.
WHY: The nation’s sports editors — and their passionate readers and viewers — are intensely interested in the trends and issues facing professional sports franchises, and their potential impact on media outlets. For example, what does the disruption in the media industry mean for rights fees that broadcasters can pay? Is there a disruption of the pro sports industry looming as a result? Given the move of the Rams to Los Angeles, are we on the cusp of seeing more franchises change cities? How do owners see media coverage of their teams changing? These are just a few of the questions we’ll be exploring.
How to get to the Hampton Inn & Suites
The suggested way to get from the airport to the hotel (and back) is via Super Shuttle (SuperShuttle.com – the Hampton Inn was on the 6th tab). Cost is $23 one way. Cabs are $34-$39
NOTE: If you’re staying at the Hampton Inn & Suites, a free breakfast comes each morning with your room rate.
