Two Hats, One Experience

Recently, I was fortunate enough to attend a lecture by Irwin Cotler, a member of Canadian parliament and former Canadian Minister of Justice. A gifted orator and bright mind, Mr. Cotler spoke for a little over an hour and exposed some of the contemporary issues confronting global human rights.

I’m confident that each member of the sold-out crowd in attendance were able to grasp something unique and personal from the lecture. Personally, the most important lesson I drew from the event was a point that Mr. Cotler made during the question and answer period. Someone asked about effective methods to prepare for an academic debate or discussion.

Mr. Cotler replied with a cute anecdote. He explained that during his tenure as a Law professor at McGill University, he would often tell his students to prepare for a mock trial. Right before the opening statements, he would stop the students and inform them that the case would continue as normal, except that they would be switching sides. For example, the students who had prepared their case as the prosecutors would now be presenting as the defense and vice-versa. Professor Cotler continued this exercise for years until one student fainted upon hearing of this sudden switch.

The simple lesson behind the law student’s role-reversal is that one should always have a full understanding of both sides of an issue before engaging it. It’s a simple, yet important and practical lesson that can be applied to all facets of an individual’s life.

As a sport management graduate student and sports industry professional, I was able to find a way to apply Irwin Cotler’s lesson to my experiences in Bay Area sports. For 19 months, I worked with the Oakland Raiders Internet and Media Relations Departments. During that tenure, I interacted with members of the media on a daily basis as a representative of the organization. Whether it was during press conferences at the team’s facility, open locker rooms following practice or drafting press releases, I learned how to interact with the media from the organization’s side. On game days, I had grown accustomed to meeting the media’s every needs and ensuring their game day experience was as positive as possible, lending a helping hand whenever needed.

Currently, I am helping out KGO (810am) radio covering the San Jose Sharks. I attend Sharks home games at HP Pavilion and interview players following the game, sending the audio bytes and a general summary script to the station. The audio clips and textual information go live on the air during the next morning’s broadcast.

Aside from an incredible opportunity and childhood dream job, this new opportunity places me on the other end of the media spectrum. I used to make a concerted effort to take care of the media, but suddenly find myself as one of them; picking up (instead of copying) game previews, statistics and up-to-the-minute news before heading up to the press box.

I was inspired by Mr. Cotler’s lecture to make the most of my new opportunity. Just as he spoke about learning as much as possible from an opposing position, I will look to take advantage of the next few months as a member of the media. Hopefully, throughout this experience, I will always keep Mr. Cotler’s interesting lesson in my mind and absorb as much as possible from my professional surroundings.