Apparently, Help Wanted (KWCH trip)

I recently began noticing an emerging theme blooming from our trips into the publishing world: Help Wanted signs.

It's been quite amazing to see how much solicitation we've received on these excursions. Catchitkansas was just the latest.

Now, it hasn't been like the editors and staffers have been begging us for our words, but it's hardly been a secret that they are in need of talent.

That's hardly a bad thing. Hardly something to push aside.

But it's also hardly something I was expecting to hear either.

When I was a sports editor, I had to pretty much beg my horrible correspondents, who could barely find the backspace on a keyboard let alone conjugate a verb or two, to get me some material. The difference is, that was for a low-trafficked, lightly read tri-weekly. When I worked for much bigger papers as a correspondent and staffer, I had consistent work, but I felt pressure to perform because I wanted assignments to be etched into my calendar, not my peers'.

When moving to KS, I thought for sure that the media outlets in Wichita, a city of 355,000, would have little trouble getting games covered.

I guess I was wrong.

Both the Eagle and Catchitkansas let it be known that they would welcome us as writers. So did Vyper Joe.

I know this has a lot to do with the plethora of games and schools that require covering, but in a city with a handful of colleges/universities and 35x the amount of people of my hometown, how can it be possible that bylines are left wanting?

I just don't get it.