There is more vitriol being hurled at the National Football League for its new policy of having photographers on the sidelines wear red vests with corporate logos (insert ad here) emblazoned upon them. Trade publication Editor & Publisher writes about letters protesting the plans sent to the NFL by the American Society of Newspaper Editors and the Associated Press Managing Editors. The actual letters are included at the end of the article.

The advertising aspect aside (which I abhor) it just seems to me as if the incessant worrying about the photographers on the sidelines is a bit in the parking lot as far as the games are concerned. There were already places where wind-breaker sporting security acted more fascist than friendly, reacting to a transgression of "the line" as if it were an act of aggression in the demilitarized zone. A lot of the trouble started after this idiotic mess last year. This is when security issues at games started really being aggressive. Even the Ravens people, usually more than accommodating and easy going with us, starting getting picky.

However, once on the field it should pretty easy to determine the photographers are not the threat to the fans, players, workers or stadium. We are credentialed by our news or media organizations and have to apply to the teams for the passes. The vests are not a problems in and of themselves, though blaring red seems a little too much. At Preakness they give us black and gold. The people wearing black stand out like crazy in the crowd, but yet do not ruin the background of the photo.

Yes, I want to make sure all the people on the sidelines are the ones who are supposed to be there and obey the rules. Security is a necessity when there are drunks in the stands and possibilities of trouble and mayhem by nefarious forces lurk somewhere. But those same drunks at one Ravens game are going to cause more problems than the photographers at every game in the league for the entire season.

The gaggle of superfluous bystanders between the end zone and the 25 also create more strife. They constantly get in the way by not staying behind "the line" and jumping onto the field to see the sideline catch or tackle. Not only are they entering the forbidden zone, they block the photographers' angles behind them.

And in the end, the ones who should not be there are obvious. 

• Cheering. (Never allowed, although comments about plays are — we're only human.)

 

• Holding point-and-shoot-cameras or outdated film equipment.

 

• Gawking at everything and anything as if it were covered in gold and emitting a glow.

 

• Failing to get out of the way of a play at the sidelines. (Oops. That is not always true having gotten smeared — on National television no less — last year at a Maryland football game.)

As of yet no response from the No Fun League.