Big news from the NFL on Wednesday: vaccinated members of the league’s media corps will be allowed to interview players in person, per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero.
Major developments for media: Fully vaccinated media will be permitted to conduct in-person interviews with players for the first time since early 2020. Unvaccinated media not allowed in press box, field, sidelines, locker room, etc. pic.twitter.com/IX3MFqmwuX
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) June 16, 2021
Per the memo tweeted by Pelissero, vaccinated NFL media members will be able to do the following.
- Have access to NFL club facilities.
- Conduct in-person interviews with players (with physical distance).
- Have gameday access to the press box, field, sidelines, locker room, and post-game interview room.
So while unvaccinated members of the media will still be able to do their jobs, they’ll be at a significant disadvantage compared to vaccinated media members.
There will also be significant differences vaccinated and unvaccinated players, again per a memo tweeted by Pelissero.
The NFL and NFLPA have agreed to updated COVID-19 protocols for 2021 training camp and preseason, per source.
How different will life by for vaccinated and unvaccinated players? From the memo that just went to clubs: pic.twitter.com/8yMPW0JBWZ
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) June 16, 2021
Two weeks ago, a report from the Washington Post indicated that the NFL could keep locker rooms closed to the media this fall. The mention of locker rooms in the memo seems to indicate that the league is walking back the idea of keeping them closed this season, but only for vaccinated media members. Any sort of expanded media access is a win for not just the media, but also the fans.
The NFL is not the only league to give vaccinated media members more access than their unvaccinated peers. Earlier this month, vaccinated media members at MLB games were granted on-field access to players for interviews.
