A group of around 30 freelancers who work on the pre- and postgame production of baseball broadcasts on the Mid-Atlantic Sports Network, which televises all Baltimore Orioles and Washington Nationals games and is part-owned by both franchises, have been told that for now they are not receiving any financial assistance from the network while the baseball season is delayed because of the novel coronavirus outbreak.
Another group of at least 30 to 40 people who make up the game production crew - camera workers and people in the production truck - at Camden Yards and Nationals Park also have been told they will receive no compensation for now, though this group is contracted by MASN through an outside company, according to several people who have been affected.
The position stands in contrast to those made by some other media companies who have made short-term commitments to their freelance staffs.
In a statement a MASN spokesman wrote: “After committing to pay nearly 1,300 MASN and Orioles full-time and part-time staff through the end of April, MASN told its production staff of independent contractors that it would let them know about future payments in April. The network continues to review all options and will communicate directly to its contractors on that timeline.”
Both the Nationals and Orioles are part owners of MASN, while the Orioles are controlling partners.
The recent federal aid bill could help fill the gap for the workers. The bill, passed last week by Congress and signed by President Donald Trump, extends unemployment insurance to freelancers, and the MASN workers could be eligible for as much as $1,000 per week. Many should also receive $1,200 stimulus checks.
Some MASN freelancers have applied for unemployment, but said they have been told the applications likely will take several weeks to process, and many have rent and other bills due immediately. They also said they received no guidance about unemployment insurance from MASN and that before the federal aid package was passed the network had left them to fend for themselves.
After Major League Baseball announced Opening Day would be delayed, several MASN workers said they sent emails to higher-ups at the network inquiring about their status. They received a group reply on March 18 from a director at the network that stated all pre- and postgame shows would be canceled through May and that there were no plans to compensate the freelancers.
“[The network hopes] to have further updates sometime in April but MASN is at MLB’s mercy right now,” the email, which was obtained by The Washington Post, said in part. “Any freelancer who is emailing [executive producer] Chris Glass and asking about compensation he has told them unfortunately that is not the plan for now. I understand we may lose some individuals who go looking for other jobs and I totally understand that.”
“They told us we could go look for new jobs, but where are we going to go?” one freelancer said. “There are people relying on this money to pay their rent and their bills.”
The Post interviewed five MASN workers who have been affected by the decision, all of whom spoke on the condition of anonymity out of concern for their future job prospects. They said MASN’s decision, as well as the network’s lack of communication, has been particularly difficult as they have watched other networks announce support for their freelance production staffs. CBS and Turner will pay their crews for the missed NCAA tournament games; CBS will pay for four postponed PGA Tour events, as well. Asked about its freelance production workers, an ESPN spokesman said people have generally continued to be paid.
A spokesman for NBC Sports Group, which owns a number of regional sports networks around the country, said the company has been paying their freelance production crews and will continue to do so for “the upcoming weeks.” Sinclair Broadcast Group is extending interest-free loans of $2,500 to workers at the roughly 20 regional sports networks it owns, though that announcement only came after the Detroit Free Press published an article in which workers at the Sinclair-owned Detroit network were critical of the company for not providing any assistance to them.
The global pandemic and ensuing sports hiatus has halted the flow of billions of dollars through sports - between fans, networks and leagues - and left many in limbo. Freelancers across the sports industry have been particularly affected by the break in games, from journalists to TV production staffs to food vendors.
Each Major League Baseball team, including the Orioles and Nationals, has donated $1 million to a fund to assist stadium workers, while several NBA players took the lead on announcing help for stadium staff with many owners following suit. Those funds do not always cover food and beer vendors, who are often hired by a third-party company.
Many of the MASN workers have been working as freelancers for years at the network. While they were not salaried employees, the baseball season represented the bulk of their income. They worked most days during the season and rates for what could often be 10-hour shifts ranged from around $130 for production assistants to more than $400 for more senior positions.
