Single-sport channels such as Golf Channel and NFL Network take around-the-clock sports to new heights
Multichannel News |
Dec. 1, 2009 11:01 a.m.
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The IU National Sports Journalism Center’s panel discussion, "Who’s Covering Home? The Transformation of Baseball Coverage in America and What It Means for Sports Journalism and [...]
The coverage of professional sports is being radically transformed by the growth of new media, and the downsizing of traditional media. And, perhaps no sport has been touched by these changes more profoundly than pro baseball. Web sites and television outlets owned by leagues and teams are expanding and growing in popularity. The number of bloggers writing about teams is exploding. Social media allows fans to interact directly with their favorite players and teams. At the same time, however, fewer print beat reporters are covering teams and the post-season. These watershed changes are occurring at the very time when fans are asking hard questions of sports journalists, such as how so many of them missed one of the biggest scandals in the history of the sport – the abuse of steroids by several star players. These issues and many others will be the subject of a panel this month sponsored by the IU National Sports Journalism Center. The panel discussion, “Who’s Covering Home? The Transformation of Baseball Coverage in America and What It Means for Sports Journalism and Fans,” is set for 7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 9, in the auditorium at Ernie Pyle Hall.
By most accounts, Sunday’s Super Bowl couldn’t have been planned better if it was scripted by the minds behind CBS’ Survivor. An upstart, Cinderella-story New Orleans Saints facing off against Super Bowl veteran Indianapolis Colts. A year of steady, substantial growth for NFL broadcasts, sparked by standout performances from veteran stars such as Brett Favre and the Colts’ Peyton Manning. A crackling game that was competitive until the last quarter, complete with a quarterback shootout and crafty coaching moves (did Sean Peyton say they actually went over that onside kick play during open practice?) And a surprise “snowpocalypse” blizzard parking everyone in the mid-Atlantic area indoors, in front of their TV sets, on Super Bowl weekend.
At Social Media Week in New York last week, I found myself returning to one thought: How will the growing use of social media by athletes change sportswriters’ roles? Athletes are already breaking news via social media: Last fall Allen Iverson announced his signing with the Memphis Grizzlies on Twitter, and the Cincinnati Bengals’ Chad Ochocinco reported that first-round pick Andre Smith was close to ending his holdout, pre-empting Smith’s own agent. The always-entertaining Ochocinco even has his own NFL social-media news service, called OCNN. (That’s the Ocho Cinco News Network.) OCNN may be a lark, featuring moonlighting NFL players and two guys from the CollegeHumor Web site. But athletes have more and more reasons to use social media. It’s a way for them to sidestep the traditional media and present stories on their own terms. It’s also a way for them to enhance their own personal brands, building a connection with fans that will be like catnip to sponsors. And it’s a relatively easy way to do those things. Twitter in particular is a natural fit for busy athletes: They can be followed by fans without having to reciprocate, and they can engage their followers by entering short messages from a smartphone.
Some things you like to write. Other things you have to write. Take the Super Bowl. (Please.) It’s a fun week to be a sportswriter. [...]
"Chris Berman, one of ESPN’s longest tenured on-air talents, is being heavily pursued by the NFL Network," the Big Lead quotes a source as saying. "According [...]
ESPN NFL analyst Mark Schlereth on Thursday appeared on SportsCenter’s "Coors Hard, Cold Facts" segment, and in so doing, drew the ire of Phil Mushnick. When Schlereth addressed what [...]