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Journalism has drastically changed over the last decade. Social media changed the way opinions are broadcasted. With just a smartphone and a social media account, everyone now has the power to be news producers and voice their opinions. Here is American journalist Jeff Jarvis’ take on citizen journalism: “professionals and amateurs working together to get the real story.” British journalist Ian Hargreaves added, “In a democracy, everyone is a journalist.”
With that in mind, whatever happened to sports journalism? The dinosaurs old-guard would always preach that sports journalists should only “stick to sports”. I have heard this line a lot during the Premiere Cup last summer. Ask an athlete a personal question? Stick to sports. Ask a coach about his opinion on a certain issue? Stick to sports. Confirming a rumor? Stick to sports. It even has a hashtag on Twitter #sticktosports.
Sticking to sports? If a sports journalist just sticks to sports, all sports articles would have this formula to use in writing:
(Winning Team + Biggest Lead + Game Highlight + Quote from the Coach – Biased Opinions) × Marketability = Sports Article
How easy is that! Yes, people would still read it but then after a few hours, the audience would just remember the winner of that game. Moreover, “sticking to sports” would also mean that sports journalists should only cover a marketable sport, team or event. Why would anyone write about a sport with a minimal fan-base? Or better yet, why would they cover an event that only attracts a couple of spectators?
Here at TieBreaker Times, we promise to change the definition of just sticking to sports. Will we offer recaps? Yes. Post statistics? Yes. Provide analysis? Yes. But what makes us different from the rest you say?
With a huge pool of young sports journalists with varying opinions and fan bases, we will provide team and sport specific articles that would cater to each fan base. Moreover, we will feature all varsity events from the universities. Finally, we will utilize various new media tools to give our audience a comprehensive fan experience.
For the amateur journalists, just keep this in mind:
“Make people want to read you” – Rick Reilly
This is Tiebreaker Times.
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