Michael B. Salwen and Bruce Garrison explain in their article, “Finding their place in Journalism: Newspaper sports journalists professional problems” that for a long while sports writing and sports journalism is not as respected among the field as other aspects. There still is some truth to that today. Historically, sports journalists were not held to the same standard of ethics and reporting as other journalists because the sports section was meant to be more entertaining than factually informative. In a 1993 survey of sports writers, problems facing sports journalists were said to be professionalism, reader related problems, economic and resources, diversity, writing and reporting skills, competition in the field, issues with content, job related problems, and sources or access. A follow up to this survey showed professionalism and ethics were the biggest problems facing sports journalism at the time. Sports journalists felt that the history and reputation of their field as a whole hurts their own personal brand.
Editors who were also interviewed said that sports journalists must expand their knowledge beyond the rules of the game and just what they see on the field. They should learn “law, medicine, business, politics, and other sociological matters that have become increasingly relevant to sports journalism.” In 2013, there are sports journalists who have a well-rounded knowledge on these subjects and more. With player injury, crime and various court cases, and social movements such as LGBTQ activism in sports, journalists must accurately report all the news on the team or sport they cover, which includes subjects outside of the game itself. Lackluster reporting and false information is not tolerated among sports journalists or their readers anymore. They are held to a higher standard than the rest of the field gives them credit for, especially by the players themselves. With athletes having their own direct outlet to the fanbase through Twitter and Facebook, they are able to call out any false reports they may read or hear about themselves.
As great as Twitter is at getting news out quickly to a very large audience as Drew Hancherick explains in his article “Tweet Talking: How modern technology and social media are changing sports communication,” there is a danger to Twitter in this time of modern journalism. Not only can a credited writer like Bill Simmons break the news of a trade nearly a day before it was finalized, but the average fan or anonymous monger can garner enough followers for a bogus rumor to spread instantly.
The internet has created a 24/7 cycle of instant news and that has certainly affected how sports are covered. Last summer, the Philadelphia Flyers signed Nashville Predator’s defenseman, Shea Weber, to an offer sheet but because of twitter, everyone found out about it when TSN reporter Darren Dreger broke the news via twitter in the middle of the night. Even just last night (9/9/13) news broke on twitter of the Flyers agreeing to terms on a contract for forward Dan Cleary that cannot even be finalized for another few weeks.*
With information being released faster and faster, and the notoriety that comes with being the “first” to break a story, perhaps sports journalism will lose respect from the rest of the field and once again will not be held to the same standards of truth. Right now in sports journalism, there is too much emphasis on the speed with which information is put out and not enough on the accuracy of the reporting and that needs to change before it gets worse.
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