The ever-useful Student Press Law Center posted information that will help student-reporters better investigate their school’s athletic programs. Not sure what information is public at both private and public colleges? Click here to learn more.
Displaying posts written by
admin
who has written 71 posts for Sports Field Guide.
Sep
2
2010
2
2010
Aug
26
2010
26
2010
Enter year with a game plan
Wrote this a few years ago, but it’s worth repeating at the start of another school year. Failing to plan, as the adage goes, is really planning to fail. Coaches have a game plan. So should sports staffs.
‘Plan’ may be a four-letter word in many news rooms, but direct the other four-letter expletives at yourself [...]
Jun
30
2010
30
2010
ESPN’s ‘Paradise Lost’ is instructive, engaging
When the Grand Isle Tarpon Rodeo was canceled, few people outside the Louisiana bayous cared.
Aside from anglers and locals, few people had even heard about it.
But everybody knows about the disaster that started it – the explosion at BP’s oil rig that has allowed 25,000-60,000 barrels of crude to flow into the Gulf of Mexico [...]
Jun
29
2010
29
2010
Fans want more perspective
Jason Fry says writers who offer the best perspectives are the ones that are the most relevant in today’s multimedia world. Fry, writing for Indiana University’s sports journalism blog, writes that fans usually follow a process similar to this.
Watch game.
Get basic details online
Read recap from local media
Watch highlights on TV at ESPN, MLB Network or [...]
Jun
28
2010
28
2010
Hall of Fame reporting advice from Hummel
A few nuggets from Hall of Fame baseball writer Rick Hummel, a beat reporter for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, who spoke at today’s MPI sports conference here in St. Louis.
What motivates Hummel to keep writing about baseball after so many years:
“Every day you look at what you’ve done and say, ‘How can you do better?’ [...]
Jun
28
2010
28
2010
Controversial approach to sports journalism?
You know you’re being controversial when someone in the audience accuses you of aligning with Skynet, the robotic force that nearly destroys the world in the movie “Terminator.”
But that was the case in St. Louis this morning here at the Mid-American Press Institute sports conference.
Challenging assumptions is never easy. Erik Smelser, who essentially directs online [...]
Jun
28
2010
28
2010
Publish your game stories online – always
Sometimes, I assume everybody’s on board when it comes to the Internet. I assume that most newspapers and college journalism programs realize how to use multimedia. And we all know what happens when one assumes.
Spoke with some college students here at the Mid-America Press Institute sports conference in St. Louis who shook their heads when asked [...]
Jun
27
2010
27
2010
Cheerleading, as sport, could impede Title IX
You can bet the pending federal case involving Quinnipiac University is going to shake up college athletics. A federal judge heard final arguments Friday in a case that may determine whether cheerleading is a sport.
The Quinnipiac volleyball team has been pressing this case since the university eliminated its team in order to add a competitive cheer [...]
Jun
23
2010
23
2010
HS athletes more likely to succeed outside the lines
Students who participate in high school sports do better academically than the general student population. Student-athletes attend school more frequently and are more likely to become leaders after they graduate, according to a study published by the California Interscholastic Federation. Sports programs, the survey further states, cost only about 1 to 3 percent of a [...]
Jun
22
2010
22
2010
Rural schools in Fla. will get own division
Rural schools in Florida will soon compete in their own sports division. Florida High School Athletic Association’s board voted unanimously this week to create a division for schools that reside in areas designated rural by the state’s office of tourism and that also have fewer than 500 students.
How best to turn yourself from sports fan to professional sports journalist? Quickly moving beyond general guidance about sports writing, Joe Gisondi focuses on the nitty-gritty, with hands-on, practical advice on covering 20 specific sports. From auto racing to wrestling, you’ll find tips on the seemingly straightforward—where to stand on the sideline and how to identify a key player—along with the more specialized—figuring out shot selection in lacrosse and understanding a coxswain’s call for a harder stroke in rowing. Preparing you for just about any game, match, meet, race, regatta or tournament you’re likely to cover, Field Guide to Covering Sports is the ideal go-to resource to have on hand as you master the beat. You can 