Suzanne L. Cooke, United States Sports Academy
Abstract
As professional athletes become increasingly frustrated with journalists, they are bypassing them with more than just statements of “no comment.” Instead, they are posting their own messages and updates on personal websites and Twitter accounts. And athletes are not the only entity demonstrating a decreased trust and reliance upon traditional journalism.
To begin with, technological advances have severely altered the manner in which information is communicated. The rapid growth of internet sites and other networking platforms is at the center of this change, offering immediate access to information for anyone who can type the word “google.” Further, blogging, texting, and tweeting have created a plethora of sources from which one can gain access to sports information. This has created major challenges for anyone working in the field of sports journalism.
Unfortunately, increased accessibility does not always lead to increased accountability. In fact, this enlarged market has led to decreased reliability as journalists feel augmented pressure to provide breaking news and headlines to gain public attention and revenue. Consequently, journalists are increasingly sensationalizing and dramatizing the personal lives of athletes in an effort to stay competitive.
As a result, this has caused a noticeable breakdown in the relationships between journalists and professional athletes; what was once a harmonious association is now caustic. As the trust between the two continues to dissipate, professional athletes are taking matters into their own hands, literally. They are tweeting and texting, updating their blogs and websites, all from the access of a phone in the palm of their hand. They are increasingly bypassing the need and desire to talk with journalists. As this battle rages on between journalists and professional athletes, technological advances will continue to aid the fight of the athletes.
Unfortunately, the express emergence of innovative, technological methods of communication have caused undocumented pressure to deliver a fresh, innovate story that will sell, which ultimately affects the sound principles of journalism – ethics, accuracy, and professionalism. As the presses start rolling to a halt, it is clear that any sports journalist refusing to follow the road of technological advances will ultimately fall behind the curve.
Introduction
This paper will examine the rapid evolution of traditional sports journalism. It will begin by suggesting a variety of driving forces fueling the shift from traditional journalism of pen and print, to click and internet. Then, it will discuss the implications this shift has upon the realm of sport; for it is not only journalists who are affected, but also professional athletes, sports organizations, and fans alike. As technological advances progress, and trusting, ethical relationships between journalists and athletes regress, there is danger that the presses may indeed come to a complete stop.
Definitions of Terms
- Blog
- a type of website, usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video.
- ESPN
- Entertainment and Sports Programming Network
- Facebook
- Website for people to create personal pages on which they can post pictures and all manner of personal information and communicate with others.
- TMZ
- “Thirty Mile Zone” A term which originated in the 1960s due to growth of ‘on location’ shoots in Hollywood. A “thirty mile zone” was established to monitor the regulations of these shoots. Now, the acronym is used as a celebrity news source compromised of paparazzi who will report every minute detail of celebrities’ personal lives.
- Twitter
- Twitter.com is a social networking and “micro-blogging” website which enables users to write short messages to each other.
Review of Literature
Traditional, old-fashioned sports journalism highlighted the events of a game and the individual performances of athletes. People eagerly awaited the delivery of the morning paper to read the game summary and analyze the box scores; however times have changed. Not only are people no longer waiting for the newspaper to be delivered to their front door step, they are not even purchasing the paper at all. “Following an average drop of 10.6% in the last 12 months, daily newspaper circulation has fallen to a pre-World War II low of an estimated 39.1 million; which means only 12.9% of the U.S. population buys a daily newspaper,” (Mutter, 2009). The main reason for the decline is due to technological advances that allow instant access to every score, highlight, and play-by-play via internet websites, postings, and blogs. Certainly, the dying reliance upon the newspaper and printed word is causing a major change in the field of sports journalism; and there are a number of forces causing the presses to come to a halt.
Increased Accessibility & Immediacy
The most influential impetus behind the change in the field of sports journalism is the evolution of technology. There is no doubt we are living in a society bombarded by an explosion of mass media, and a demand to access information at a faster pace. This is proven by the fact that as newspaper and magazine sales continue to decrease, there is an immense increase in internet sites. The internet has revolutionized the world of sports journalism by providing immediate access through blogs, instant messaging, tweeting, Facebook, and a plethora of other platforms. Ultimately, the factors of increased accessibility and immediacy have forced traditional newspaper journalists to conform to a new system, or lose their position.
Further, due to the increased access of sporting events via the internet, satellite, and other advances in technology, a mere review of sporting events and scores is no longer as important to audiences. As Greg Bowers, an assistant professor at the Missouri School of Journalism stated, “The old reason for buying the paper is gone. What journalists are trying to do is create a new reason for buying the paper,” (Brown, 2008). This shift in focus, caused by pressure to compete with the immediacy and accessibility of the internet has caused the traditional newspaper presses to stop rolling.
Increased Competition & Pressure
To begin with, the increased market of media outlets has significantly increased the level of competition among journalists. In order to stay competitive, journalists began reporting on a variety of aspects that were only loosely, if at all, connected to the professional sports game. They began intruding upon aspects such as the owner’s hiring decisions, manager’s coaching decisions, and most importantly the personal lives of professional players.
In addition, in an attempt to stay competitive, newspaper and magazine editors began placing increased pressure upon journalists. In order to compete with the internet culture of reporting, journalists are increasingly being encouraged to look for stories outside the lines and boundaries of which they were traditionally accustomed. As Michael Rand, sportswriter for the Minneapolis Star, stated, “The 24/7 nature of news, an evolutionary trait that’s ossified over the past 20 years, compels reporters to dig ceaselessly for novel information, rather than hone stories,” (Rowe, 2008). In addition, many sports editors are forcing journalists to operate in a different manner by requiring them to create blogs online in addition to their traditional reporting. Further, to show the importance of these blogs, the success of the journalists is often evaluated by the number of “hits” or responses the blog incites. Due to the fact journalists are evaluated by this measure, they feel increased pressure to report on controversial issues that will attract the greatest audience. As a result, the pressure upon sports journalist to be the first to report breaking news began to cause a trend of irresponsible journalism.
Irresponsible Journalism
The simplicity of the concept of sports journalism is that it should be focused on sport; on the athletic talents of professional athletes, not their personal lives. Unfortunately, the increased competition and economic pressures have led to decreased ethics in reporting, as journalists are forced to develop the most controversial stories that will sell. Too often these stories are laden with sensationalism and scandal, and have the potential to tarnish an athletes’ reputation. Further, with the inception of numerous sport specific television stations, radio shows, magazines, and internet sites, a personal situation involving a professional team or athlete can be spread across the nation in a matter of seconds. “What has changed is the omnipresence of the technological mass media. What used to be whispered or spread through word-of-mouth is now available instantaneously to millions of people,” (Silverman, 1999). Therefore, the affects of irresponsible reporting on the personal lives of professional athletes can be extremely damaging.
For example, one newspaper, The News & Observer, did more harm than good in its coverage of the Duke Lacrosse scandal. Instead of focusing on the facts of the case, the newspaper caused additional conflict and controversy as it indulged in speculative information. Worse, the newspaper then blamed the players involved for not being available for interviews so they could print the truth. “We were hampered early on by the unwillingness of the players, their families or other representatives to speak with our reporters,” (Ham, 2007). Further, they went on to admit, “some of our coverage played to stereotypes, and a couple opinion columns drew sweeping conclusions too quickly.” This irresponsible reporting has been more and more widespread, as journalists compete with each other for the best story to attract attention and make revenue. Unfortunately, this type of journalism results in more sensationalized, opinionated stories rather than fact-filled reporting.
Just the Facts
Another problem with the current trends of sports journalists is that instead of focusing on providing necessary information, they take provocative stances on issues, speculate details, and share more opinions than facts. One example is the case with NFL player Sean Taylor, who after being shot, journalists decided to focus on his negative past and rap sheet to fill time until more information was made available about the investigation of his death. Despite the claims of ESPN senior vice president and director, Vince Doria, who stated, “I don’t know how you could have ignored his past offenses, but the directive to shows was to take steps not to link that behavior to this incident,” (Schrieber, 2007). Apparently, no one received that memo. Instead, in the absence of facts, journalists filled the headlines with all of his past illegal behaviors, speculating the cause of his death. In the process, they tore apart the reputation of a dead man. One has to wonder how that reported negativity affected his family, and if the actions of journalists in this situation were truly responsible and ethical.
Societal Demands
Certainly, society is also to blame for the alteration of focus in the field of sports journalism. For, as a society, we yearn most for two types of media stories; those involving celebrities and those involving drama. Therefore, the arrests, club brawls, domestic violence, and extra-marital affairs by professional athletes are certain to peak our interest and draw our attention. As proof of the desire for this trend in journalism, it is these controversial stories that are given the most attention, never failing to make the front page headlines and nightly highlight reels. According to a study by Richard Lapchick, director of the Institute for Diversity an Ethics in Sports, “What we’ve seen is about 100 athletes a year, on average, arrested for violence against a woman and 75 for some form of recreational drugs. So roughly three times a week, you pick up a paper or watch TV, see something like that, and it creates an impression in people’s minds that there’s a pattern,” (Litke, 2006). This creates a negative image of athletes in the minds of society, and a distrust of journalists in the minds of athletes.
Professional Athletes Fed Up With Sports Journalists
Due to the reasons discussed above, an increasingly contentious relationship is developing between sports journalists and professional athletes. The recent situation with Tiger Woods serves as a poignant example of the conflict, as journalists bombarded into his personal life. Since the Woods predicament began, journalists have been shouting for Tiger to come forward, talk to them, and present his side of the story. Woods, however, has chosen to take a different approach and remain hidden and quiet; a move that has seemingly infuriated the media. In fact, Woods shared more information with the public through his own methods than he did through journalists. While he told reporters he was unavailable and had no comment, he communicated through posts on his Web site. Despite his silence, journalists have fought hard to create stories and report on Woods’ transgressions, as evidenced by reports from the News Coverage Index that report 6% of the entire world news was dedicated to Tiger’s situation the week the story broke. Further, journalists continue to follow Woods’ personal life as he admitted himself to a sex addiction recovery program, certainly a private matter, and none of the public’s business, but that has not stopped the published stories, and the continued invasion into his private life.
As Tiger quietly made a statement that he refuses to play into the media game, society must understand that this all is just a game; a game driven more by profit than ethics. This is evidenced by the fact that photographs of Tiger with another woman were first discovered over a year ago, but the media made a deal that in exchange for not publicizing the pictures Woods would do a cover story for Men’s Fitness magazine, (Goldstein, 2009). Therefore, if it were simply about reporting what is right instead of making a profit, the Woods story would have been leaked long ago. It seems all but perhaps one journalist understands and agrees. Jason Whitlock, reporter for FoxSports.com, was one of the few journalists to admit the media was in the wrong. “It’s important for the public to know that the media act dishonestly all the time. We’re far more phony than Tiger Woods ever could be,” (Whitlock, 2009). He further admits, “This whole affair highlights why the mainstream media have lost the public’s trust. We don’t deserve it. We’re controlled by hidden agendas,” (Whitlock, 2009).
Effects of the New Game Plan
The two most detrimental effects of the changes occurring in the field of sports journalism are the decrease in accuracy of sports journalism, and the deterioration of the relationship between journalists and athletes.
Accuracy in Jeopardy
One result of “searching for a story that will sell,” is that journalists often report more opinion than fact. A recent survey confirms an “observed trend in the media around the world of almost a race to the bottom in terms of superficial content in sports coverage focusing on personalities, events and gossip rather than much if any serious content, and almost nothing on the political, economic and social aspects of sport,” (Davies, 2002).
An additional problem is the lack of concern by journalists when they report incorrect information. “In the olden days of newspapers, if you were wrong, you had to write a correction in the next day’s paper and go to the editor’s office and explain why and how you screwed up. That correction also showed up on your annual review. The only repercussions today is a lack of credibility,” (Davies, 2002). Ultimately, there are many concerns causing feelings of resentment and caution when it comes to the recent trends of mass media sport reporting. Even if journalists report erroneous information, the more sensationalized, the greater audience attracted. Therefore, journalists are rewarded for reporting quickly, regardless of the accuracy.
In addition, accuracy will continue to be compromised as journalists now have to compete with a whole new beast of independent bloggers. As almost anyone can post a blog, the lines have become blurred as to who is the reporter and who is the audience. Ultimately, the influx of bloggers impacts the accuracy and credibility of traditional, professional journalists. In fact, major problems with accuracy have already begun to appear, as evidenced by the erroneous, premature Twitter message that stated NFL player Chris Henry had died, when in fact he was still alive at the time. Compounding the problem is that “Gossip Web sites that don’t reveal their sources and tabloids better known for stories on extraterrestrial sightings have apparently become reliable sources of information,” stated Chris Zelkovich, writer for the Toronto Star. Further, as new sites begin to emerge, such as the innovative TMZ sports specific gossip blog, sports journalists will have to fight even harder to keep a sense of trust and accuracy in reporting. “This new TMZ publication could be an “industry game changer that could somewhat destabilize ESPN’s complete dominance over the field of the sports blogosphere,” (O’Keefe).
Declining Ethics
Another aspect that has been affected by the shifts in sports journalism is the level of ethics among sports journalists who report upon the personal lives of professional athletes. While sports journalists continue to report negative stories about professional athletes, they neglect to understand the affects of their reporting. As a result of their pursuit to be first to report a story, or gain publicity, journalists end up tarnishing the images of professional athletes forever.
Surely, it would be considered irresponsible reporting if a sports journalist did not disclose an athlete’s negative behaviors that directly affected his sports performance. For example, when an athlete has admitted to using steroids, or other performance-enhancing drugs, the action directly affects their professional skills or job. However, if it has nothing to do with their sports-performance, then is it ethical to report it to the rest of the world? For example, the adulterous behavior of Tiger Woods is mortifying to many, but it does not directly involve, nor affect, his performance as a professional athlete. Regardless that one would be hard-pressed to find someone to condone his behavior, it is still part of his personal life that is none of the public’s business. However, as a result of the media continually reporting every detail of his private situation, sponsors were forced to cease their endorsement deals with Woods. They could not afford the potential negative publicity associated with him. As a result, Tiger will lose an estimated $110 million a year in endorsements, (Park, 2009).
Therefore, in the end, the media intrusion not only cost him his privacy, it also caused him to lose his reputation, his endorsements, and subsequently millions of dollars. It is hard to easily accept this, as the other side of the coin is that sports media and journalists profited millions off of their reporting. This further proves that journalists are more interested in profit than ethics. Tiger Woods’ golf swing earned him a number one rank in the world for all but 32 weeks of the past decade; however, due largely in part to the over-involvement of journalists, ironically the swing his wife took with a nine iron served as the impetus for landing him in the largest sand-trap of his life.
Severed Relationships
One major affect of the increased personal reporting of journalists is a breakdown in what was originally a harmonious relationship with professional athletes. It was a simple process – professional athletes played games, journalists reported on games, and fans were informed. In fact, it has been a well-known fact that journalists have developed unique, personal relationships with professional athletes. So unique, an unspoken agreement has been conjured in which journalists usually agree to turn a blind eye to extra-marital affairs, gambling, or other unethical behaviors. As explained by Tom Jolly, The Times’ sports editor, “The general policy is that we try to limit what we report to whether it affects on-field play,” (Calderone, 2007). As long as the action had nothing to do with the performance of the athlete on the field, it was off the record. Unfortunately, as times have changed, so has the focus of journalists and their relationship with professional athletes. One of the first examples to illustrate the change was a situation that occurred with MLB player, Alex Rodriguez. In 2007, a newspaper published a picture of Rodriguez out on the town with a woman who was not his wife. “When I saw it and heard it, it was like ‘Wow!’ This was very, very different from my own experience in covering teams. It felt like the line had been moved,” stated Buster Olney, a former Yankees beat reporter for The Times, (Calderone, 2007). Some reporters suggested the Rodriguez story broke the mold because he was generally not well-liked by reporters. Others propose it had to do with the fact he was the highest-paid player in baseball, yet not living up to team or fan expectations. Regardless of the reason for publishing the story, the information had nothing to do with his athletic performance or ability. Sports journalists invaded his private life simply to make a profit, with no concern for how it affected him. As evidenced by a spokeswoman from the newspaper that printed the story, Suzanne Halpin, “It was the biggest story in town last week, and we’re proud to have broken it,” (Calderone, 2007). As journalists find ways to rationalize and defend reporting of this nature, it is clear the lines of ethics are beginning to be crossed and the relationships between journalists and athletes will ultimately sever.
While it seems it would be advantageous for sport journalists and professional athletes to work with and depend on each other, the level of mistrust between the two only seems to increase. “Sports journalists are in the proverbial know, and they dispense with incredible vigor their judgments against the personal character of players and coaches,” (Rowe, 2008). Due to the fact that many journalists are increasingly crossing the lines with their content and level of reporting as they dig for stories, many athletes fear being misrepresented. An invasion of personal lives, characterized by false accusations, sham allegations, and rampant sensationalism create skepticism by athletes. As a result, the relationship between journalists and athletes begins to deteriorate. As Sports Illustrated states, “The clubs and the media, as if stuck in a bad marriage, have grown apart,” while Kansas City Royals’ pitcher David Cone said, “We feel like targets; a lot of times the media is looking for a reason to get on you. Negativity sells.” As journalists incessantly and greedily search for controversial issues, players become increasingly frustrated and furious at the invasion of their personal lives. Ultimately, this is leading to athletes taking matters into their own hands through the use of social networking sites.
Summary and Conclusions
Increase of Social Networking Sites
Ultimately, as the credibility of journalists continues to decline, a new generation of sports coverage is developing. Certainly, one of the most influential changes in the field of sports journalism is the increase of social networking. Social networking sites such as blogs, Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter are surging among all spheres of the population, and emerging as a powerfully influential trend in sports. In fact, frustrated athletes are utilizing these high-tech platforms as their own, more controlled, means of communication in order to avoid the traditional sources of implausible media. In addition, as these technological advances afford professional athletes greater access to audiences than traditional news sources, they continue to complicate the process for journalists.
First and foremost, social networking sites allow athletes to share their thoughts and feelings first-hand without having to go through traditional methods such as journalists. Some recent examples of athletes using the non-traditional media are Denver Broncos player, Brandon Marshall, who refused to talk to the media, but instead posted a blog on his website informing fans that it was time he left Denver. Likewise, former Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling used his blog to announce his retirement. In addition, NBA player Shaquille O’Neal reported most of the surrounding news of his trade through Twitter instead of using a traditional journalist.
In fact, Twitter is perhaps one of the most popular sites among professional athletes. Twitter acts as a type of social media database, allowing people to share brief messages and information; and its popularity is evidenced by the 1,382 percent increased visits between the years of 2008 and 2009. Further, while the service does not release numbers on how many people have signed up for the service, the media estimates put the number at around 6 million, (Valade, 2009). These numbers make Twitter the fastest growing member community destination. This increase in the use of networking sites will undoubtedly continue to decrease the use and need of traditional journalism.
Additional examples of the use of Twitter can be found through a variety of athletes. Fed up with drug allegations, Lance Armstrong did not want to talk to the media anymore. Instead, he sent out real-time messages on Twitter, including a time-sensitive post that French anti-doping authorities had dropped charges against him for failing to follow testing protocols, released before journalists had a chance to report it. In addition, NBA player, Kevin Love, used Twitter to announce his coach had been released. He was the first one to make the announcement, before any other media source.
Further, professional athletes are even using Twitter to promote their own personal websites. This can attract and lead fans to their sites where they have increased control as to the manner in which information is presented. It also affords athletes a chance to reply or refute stories journalists may present. In addition, professional athletes are increasingly able to expose themselves in a positive manner, attract fans, and gain publicity, which can lead to increased popularity and lucrative contract deals, something for which they used to rely upon traditional journalists. Ultimately, publicity sells, and professional athletes are making smart business moves with these new social networking platforms.
Even the professional leagues are using these new social networking sources. The NFL used Twitter to announce draft selections; the NHL used Twitter to reach over 234,000 people on opening night of the playoffs; and the NBA team, the Portland Trailblazers, credit Twitter to drawing more than 10,000 fans to a playoff rally, (Whiteside, 2009). In fact, most professional sports teams now have their own Twitter accounts which they use to promote ticket giveaways and other marketing campaigns. Even college programs are beginning to utilize Twitter as a major form of communication. “Social media presents a range of new opportunities and a complete increase in control of coverage for universities and professional sports teams,” (O’Keefe, 2009). This will ultimately affect the manner in which traditional journalists are used to report both professional and college athletics. As these organizations engage in their own forms of promoting themselves through social media, they can even gain increased revenue by selling ads on their own sites. Ultimately, this furthers that amount of competition journalists have to face, and pushes them farther into being obsolete.
Certainly, one of the main concerns among traditional media sources is that as the popularity of these social networking sites increase, the need for traditional media sources may decrease. “Celebrities are using social media and bypassing media gatekeepers,” (McCracken, 2009). This is especially true as the audience of Twitter has been proven to consist of a majority of adults. “Use of social networking by people aged 35 to 54 grew 60 percent in the last year,” (Miller, 2009). While traditional newspapers may not be hit as hard when teenagers, who never bought their newspaper, use these forms of technology, they do feel the impact when adults start blogging and tweeting instead of flipping the pages of a newspaper.
Conclusion
The profession of traditional sports journalism is on the brink of extinction. In fact, Fox Sports analyst, Jason Whitlock, recently made the claim that “ESPN killed sports journalism.” He believes the corporation was responsible for overpaying and showering the most talented sports writers with fame to the point in which they became more concerned about appearance than content, (Whitlock, 2009). Indeed, his analysis of the death of sports journalism is abundantly supported. Increased accessibility, competition, and pressure are at the core of the collapse of traditional sports journalism. In addition, irresponsible journalism, societal demands, and the increasing frustration of professional athletes have helped fuel the negative image of journalists. As a result, there has been a decline in ethics and professionalism, which has ultimately led to severed relationships with professional athletes and sporting organizations.
In addition to the driving forces mentioned above, technological advances continue to impact the field of sports journalism. The almost incalculable increase in the use of social networking sites allows anyone and everyone to post information, which is accessible 24/7. This saturated market impels an immense level of competition among journalists, forcing them to conform or become a nonentity. “The traditional game story died years ago. Offering depth and analysis and telling the behind-the-scenes stories is where sports journalism has gone. Whether it’s the right direction has yet to be determined,” (Brown, 2008). There is no doubt the business of sports journalism has been altered, and unless traditional journalists and newspaper organizations conform to the changes, the presses will undoubtedly roll slower and slower until they come to a complete stop.
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