So you think you want to work in the “glamorous” world of sports journalism, do you?
But before you answer that, ask yourself if you have what it takes….You’ve decided you’re all in to “low pay, long hours” mindset but there’s a lot more to it in 2018…Can you shoot and edit your own video?…Can you format a show?…Do you have your own website (and can you write the code for it)?…Those are the systems you can learn but how do you get your point across when the competition is so fierce?
At our most recent Boston University Sports Journalism Seminar, W-E-E-I Site Editor Rob Bradford hit the nail on the head with his very first statement…Said Bradford, “In a nutshell, it’s more about getting the person to look at your stories than it is the actual story. You have to grab them”…
Ouch!…
It’s not enough to just produce the work but you have to bring the readers/viewers into the tent as well (and maybe first)…That’s a scary proposition, maybe even more so when looking for that first job…You’re unsure of yourself as is, let alone worrying about people liking you and your material from the jump…
Our other guest that same night, Emerson Lotzia of NESN, explained his early travels down the broadcast road and, like Bradford, laid it out for those in attendance; “You can only explain to them how much of a grind it is until you’re actually into it. You don’t realize the ridiculous(ly) long days and long hours and everything that’s ahead of you. You’re going to be producing, shooting your own content. You’re going to be anchoring, you’re going to be editing. I was a one man band for eight years till I came to Boston but that was how I sold myself to those stations.”… Interestingly, one of the things Lotzia came to realize was that in perfecting those skills he was positioning himself ahead of the veterans who were resistant to the so called “new technology” and new way of doing business…
We spent a lot of time talking about the process of sports journalism in 2018 but not as much about what it is…Well, it’s sports talk radio, it’s “hot topics”, it’s tweeting and Instagram, all of it and more …And yes, it’s well produced material, well written, well shot, well edited…That all counts…But for me the highlight of the night was when Bradford said he envied the students in the class for the skills they had!….
If I’ve had anything to do with that, I’ve done my job…
8 Comments
Ashleigh Shanley posted on January 29, 2018 at 7:19 pm
Social media, attention spans, and separating yourself. Those seem to be the components that make up sports journalism in 2018. With our two guest speakers last week, they brought to light these three major points, and stressed how playing to these can help us achieve our goals of working in the sports media world.
Firstly, Rob Bradford, WEEI Site Editor, said with everything he produces he has to consider how he is going to push it through to people – mostly by using social media. Each week he writes blogs, compose podcasts, and sometimes appears on NESN talk shows – but then comes the most important part. Bradford has to find ways to increase views on each of his products. How does he encourage aspiring sports journalists to do this? He said writing your headlines to appear almost like a tweet, helps make it easier to share on all forms of social media and increase views. I completely agreed with this point because in my own experience when I am scrolling through Twitter, or even on a news site, I click on the articles that divulge enough information – like a tweet – but still allow me to learn more once I click and read the article. This goes with what our second guest speaker Emerson Lotzia of NESN said, “Social media is driving the business right now.” To use social media as a way to share our content, it is clear it can only help us become better, millennial sports journalists.
This brings me to the next point Bradford and Lotzia highlighted: attention spans of our audiences have changed. This really spoke to me since I read so much of my news on the go and using a mobile device. I only have a certain amount of time when I pull out my phone and start going through the news – so I want clips, pictures, articles and podcasts that give me the stories I want and do so quickly. Just this morning, I saw a picture on Instagram that was captioned “Magic Johnson wants accountability at Michigan State” with a tweet of his incorporated in the picture that elaborated on his belief about the current scandal at MSU. This gave me just enough information at the time to know his opinion on the topic. Then later this afternoon when I had more time, I followed up with the full article on ESPN. While some might complain about this changing state of journalism as a result of shorter attentions spans and getting people their news in a concise manner – as Bradford said, it is all about getting people to click on your content first, and you need to play to their attention span by using fast paced social media.
The combination of the first two points brought up in class brings me to the third factor our guests addressed – separate yourself from the competition. I agree it is an incredibly hard industry to break into, but I believe by practicing the first two points mentioned, each of us can separate ourselves from the rest of the sports media world. Similarly, in the Huffington Post article this week – The New Face of Sports Media by Jasneel Chaddha – he discussed the growth of social media as a platform for sports journalism. I really am confident that this is the direction the industry is moving towards – and young sports journalists, like myself, have to adjust to this new structure of the industry.
As technology continues to evolve at a faster rate, the world of journalism seems to take drastic leaps in different directions. However, the sports journalists that can quickly adapt to changes, stand out, and continue to cater to readers attentions spans will be the ones who succeed at the end of the day.
The key to sports journalism in 2018: through adaption, separate yourself and you will be noticed.
Alanna McDonough-Rice posted on January 30, 2018 at 6:03 pm
A professor once told my class that journalists are a “jack of all trades, master of none” and the conversation with Rob Bradford and Emerson Lotzia proved almost the opposite. Both Bradford and Lotzia are a master of almost every trade. Lotzia went into detail talking about how he anchored, filmed, and edited all of his content and how that separated him from other journalists. Bradford and Lotzia consistently mentioned how to separate yourself from other candidates and to constant develop new skills and do more to help your company improve.
Bradford detailed how he separated himself from other Red Sox reporters by creating a podcast. While he said the headline is the most important because you need to grab people, he also said the art does not have to suffer. I think for all of the journalists that aspire to create meaningful content, this was important to say and possibly even more important to hear. I believe that we can definitely grab a reader’s attention and keep their eyes on the story without sacrificing quality content.
The most important takeaway from the conversation with both of them is that we need to be constantly learning and developing our skills. Whether it’s starting a podcast, creating a blog, or learning to code we need to find ways to advance ourselves personally and professionally.
Stand out, get noticed, and you will succeed in sports journalism.
Jessica Citronberg Jane Rose Jacqui Manning posted on January 30, 2018 at 10:50 pm
Episode 1 of Hittin’ the Hay with Triple J
Nicole, Andrew, Taylor, Matthew posted on January 31, 2018 at 4:47 pm
Episode one of Around the Shorr: https://youtu.be/B73WLZY9YNg
Laura Guerriero posted on January 31, 2018 at 9:35 pm
If there is anything sports journalism is not, it’s boring. I’m not just talking about the actual act of reporting in sports journalism, I’m talking about the way content is packaged and distributed to the general public. Catchy images and clickbait-y titles have become the norm for an age where most people get their news in 280 characters or less on Twitter. In 2018, there are so places people can go to for information that, as a journalist, it can be hard to get people to look at your content, as W-E-E-I site editor Rob Bradford said.
Both Bradford and Emerson Lotzia of NESN talked about how both of the companies they work for are figuring out how to work with social media instead of against in so that they don’t fall behind. Bradford brought up the fact that there was a lag with W-E-E-I and its lack of a presence on Instagram. I believe in 2018, having as much exposure on as many social media platforms as possible will provide the greatest amount of exposure for any person or organization. In many cases, content that does really well, such as a viral video on Facebook, will eventually be shared across Twitter, Instagram, etc. You never know which platform your content will take off on, so it makes sense to use as many sites as possible.
It seems that the motto for sports journalism in the social media age would be “if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em.” Not only did Bradford and Lotzia discuss how they have noticed the shift toward using social media to push their content, they also discussed how they modified their work for their respective companies to follow the same format as social media posts. Bradford brought up the point of making headlines appear like tweets, which I agree with Ashleigh’s point about “news on the go.” For those that use Twitter every day, they become used to reading these snippets of information, so when users a tweet-like headline, they would be more willing to read more because it seems more comfortable.
Something that I found to be another prime example of “if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em” was Lotzia’s discussion of the way NESN had him deliver stories. The anchors would have to present a long list of stories in seven or eight minutes so that viewers can get the same amount of information and would be less inclined to turn to Twitter. With the advancement of cellphones, not only is it the younger generations that have shorter attention spans, it’s trickling into older generations as well, so companies are not only looking to gain more viewers, but they are also looking to maintain the audience they already have.
In our introductory journalism classes, we are taught that journalism is all about properly researching and writing stories, but in 2018, that is not the case. Yes, properly researching and writing stories is still very important, but as Bradford and Lotzia brought up at the end of the seminar, both sports journalism and how to succeed within it is all about being traditional…but with a different spin. It’s about taking your story and adding a modern element like a headline that’s going to get those extra clicks on tweets or Instagram posts with video and images, or, when talking about a career in sports journalism, it’s about adding a podcast/blog/YouTube channel to your portfolio. That’s where we come in. As a group of 20+ year-olds with the same short attention spans as every other person our age, we have a greater understanding of what catches attention and how to cater to that. We have the capability to combine our “younger” minds with the “traditional” to direct the future of sports journalism.
Shane Rhodes posted on January 31, 2018 at 11:32 pm
I really enjoyed what both Rob and Emerson had to say and thought they touched on some really important aspects of a job in sports journalism. A lot of people don’t expect the complete grind that accompanies the work and I thought they did a great job of getting across the point that, while the job is fun and can feel like a breeze on some days, it is tough and can be an absolute slog on others.
Like Alanna mentioned in her comment above, it is almost a requirement or necessity today to be a master — or, at the very least, capable — in all facets of the job whether it be recording, editing, writing, being active on social media or whatever else your employer may ask you to do. Getting your foot in the door is almost as important as what you actually do once you’re inside and having a basic understanding of anything and everything can go a long way. And, if you can’t do everything, why should you be considered over someone that can save money in other areas of the process?
The fact that jobs are very limited in number only magnifies this and makes it nearly impossible to separate oneself from the pack like Rob and Emerson recommended. With everyone able to do everything, you have to be creative in your work while also remaining savvy and competent in your technique. If you can’t do both, don’t expect many employers to come calling.
The prominence of social media in today’s world is another challenge of the job that wouldn’t have been present in years past. You have to get your content out as soon as possible while also continually pushing that content and other, recent content. Like Rob mentioned, you have to find ways to increase clicks or page views and then maintain that following. All the while, attention spans are dwindling.
Again, Rob and Emerson hammered home the fact that the job is anything but easy. However, they also made it abundantly clear that, if you are able to get in the door, don’t even think about leaving. Because there is no other job like it.
Elizabeth Pentikis posted on February 1, 2018 at 10:18 am
Check out my latest blog post for my thoughts on this week’s seminar!
Elizabeth Pentikis posted on February 1, 2018 at 3:34 pm
https://goo.gl/bxFdKe