How to Navigate Sports Journalism as a Beginner

 Sports journalism as a field offers multiple opportunities for upcoming professionals to thrive, given the essential nature of journalism to an event. While information technology and consumer preferences might have elicited dynamism in the field, young professionals can still make their mark with the right approach.

To begin with, beginners would gain clarity from studying numerous niches in sports journalism before developing a list of preferences. These niches cut across news agencies, sports magazines, and newspapers, as well as engagements in radio stations, television networks, and blogs. In these spheres, an upcoming sports journalist can work as a sports reporter, a sports writer, an announcer, and potentially, a sports broadcaster. Outside these traditional spheres and after gaining considerable experience, a beginner in sports journalism can work as the official media spokesperson of a sports team, a consultant for various sporting organizations, or as a communications officer.

An upcoming sports journalist must develop the relevant industry skills to be well-equipped for evolving work settings. Sports reporters must develop outstanding research skills and hone them throughout their careers, given the importance of accuracy and fact-based analysis. For sports reportage and in-house meetings, beginners must also sharpen their writing and oral presentation skills. In addition, beginners must also study the sports business holistically to improve the quality of their analysis and reportage. Upcoming sports journalists while still at university can take up roles with campus news bodies and seek sports writing internships with local media organizations.

Beginners must also be intentional about visibility and building an online presence, given social media's wide reach. In addition to engaging in part-time and full-time entry-level roles, upcoming sports journalists can choose a sports team or sports industry topic to blog about or start a podcast. Beginners should also endeavor to post regularly on their social media handles to build an organic following over time. Journalists with an online presence find it easy to pivot to online sports journalism job opportunities, which eases portfolio building. An online presence is also a pathway to offline job roles.

Furthermore, upcoming sports journalists should strive for innovation in reportage. Sports editors deal with countless pitches from sports journalists daily, making it imperative for upcoming sports journalists to make efforts to stand out. Sports journalists with limited experience can boost the chances of editors accepting their pitches by consistently working on draft stories to sharpen one's writing skills. In addition, sports journalists can interview local sports professionals and cover local sporting events and competitions. In both practice and official pitches, upcoming sports journalists should make conscious efforts to be more persuasive, creative, and distinct.

Beginners should equally make conscious efforts to form and maintain relationships with sports broadcasting professionals across all experience levels. One advantage of beginners networking, particularly with experienced sports journalists, is the likelihood of mentorship. The latter renders clarity on career progression. Experienced sports journalists may also recommend courses to beginners interested in furthering their academic credentials beyond their bachelor's degree. In the long run, having a network of professionals with shared interests and experiences makes one's career progression more clear and worthwhile.

Anthony Volpe on Radar as Yankees’

Nancy Newman is a New York based sports anchor and broadcaster who provides Emmy award winning pre-and post-game coverage of the New York Yankees and Brooklyn Nets for the YES network. Among Nancy Newman’s areas of focus is emerging talents on the Yankees’ roster who promise to carry the team to success in 2022 and beyond.

One bright light in the Yankees’ system is shortstop Anthony Volpe, who was their first round pick in the 2019 draft and was having solid success at A-level ball when the pandemic disrupted play. Facing a suspended minor league season, he took this time to work on improving various facets of his game and putting on muscle.

In 2021, Volpe demonstrated power while hitting, and earned a promotion from single-A Tampa to High-A Hudson Valley. Continuing to pound home runs while stealing 33 bases, he demonstrated a consistency and versatility that had many fans clamoring for a promotion to the Major Leagues. With Gleyber Torres moving over to 2nd base, Isiah Kiner-Falefa has been signed to take a over at shortstop, the critical infield position. This also gives Anthony Volpe a chance at promotion and eventually his break into the big leagues sooner rather than later.

A Career in Sports Journalism

Media outlets are increasingly covering sporting events to meet sports popularity demand among fans. Hence the continuous need for sports journalists.

A sports journalism career is exciting, but it takes more than a passion for sports. A sports journalist should have a bachelor’s degree, preferably in journalism, communication, English, or another closely related field. However, some universities offer a bachelor's degree in sports journalism. Students can even advance to a master’s level, where they can study advanced topics such as digital technologies, entrepreneurial approach to business models for sports media, etc.

Sports journalists are expected to follow laid-down guidelines such as using the Associated Press (AP) style. Therefore, it is important to take advantage of any experience that will help gain real-world experience.

Sports journalists can gain experience by writing stories for their college newspapers or internships. Journalists may also do freelance work as they search for a permanent job. Creating a sports blog may also help journalists gain a good reputation that may help them get noticed by television or radio stations.

One major benefit of gaining experience and developing sports journalism skills is that it helps journalists make a name for themselves. It becomes easier to reach out to larger, well-known news agencies with a good portfolio.

Sports journalists must have excellent verbal communication skills, writing skills, and research skills to interview players and coaches, give game commentaries, and report game statistics. Sports journalists also must be objective. They are required to report sporting news without bias.

Aside from the traditional sports news reporting skills, today’s sports journalists also need more skills, thanks to advances in technology. Such skills include various digital competencies such as podcasts, social media storytelling, and mobile experiences. This is to cater to fans who are using new forms of the internet like tweeting to follow sporting events.

Sports journalists must be ready to deal with the challenges of the role, including nearly constant travel and working odd hours, late shifts, weekends, and holidays. This is necessitated by the sports, which may be slotted for odd hours, and the requirement to work on multiple projects simultaneously. The journalists also have to be professional and know how to deal with different characters when conducting interviews, for example, angry interviewees from a team that lost.

The role of a sports journalist will vary from one employer to another and from one position to another. The job may include production, research, interviews, and press conferences. Some may choose to work as sports editors, who review the information collected by sports reporters to ensure its quality and validity. A sports journalist is also responsible for networking with sports figures and other relevant stakeholders.

Technology advances in various fields such as analytics have also seen a shift in sports reporting. More sports teams are using analytics to help make strategic decisions in a game. The change into analytics has also introduced new metrics to study player performance and compile rankings of teams and players. Therefore, individuals pursuing sports journalism should familiarize themselves with statistics and mathematics.

VT Hokies Pay Tribute to NY Yankees

An award-winning sports broadcaster with the YES Network, Nancy Newman hosts Brooklyn Nets Pre-Game presented by Fanduel Sportsbook and New York Yankees Batting Practice Today presented by Audi. She won one of her four Emmy Awards for hosting the latter program. Nancy Newman has covered the Yankees in some capacity since 2003.

Although it was the off-season for the Yankees, there was still live sports at Yankee Stadium in December 2021. The Virginia Tech Hokies played the Maryland Terrapins in the 2021 Pinstripe Bowl on December 29 and paid homage to the MLB franchise with an orange-and-white Yankees logo on one side of players' helmets.

The bond between the two organizations began in May 2007, when the Yankees donated $1 million to the Hokies Spirit Memorial Fund following the devastating Virginia Tech campus shootings on April 16 that resulted in 32 fatalities. Virginia Tech president Charles Steger threw out the ceremonial first pitch for the Yankees game against the Boston Red Sox on the same night the donation was made.

The Yankees visited the Virginia Tech campus the following year to play an exhibition game against the Hokies baseball team. Stars like Alex Rodriguez, Derek Jeter, and Jorge Posada were among the Yankees players who signed autographs for Hokies players and fans.