Sports journalists who worked for online companies or magazines in the mid-2000s were often ridiculed, cast outside of press conferences, and not taken as seriously as their counterparts in traditional media. This isn’t an opinion; this happened in many sports, as traditional journalists, some of whom had worked within their chosen field for over 40 years, had developed strong ties and great working relationships with some of the sports’ top characters and professionals.
Online media was still a new entity in the early part of this century, and to put it bluntly, many in traditional media didn’t respect those who were freelancers in their own field, looking for a seat at the table. Whether they were a freelance US journalist looking to report on the NFL or a reporter Down Under looking to muscle in on popular Australian sports such as AFL, cricket, and rugby league, it didn’t matter.
Nowadays, it’s the norm that Aussies seek out Australian sports news and updates online. Traditional media has fallen way behind, but it was not a clear-cut case in the mid-noughties—the landscape was completely different. Ultimately, this discourteous approach lit a fire for many freelance sports journalists and gave them the drive to succeed in their industry.
The Rising Promise Of Social Media Journalists
They began using social media sites to bolster their brand and appeal to sports fans looking for detailed, in-depth analysis of their chosen sports. Traditional media, for all their expertise, were limited to printing delays, often meaning that stories they wrote would not be published for around 24 hours after the event.
Those online journalists who were just starting off a window where they could beat them to the punch, proverbially speaking, connect with fans more quickly with their insights, whether via a vlog, a blog, or a YouTube video. This was the first real example of how online sports journalists would soon become the most influential in their field.
A Changing Sporting Media Landscape
Although traditional sports journalists could bring a game to life and detail it in such a way that grabbed the imagination of sports fans – online bloggers can drill further into popular yet polarizing opinions, such as who is better out of Ronaldo or Messi or if Barcelona are a bigger club than Real Madrid.
These popular and heated talking points generate clicks, news, and views; with these views comes advertising money, and with that, the avenue to produce online content rather than the less profitable traditional platforms has resulted in an exodus away.
A good example of this is revered football journalist Sid Lowe. Although he is one of the foremost English and Spanish football journalists for the Guardian, he also writes for several prominent football websites and blogs. It’s no longer enough to write for one mainstream newspaper simply. However, back in the 1980s and 1990s, this would’ve been more than sufficient for any journalist – it would’ve been the goal for many to land a job at one of the big media companies.
Breaking Down The Costs & Benefits
While social media might offer a far more convenient way for people to engross themselves in the latest sporting news, particularly niche sports, another enormous benefit that resulted in social media becoming the primary way for people to obtain their sporting news was the transformation in cost and access.
Before the internet, the only place to find detailed match reports was the newspaper, and they might catch highlights on the TV, with the odd game being shown live. In today’s market, even if you miss the game, the highlights are all over social media and YouTube within a few minutes of the game finishing.
It’s evolved into an even more hands-on approach, with many influencers now live-streaming themselves watching the game live, having watchalongs, and allowing their subscribers to comment alongside the action as and when it happens. With such an immersive to sports media, it’s unsurprising that social media and digital platforms are now the dominant force.
Although there is still a market for journalists who write about games and bring them to life, if people can watch the highlights online, not have to pay anything for them, and experience them for themselves, then they’re far less likely to pay to read reports, which was commonplace back in the latter stages of the 20th century.
Conclusion
Ultimately, it boils down to cost, speed, and accessibility. The rise of online journalists and those who use their social media platforms to broadcast and cover their favorite sports has eaten into the market share that traditional media had.
They could do it quicker and cheaper, creating fanbases and subscribers seeking tailor-made content. That’s not to say there isn’t a market for traditional media in sports, but its dominance has ended, and it won’t return.
Social media sites are the new sheriff in town, and if somebody wants to carve out a career as a sports journalist, in today’s market, the only place to start is via social media. Twenty years ago, that sentence would have been derided, but now, a sports journalist would not be able to succeed without an online presence.
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