Download Chap 10 - Leach Media

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Announcements
 All late assignments must be turned in by Friday
Nov 5th in order to receive credit
 After Nov 5th assignments not turned in to me or
in my mailbox by the Monday after the due date
will not be accepted
 Review the attendance policy
▪ Don’t let poor attendance affect your final grade
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What are some of your favorite sports teams
▪ Why are they your favorite
▪ When they play do you watch the post game show
▪ Why/Why Not
▪ What do people get from the sports game shows
▪ Anyone watch the half-time show for
▪ Football
▪ Basketball
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Sports and weather
▪ Received more coverage than any other subject
▪ Are there any newscasts with sports shows
▪ That have a catch name
▪ With a specific focus
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Think of a famous sports reporter
 Radio or TV
 What station or network
 What makes them famous
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Do you have a favorite sportscaster
 Who are they
 Why are they your favorite
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What is a catch phrase
 What is one popularized by a sports reporter
 What makes a catch phrase memorable
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How writing sports differs
▪ Sports is more video driven
▪ You need good video for highlights
▪ Can’t just use file/stock footage
▪ Video is self explanatory
 Reporter can drop verbs and descriptive comments
 This wouldn’t work for news story
▪ Sportscasters
▪ Use number more freely
▪ Often more critical of teams they cover
▪ Use more opinion & commentary
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Be cautious about these…
 Being critical ALL the time
▪ Can lead to views of cynicism
 Always showing praise for a team
▪ If it’s your team, be fair in your coverage
▪ Whether they’re doing good or bad
 Too many clichés in sports writing
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“Sports Speak”
 Language/jargon
▪ Terms sportscasters revert to or overuse
 Be more clear than clever
▪ Can be tough to be creative night after night
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Getting Good Bites
▪ Try to get sound bites that are not clichés
▪ Develop good questions
▪ Usually result in better responses
▪ If good questions still result in cliché
▪ Look for someone else to interview
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Locker-Room Interviews
 Unlike controlled interviews
▪ Locker rooms can be uncontrolled
▪ What possible problems to the locker room interview?
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“Rules of the Trade”
 Get a comment or two
▪ About the game & athletes or teams performance
▪ Don’t overwhelm athlete with questions
▪ Mood may vary depending on games outcome
 Be aware of others agenda
▪ Professional courtesy may go a long way
▪ Radio deadline may be before yours
▪ Deferring to them may set up favor in the future
 Avoid the dumb questions
▪ Many reporters ask same questions
▪ Most athletes respond to them
▪ Think about your questions
▪ If they are good, repetition isn’t bad
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Grammar – Poor grammar make YOU look bad
▪ Be aware of grammar use when writing your copy
▪ Sports is often overlooked more than news
▪ Poor grammar is reflected during delivery
 Examples – Think of team nicknames as nouns
▪ Team is singular - Pronoun should be singular
▪ Nickname is singular – pronoun should be singular
▪ Nickname is plural – pronoun should be plural
▪ Who wants to try a few?
 It’s or Their – (Pick the proper pronoun)
▪ The Bengals won 3 of ____last 4 games
▪ The Heat, with 3 all-stars, won ____ first game
▪ Chicago dominated ____ opponents in the last game
▪ The Yankees lost ____ season opener at home
▪ Golden State is pursuing ____ first win of the year
▪ The Nuggets traded ____ top players in the offseason
▪ Identify which is correct and why
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Be Proactive
 Audiences have different interests
▪ Some people love pro sports
▪ They will tune in regularly for info
▪ They are not the majority of people
▪ Some people don’t watch pro sports
▪ What can you offer THEM during the sports segment
▪ What might they watch if covered
▪ What is a non-pro sports story you can think of?
▪ How was it or could it have been appealing
DO
DON’T
 Look for features that would
 Cover only pro sports
interest all viewers
 Worry more about being clear
than being clever
 Find athletes who can talk
and ask them good questions
 Get caught up in a “Sports
Culture”
 Fall into “sports speak”
 Think that because you’re
covering sports the writing
rules don’t apply
 How do we avoid falling into the “Sports Speak”
syndrome
 Why is “Sports Speak” a problem