In America, we love our sports. With that comes an insatiable demand for news and media – as consumers and fans, we want to know what’s going on in the world around us – whether it be trade news, injury alerts, or simply the goings on of our favorite athletes.
The twenty-first century has seen athletes face a changing media landscape. While many traditional media enterprises still exist, players now have the opportunity to shape their own story – turning a once one-sided conversation to an immersive, collaborative experience.
For professionals who have recently completed a sports journalism degree, understanding how to navigate this new landscape is not only relevant but vital for long-term success as a media professional. Let’s explore how the media has changed – and how players have more opportunities to tell their stories than ever before.
Traditional Broadcasting: The Mainstay
No matter if you’re a sports fanatic or sports-apathetic, you’ve likely seen a sporting broadcast at least once in your life. Whether it’s a major event like the Super Bowl, regular season games, or even clips in the news, sport has a habit of capturing our hearts and minds.
It’s estimated that the typical American watches about three hours of traditional television per day, with about 11% of that time being sports-related content. That’s an incredible amount of dedication to sport, whether it be NFL, NRL, NBA, or any number of the hundreds of other sports available to viewers, highlighting just how important sport is to American viewers.
It’s important to note that the media landscape is changing. While traditional media has had a dominant presence in television broadcasting, outlets are now having to adjust their strategies to adapt to an increasingly digital cohort. In 2022, data published by Nielsen highlighted how digital streaming overtook traditional TV broadcasting for the first time, and broadcasters took note. No matter what sports you’re a fan of, you’ve likely noticed it – an increasing presence of traditional broadcasting on more digital channels than ever.
Evolutions in Sports Media – Podcasting
It’s important to recognize that traditional media outlets don’t have unlimited budgets. Often, they are constrained by elements outside of their control – corporate ownership, the ebb and flow nature of advertising. It costs substantial amounts of money to change platforms, and going from traditional to digital channels can not only be expensive, but heavily dependent on available resources.
As a result of this, traditional outlets have left the doors open for a new generation of sports commentators to come in. Podcasts are just one avenue of this – in a world where players used to be constrained to traditional media broadcasts, the door has now been blown open for players to speak to different audiences – perhaps those that choose to engage in media in less of a traditional sense.
Curating an Image
One of the potent things that these new channels bring is for the ability of athletes to curate their own image. While media advisers are still around, players have much more flexibility – they have a variety of ways they can connect to their fans – not necessarily involving traditional media outlets.
This can sometimes result in conflict between players and broadcasters. One such case in 2024 involved baseball player Nick Castellanos, who opted to reject an interview with ESPN due to an unwillingness to give him editorial control over his content.
This presents an interesting crossroads for traditional broadcasters. In a world where players have the option to engage with channels that work with their individual preferences, broadcasters are faced with a conflict – how does one retain the confidence of consumers who expect editorial independence, while managing the perspectives of players who want the freedom to tell their own story?
Traditional media has often had the opportunity to report with fearlessness and freedom on the issues impacting sports, whether it be integrity issues, umpiring problems, or the complex nature of problems facing players, whether they be financial, legal, or personal. If a media outlet secedes control, what does that mean for the future of broadcasters?
A New Frontier
As we enter a new frontier of sports broadcasting, traditional media outlets have much to consider. Balancing not only the needs of shareholders, and their audiences, but also the demands of other stakeholders, including players. It’s a complex and tricky environment to make – in some cases, with millions of dollars of potential benefit on the line.
Balancing these needs successfully could forever change the landscape of sports broadcasting – and may set a standard for a new generation of sporting professionals. Sport will undoubtedly continue to grow – whether through new channels such as esports, new formats, such as pickleball, or the evolution of long-term favorites – but reporting itself may change.
As the way Americans consume media changes, perhaps it’s time to ask – is it time for sports journalism to change, too?
