Swimsuit Editions

I was thinking today about the strange persistence of sports magazines pushing their Swimsuit Editions, or more recently, The Body Issue from ESPN.

It’s one thing for SI to promote one issue a year that is clearly intended to sell subscriptions, and that only sometimes features athletes in various forms of undress.

But what is a really interesting ethical situation, in my opinion, is ESPN’s answer. With their release of “The Body” issue, ESPN is taking the people they cover and asking them to take their clothes off.

Some may see no problem with this. However, if you take the parallel, that is, a newspaper like the New York Times (presumably) paying politicians to pose in a special edition of the paper dedicated to ‘the human body.’

One of the main tenets of journalism is supposed to be maintaining independence from sources. Why is it that these sports magazines prefer to fly in the face of that important guideline?

Perhaps I’m being too harsh. But it is frustrating to see sports journalists take themselves less seriously than news journalists do.

‘Getting’ Away From the Cops’ Speed

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nLqGDuLnVUw

In the above video, acclaimed sports play-by-play man Gus Johnson describes Tennessee Titans RB Chris Johnson’s impressive acceleration as “getting’ away from the cops speed.”

Given that Chris Johnson is black, and that there is a stereotype regarding young black men as criminals with something to hide, an initial outcry was heard.

Of course, the other key fact in this story is that the man who made the comment, Gus Johnson, is also black.

Some people have said that it makes the comment ok. Others feel he still poorly chose his words.

Johnson, for his part, apologized for his word choice after the incident.

I feel that this is a cautionary tale. While some might not consider play-by-play to be “sports journalism”, many people are going to associate the two. It pays to be careful about what you say on national television, because people are always ready to call foul.

Women Are Only Good for Housekeeping and Sideline Reporting?

I'd like to talk briefly today about sideline reporters.

Whenever a criticism of the sports journalism industry for being “men only” crops up, journalists are quick to point out that women dominate the ranks of sideline reporters.

I always laugh when I hear that. How exactly does that make sports reporting gender neutral? By ‘segregating’ the women into what is perceived as a less difficult sub-job?

There are some women who have infiltrated top positions in sports journalism. Linda Cohn as a SportsCenter anchor is a good example. And you will occasionally hear women doing play-by-play (albeit mostly for women’s sports).

But, if the industry wants to continue to collectively exclude women from patrolling the locker rooms and reading the latest sports news, they’ll need to find a better copout.

The easiest thing to do? Start giving premium jobs to people based on merit, not based on some boys’ club mentality.

What is a Sports Blogger?

Today I wanted to write about sports bloggers. While they may not be considering journalists per se, bloggers still comprise an important part of the industry.

Many newspapers and other outlets are hiring bloggers or allowing their regular sports reporters to keep blogs on the side.

Last semester, a Sports, Media, and Society course that I took conducted a survey to examine the ethics of sports bloggers. Marie Hardin, who is also my thesis adviser, was the professor for the class, and the coordinator for the survey of bloggers.

Here is the web link to the results: http://comm.psu.edu/about/centers/john-curley-center-for-sports-journalism/blogsreport.pdf

Here are some of the very interesting highlights:

- ¾ of bloggers do not see themselves as rivals of sports reporters.

- 85% consider blogging to be a form of journalism.

- Only 15% had been sports journalists before starting their blogs

What this means is that bloggers see themselves as part of the journalism fold. And you can bet the online audience feels the same way.

This comes with a possible issue, however. If some sports bloggers behave in an unethical way, people may start to associate these ethical lapses with the industry as a whole.

Just something to think about, but I suggest you read the PDF file for the rest of the findings. It is very interesting, and is only 4 pages long.

Accepting Freebies

One of the most oft-cited ethical challenges for sports journalists is what to do about freebies.

While tech reporters and other types of news reporters also are faced with this issue, sports journalists often have to try to figure out where the line should be placed.

Freebies can include tickets to games, free food, mementos, and even high-priced electronics.

Most people would agree that when the ‘freebie’ is more like a ‘buyout gift’, it is highly unethical to accept.

But what about free food in the press box of a PSU football game? In the interest of full disclosure, I will say that when I called my first-ever football broadcast at Beaver Stadium for ComRadio this September, I indulged in a free hot dog.

It may seem like too easy of an answer, but sports reporters need only use their judgment and what their gut is telling them. Unless they are morally corrupt.

In which case, they should abide by specific rules set by their journalism organization.