Sports journalism : still the 'toy department' of the news media?

David Rowe

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticle

    170 Citations (Scopus)

    Abstract

    Sports journalism is an increasingly significant feature of the press yet is subject to considerable criticism, as summarized by the familiar jibe that it is the `toy department of the news media'. While there is an element of cultural snobbery and prejudice in this charge, sports journalism should not be exempted from scrutiny regarding conventional professional criteria within the news arena. There is, though, a dearth of empirical evidence concerning international patterns in sport. This article draws on data from the International Sports Press Survey 2005 (Schultz-Jorgensen, 2005), the largest international survey of sports journalism yet produced, and, in particular, on its Australian component. In assessing the survey's findings on sports journalism's concerns with problems and social issues, and the range of sources that it uses, the article reflects on whether the pejorative `toy department' is justified. In concluding it addresses the role of sports journalists in the creation, maintenance, and enhancement of a sports celebrity system.
    Original languageEnglish
    Number of pages22
    JournalJournalism : Theory\, Practice\, and Criticism
    Publication statusPublished - 2007

    Keywords

    • leisure
    • mass media
    • mass media and sports
    • social aspects
    • sports
    • sports journalism

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