Comments on: Is Social Media Boxing Out Access for Traditional Sports Media?

By: L White

L White — Sat, 05 May 2012 01:20:20 +0000

This is a topic that I began thinking about a few months back. With the continual rising popularity of social media such as Twitter and Facebook, do athletes still give time to the traditional sports media style or do they give “status updates” with their information to everyone via the World Wide Web? It is probably much easier for them to use social media than sit down with reporters, but that personal interaction is lost. When they put their information online using social media, they just put what they feel and it is not always thought through or censored. Sometimes this can contain anger or other things that can come back to hurt the athlete or their organization. Sitting down with the traditional sports media allows them to be asked questions and be censored. It also works on the important relationship between the reporters and the athletes this blog mentions a few times. I agree that traditional sports media will always have its place in the growing trend of social media because of this relationship and the athletes need for interaction with the media.

By: Scott

Scott — Fri, 04 May 2012 15:47:56 +0000

This blog contains good material on how sports media has changed over the years. Using the reference of Terry Lyons, who has worked in PR for numerous years was an excellent way to gain credibility for the blog. His impact of the blog with his knowledge and background kept my focus and allowed me to know research had been done. I do wish there could have been more information provided on Bill Simmons as to his past work, and his past relationships with athletes. It seems to me that what you had found on Mr. Simmons was that he was threatened by the new change in how sports media worked. Just as what Mr. Lyons had said with relationships, you put the focus back on what has always been acceptable and successful in sports media and that is hard work, build relationships, and work to maintain all resources that one can. I do wish you could have elaborated a bit more on when Mr. Simmons was discussing cutting out the middleman with social media. I would have liked to have seen more detail from Mr. Simmons on why that takes place because I do not agree with that statement. Yes social media has given fans more access to the athletes, but it does not allow in-depth interviews, exclusive one on one stories, nor access to the behind the scene footage of them on and off the court. Overall I felt your blog was informative and provided good insight on the feeling of some reporters. It also gave a view of how in sports media some items have changed, but the main goals and actions still are the same.

By: You’re Out! Is Social Media Eliminating the Need for Sports Journalism? « The Game isn't Over, til it's Over

Wed, 29 Jun 2011 20:26:49 +0000

[...] Gleason rebutted this analysis with his own interpretation, claiming that the medium has changed but the importance to access really is on forming and [...]

By: Coralee

Coralee — Wed, 04 May 2011 14:20:27 +0000

Thanks for sharing. What a pleausre to read!

By: Michael Hammelef

Michael Hammelef — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 22:25:06 +0000

Social media is definitely affecting PR. That is something we can say but we do not yet know how it will affect it in the long run. Having this new connection between athletes and the fan is something we shouldn’t take lightly. The athletes of today have grown up in such a protected environment it is hard to “crack the egg” that is an athlete. I do think that face-to-face was the best form of connection but times change and this social media connection is looking to take the top spot. This media is explosive and can sometimes make you wonder if “you really said that or did someone really say that?” but that’s the world that we live in today.

By: Social media & sports reporting | maybeatwork, mayisatwork

Social media & sports reporting | maybeatwork, mayisatwork — Tue, 15 Feb 2011 06:31:51 +0000

[...] Brian Gleason, a sports PR, begs to differ. He says that the fundamentals of a sports reporter – or any reporter, for that matter [...]

By: nml

nml — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 15:28:12 +0000

I think that the media is constantly changing and being in PR relations is changing daily with all of the new social media. However, I don’t think it is changing it in a bad way. If anything, for those who know how to use social media it can make the job easier. Now, PR practitioners are going to have to find the balance of forming relationships while using social media.

In the end, face-to-face contact will always be better. However, social media is changing PR constantly in a good way.