Sports Journalism
Context and Issues
by Raymond Boyle

This is a book that tackles the paradox of sports journalism and shakes it by the scruff of its neck.

In the hierarchy of journalism, the sports desk has been seen as soft news and a bastion of easy living, populated by fans with typewriters.

Yet this scholarly book takes a close look at the profession, its increasingly important place in newspapers and why it's so crucial.

It's different to the run-of-the-mill journalism text book, because it's a far cry from the usual "how-to-do-it" guide.

The basic premise is that sports journalists are different.

Early on in the book, the author recognises the fact that they spend less time office-bound than other journalists and still benefit from the drip-feed of information that arrives at their desk.

But it also asks if sports journalists can rise to the very top, and wonders about the professional image of this particular type of hack.

It tackles issues such as whether they pander to "box office appeal" in their work, and their role covering matches as well as the story around the main event, putting happenings in context. It analyses a growing commercial importance for the broadsheet market, on the back of a growing literate fan base craving sports writing.

There's a good analysis of the regional and local sporting press, and how success and circulation are entwined with the performance of local football teams and sport coverage.

"In cities like Manchester and Glasgow, for example, a steady stream of stories involving the big football teams is absolutely vital for the commercial success of papers in these cities," the author writes.

"Here the beat system offers a regular and mostly predictable rhythm of newsgathering for the local papers that also have to be careful in sustaining good relationships with the local clubs."

He says that despite the loss of many evening sports special editions, the link between sports and local media remains strong, with Liverpool FC's Champion's League win of 2005 pushing next-day sales of the Echo up 40 per cent, and doubling sales of the Daily Post.

When specialist information can be largely absent from journalism studies, this kind of book can fill in the gaps.

As the author says, it was written to: "…offer a historically informed snapshot of some of the issues, debates and challenges that are reshaping the boundaries of contemporary sports journalism", and takes an over view on globalisation, digitisation and what he calls "marketisation" throughout.

Because the field is changing, and the "golden era" is long gone, the book shows the organisational, technological and cultural factors driving this.

It looks at the print media, with history, context, developments and the future in a changing newspaper market. Allied with that is the battle for news in the digital age, newswire sports journalism and 24/7 television and radio coverage.

Ethical issues such as the rise of celebrity – created by the media – is allied with PR issues for certain big players in sport, and whether sports news coverage is or should be entertainment in itself.

While Sports Journalism, Context and Issues is wide-ranging, it's also a scholarly book and refers to many other studies, essays and works as the basis for its arguments and conclusions – but remains accessible.

It covers the dumbing-down debate, women in sports journalism, and discusses the way that newspapers continue to set the agenda.

Raymond says: "There is also something about the newspaper form that chimes with the needs of the sports fan to read about (and relive at their leisure) a particular event or the sporting exploits of their team."

We like that as a closing thought.

Sports Journalism
Context and Issues
by Raymond Boyle
SAGE paperback £18.99 (ISBN 1-4129-0798-5)

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