The traditional path into sports media is a thing of the past, it has been weathered and beaten into a route that seems to go the opposite direction but ends up at the same destination, this is the effect of social media and the viral climate on journalism.
The industry has become a living thing, ever changing with new faces and names passing through the looking glass and back out again when their moment fades, it’s understandable that aspiring journalists find themselves flummoxed when trying to find a secure and steady entry point.
Rights – Nicholas Munns
Writing this article, I wanted to gather as much clarity as I could on the matter. This led me to an authoritative figure within the field, Peter Drury. Entering the industry in the 90s through local radio, Peter had taken the “oldboy” route to the top. However now, as Sky Sports’ primary commentator, he is a central figure in an industry that’s entry point has completely shifted from when he had his foot in the door.
He commented on his own journey into the industry, through BBC local radio, and if it was still prevalent today.
“There remains local radio. There are those opportunities, but, sadly, they are reduced, there is almost no commercial radio locally that covers sports in the way it used to”
He continued,
“There was a rivalry between the BBC local radio station and the commercial local radio station. To my knowledge, that barely exists at all anymore”
Although local radio is now playing a less crucial role in the development of aspiring sports journalists, Peter pointed towards other avenues of opportunity that had opened up since he had become part of the workforce.
He said,
“30 years ago, it was essentially media outlets reporting on sports. Now sports report on themselves, clubs report on themselves. There are club broadcasters, club journalists, reporters and journalists for the major organisations like the FA or the ECB or, or any of the great major sporting bodies.”
Peter added,
“The rise of social media is offering opportunities in other ways”
A study conducted by the National Research Group illustrated that 62% of sports fans consume sports media on social media rather than the traditional “box”.
This modification in viewership has ultimately led to broadcasters rethinking their hiring process, with the appearance of those who have built a brand through their own platform and have their own audience becoming more common on TV networks.
Without having to build your trust and reputation through local or regional work. A content creator can build a massive audience online before a broadcast even hires them and this, in turn, opens the door into an established organisation. Although it may increase the accessibility into industry, does this promote the correct attitude in sports journalism? Is the industry more democratic or does it risk rewarding visibility over craft?
Peter stressed the importance of traditional style journalism.
“We have to appreciate that there is a difference between what we might call journalism and what we might call content. They are very different things. Journalism or formal broadcasting has to be accountable.”
He continued,
“If I was wanting to employ someone for a media organisation, I would want them to be proven whether by formal qualification or by experience.”
“That’s not to say there isn’t a place for content, and for those who are sort of self-produced and self-advertised. It would be silly of me to say there isn’t a place because there is, I say this from a position where I’m very aware that is generational.”
It seemed that there was an acknowledgement of content creation as a way into sports media but it was regarded by the traditionals as a separate branch rather than filling a journalist’s responsibility.
To discover how the new-age journalists or content creators introspectively viewed themselves and their place in the media landscape, I met up with Junior Paradot; a freelance sports content creator who turned his activity on social media into a full time gig.
“Maybe five to ten years ago they weren’t taken as seriously and there was a bigger divide but it is shrinking”
He connected the two professions,
“There is now a bridge between digital creators and your traditional sports media employees because the employers understand how crucial digital creators are these days. Brands and companies and clubs they’re constantly bringing in digital creators and hiring digital creators because they understand that the market wants to see that.”
Junior, now full time freelancing for the last three years, has utilised and developed an eclectic mix of skills to secure himself within the sports-media sphere.
“So when I was still working full time in my old job in retail, one of the first avenues that I tried in media was streaming.
But to progress his career, Junior moved away from streaming.
He detailed,
“I had to try my hand at a lot of different forms of media. Just to see what stuck, and then eventually, it came to videography, video editing, social media management, and presenting as well.”
This is the reality that many young freelancers face with a saturated and highly competitive jobs market, there is no luxury of honing in a particular skill set, the landscape requires adaptability and persistence for any chance of survival.
Peter gave his sentiment on the road into the sports industry nowadays,
“I think you can still have it, but It’s not going to be easy. It is going to be tough to penetrate this great sort of blanket of noise, that the media, and largely social media now is…to be that person who’s separate, to be the one who gets the chance. To do what you really want to do, is so far from being a given, as to be potentially frightening.”
However, he put emphasis on enjoying the trip.
Nicholas Munns
“Give it a wholehearted go, absolutely no compromise. Make sure you enjoy it in the moment. Whatever you’re doing now, is part of life itself, it doesn’t have to be a step to the next thing. This is now so enjoy it. And if the next thing never comes, that doesn’t mean you have to regret what you did now, because what you did now was in itself, a part of life’s rich experience.”