A sportswriter by the name of Grantland Rice once said, "For when the One Great Scorer comes / to write against your name / He marks - not that you won or lost - But how you played the game" (1941). Rice was an artist of making heroes out of sports figures, most notably those that touched his era: the Dempseys, the Ruths, the Rocknes.

Rice was the sportswriter that made the seemingly ordinary and translated it into the unordinary. He was a storyteller, one that drafted a storybook after every contest he covered and made his heroes his protagonists.

In an era defined by steroid allegations and betting scandals, much of what Rice had preached is quickly disintegrating. Instead, technological advancements and the prevalence of the Internet and blogging, this new sports media, is painting our athletes in an increasingly negative light. As a result, we lose touch for why sports were ever sports in the first place.

This project stems from an interdisciplinary approach - one that uses American Studies, sociology, journalism and ethics - to look at this very issue: Why were sports ever prevalent in the first place? Why do we follow them? What do we, as fans, get out of the deal?

At St. Olaf College, I created and proposed a major titled Sports Journalism: The Meaning of Sport, which utlizes resources from the departments of American Studies, Sociology, Media Studies and English. You may view the proposal here.

My experience as a Manitou Messenger Sports Editor, Manitou Messenger Executive Editor, intern with the Minnesota Timberwolves as a web writer and content manager, intern with the New York Red Bulls (Major League Soccer) in their communications department, among others, will further my exploration. Visit the Experiences page to learn more and to see finished products.

Above all, this project is both personal and sociological as well as academic and informal.

Most importantly, it's about much More Than (just) The Game.

UPDATE: See my research on new sports media, HERE.

Quick Links
Timberwolves Compilation
Red Bulls Reflections
Discussing the Industry
Memorable Audio Clips