One of the most interesting things from the chapter was the advice about keeping sentences short, simple and easy to follow. The recommendation to stick with subject-verb-object (S-V-O) structure makes the writing more accessible, especially since sports audiences come from different backgrounds and have different levels of knowledge about the game. Including the five W’s (who, what, when, where, and why) ensures clarity and answers the essential questions. I also found the discussion about avoiding “-isms” in language powerful. This advice connected to my sociology class on race, class, and gender, where we talk about how labeling based on gender, age, race, or ability–even if intended positively–can reinforce discrimination. For example, calling out that an athlete achieved something because of their minority identity can unintentionally categorize and stereotype them. Instead, focusing on accomplishments without unnecessary labels leads to fairer, more inclusive reporting. Another part I found interesting was feature writing. I’ve mainly done short sports recaps, but features open a new way of storytelling. Unlike game reports, features bring in style, pace, and almost a poetic feel, blending fact with narrative. They also focus on human interest, pulling readers into the emotional or dramatic side of sports rather than just the score. The chapter compared features to short fiction, which can be really creative, and that is exciting to me. I also liked the section about profiles, since that’s something I saw we’ll be doing in class on the syllabus. Profiles seem to combine the depth of feature writing with a strong focus on an individual’s story, adding drama and mystery to who they are beyond just their stats. I’m curious about how profiles fit into sports reporting. Are they meant to highlight athletes as people, or to connect readers to a bigger theme through the lens of one individual?
I accidently posted response to chapter 7 instead of chapter 6 above. Here is my actual response for this journal: One of the most interesting concepts from the chapter was the seven news values. These values are important because they help reporters determine what makes a story newsworthy and guide the frame in ways that engage the audience. Without them, stories might lack focus or fail to show why they matter. In sports, these values bring attention to the moments fans care about most. For example, the rivalry between Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz illustrates nearly all seven values. Since their first meeting at the 2021 Paris Masters, they have been each other’s toughest competitors: conflict. Each tournament: timeliness. Fans sitting in the stands or on screen: proximity. Their Finals influencing rankings: impact. Their contrasting personalities: human interest and novelty. The stretch from the 2024 Beijing Open through the 2025 Wimbledon was especially notable, with three straight finals where they alternated victories, creating intensity. However, in what ways might emphasizing conflict or novelty over human interest change how fans perceive a rivalry? Another section I enjoyed was the discussion of delayed leads. Leads are important because they determine how readers first experience a story. Direct leads deliver essential information quickly and clearly, which is critical for breaking news or tight deadlines. Delayed leads, on the other hand, build intrigue, create drama, and are effective for feature-style stories where there is more room for creativity. That style resonates with me because it’s often how I naturally write. Still, I see the importance of direct leads when a story needs to quickly deliver the five W’s, especially on deadline. Understanding the difference matters because it shows how leads can shape tone and pacing. A direct lead prioritizes clarity and timeliness, while a delayed lead creates intrigue and pulls the reader into a more lengthy story. As the book suggests, both are valuable tools for a sportswriter.
Chapter 6:
This chapter begins to enter the realm of actually writing a sports report. We are taught how to hook a reader, particularly with many different types of leads. You can either present your lead quickly, and jump right into the report to prevent your readers from being bored, or you can delay your lead so readers anticipate the information. Either way, it’s important to add some sort of teaser that grabs your audience’s attention. A good example of a teaser is anything that’s considered a novelty. Novelties are known as stories that completely evade the norm, leaving readers very intrigued. Novelties are typically much more interesting than regular reports, and if you can include one in your story, it’s a great way to grab someone’s attention.
On the subject of capturing your audience’s interest, this chapter also discusses what kind of quotes to use and how to use them in a way that doesn’t bore readers. If you quote a coach discussing who scored what, that is a waste of a quote since you’ve likely already reported which player scored what points. Similarly, quoting cliches that coaches/players have said is another waste of quotes. Making sure you choose quotations that are exciting, unheard of, or in depth is much more valuable to an audience.
My question for this chapter is how does one decide which quotes are more important than others? When a quote has checked all the boxes, how does a reporter choose what readers will want to hear more?
In chapter 6 one of the more interesting parts of the chapter was when they talked about finding different angles for stories. Using different angles to approach and find new stories is crucial to building an interesting story that fans want to read. Fans all want to know a lot of different information by following these reporters can make sure that all the information that the fans want can be reported on. One of the more important values that reporters follow is timeliness. Deadlines especially in the online sports reporting world are very important. Once news is broken by one source everyone else has to scramble to get it out to all their followers and fans before the news becomes old. Timeliness is different for some sources for example a newspaper or magazine. They can get stories out later like the morning after a sporting event because they need time to print and release the papers.
Question: How much longer will newspapers keep being released before online news fully takes it over?
A second part of chapter 6 that was interesting to me was talking about the difference between Direct and Delayed leads. A direct lead is made to present information quickly. They would most likely include the teams played, the score, who won, and sometimes when the event took place. A delayed lead is going to come out later than a direct lead. These leads will be more in depth and tell the readers more information. Delayed leads are meant to hook readers in with a good story. As well as it talks about what kind of leads to not use for example not leading with a question. Leading with a question may turn away some readers who don’t know the full story yet leading the question to not make sense to them. Not leading with a quotation is also something reporters try not to do. A quotation can be one of the most attention grabbing parts of a story but finding one that is a good intro that can envelope the story is rare. Starting with more information on the topic than adding in a quote later in the story would be a good way to keep readers attention.
Question: What leads do most reporters prefer?
Chapter 6 dives into the story-telling aspect of sports journalism. It’s important to keep in mind that as a sports journalist, you are not just reporting, you are telling a story. Something that draws readers in is conflict. For example, two past rivals reuniting to verse each other once again. The author states, “ten best things about being a reporter”. Some of these things were surprising to hear, others not so much. What really shocked me to my core was that attention deficit disorder can be beneficial as a journalist. There are so many cool benefits to being a reporter, networking being a big one. Also the fact that you don’t need much of a qualification. It’s pretty easy to become a journalist, a good one at that. It’s crucial that you have good time management aside from the fact that you will be running around to do your job. It is proven that readers are more interested in proximity. They are more likely to take to a story relevant to something happening down the street than a stadium tour. A piece of advice I picked up on is to never start a story with a question. In fact, typically you should leave a question out of a story. When using a quote, it will almost always be self explanatory.
Reading this chapter made me really think about how small choices in storytelling can change a reader’s experience. For example, how a story starts. Whether with a direct lead that gets straight to the facts or a delayed lead that slowly builds tension can completely set the tone. The same goes for quotes: the best ones aren’t just the obvious statements about who scored or what happened, but the ones that reveal personality, emotion, or perspective. Choosing which quotes to include can turn a routine game recap into something memorable along with also adding depth to the story.
The chapter also highlighted the seven news values and why they matter in sports reporting. To me I immediately thought of the Ohio State–Michigan football rivalry and how the rivalry shows these values in action. Each matchup is full of conflict on the field, timeliness as the season culminates, and proximity for fans across the country. Prominent teams and legendary coaches grab attention, while unexpected plays or upsets create novelty, and stories about players or fans bring a human element. Thinking about this rivalry through those values helps me see how journalists decide what to focus on and how to make even familiar games feel exciting and meaningful.
For this chapter I had to read the old version of the textbook and the chapters seem to be a little different. One interesting thing I found was when it talked about how there are two types of leads that can be used in a sports article. The first would be a direct lead, also known as a summary lead. These leads present the information quickly and if the reader stopped after reading the lead they would understand the key details of the story. On the other hand, delayed leads do not summarize the event immediately. In a delayed lead the five Ws might not all be revealed until a few paragraphs in. Delayed leads can be more interesting than direct leads as they can take the form of an anecdote or be more emotionally appealing. The next section I found to be pretty interesting was the idea of the inverted pyramid. It is supposed to represent the hierarchy of importance for the information in an article. At the top is the Lead/Nut Graf, followed by highlights/key plays, then impact of the event on season, and the quotes from coaches and players. I thought this part was super interesting as it’s a little different and more specific than the inverted pyramid we talked about last semester in Intro to Journalism. My question for the chapter would be how does the writer know when to use a direct lead vs. a delayed lead?
Chapter 6 discusses different ways to craft a sports story. One creative decision you can make is choosing which type of lead to use, delayed or direct. A direct lead is best used for a breaking news story or hard news. with the purpose of getting the key information to the reader quickly. A delayed lead is better when you have room to work with, and you can build up the story before you present the lead. By delaying the lead, you make the reader curious for what’s to come, making them want to read more. Another interesting note from Chapter 6 is attributions. They seem simple from the outside, but they are an important way to give quotes some more personality. You have to be careful with them, because the wrong attribution can give a feeling to a quote rather than allowing the reader to decide the feeling.
9 thoughts on “JOURNAL # 4”
One of the most interesting things from the chapter was the advice about keeping sentences short, simple and easy to follow. The recommendation to stick with subject-verb-object (S-V-O) structure makes the writing more accessible, especially since sports audiences come from different backgrounds and have different levels of knowledge about the game. Including the five W’s (who, what, when, where, and why) ensures clarity and answers the essential questions. I also found the discussion about avoiding “-isms” in language powerful. This advice connected to my sociology class on race, class, and gender, where we talk about how labeling based on gender, age, race, or ability–even if intended positively–can reinforce discrimination. For example, calling out that an athlete achieved something because of their minority identity can unintentionally categorize and stereotype them. Instead, focusing on accomplishments without unnecessary labels leads to fairer, more inclusive reporting. Another part I found interesting was feature writing. I’ve mainly done short sports recaps, but features open a new way of storytelling. Unlike game reports, features bring in style, pace, and almost a poetic feel, blending fact with narrative. They also focus on human interest, pulling readers into the emotional or dramatic side of sports rather than just the score. The chapter compared features to short fiction, which can be really creative, and that is exciting to me. I also liked the section about profiles, since that’s something I saw we’ll be doing in class on the syllabus. Profiles seem to combine the depth of feature writing with a strong focus on an individual’s story, adding drama and mystery to who they are beyond just their stats. I’m curious about how profiles fit into sports reporting. Are they meant to highlight athletes as people, or to connect readers to a bigger theme through the lens of one individual?
I accidently posted response to chapter 7 instead of chapter 6 above. Here is my actual response for this journal: One of the most interesting concepts from the chapter was the seven news values. These values are important because they help reporters determine what makes a story newsworthy and guide the frame in ways that engage the audience. Without them, stories might lack focus or fail to show why they matter. In sports, these values bring attention to the moments fans care about most. For example, the rivalry between Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz illustrates nearly all seven values. Since their first meeting at the 2021 Paris Masters, they have been each other’s toughest competitors: conflict. Each tournament: timeliness. Fans sitting in the stands or on screen: proximity. Their Finals influencing rankings: impact. Their contrasting personalities: human interest and novelty. The stretch from the 2024 Beijing Open through the 2025 Wimbledon was especially notable, with three straight finals where they alternated victories, creating intensity. However, in what ways might emphasizing conflict or novelty over human interest change how fans perceive a rivalry? Another section I enjoyed was the discussion of delayed leads. Leads are important because they determine how readers first experience a story. Direct leads deliver essential information quickly and clearly, which is critical for breaking news or tight deadlines. Delayed leads, on the other hand, build intrigue, create drama, and are effective for feature-style stories where there is more room for creativity. That style resonates with me because it’s often how I naturally write. Still, I see the importance of direct leads when a story needs to quickly deliver the five W’s, especially on deadline. Understanding the difference matters because it shows how leads can shape tone and pacing. A direct lead prioritizes clarity and timeliness, while a delayed lead creates intrigue and pulls the reader into a more lengthy story. As the book suggests, both are valuable tools for a sportswriter.
Chapter 6:
This chapter begins to enter the realm of actually writing a sports report. We are taught how to hook a reader, particularly with many different types of leads. You can either present your lead quickly, and jump right into the report to prevent your readers from being bored, or you can delay your lead so readers anticipate the information. Either way, it’s important to add some sort of teaser that grabs your audience’s attention. A good example of a teaser is anything that’s considered a novelty. Novelties are known as stories that completely evade the norm, leaving readers very intrigued. Novelties are typically much more interesting than regular reports, and if you can include one in your story, it’s a great way to grab someone’s attention.
On the subject of capturing your audience’s interest, this chapter also discusses what kind of quotes to use and how to use them in a way that doesn’t bore readers. If you quote a coach discussing who scored what, that is a waste of a quote since you’ve likely already reported which player scored what points. Similarly, quoting cliches that coaches/players have said is another waste of quotes. Making sure you choose quotations that are exciting, unheard of, or in depth is much more valuable to an audience.
My question for this chapter is how does one decide which quotes are more important than others? When a quote has checked all the boxes, how does a reporter choose what readers will want to hear more?
In chapter 6 one of the more interesting parts of the chapter was when they talked about finding different angles for stories. Using different angles to approach and find new stories is crucial to building an interesting story that fans want to read. Fans all want to know a lot of different information by following these reporters can make sure that all the information that the fans want can be reported on. One of the more important values that reporters follow is timeliness. Deadlines especially in the online sports reporting world are very important. Once news is broken by one source everyone else has to scramble to get it out to all their followers and fans before the news becomes old. Timeliness is different for some sources for example a newspaper or magazine. They can get stories out later like the morning after a sporting event because they need time to print and release the papers.
Question: How much longer will newspapers keep being released before online news fully takes it over?
A second part of chapter 6 that was interesting to me was talking about the difference between Direct and Delayed leads. A direct lead is made to present information quickly. They would most likely include the teams played, the score, who won, and sometimes when the event took place. A delayed lead is going to come out later than a direct lead. These leads will be more in depth and tell the readers more information. Delayed leads are meant to hook readers in with a good story. As well as it talks about what kind of leads to not use for example not leading with a question. Leading with a question may turn away some readers who don’t know the full story yet leading the question to not make sense to them. Not leading with a quotation is also something reporters try not to do. A quotation can be one of the most attention grabbing parts of a story but finding one that is a good intro that can envelope the story is rare. Starting with more information on the topic than adding in a quote later in the story would be a good way to keep readers attention.
Question: What leads do most reporters prefer?
https://eglynos.uneportfolio.org/journal-entries/
Chapter 6 dives into the story-telling aspect of sports journalism. It’s important to keep in mind that as a sports journalist, you are not just reporting, you are telling a story. Something that draws readers in is conflict. For example, two past rivals reuniting to verse each other once again. The author states, “ten best things about being a reporter”. Some of these things were surprising to hear, others not so much. What really shocked me to my core was that attention deficit disorder can be beneficial as a journalist. There are so many cool benefits to being a reporter, networking being a big one. Also the fact that you don’t need much of a qualification. It’s pretty easy to become a journalist, a good one at that. It’s crucial that you have good time management aside from the fact that you will be running around to do your job. It is proven that readers are more interested in proximity. They are more likely to take to a story relevant to something happening down the street than a stadium tour. A piece of advice I picked up on is to never start a story with a question. In fact, typically you should leave a question out of a story. When using a quote, it will almost always be self explanatory.
Reading this chapter made me really think about how small choices in storytelling can change a reader’s experience. For example, how a story starts. Whether with a direct lead that gets straight to the facts or a delayed lead that slowly builds tension can completely set the tone. The same goes for quotes: the best ones aren’t just the obvious statements about who scored or what happened, but the ones that reveal personality, emotion, or perspective. Choosing which quotes to include can turn a routine game recap into something memorable along with also adding depth to the story.
The chapter also highlighted the seven news values and why they matter in sports reporting. To me I immediately thought of the Ohio State–Michigan football rivalry and how the rivalry shows these values in action. Each matchup is full of conflict on the field, timeliness as the season culminates, and proximity for fans across the country. Prominent teams and legendary coaches grab attention, while unexpected plays or upsets create novelty, and stories about players or fans bring a human element. Thinking about this rivalry through those values helps me see how journalists decide what to focus on and how to make even familiar games feel exciting and meaningful.
For this chapter I had to read the old version of the textbook and the chapters seem to be a little different. One interesting thing I found was when it talked about how there are two types of leads that can be used in a sports article. The first would be a direct lead, also known as a summary lead. These leads present the information quickly and if the reader stopped after reading the lead they would understand the key details of the story. On the other hand, delayed leads do not summarize the event immediately. In a delayed lead the five Ws might not all be revealed until a few paragraphs in. Delayed leads can be more interesting than direct leads as they can take the form of an anecdote or be more emotionally appealing. The next section I found to be pretty interesting was the idea of the inverted pyramid. It is supposed to represent the hierarchy of importance for the information in an article. At the top is the Lead/Nut Graf, followed by highlights/key plays, then impact of the event on season, and the quotes from coaches and players. I thought this part was super interesting as it’s a little different and more specific than the inverted pyramid we talked about last semester in Intro to Journalism. My question for the chapter would be how does the writer know when to use a direct lead vs. a delayed lead?
Chapter 6 discusses different ways to craft a sports story. One creative decision you can make is choosing which type of lead to use, delayed or direct. A direct lead is best used for a breaking news story or hard news. with the purpose of getting the key information to the reader quickly. A delayed lead is better when you have room to work with, and you can build up the story before you present the lead. By delaying the lead, you make the reader curious for what’s to come, making them want to read more. Another interesting note from Chapter 6 is attributions. They seem simple from the outside, but they are an important way to give quotes some more personality. You have to be careful with them, because the wrong attribution can give a feeling to a quote rather than allowing the reader to decide the feeling.