Sports coverage involves writing and broadcasting about athletic competition. Typically it is focused on team sports such as American football, basketball, soccer and rugby; however individual sport events may also be covered. In addition to covering actual competitions, Sports coverage often includes analyzing players and teams, interviewing coaches or players and examining the impact of specific sporting events on culture and society.
As technology improved, televised sports became more prevalent in the United States and major leagues began to pay for broadcast rights on a national basis. These new telecasts were combined with local sports syndication networks or “sports cable” which aired on cable TV platforms and could be subscriber-based (TV Everywhere).
In addition to television, radio is also a common medium for Sports coverage. Typically, national leagues and teams have their own radio network for national broadcasts of league high games while local radio stations carry coverage of the major sports at their level of play as well as high school and recreational sports.
One of the greatest challenges for sports media is maintaining a balance between the needs of the sports industry and its audience. Achieving this requires the careful balancing of in-depth coverage of individual teams and players with an awareness of what fans want to see or hear about.
Many sports writers and broadcasters are fans of the sports they cover, and it’s important for them to maintain a separation between their professional duties as journalists and their personal lives as fans. For example, a writer shouldn’t wear his or her team’s gear in the press box or cheer during an event and should avoid using sports terms that have a fan meaning.