Sports broadcast journalism has been around for nearly 100 years. It originated with baseball play-by-play on the radio and has since evolved to bigger audiences and even more obscure sports, such as the Arena Football League or water polo. During the Olympics, sports broadcast journalism was essential for relaying the sporting events to the American public from Beijing, China.
The Facts
Many of the best broadcasters came from top journalism schools. According to recent rankings, the schools with the best journalism programs in the country are Northwestern University, University of Missouri, University of North Carolina, University of Maryland and Syracuse University. There are many more, but those five schools are frequently credited for creating some of the nation's top broadcasting talent, such as Bob Costas from Syracuse or Michael Wilbon from Northwestern.
History of
The first sports broadcast was a Philadelphia Phillies game that was called on the radio in 1921. In 1939, a college football game was broadcast on TV, making it the first televised sporting event. Since it began, NBC was the premier sports broadcaster, but since then, FOX, CBS, ABC and particularly ESPN have devoted television slots to covering sports. Sports have become so popular in America that many channels have developed for specific sports, such as SPEED network, which is an auto racing channel, as well as the Golf Network for golf.
The Facts
The greatest honor in sports broadcast journalism is getting named to the Broadcasters Hall of Fame. The world's best broadcasters are enshrined in the hall of fame. Edward Murrow, known for his work during World War II, was inducted to the hall of fame in 1994. Recently a Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame has been opened, inducting Howard Cosell and Pete Rozelle in its inaugural class. It is certainly an achievement for the elite and something for all young sports broadcasters to aim for.
Time Frame
Broadcasters don't just start at ESPN from day one. Besides graduating from a top journalism school, broadcast journalists have to work their way up the metaphorical food chain. Whether it is minor league hockey, college sports for your university's radio network or professional football, everyone needs practice and had to cut their chops before becoming household names in sports journalism.
Misconceptions
Realize that though ESPN is popular and shows like Pardon the Interruption and Around the Horn are so popular, not everybody can be Michael Wilbon, Bob Costas or Tony Kornheiser. There are very few household names in sports journalism, and those who are have been in the business for a long, long time. There are many sports broadcasters all over the country, and radio play by play goes to even the smallest level of sports, including high school football.
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