Sports Journalism: A Practical Introduction

Phil Andrews has written a timely and engaging book designed to meet the requirements of the growing number of courses on sports journalism. This text provides both a contextual and practical overview of sports journalism, includingthe organization and interdependence of broadcast, print, and digital media;how media coverage of sport is structured and prioritized;interviews, sources, and contacts;planning, researching, and covering an event; andwriting news, features, profiles, etc.

Andrews (journalism, Sheffield Hallam U. and U. of Salford, UK), who covers sports for the Independent and Yorkshire Television, provides an introductory overview of how his work is done. The slim text shuns the insider anecdotes that might have been expected for a no-frills outline of the standard tools of the job, from the five W's to interview techniques to going through an agent to reach an athlete. Examples demonstrate various kinds of writing—feature stories, profiles, opinion columns, etc. Chapters cover print, broadcast, and online publishing as well as advice for starting a career and facts about legal and ethical issues. Annotation ©2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

I am a senior lecturer in journalism at Sheffield Hallam University and I teach on the sports journalism and international broadcast journalism postgraduate courses. My background is in sports and television journalism, and I am the author of the standard text on sports journalism, used in universities throughout the world -Sport Journalism: A practical Introduction, published by Sage, London.