I have listed the weekly assignments below for Perspectives on Sports and the Media. You can get the entire class syllabus for the Spring 2012 semester in PDF format by clicking the following link – Sports & Media Sp’ 12 syllabus-1
Jan. 9 INTRODUCTION TO CLASS
- Review class requirements
- Introduction to the symbiotic relationship between sports and the media
Jan. 11 SOCIOLOGY OF SPORTS
- Read “In My Tribe” from Sports Illustrated (11.28.2011)
- Read “Penn State of Mind” from Time (12.12.2011)
- Discuss why sports are so important to so many people in the United States.
Jan. 16 HOLIDAY
- No class in observance of Martin Luther King, Jr.
Jan. 18 SPORTS MEDIA THROUGH THE AGES
- Read “Sports and Media in the Ancient Mediterranean” by Thomas Scanlon in Handbook of Sports and Media, pp. 3-19.
- In-class assignment – determine which culture is most similar to modern United States.
Jan. 23 EARLY AMERICAN SPORTS
- Read “Sports in Early America” in American Sports, pp. 1-19.
- Read “Media Made Sport: A History of Sports Coverage in the United States” by Robert McChesney in Media, Sports and Society, pp. 49-70.
- In-class assignment – Watch first chapter from the documentary Baseball.
Jan. 25 GOLDEN AGE OF SPORTS
- Read Grantland Rice and His Heroes – chapters 1, 2, 3, 7, 9.
- Critique selected stories written by Grantland Rice.
Jan. 30 JOURNALISM PIONEERS
- Read chapter on Paul Gallico in No Cheering In The Pressbox, pp. 61-80.
- Read chapter on Red Smith in No Cheering In The Pressbox, pp. 243-260.
- Read chapter on Shirley Povich in No Cheering in The Pressbox, pp. 114-128.
- Critique selected stories written by sportswriting pioneers.
Feb. 1 MODERN PRINT JOURNALISM
- Review modern approaches to journalism used today compared to the early pioneers. Look at today’s top sportswriters.
- In-class assignment – Critique modern sports stories, comparing them to pioneers. Students will evaluate another contemporary story that is due Feb. 8.
Feb. 6 SPORTS ON TELEVISION
- Read “College Sports in the Age of Television” in American Sports, pp. 280-296.
- Discuss Roone Arledge’s impact on sports and sports media.
Feb. 8 ROONE’S IMPACT ON TV SPORTS
- Watch 40th Anniversary of Wide World of Sports.
- Discuss main points addressed in documentary.
Feb. 13 EVALUATE SPORTS BROADCAST
- Evaluate sports broadcast in class.
- Students will evaluate another TV sports event broadcast on their own, writing a report due Feb 20.
Feb. 15 RADIO PIONEERS
- Read selected chapters from The Broadcasters.
Feb. 20 SPORTS-TALK RADIO
- Read Chapter 3 (“Inside the Sports Radio Industry”) in Beers, Babes and Balls: Masculinity and Sports Talk Radio, pp. 28-49.
- Students will evaluate sports-talk radio in class, writing a report due at the end of the class.
Feb. 22 NEW MEDIA
- Read “How Yahoo Sports Became ESPN’s Biggest Competitor” at outkickthecoverage.com.
- Read “Tension Over Sports Blogging” in New York Times (April 21, 2008).
- Critique several sports media Web sites.
Feb. 27 NEW MEDIA
- Critique several sports media Web sites in class.
Feb. 29 MIDTERM
- Please, bring one or two No. 2 pencils, along with a pen, to take test. These writing instruments won’t be supplied in class. The test will include a combination of multiple choice, short response and essay.
March 5 ECONOMIC TIES BETWEEN SPORTS AND MEDIA
- Read “The Shame of College Sports” in The Atlantic (Oct. 11, 2011).
March 7 ECONOMIC TIES – PROFESSIONAL SPORTS
- Read the following from Field of Schemes – chapters 13, 14, along with the Preface and Introduction. The book is on reserve in the library.
March 12-16
- Spring break – rest, relax, repeat.
March 19 ECONOMIC TIES – WORLD CUP 2010
- Read the following articles on eReserve from Time magazine – “The Global Game,” “The World Cup As Big Business,” and “Yes, Soccer is America’s Game.”
- Read “South Africa: A Big Bounce from the World Cup” in Bloomberg Businessweek (May 13, 2010).
- Watch “World Cup Soccer in Africa: Who Really Wins?”
March 21 BUSINESS OF SPORTS
- Guest Speaker
March 26 COLLEGE ATHLETICS
- Read “College Sports 101” that can be downloaded from the sportsmedia.wordpress.com Website or found online.
- Read “Big-time college athletics: Are they worth the big-time costs?” in USA Today (Jan. 15, 2010).
March 28 COLLEGE ATHLETICS
- Read “Should College Athletes Get Paid” in USA Today.
April 2 COLLEGE SPORTS & MARKETING
- Read “How Student Fees Boost College Sports Amid Rising Budgets” on eReserve.
April 4 SPORTS INFORMATION & MARKETING
- Discuss job requirements and approaches by those who work in sports information and sports marketing.
- Guest speaker.
April 9 SPORTS INFORMATION & MARKETING
- In-class assignment – Critique SID materials, comparing approaches and content.
April 11 ROLE OF PRESS IN THE INTEGRATION OF BASEBALL
- Discuss Jim Crow laws.
- Review chapter on Wendell Smith in No Cheering In The Press Box, pp. 312-324.
- Read “The African-American Quest for Equity In Sports” in American Sports, pp. 315-328.
- Watch Baseball: Shadow Ball that focuses on challenges of African-American players.
April 16 ROLE OF PRESS IN THE INTEGRATION OF BASEBALL
- Watch Black Magic that focuses on challenges of African-American basketball players before the NBA integrated.
April 18 CHALLENGES FOR WOMEN ATHLETES
- Read “The Rise and Decline of Organized Women’s Sports, 1890-1960” in American Sports, pp. 218-23.
- Watch Baseball: The National Pastime about the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League.
April 23 CHALLENGES FOR WOMEN ATHLETES/JOURNALISTS
- Read “The Quest for Equity in Women’s Sports” in American Sports, pp. 330-342.
- Watch Playing Unfair: The Media Image of the Female Athlete.
April 25 SPORTS JOURNALISM ETHICS
- Review the Society of Professional Journalists Code of Ethics.
- Read “Justice Delayed” in American Journalism Review, pp. 18-29 (Aug/Sept. 2007).
- In-class assignment – respond to sports ethical dilemmas.
