REPORT: SPORTS BEAT

DEPARTMENT: BA Hons. Journalism

NAME OF PAPER: Reporting Editing for Print
COMPILED BY- RIVKA VASUDEVA

INTRODUCTION

“Sport is a powerful tool to strengthen social ties and networks. It promotes ideals of peace,
fraternity, solidarity, non-violence, tolerance and justice. Tackling problems in post conflict
situations can be eased as sport has the ability to bring people together.”-UNESCO. Sport
pertains to any form of competitive physical activity or game that aims to use,
maintain or improve our physical ability. Sports writing and reporting is as
specialized an area as any other. It calls for both technical knowhow and a good
writing style. A sports beat writer typically is assigned to cover a specific sport, league
or team, usually for a newspaper. The writer often covers a single beat year-round,
even during any offseason for his or her beat.

IMPORTANCE

Scientists across the world have claimed that physical activity affects the brain
physiology by increasing cerebral capillary growth, blood flow, growth of nerve cells
in hippocampus and volume of brain tissues. Researchers have time and again
established that increased involvement in sports and physical activities enhances the
academic performance, cognitive skills, attention, information processing, and verbal
ability of a person. Sports plays a major role in developing our physical,
psychological, emotional and spiritual being. Sports plays a major role in developing
our physical, psychological, emotional and spiritual being. It helps to foster a sense of
community and national pride among sports fans by reporting on local teams and
events. They also provide a platform for fans to discuss and debate sports-related
topics, which can help build a sense of community.

EVOLUTION AND BRIEF HISTORY

Archaeologists have found during excavation of ancient sites, monuments, etc. many
artifacts and sculptures which indicates that since times immemorial the human race
has been depicting games and sports through pictures and words. In the epics
‘Mahabharata’ and ‘Ramayana’, we come across many anecdotes of archery, horse
racing, dicing, swimming, wrestling, javelin throw, gilli danda, fencing, sword
fighting, chariot racing and so on. Most of us have grown up reading about the stories
of valor and sports of kings and queens like Shivaji, Prithviraj Chauhan, Maharana
Pratap, Rani Laxmi Bai and so on. Even the Mughal emperors were ardent patrons of
sports like wrestling. Sporting events and competitions were often the basis for
selection of life partners of the royals and winning in them was a way to prove oneself
to be worthy of the throne. Historians believe that many games like hockey, archery,
wrestling and chess originated in India. Greek poet Homer’s ‘Iliad’, in part 23, has
elaborate mention of sports. It would not be an exaggeration to call Homer as one of
the first sports journalists in the world.
In the twentieth century, however, the colonial governments along with their rule
had brought in many of their sports and games to the colonies. The arrival of the
industrial revolution and later the technological innovations made many day-to-day
tasks easier which led to more leisure time with people to engage in physical
activities and sports. Earlier the nations had many of their own indigenous games
and sporting activities for engagement. Later with the advent of mass media and
global communication, some of the indigenous sports became common to many
countries. And with the commencement of International sporting events like the
Commonwealth Games, Asian Games etc. led to the revival of many sports and
games. Today, competing and winning in an international sports forum is about
bringing glory and pride to one’s nation.

GOLDEN ERA OF SPORTS IN UNITED STATES

The 1920s has been called the Golden Age of American Sports. It also has been called
the Age of the Spectator. The United States had a strong economy for most of that
decade. Many workers had more leisure time. New and bigger stadiums and
gymnasiums were built. The introduction of radio made it easier for fans to keep up
with their favourite teams. Newspapers increased their coverage of sports.
Improvements in roads made it possible for fans to travel to athletic events in distant
cities. For the first time, large numbers of Americans began to pay money to watch
other people compete in athletic contests.
Baseball was the “national pastime” in the 1920s. More people went to baseball
games, more people followed baseball, and more people played baseball for fun than
any other sport. The most famous athlete in the United States in the 1920s was
baseball star George Herman “Babe” Ruth, the right fielder for the New York
Yankees. Ruth hit more home runs than any player had ever hit before. The pre-Ruth
period in baseball was known as the "dead-ball era."
The 1920s also was a decade when college football became more popular. Notre
Dame, coached by Knute Rockne, became the most famous college football team. The
best college teams could compete in bowl games, such as the famous Rose Bowl, held
in California. However, professional football took root at the beginning of the decade
with the establishment of the American Professional Football Association (APFA),
which quickly changed its name to the National Football League (NFL).
Women and girls had limited opportunities for sports in the 1920s. Most schools had
physical education classes for girls. Some educators thought that running, jumping,
and sweating were not very ladylike. They opposed athletic competition for women.
The 1920s ended with the beginning of the Great Depression. By that time, spectator
sports had become such a major part of American life that they were able to survive
through the hard times of the 1930s.

SPORTS JOURNALISM IN THE ERA OF YELLOW JOURNALISM

Flamboyant sports writing in the era of yellow journalism attracted newspaper

readers and contributed to building a worldwide image of the United States as an
economic, political, and athletic power.

SPORTS MINISTRY
The ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports is a branch of the Government of India
which administers the Department of Youth Affairs and Department of sports in
India. The ministry's primary objectives are to develop and promote sports at all
levels, create an environment conducive to the development of sports, and encourage
youth participation in sports and physical activities. It is also responsible for
formulating policies and programs to support the development of sports and youth
activities across India. This ministry in India is responsible for promoting sports,
physical education, and youth development.

Anurag Thakur is the current Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports followed by his
Deputy Nisith Pramanik. The Ministry also gives the annual National Youth Awards ,
National Sports Awards in various categories, including the Arjuna Award and Major
Dhayan Chand khel Ratna award. Overall, the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports
plays a critical role in promoting sports and youth development in India and is
essential for the growth and success of the country.

SKILLS AND QUALITIES OF A SPORTS REPORTER

Sports reporters keep us informed about various sports events and happenings at
local, national and international levels. S/he collects, compiles and disseminates
information of the current sports events and issues.

 UNDERSTANDING OF THE ECONOMY OF SPORTS

In the era of globalization, a lot of multinational capital is involved in the
sports industry. A sports reporter should understand different aspects of the
economy of the sports ecosystem.

 KNOWLEDGE OF THE SPORTS TERMINOLOGY, LINGO AND

VOCABULARY
Every sport has its unique terminology. There are specific terms for the
position of players and different color cards of penalty. Similarly, the idioms
and phrases for tennis and badminton are different. Knowledge of the
technical terms for shots, positions, actions and acquaintance with the stories
and idioms for various sports is important for a good sports reporter
.
 COMMAND OVER LANGUAGE
A sports reporter must have the ability to communicate in simple and concise
manner. A reporter must follow the 5 C’s of communication and make sure
that his/her communication is clear, coherent, correct, comprehensive and
concise.

 KNOWLEDGE OF SPORTS LAWS

A sports reporter should have an understanding of labour, antitrust, gender
discrimination, trademarks, copyrights, contract and tort laws and related
constitutional provisions. Knowledge of the above mentioned laws will help a
sports reporter follow legal proceedings of the sports fraternity in a better
manner.

 UNDERTSNADING THE PERSPECTIVE OF THE AUDIENCE/

READERS
 A good sports reporter understands his/her target audience or readers.

 TRUTH AND OBJECTIVITY

It is probably difficult for a sports lover to not take sides in a match. But sports
reporters cannot afford to take sides while writing reports or filing stories. A
true and objective reporter will earn credibility in the long run. One must
check and recheck information and base one’s report on evidence. If a sports
reporter is biased, the public will stop believing on the reports and stories filed
by him/her.

SPORTS REPORTING IN PRINT MEDIA

M.V. Kamath in the July-September 2008 issue of Media Mimansa, states that S.
Sadanand’s ‘Free Press Journal’ was the first newspaper in India to devote an entire
page to sports with the well-known cricket commentator A.F.S. Talyarkhan as the
sports editor. In late thirties, the Bombay (now Mumbai) edition of Times of India
started a distinct sports page. Though a few magazines and a few newspapers were
publishing news related to sports, yet it was only in the post- independence era that
the idea of a regular sports page took importance in Indian newspapers.

Rangaswamy Parthasarathy in “A Hundred Years of The Hindu” calls Kasturi

Gopalan, the publisher, as the father of sports page for allotting a distinct section to
sports in a daily newspaper for the first time, helped by Murugesa Mudaliar,
sportsman in college days and the first sports writer of The Hindu. In fact, the sports
journal ‘Sports and Past Time’ was also published by the same publication in 1947.
The Ananda Bazar Patrika group in mid 1970s published ‘Sports World’ from
Calcutta (now Kolkata). Another worthy mention would be the Chennai based
fortnightly magazine ‘Sportstar’ which is being published for the past forty years now
and has changed from tabloid to magazine format and vice versa quite a time in its
history.

Few other successful sports magazines in India are- ‘Golf Digest India’, ‘Cricket
Samrat’, ‘Bike India’, ‘Cricinfo magazine’, etc. Kishore Bhimani, K. Sundar Rajan,
Moti Nandi, V. M. Balachandran and T. D. Parthasarathy are some of the notable
sports journalists of the print media. Golf based magazine ‘The American Golfer’,
brought out by Walter Travis in 1908 and ‘Sports Illustrated’, brought out by Henry
Luce in 1954 have been arguably some of the most successful sports magazines in the
history of sports media. Publications like L’ Equipe (France), Marca (Spain), La
Gazzettadello Sport (Italy), Kicker (Germany), Sporting News (America), are goals
for sports writing and analysis one might look up to.

SPORTS REPORTING IN RADIO AND TELEVISION

During the mid twentieth century when around 80 percent people lived in villages
and depended on agriculture for their living, Radio was the most apt media for them
for definite reasons. In India, ‘live’ cricket commentary was heard in 1934 for the first
time during the Bombay Quadrangular — a tournament played between teams
representing the Hindus, the Muslims, the Parsis and the Europeans. In the year
2018, India’s first Radio sports channel was launched which covered almost all
Olympic games through talk shows, news bulletins, audio documentaries, live
commentaries, phone-in etc. The shows, broadcast on this Radio channel in Hindi
and English, can be reached 24x 7 through mobile app named ‘Sports Flashes’.

By 1929, one-third of American homes had a radio, which provided opportunity for
sports publicity. Graham McNamee became the first official sports broadcaster in the
1920s with his error-filled blow-by-blow boxing commentary. NBC and CBS
dominated the radio scene after finding profit in selling advertisement space during
radio shows.
The Asian Games of 1982 was hosted by India and the games were held in Delhi. It
was a matter of prestige for India to cover and broadcast the games over television.
Doordarshan, the national broadcaster had monopoly over the broadcast of matches
and sports events for several years. In the eighties, the DD show “The world of
Sports”, broadcast at 04:30 pm every Sunday was quite popular. It featured talks on
cricket, hockey, football, tennis and others. In the year 1999, Doordarshan launched
DD Sports, which has been promoting domestic sports on the free-to-air platform.
Some of the popular private sports channels in India are- Star Sports , Star Sports
Hindi and Star Sports Tamil, Sony Ten, Neo Prime and Neo Sports, DSport, Jio
Sports etc. Examples of some recognized sports shows telecast on television news
channels are ‘SportsTop10’ofNDTV,‘TheGame’ofNews X, ‘Sports Tonight’ and ‘IBN
Sports’ of CNN IBN. Other important television networks include
Eurosport, ESPN and The Sports Network (TSN).

Internationally, The National Football League became American’s leading spectator

sport due to its almost made-for-television excitement. ABC bagged the rights for
1961’s Wide World of Sports, 1970’s Monday Night Football, and legal rights to
broadcast the Olympic Games. ABC Sports enhanced the entertainment value of
televised football through the perfection of instant replay, slow-motion, and highlight
reels. Between 1974 and 1984, network programming hours dedicated solely to
sports doubled. Sports broadcasters became celebrities who could control rating
through their entertainment value, thus earning big-name broadcasters annual
seven-figure checks.

REPORTING SPORTS IN ONLINE MEDIA

In February 1996, rediff.com began ball-by-ball text commentary. Adapting the

digital platform is no longer a strategy but it has become rather a necessity for print
and other media forms. Several technology enabled sports news platforms are
producing internet content, covering various games and events. Today most of the
sporting events are telecast online via HOTSTAR and SONY LIV app over mobile
phones. Several sports web portals, blogs and sports news websites such as
sportskeeda.com, Sports.yahoo.com, bleacherreport.com, cbssports.com,
nbcsports.com, foxsports.com, deadspin.com etc. have become popular amongst
sports lovers.

In recent years, the New York Times Sports Department has been lauded for its
innovative approach to the beat. It covered subjects like Brain Trauma, Doping in
Horse Racing, Ultramarathoning, etc. Appreciated for the depth it brings to coverage
and the ways it presents its work in both online and print. The most famous effort is
Snow Fall, the Pulitzer Award-winning multimedia project about a fatal avalanche in
Washington that launched a hundred imitators.
Sports also has a wealth of visual information and data, both which lend themselves
digital storytelling. For the 2010 Olympics for instance, the Times created a sound
based interactive feature to illustrate how close many of the race finishes were. “The
metabolism of sports and metabolism of the web always seemed like a good match,”
says Jim Brady. Guardian Sports Editor, San Ingle started having readers write in
with questions and comments, which he would then post in the live blog.

MAJOR SPORTING EVENTS

 COMMONWEALTH GAMES
The Commonwealth Games occurs every 4 years. The Commonwealth Games
Federation (CGF) controls both the Commonwealth Games and the
Commonwealth Youth Games. Participants are from 71 nations and territories
of the Commonwealth. This covers about 1/3 of the world's population. The
destination changes for each event.

 OLYMPIC GAMES
Olympics is a major international multi-sport event in which almost all
countries of the world participate in different sports. It aims to cultivate
people and world peace through sports and is organized
by IOC (International Olympics Committee) after every four years. The
Olympics started around 2300 years ago in the Olympia region of
ancient Greece but ended in 393 due to wars but again started after a
gap of around 1500 years when first modern Olympics games held in
Athens, Greece; the native place of the Olympic Games. The symbol of
the Olympic Games, which was designed by Baron de Coubertin,
expresses the unity among the five continents of the world.

 FIFA WORLD CUP

It is also known as football world cup. The event is held every four years by
FIFA (Federation International de Football Association). FIFA was
established in 1904 for the continuous improvement of the football. At
present, it has more than 200 teams as its member association. The senior
football men's national teams of the FIFA's members take part in this
international sporting event. The first FIFA world cup was played in 1930. In
1942 and 1946 it could be not organized due to the Second World War. As per
its current format, there are 32 teams that compete with each other for this
title.
  WIMBLEDON TENNIS
Wimbledon is one of the greatest sports events in the world. It is also
the oldest tennis championship in the world. Since 1877, it is being held
in late June or early July at All It is a Grand Slam tennis tournament
like the Australian Open, French Open, and US Open. It is the only
tennis tournament that is still played on grass which is the original
surface of this game and from which it derived its original name of
"lawn tennis." The first WC was held in 1877 at one of the lawns of All
England Club. Besides this, in the year of 1884, women's championship
was introduced at Wimbledon, and Mixed Doubles and Women's
Doubles were introduced in 1913, and more

 THE ASIAN GAMES

The Asian Games, which is also known as Asiad, is a world-famous
continental multi-sport event that is held every four years. Athletes from
all Asian countries participate in the event. More than half of the world's
population belong to Asia so the sporting events in Asia are likely to be
huge events.
The first edition of Asian Games was held in 1951 in New Delhi, India. The
Asian Games Federation (AGF) was organizing this event until 1978. However,
since 1982, after the breakup of the Asian Games Federation, it is being
organized by the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA).
International Olympic Committee (IOC) has recognized the Asian Games,
which is the second-largest multi-sport event after the Olympic Games. Until
2019, it has been hosted by nine countries with participation from 46
countries. The 18 edition of this event was held in 2018 in Jakarta and
Palembang, Indonesia. The symbol of this event consists of a rising sun with
interlocking rings.

AWARDS

 RAJIV GANDHI KHEL RATNA OR MAJOR DHYAN CHAND KHEL

RATNA AWARD
The Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna (RGKR) is India's highest honour given for
achievement in sports. The words "Khel Ratna" literally mean "sports gem" in
Hindi. The award is named after the late Rajiv Gandhi, former Prime Minister
of India. It carries a medal, a scroll of honour and a substantial cash
component. Up to 2004-05, the cash component was Rs. 500,000/-. The
money has been increased from Rs. 5,00,000 to Rs. 25,00,000

 ARJUNA AWARD
The Arjuna Awards were instituted in 1961 by the government of India to
recognize outstanding achievement in National sports; it is given for good
performance over a period of the previous four years and for showing qualities
of leadership, sportsmanship and a sense of discipline. The award carries a
cash prize of Rs. 15,00,000, a bronze statuette of Arjuna and a scroll. India’s
 football Olympian PK Banerjee was among the 20 recipients of the Arjuna
Award in its inaugural edition in 1961. Hockey player Anna Lumsden was the
first woman to win the Arjuna Award.

 DRONACHARYA AWARD
Dronacharya Award instituted in 1985 , which is India 's highest sports
honour for outstanding coaches in Sports and Games’ for doing outstanding
and meritorious work on a consistent basis and for enabling sports persons to
excel in International events.The award comprises a bronze statuette of
Dronacharya, a scroll of honour and a cash component of Rs.15,00,000.
Wrestling coach Bhalchandra Bhaskar Bhagwat, boxing mentor Om Prakash
Bharadwaj and legendary athletics coach OM Nambiar, credited for moulding
Indian sprint queen PT Usha’s career, were among the first Dronacharya
Award winners. The first woman to win the Dronacharya award was athletics
coach Renu Kohli in 2002.

 MAULANA ABUL KALAM AZAD TROPHY

The oldest National Sports Awards in India, the Maulana Abul Kalam Azad
Trophy or the MAKA Trophy was instituted in 1956–1957. Named in honour
of Indian freedom fighter and the country’s first education minister Abul
Kalam Azad, the award is given to the university for top performance in inter-
university tournaments over the last one year.

 LAUREUS WORLD SPORTS AWARDS

The Laureus World Sports Awards is an annual award ceremony honouring
seven categories (Sportswoman, Sportsman, Team, Breakthrough, Comeback,
Action and Sport for Good).It was founded in 1999, and the first award
ceremony was held in Monte Carlo in 2000. The Laureus World Sports
Awards are frequently referred to as the "Oscars" of sports.

IMPORTANT SCHEMES TO PROMOTE SPORTS IN INDIA

1) FIT INDIA MOVEMENT

FIT INDIA movement was launched on 29th August , 2019 by Hon'ble Prime
Minister at Indira Gandhi stadium , New Delhi with a view to make fitness an
integral part of our daily life. It is a nation wide movement in India to
encourage people to remain healthy and fit by including physical activities and
sports in their daily activities .

2) KHELO INDIA PROGRAM

Khelo India Program was launched in 2018 by the Ministry of Youth Affairs
and Sports. The purpose of this program was to improve India's sports culture
at the grassroot level through organised talent identification, structured
sporting competitions and infrastructure development. The khelo India
Programme aimed to award a scholarship of 5 lakhs each year for 8 years to
1000 selected athletes. Moreover, the government promised to support about
15 to 20 institutions in India as the centre for Sports excellence.
 3) TARGET OLYMPIC PODIUM SCHEME(TOPS)
It was launched in 2014 under the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports. This
was done in order to improve India’s performance at Olympics and
Paralympics.The chief objective of the scheme is to provide financial
assistance and other help to athletes in their pursuit of medals in the Olympics
and other international sporting events. Under this scheme, athletes and
sportspersons will get customized training from top coaches at modern and
well-equipped sports facilities and institutions. The sports persons are also
given assistance for buying sport-specific equipment. The Scheme currently
supports 98 TOPS Core Group athletes across 13 sports disciplines & Hockey
(M & W) teams and 165 TOPS Development Group athletes across 12 sports
disciplines.

4) THE NATIONAL SPORTS DEVELOPMENT FUND

National Sports Development Fund (NSDF) was established in 1998 under the
Charitable Endowments Act 1890 and was notified by the Government of
India in November, 1998. The purpose of the fund is to impart momentum
and flexibility to assisting the cause of sports in India. It helps sportsperson
excel by providing them with varied opportunities to train under coaches of
international repute, provide financial assistance for development of
infrastructure and other activities for promotion of sports.

SPORTS AND EDUCATION

Sports and education are two important aspects of life that can complement each
other in many ways. Sports are a great way to keep the body fit and healthy. They
help students develop discipline, focus, and motivation, which can carry over into
their academic work. Sports provide opportunities for students to work together
towards a common goal. This helps them develop important skills such as
communication, leadership, and cooperation.
Across several colleges in Delhi, at least 5 percent of the total sanctioned strength at
the college is to be reserved for sports and extra- curriculum categories combined.
Athletic scholarships are also given to students by multiple institutions in India,
recognising and honouring young students' desire for a particular sport.

SPORTS COMPLEXES/CENTRES

 THE NARENDRA MODI STADIUM

Formerly known as Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Stadium (old structure), is a
cricket stadium situated in Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Sports Complex,
Ahmedabad, India. It is the largest stadium in the world, with a seating
capacity of 132,000 spectators.

 JAWAHARLAL NEHRU STADIUM

 Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium is a multi-sports stadium located in New Delhi,
India. It is named after the first Prime Minister of India, Pandit Jawaharlal
Nehru. Primarily a venue for football and athletics, it is an all-seated 60,254
capacity stadium, designed and constructed to meet the international
standards for stadiums set by the International Federation of Association
Football (FIFA), the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), and
the International Association of Athletics Federations(IAAF). It is the fourth
largest stadium in India, 27th largest stadium in Asia and the 103rd largest
stadium in the world, in terms of seating capacity.
The Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium was originally constructed by the Government
of India to host the athletic events and ceremonies of the 1982 Asian Games. It
also hosted the 1989 Asian Championships in Athletics. The stadium was
substantially renovated and modernised for the 2010 Commonwealth Games,
hosting all the track and field events and opening and closing ceremonies.

 SIRI FORT SPORTS COMPLEX

Siri Fort Sports Complex has been set up by the Delhi Development Authority
as a part of development and growth of Sports in Delhi. The complex was built
in 1989, next to the Asian Games village by the Delhi Development Authority
(DDA), which also runs the facility now. Also close by is the Siri Fort
Auditorium complex. It has various sporting facilities like flood lit Tennis,
Basketball, Golf Driving Range, an Indoor Badminton Stadium and playing
facilities for Squash, Table Tennis, Billiards, Cricket, Football, Hockey,
Aerobics, Yoga, Taekwondo, Multi gym, Swimming, Mini Golf Course,
Jogging, Croquet, Skating, Shooting , Reiki, Naturopathy & Children Park.
Facilities like Kruv Maga, Western Dance, Ballet and Jazz have recently been
added.

INTERNATIONAL SPORTS ORGANIZATION

 The International Sports Press Association, AIPS, was founded in 1924 during
the Olympic Games in Paris, at the headquarters of the Sporting Club de
France.
 History of Sports Journalism/Sports Beat is inextricably linked to the history
of Olympics. In 1727, The Racing Calendar offers information about races and
their results. Therefore, Horse Racing was the first “sport” to get coverage in
print.

FILMS CENTRED AROUND SPORTS

 CHAK DE! INDIA

An amazing performance by Shahrukh Khan released it 2007. His character,
Kabir Khan, the coach of the Indian Women's National Hockey Team, dreams
of making his all-girls team emerge victorious against all odds.

 BHAAG MILKHA BHAAG

 Based on the life of Milkha Singh, an Indian athlete and Olympian who was a
champion of the Commonwealth Games and two-time 400m champion of the
Asian Games. It is a true story released in 2013 of `the Flying Sikh' - world
champion runner and Olympian Milkha Singh who overcame the massacre of
his family and the civil war during the India-Pakistan partition.

 MARY KOM
A chronicle of the life of Indian boxer Mary Kom, the movie released in 2014.
The movie walks us through several hardships of Mary Kom for audaciously
accomplishing her ultimate dream. It showcases the challenges and obstacles
that women face in pursuing sports, especially in a male-dominated field like
boxing. Mary Kom, the protagonist, fights against all odds to become a world-
class boxer, overcoming gender stereotypes, societal norms, and personal
struggles.

 DANGAL
After his failure at winning a gold medal for the country, Mahavir Phogat vows
to realize his dreams by training his daughters for the Commonwealth Games
despite societal pressures.

 GOLD
Gold released in 2018 is about how Tapan Das manager of Gold winning
Indian hockey team during British rule dreams of bringing Gold medal to the
country post-Independence. India is nearing Independence and Tapan finds
news of 1948 Olympics. Tapan prepares his own team for the upcoming
Olympics. However, during the partition team also gets divided along with the
country.

SPORTS & MASS MEDIA PHOTOGRAPHY

Sports photographers face a wide variety of challenges. Every sport is different, and
requires specialized knowledge to get the best pictures. Most sports photographers
regularly photograph the “big three”: football, basketball and baseball.
In order to take good sports photos, one must have good timing; quick reflexes; and
knowledge of the sport.
To take sharp sports shots, use a monopod or chest pod, focus on an area, and wait
for the action to move to that area, try to let your auto-focus keep up with the action
as you follow it with your camera. The photographer should favour a high shutter
speed to stop action. Minimum will probably be 500 (1/500 sec). Keep in mind you
often shoot in poorly lit areas with long, and therefore slower, lenses. Anticipate the
moment. In some sports, such as diving, the action actually stops at the peak
moment.
A General Approach
Get shots of the athletes warming up, particularly the most important ones. That
way, if you miss that athlete making a key play, you still have a shot the editor can
use. Get a program so you can identify players by number. Most sports editors want
players identified. Take notes for photos you think will be good. Note the players’
names, what was happening, so you can write good cutlines later.

FUTURE OF SPORTS JOURNALISM

 According to Sara Morrison, CJR, in the future, sport’s journalism’s

propensity for innovation may even put journalists out of job.
 Narrative Science, the so-called robot journalism service began as “stats
monkey” which could turn baseball stats into a full-fledged article, headline
included.
 NY Time’s “Fourth Down Bot” crunches 10 years-worth of data to make
predictions in real time of what NFL teams will do in a 4th down situation.
 The first remarkable event in the history of sports journalism in India was the
introduction of a sports page by a leading English daily of Bombay in the late
thirties. This bold and ‘revolutionary’ step was resented by some readers who
had no interest in sports but the majority of the readers liked it. Its sports
page became so popular that other newspapers followed suit.
 Today there are sports columns in all daily newspapers.

CURRENT PROBLEMS AND ISSUES

 Despite being the second most populated nation and one of the largest
economies in the world, the number of active participation for a sport in our
country is very small.
 Most of the players who have achieved international applause seem to have
done so by their individual brilliance and Dogged perseverance, rather than
any institutionalised effort or encouragement and support from the
government. In India, it is a sad reality that several champions in the country
had to struggle to avail basic requirements like shoes, kits, training, proper
diet and nutrition etc. to pursue their sports.
 Corruption, social and economic inequalities , ineffective talent identification
methods, lack of world class infrastructure have often been touted as the
reason for failure in establishing a sports culture in the country.
 Moreover, the Indian constitution places 'sports' in the state list which has
resulted in disparity and non-uniform development of sports infrastructure in
India.
 Apart from all this , an infamous Indian populace – “Padhoge likhoge toh
banoge nawab, kheloge kudoge toh Banoge Kharab!” aptly sums up society's
attitude towards sports. Unless this fundamental approach to sports changes,
it is quite an uphill task to promote sports among the youth in the manner it
should be done.