by @anarchyroll
August 31, 2013
There is not a shortage of sports writers in this country or in the world. There are countless talking heads on five or six 24 hour a day sports television channels on basic cable alone, let alone on premium packages, not to mention written print and digital media. And let us not forget the infinity of negative opinions that is sports talk radio. I have always been a big sports fan and have always been opinionated about what I see when I watch sports. After all, it takes as much effort and skill to be a Monday morning quarterback as it does to be a backseat driver.
As I read books and listened to audio books in the subject of philosophy/spirituality/personal development I became less opinionated about sports. I became less knowledgeable on the day to day, hour to hour events of the sporting world. I stopped listening to sport talk radio almost completely. I disconnected from cable television so ESPN, Comcast, etc were also eliminated from my daily media intake. I found that the vast majority of sports opinion was negative, and in most cases not even veiled in creativity, credibility, or objectivity.
However, when I would encounter quality sports journalism, it peaked my interest as much as any kind of news or entertainment media I consume. Whether in a newspaper, magazine, web page on radio or television I found that the people who were good at their jobs in sports media were bona fide heroes of mine. The blending of creative writing and news has always gotten my blood pumping and thoughts dancing. Quality sports writers and broadcasters in my opinion are masters at combining creative and media writing.
So what is Sports Roll? It is the sports blog for @anarchyroll under the Anarchy Journal Constitution digital media writing umbrella. My other blogs feature my writings on hard news/journalism, pro wrestling/mma, economics/business, and philosophy/spirituality/self actualization. I would like to combine all five blogs into one website and present the material like a digital newspaper/magazine akin to The Daily Beast, Kinja Network, and UPROXX. These are all subjects I am passionate about and would like to become a professional reporter/writer of. I received my bachelor’s degree in media communications from Northeastern Illinois University this past May. I want to make sure that I am applying what I have learned, that I am keeping my writing skills sharp, that I am staying productive as a person, and that I am working towards my overall goal achievement desires.
Sports is entertainment for me, no different than any other television show or movie. That paradigm is why I am such a pro wrestling fan. My sports blog could just as easily be my TV show or movie blog, but I watch little of either because my visual entertainment time more often tends to be used watching sports and sports entertainment. Football, basketball, hockey, and baseball will be the sports I write about most, in that order, since those are the sports that I watch in that order of frequency and enthusiasm. Mixed martial arts may over time bleed into the sports blog because pro wrestling is my biggest passion in life and that blog which is currently split between rasslin’ and mma may over time just become completely dedicated to WWE, TNA, ROH, indies, lucha, and pureoso.
Many of my inspirations for pursuing a degree in journalism, which became a degree in media communications are sports journalists and/or sports broadcasters. Michael Wilbon, Tony Kornheiser, Jim Rome, Jonathan Hood, Bob Costas, Dan Patrick, Scott Van Pelt, Jim Lampley, Neil Everett, Bob Ryan, Max Kellerman, Skip Bayless, Woody Paige and Stephen A Smith have all provided me with equal parts entertainment and inspiration via radio and television for many years. Sports writers like Rick Reiley, David Haugh, Bert Sugar, Mitch Albom, Peter King, Bill Simmons, and Mike Lupica have all had me confusing reading nonfiction with being entertained, heaven forbid. These are my inspirations for sports writing/journalism, these will be the benchmarks I strive for as I try to grow and evolve as a writer.
Lastly, and what proves to be the main reason that I will be regularly writing a sports blog, is that I have personally been told by more strangers than any to be a sports reporter. From school child age through adulthood people I have met at parties, bars, coffee houses, and through friends have told me that I should be working for ESPN, FSN, Comcast, Dead Spin, etc. This is not simply a situation of me thinking I’m cool because my mom says so. I have been complimented on my intelligence, lexicon, charisma, style, etc by many people. However, it is almost solely been while talking about sports that I have been told that I should get involved with it in a journalistic or broadcasting related endeavor. So rather than resist, I will do as one of my favorite philosophers advises and follow the sign posts that come into my life. But I’ll save the philosophy for my philosophy blog. Now you and I both know the purpose of Sports Roll. Let the games begin.
Anarchy Journal Constitutional 