News and Commentary

Sports Journalists Wonder What To Do Now That Sports Are Cancelled Due To Coronavirus

   DailyWire.com
Empty football field and stadium seats. - stock photo
David Madison via Getty Images

The NBA season has been suspended. Same with the NHL and MLS (that’s soccer). The MLB pre-season has been cancelled. The XFL season is done. The NCAA championships have been cancelled. Fantasy sports betting websites like Draftkings and FanDuel list only MMA and esports. SuperDraft is running simulated basketball games such as ’12 Heat vs. the ’01 Lakers. There’s still horse racing, but fans have been banned from stadiums.

So, what’s a sports journalist to do when there are no sports? The Ringer’s Bryan Curtis dove into the question.

In an article published Monday, Curtis took a look at the worries those in the industry – who have never dealt with entire sports seasons being cancelled like this:

Two things make their coronavirus stories unique. One, this is the first crisis I can remember in which sports media members themselves are an affected class. At least four writers who covered Wednesday’s fateful Jazz-Thunder game went into self-quarantine, as did Charles Barkley, who called into Thursday’s edition of Inside the NBA.

The coronavirus also got sports across America cancelled. The sportswriter playbook of covering external events used to be this: Write a few stories. Maybe work in a thumb-sucker. (Will we ever watch games the same way again?) Then return to normal programming.

Unfortunately, Curtis wrote, they can’t simply return to normal programming because in those other cases, sports seasons weren’t cancelled indefinitely. Curtis noted that Keith Olbermann suggested games might not resume for six months.

“But wait. There’s a reason for sports media members to feel even worse. We’ve spent the last several years hearing that our work may no longer be financially sustainable. Imagine what that fragile professional state is going to feel like without power rankings,” Curtis reported.

Curtis didn’t really have an answer for those wondering what to do while seasons are suspended or cancelled:

Last week, as leagues cancelled or suspended games, it was fashionable to search for “something positive” about the experience. My training as a sportswriter prevents me from searching for something positive. But if I had to come up with something less dire, I’d say this: When a pandemic is crossing the globe, it’s normal for a sports media person to feel discombobulated, sidelined, almost useless, even as she or he snaps into action. Such self-awareness is useful. I worry about anybody who doesn’t feel at least slightly self-conscious about covering sports for a living.

In an article last week, Curtis suggested the coronavirus “could change American sportswriting forever.” His main concern was the first measure sports leagues took to address the coronavirus: Ending locker room access for reporters.

“Though the leagues say the changes are temporary, reporters are freaked. The ability to report inside a locker room is nothing short of a miracle of American sportswriting. At a time where there’s no regular White House briefing, standing in front of LeBron James and asking a question is an anachronism. Sportswriters realize the precariousness of the arrangement. That’s why they’re scared shitless that the coronavirus will be the means by which it’s taken away forever,” Curtis wrote.

It’s hard to imagine reporters won’t be allowed back into the locker room once the coronavirus is contained, but the entire situation is still filled with “what ifs.”

Got a tip worth investigating?

Your information could be the missing piece to an important story. Submit your tip today and make a difference.

Submit Tip
The Daily Wire   >  Read   >  Sports Journalists Wonder What To Do Now That Sports Are Cancelled Due To Coronavirus