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Journalism
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Sports journalism

Still the `toy department' of the news media?

David Rowe

University of Western Sydney, Australia, d.rowe{at}uws.edu.au

Sports journalism is an increasingly significant feature of the press yet is subject to considerable criticism, as summarized by the familiar jibe that it is the `toy department of the news media'. While there is an element of cultural snobbery and prejudice in this charge, sports journalism should not be exempted from scrutiny regarding conventional professional criteria within the news arena. There is, though, a dearth of empirical evidence concerning international patterns in sport. This article draws on data from the International Sports Press Survey 2005 (Schultz-Jorgensen, 2005), the largest international survey of sports journalism yet produced, and, in particular, on its Australian component. In assessing the survey's findings on sports journalism's concerns with problems and social issues, and the range of sources that it uses, the article reflects on whether the pejorative `toy department' is justified. In concluding it addresses the role of sports journalists in the creation, maintenance, and enhancement of a sports celebrity system.

Key Words: K E Y W O R D S • celebrities • critical investigation • problem orientation • professional status • sources • sports journalism

Journalism, Vol. 8, No. 4, 385-405 (2007)
DOI: 10.1177/1464884907078657
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