Fall 2010 Syllabus now online

Fall 2010 Syllabus now online

PDF and text versions of the syllabus are available by following this link. Questions or concerns? Email me.

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USA Today’s Brennan on Tribune, “Chrissy”

USA Today’s Brennan on Tribune, “Chrissy”

The Chicago Tribune’s already infamous Chrissy Pronger poster drew the ire of USA Today’s Christine Brennan.
Writes Brennan:
“In 2010, when millions of girls and women are playing sports in this country and around the world, how is it acceptable for a newspaper to resort to tired old sexist comparisons of this sort, trying to [...]

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Acknowledged bias an avenue to credibility

Acknowledged bias an avenue to credibility

“Everyone is a prisoner of his own experiences. No one can eliminate prejudices – just recognize them.” – Edward R. Murrow
Although never mentioned by name, Murrow is at the root of a New York Times article earlier this week, written by Joseph Plambeck, that shines a light on sports blogs that don’t bother to hide [...]

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Did Trib go too far with “Chrissy” Pronger?

Did Trib go too far with “Chrissy” Pronger?

The Chicago Tribune created a Chrissy Pronger poster to poke fun at the Philadelphia Flyers’ Chris Pronger. It got them attention, but was it the right kind of attention?

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Dave Barry on SB Media Day

Dave Barry on SB Media Day

The Miami Herald’s Dave Barry confirms what we all suspected about Super Bowl Media Day.
Writes Barry:
“This year’s Super Bowl will feature a total of two teams, the Colts and the Saints. This is one of the nuggets of information I picked up on Media Day, which is when all the players are herded into a [...]

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Why Rick Reilly loves being a sports writer

Why Rick Reilly loves being a sports writer

Rick Reilly’s latest ESPN The Mag column is up.
He tells us all why he loves his job.
Here it is.
Our favorite line: “Sports is real. It can’t be faked. If you’re Henry Fonda’s son and you want to act, you get to act. If you’re Chelsea Clinton and want to govern, you get to govern. But [...]

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Philly Daily News headline: terrible judgment

Philly Daily News headline: terrible judgment

The Philadelphia Daily News this morning called Allen Iverson and federally convicted Mike Vick “homeys.” How, in 2009, does such an out-of-touch choice of word get made?

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L.A. Times’ Penner / Daniels dead at 52

L.A. Times’ Penner / Daniels dead at 52

Mike Penner, the longtime Los Angeles Times sports writer, has died. He was 52.
Penner, long known to Times readers for a quarter century for his coverage of Major League Baseball, the Olympics, and other sports, jumped into the national spotlight a few years ago when he announced he was a transsexual and was changing his [...]

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Enough digs; get with today or get out

Enough digs; get with today or get out

Digs by the insecure, naive old guard of sports writing are as outdated as they are. It’s as if they view adapting to the present as a sign of weakness.

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It’s all fun and games ’til you (maybe) libel someone

It’s all fun and games ’til you (maybe) libel someone

Deadspin’s new series about jerk coaches yielded a false anonymous story about Arizona State’s Pat Murphy. Was Murphy libeled?

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