3 ms·

First off, really rooting for the Athletic, because I genuinely hope there is a place for good sportswriting in the future (and underlying that hope is that a b

First off, really rooting for the Athletic, because I genuinely hope there is a place for good sportswriting in the future (and underlying that hope is that a business model will emerge that allows that to happen). As a big college football fan though, your comment highlights one of the challenges I think they face with the "go local" strategy. If the sports news/writing ecosystem were just bland ESPN-type coverage, I think there's a really clear value proposition. The reality is that there are a ton of other players with a local voice that users can get to for free (from the old school local beat writers to SB Nation's sites that represent ever major local team). The bet they're making seems to be that there's room for a quality content provider, and I hope that ends up being true.

mcgrath_sh 9y ago
Agree. I actually subscribe to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette because of their sports beatwriters. I think they provide value to me. I would absolutely subscribe to other sports content that was of high quality and focused (mostly) on the team or sport I am interested in. As an aside, some of the highest quality stuff I see is from bloggers/amateurs who follow sports and write about it as a hobby. There are people who write a dozen or two articles a year with incredible breakdowns containing numbers, vidoes, strategy, etc and it is incredible.
- dnackoul 9y ago
  I grew up in the Pittsburgh area so I'm definitely biased, but I think Pittsburgh has a higher general sports literacy (especially for football) than other places I lived. Football is huge from peewee to the NFL and high school games receive significant coverage. The sportswriters seem to have more leeway to talk X and O's without losing their audience. >As an aside, some of the highest quality stuff I see is from bloggers/amateurs who follow sports and write about it as a hobby. There are people who write a dozen or two articles a year with incredible breakdowns containing numbers, vidoes, strategy, etc and it is incredible. I agree with this. There's some really good stuff out there. I also think it's worth mentioning Jon Gruden. He does a great job of breaking down game tape while still reaching a wide audience. I'd love to see more like him. My ultimate hope is that Peyton Manning gets his own show breaking down film (of both NFL games and his commercials).

mcgrath_sh 9y ago

Agree. I actually subscribe to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette because of their sports beatwriters. I think they provide value to me. I would absolutely subscribe to other sports content that was of high quality and focused (mostly) on the team or sport I am interested in. As an aside, some of the highest quality stuff I see is from bloggers/amateurs who follow sports and write about it as a hobby. There are people who write a dozen or two articles a year with incredible breakdowns containing numbers, vidoes, strategy, etc and it is incredible.

dnackoul 9y ago
I grew up in the Pittsburgh area so I'm definitely biased, but I think Pittsburgh has a higher general sports literacy (especially for football) than other places I lived. Football is huge from peewee to the NFL and high school games receive significant coverage. The sportswriters seem to have more leeway to talk X and O's without losing their audience. >As an aside, some of the highest quality stuff I see is from bloggers/amateurs who follow sports and write about it as a hobby. There are people who write a dozen or two articles a year with incredible breakdowns containing numbers, vidoes, strategy, etc and it is incredible. I agree with this. There's some really good stuff out there. I also think it's worth mentioning Jon Gruden. He does a great job of breaking down game tape while still reaching a wide audience. I'd love to see more like him. My ultimate hope is that Peyton Manning gets his own show breaking down film (of both NFL games and his commercials).