Practicum Opportunity: Harrisonburg-Rockingham Sports Commission

The Harrisonburg-Rockingham Sports Commission (HRSC), formed in 2011, is looking for a dedicated, self-motivated, energetic and passionate student to assist in the areas of planning events, marketing and fundraising, youth programming & education. The HRSC is a 501(C) (3) exclusively educational and charitable nonprofit organization with the mission of: a) educating the public about sport, fitness and physical activities as a means for achieving healthy lifestyles; b) disseminating and promoting amateur sport-related activities in the area; c) creating, developing and providing youth activities related to sport, recreation & physical fitness; and to encourage physical activity, fundamental skill development and cultivate character, citizenship and personal development through youth participation in sport; and d) making financial distributions to sport-related organizations within Harrisonburg and Rockingham County.

Responsibilities:

·         Responsible for the planning and implementation of HRSC events

·         Work in collaboration with other volunteers to ensure the successful implementation of HRSC events

·         Forming relationships with a wide variety of stakeholders

·         Database management

·         Research potential revenue streams for the HRSC

·         Develop comprehensive sponsorship proposals & presentations

·         Opportunity to assist with fundraising and development

·         Write and disseminate press releases

·         Website development

·         Develop vibrant partnerships with local youth and nonprofit organizations

Requirements:

Only students receiving practicum credit from an institution of higher education may apply. The practicum runs from January-May 2014. Students will be expected to work a minimum of 5 hours per week.

Contact:

Please email a cover letter and resume to:

Mrs. Alyssa Bosley

President

Harrisonburg-Rockingham Sports Commission

Email: bosleyat@jmu.edu   

For more information, visit our website: www.hrsportscommission.org

Summer Job Opportunity: Mercersburg Academy

Mercersburg Academy (located in Pennsylvania) has summer employment opportunities available. It is looking for Camp Directors, Assistant Directors and Counselors to help with summer programs. More information is available at http://www.mercersburgsummer.com/about/join-the-team/.

"'Boston Strong' emerges as rallying cry, from stadiums to tweets"

From MLB.com, ESPN.com and NBC News

Warning: the following video is not edited and contains inappropriate language

Analysis by Kelly Johanson in SRM 334 (section 1)

After the horrific bombings at the Boston Marathon in April, it’s like a fairy tale ending that the Red Sox won the World Series. Just like New York in 2001, sports in Boston have provided an escape and a safe haven for the fans. People in Boston have been waiting for something to cheer them up and they finally got it. In one of the articles we read it talked about the victory parade and how the duck boats stopped at the marathon finish line. Jonny Gomes got off his boat and put the trophy on the finish line and it was closure to something that had been devastating for that city. Every article we read revolved around the phrase “Boston Strong”. These two words drove the city to recover and gave them something to rally behind. Victims of the bombings were welcomed to games and many of them threw out the first pitch at different games. The Red Sox players showed their support off the field as well. They went to visit five different hospitals and didn’t want anyone to plan it for them; they wanted to go in small groups.

The phrase and hash tag ‘BostonStrong’ has gained much more popularity than people thought it ever would. It first gained popularity on twitter, especially when 3rd baseman Will Middlebrooks shared it on twitter. It was trending on twitter almost every time the Red Sox played. Now the phrase is on clothing, it’s used during news reports, on the radio and is recognizable around the world. What makes this phrase so popular is that it is short, you can say it pretty much along any lines and it will fit in any situation that surrounds Boston. It clearly describes Boston as being a resilient city that can make it through anything and that has been transferred to all of Boston’s sports. At the very end of the Bruins season they said it for them but it really has been the Red Sox’ mantra for the last 7 months. The marathon bombings and all the people injured have really given the Red Sox a chance to get major media attention. Whether the players wanted the attention for visiting victims in the hospitals or not, they got it. Everything that this team has done has been under the microscope and the people of Boston are looking at them for what they should do. People use sports to rally and that’s definitely what happened in Boston. The media made the Red Sox into the heroes of Boston. I think that the media created so much sympathy for the team that even people who would never root for the Red Sox began to cheer for them. As a Yankee fan I’ve always been against the Red Sox but when the World Series started I found myself hoping that the Red Sox to win. People wanted them to win because of everything they’ve dealt with over the last several months and so that this story had a happy ending. The media definitely portrayed all of this and it has made an incredible story for them to write about.

This all relates to our class because one of the biggest themes we’ve talked about on our class is social media and the popularity of twitter. The use of twitter during the marathon bombings and ever since has been getting bigger and bigger. Twitter breaks so many stories and is the first place most people learn about the news. We’ve also talked about the influence that the media can have on our perceptions. Everyone feels sympathy for Boston and everything that happened to them but the media has definitely built a huge story about overcoming hardships. These elaborate stories and seeing the victims has made non-Red Sox fans want to cheer for this team.

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Analysis by Megan Verpent in SRM 334 (section 1)

The Boston Red Sox are not typically referred to as “America’s team” in fact, many still reference them as the most racist team in Major League Baseball; not only were the last team to break the race barrier and sign an African American player, but “the image of black athletes experiencing racism, especially on the Red Sox, lingers.”(Montville, 1991). Despite the external critiques and the looming curses Boston had previously faced, this year the Red Sox became America’s team. This is in large part due the media’s portrayal of the organization and its players as not only as baseball players, but hometown heroes based on the way they responded to the Boston Marathon bombings which occurred at the beginning out the 2013 season in April.

Though our presentation focused on the post-World-Series champion Red Sox, we examined an article which was published by ESPN prior to the conclusion of the World-Series. It already depicted Boston as America’s baseball team. This article about the events of marathon bombings as well as the Red Sox regular season. However, the article did not just include the recorded wins and losses by the Red Sox, it also included personal stories of people who survived the bombing. The article featured Heather Abbott’s backstory. She survived the bombing, but lost a portion of her leg and was forced to relearn hot to walk. She threw out the first pitch of one of Boston’s home games at Fenway Park. The article concludes with how the Red Sox organization has helped in the recovery of the individuals affected by the marathon bombings as well as Boston as a community.

Most articles which are featured on ESPN.com and in ESPN the Magazine focus on sport. However, this article, “'Boston Strong' ... Sox have lived it” the game of baseball is a backstory. The victims of the Boston Marathon bombing and the way the Red Sox organization responded was the focal point. David Ortiz was no longer a designated hitter, the media solidified him as a symbol of the reuniting of Boston. The timing of this article’s publication, pre-championship, conveys the message that the media wanted America to understand which was, root for the Red Sox because a World-Series win would be bigger than baseball. There was no mention of the St. Louis Cardinals or the playoffs during this article which explains once again that the 2013 World-Series was not about baseball. ESPN, as well as other media outlets, focused on the victims recovering from injuries suffered in the attacks and the players of the Red Sox visiting or helping them. This was a way to garner non-baseball fans and engage them in the baseball season. Essentially, they used this angle to sympathize with the city of Boston and the victims to gain more viewers and fans.

Sport is directly linked to our everyday lives. Often when there is a tragedy, such as September 11, 2001, or the Boston Marathon bombing, people use sports as a way to escape. This is an example of how sport media outlets, including this article by ESPN reached beyond the average fan. Sport media does not only affect the way in which we watch sports, but also in the way which we relate to events in everyday life.

Practicum & Internship Opportunities: Harrisonburg High School

Harrisonburg High School has several opportunities available that can be tailored to either practicum or internship hours. Click here for a description of the opportunities and any qualifications/prerequisites for each. An internship opportunity may be comprised of one or several of the assignments described. For more information and/or to express interest in a particular position or to meet and determine a potential placement, please contact Mr. Darrell Wilson, Athletic Director at (540) 433-0450 or dwilson@harrisonburg.k12.va.us.

Job Opening: Executive Director at The First Tee of Harrisonburg

The First Tee of Harrisonburg is hiring for its Executive Director position. The Executive Director serves as the chief administrator, financial officer and leader of the organization, and is responsible for the overall management of fiscal and program operations, implementation of policies established by the board and evaluation of program and service data. The Executive Director works effectively with the board of directors and staff to develop, implement, evaluate and maintain programs, services and activities, which fulfill the mission and goals of The First Tee.

The First Tee of Harrisonburg is one Chapter of a national/international non-profit youth organization called The First Tee. The First Tee was created in 1997 by the World Golf Foundation to provide young people of all ethnic and economic backgrounds an opportunity to develop, through golf and character education, life-enhancing values such as honesty, integrity and sportsmanship.

Please click here for the Executive Director position description.

"Pinkwash? For Every $100 Of NFL Pink Merchandise Sales, Only $3.54 Goes Toward Cancer Research"

From SportsGrid.com

Analysis by Ryan Murakami in SRM 435 (section 1)

‘A Crucial Catch’ is a merchandising campaign that the NFL is apart of during the month of October. The purpose of the campaign is to support breast cancer research. In the article, the author debates how much this campaign actually benefits cancer research. According to Business Insiders, the NFL of keeping about 90 percent of the sales for the Breast Cancer Awareness gear, even though they claim to only keep 45 percent. Of the 10 percent of money that the American Cancer Society does receive, less than 80 percent actually goes toward the funding of research. So the bottom line is, is the NFL really helping a good cause or are they taking advantage of an opportunity to “look good” just to create more revenue?

From a marketing standpoint, this campaign creates a great opportunity for the NFL to market to different audiences and focus on female spectators, who are about 45 percent of the NFL fan base. Over the first four years the campaign has been in existence, it has brought in 4.5 million in revenue. On the outside the league will get positive publicity from the general public by teaming up with the American Cancer Society. If fans truly look into the actual numbers though they will figure out that it is not as beneficial for the cancer research. The NFL can push the Breast Cancer Awareness gear since it is only available for a certain time of year and target a specific market, with their female audience. This is a wonderful marketing tool for the NFL to look like they are “helping” a cause and gives the fans a chance to buy different apparel items that are not available year round. This article can definitely relate to what we have learned in class this semester I believe the NFL has a product that people want with the Breast Cancer Awareness gear. The league will use the campaign to show fans they are involved with the American Cancer Society, which will also prompt more fans to buy the gear. From a sales standpoint, Ticketmaster also gives a small percentage to cancer research during October. This could potentially encourage fans and people involved with breast cancer research to support the league this particular month. The NFL seems to be the only party benefiting from this partnership and I believe this needs to change very soon.

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Analysis by Tyler Green in SRM 435 (section 1)

The article we decided to review and discuss in class was the big controversy rising up about the National Football League and its fifth annual partnership with the American Cancer Society and their campaign titled ‘A Crucial Catch’. Even though that campaign may appear to be selfless and compassionate of the NFL, others are beginning to think that underlying motives are simply to enhance their public image among the female fan base as well as take a large cut of the profits in merchandise sales. The agreement between organizations has the NFL putting pink in just about every aspect of the sport from player equipment to merchandise sold in stores to raise funds to support the fight against breast cancer and to advertise the Crucial Catches message (women over 40 getting annually screened for breast cancer). The issue is that for every $100 of merchandise purchased in the name of breast cancer research, only $3.54 is contributed to the fight. With all the money the NFL is generating, people cannot help but become angered at the mere 1% they will be contributing to their community causes this year.

From a sales/marketing stand point with disregard to ethics and morals, I would say that this campaign is a pretty smart way to generate large quantities of revenue. They have pinpointed a target market and a topic that affects many Americans nationwide, so it is a no brainer that it will bring a lot of attention and support. In addition to the money made, they also are doing wonders for their image by acting like such a strong advocate of fighting breast cancer while keeping the profits behind closed doors. If they can attract new customers (primarily female ones) and establish a positive connection with them to retain their allegiance, the could consider this “marketing mission” accomplished.

This article relates to our class in a number of ways, the first one being advertising and publicity and the roles they play in this campaign. The NFL is obviously giving some of the profits from sales to the ACS, so as a result they are paying for a little bit of advertising by being associated with a powerful subject such as breast cancer. This then leads into publicity because it creates a positive image for the league with all the coverage that can be done on the matter without money coming out of the NFL’s pockets. In addition to these, there is also a greater behavioral response incentives put on buying the merchandise when one believes they are helping to fight breast cancer. Particularly in the affiliation/community and health/fitness portions of incentives due to the female community coming together as one, and the emphasis on being healthy and cancer free. Last but not least, a lot of sponsorship aspects can be seen for this topic with the commercial agreement/mutual benefits between the NFL and ACS, the sponsorship trends of how “everyone is doing it” for the month of October, and the many sponsorship platforms the NFL is operating out of, which is just about all of them discussed in class.

Overall the article really got Ryan and I thinking about the concepts learned in class, the strategy the NFL is using to approach this sales/marketing opportunity, and how the class could easily and openly discuss such a matter with strong opinions.

Job/Internship Opportunity: Shenandoah Valley Baseball-Softball Academy

The Shenandoah Valley Baseball and Softball Academy, located on Main Street in Bridgewater, wants either interns or part time employees, who love sports and kids. The Academy provides memberships to its baseball and softball indoor facility, lessons by some of the area's finest coaches, organizing and conducting leagues, and special events like camps, clinics, games, etc.  Please click here for more details.

"What happened between Richie Incognito and Jonathan Martin?"

From Laces Out, Huffington Post, ESPN.com, and Bleacher Report

Analysis by Thomas Anzalone in SRM 334 (section 1)

Over the past week a member of the Miami Dolphins organization Jonathan Martin quit the team because other team members were bullying him. Richie Incognito was the targeted bully who left a viscous voicemail on Martin’s cell phone. Once upper level management heard this voicemail they suspended Incognito indefinitely. Richie Incognito has a history of getting kicked off teams and starting fights with players. With all this said many of the players on the Dolphins have came forward to say that Incognito is a great teammate and he took Martin under his wing to show him the way. When the media released the voicemail people started to attack Incognito through social media. He later retaliated on twitter to ESPN and Adam Schefter ESPN’s reporter. Incognito has taken his tweets off of his twitter page and neither Incognito nor Martin has yet to speak publicly about the incident. There are also numerous tweets between Martin and Incognito especially the picture posted of him and Incognito on Bourbon Street. When I first heard this story it immediately seemed like Richie Incognito had bullied Jonathan Martin to the point where he had to remove himself from the team. It didn’t even cross my mind to go online and write something about this incident or even go after Incognito’s twitter. 

I believe that social media can be good in certain ways but too many people abuse or misuse it. With social media growing so rapidly people feel the freedom to write what ever they want whenever they want. I think it’s just to easy now days to sit behind your computer or mobile device and say things to someone you wouldn’t say to their face. When the media found this voicemail they immediately started to attack Incognito and now that some of his teammates are having his back they are letting off him slightly. With the ability to communicate through technology so easily, a lot of things can get taken out of context. Since the audio of the voicemail hasn’t been released yet it’s hard to understand Incognitos tone of voice throughout the message. Incognito said some unacceptable things but it’s easy take Martins side after only hearing one side of the story. This story is relevant to our class because of all the media attention this story has drawn and all the talk throughout various types of social media networks. It shows us how members of the media are handling crises like this and how people on social media can react so quickly to one-sided evidence. This story also shows how not to respond to media reporters using social media and that things can easily be taken out of context through social networking.

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Analysis by Wyatt Johnson in SRM 334 (section 1)

My current event was based on the Richie Incognito and Jonathan Martin situation that occurred over the past couple of weeks. Practical jokes and pranks are part of the culture in NFL locker rooms, but it seems that it went over board for the Miami Dolphins. They suspended guard Richie Incognito for conduct detrimental to the team for his alleged treatment of teammate second year player Jonathan Martin. It’s being portrayed that Incognito was bullying Martin but it went to another level once Fox Sports reported that the Dolphins and the NFL Player Association were informed that Incognito sent racial slurred text messages and left threatening voicemails to Jonathan Martin. Incognito allegedly made references to harming Martin’s family, calling him a half n****, and defecating in Martin’s mouth. It appears that Martin was fed up with a prank that occurred in the lunchroom. There were also reports of Incognito pressuring Martin to contribute $15,000 for player trip to Vegas which Martin did not attend. The Dolphins confirmed that they have reached out to the NFL to conduct a thorough review of this situation. It is uncertain if and when Martin will return to the team and Incognito’s future is up in air right now with the Dolphins Franchise.

I find this story puzzling, because both players seemed fairly close just from observing both their twitter accounts that have pics of them together doing numerous activities. I know when I first saw this story I was really shocked that this could even happen in the NFL. I feel like the media is bashing Incognito and I mean they have the right to. There is evidence of Incognito using words that he shouldn’t and his background is very sketchy from college to now. I do think that the media needs to pay more attention Jonathan Martin because obviously he has some self-esteem issues and may need some physiological help. Obviously Jonathan Martin didn’t feel he could trust anyone in the Dolphins organization to talk about the internal issues he was having. This story just shows how much impact the media can have on a particular situation. It’s all over the media markets and now people are starting to discuss the topic of bullying and how it can be stopped. I mean that is the basic overall take of this is the bullying and hazing being a critical factor in sports and society.

"9/11 golf course promotion backfires"

From ESPN.com

Analysis by Trent Cundiff in SRM 435 (section 1)

I reviewed an article done by ESPN.com and Darren Rovell based on the Tumbledown Trails Golf Course’s 9/11 Golf Promotion fail. This golf course located near Madison, Wisconsin tried a very risky marketing promotion that ended up miserably. They offered a special for 18 holes of golf just for $9.11 on September 11, 2013. They believed that they would be honoring the people that were lost on that day but it turned into a major problem once their ad hit social media. The public was disgusted with the golf course trying to take advantage of a tragic day by spinning it off into a marketing promotion. Instead of the management for Tumbledown Trails realizing that a big mistake had been made by them intentionally or unintentionally, they posted on their Facebook that they have done it before and it is only meant for honoring the day. They even went on to say that they were “hurt” by the comments left from the public. This caused more backlashes from the public, including death threats left on the golf course’s voicemail. After the second wave of terrible responses, the management decided to donate the day’s earning to the 9/11 Memorial.

When studying this story the major thought that kept coming to my head was, “How many people did this go through to get approved?” I know a golf course management team is not close to numbers compared to an NBA marketing team but I believe red flags should have been thrown up from the start. They made one of the biggest tragedies in our American history into almost like a car dealership trying to have “An Independence Sale”. The actual idea going from the planning stage to the action stage makes me very confused to how it went through those channels without someone stopping it. Even more confusing to me was how when the promotion became negative, the golf course handled their crisis management very poorly. If you are going to take that big of a risk about doing a promotion based off 9/11, the golf course should have at least had a plan if things went “bad”. Instead of mending the public’s feelings, they became defensive that people had a negative outlook on the promotion. The first thing management should have done is tried to figure how to make this right to the public because their reputation is on the line. They may have been one of the more popular golf courses in their area and now they made national news for having one of “worst advertisements in human history”. I understand management believed they were doing a good thing and they could possibly get more attraction to the course. They saw it as a win-win from doing the promotion. However you have to scale the risk-reward ratio more than they did to see it might not be a win-win. 

The relevance of this story to sports marketing students is that sometimes you and your team or peers might think an idea is good for a marketing promotion but you have look at the glass half-full. If this group would have just weighed out the backlashes it could create, maybe they would have not decided on this promotion. I also believe research should have been done before you try this idea. When I researched 9/11 promotions, other companies had tried similar promotions in other industries and negative thoughts were produced from their promotions. Either way, lessons should be learned from a major mistake done by Tumbledown Trials, which is that don’t do promotions on national tragedies or possible “sour situations”.

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Analysis by Ryan Kilmon in SRM 435 (section 1)

Tumbledown Trails Golf Course royally messed up with this advertising campaign. They ran n advertisement promoting discounted golf on 9/11 that went sour fast. I personally feel that they represented a day of tragedy unfairly and with little remorse. Sure, intentions may have not been negative intentionally, but the way they went about this was totally ignorant. The terrorist attacks on the US will forever be a tragedy to this country and this golf course simply neglected that by promoting and taking action with this marketing plan. From the get go they should have marketed differently.

Proceeds for the day should have been donated upfront before any threats started that the golf course soon received once the advertisement hit social media. Instead, I viewed this act by Tumbledown Trails as brutally selfish. I feel that they used the remembrance of 9/11 as a way to try to make money for the course rather than actually marketing and promoting a day to remember the victims that fell in the attacks. They could have promoted discounted golf in a way that would still draw a crowd, but instead they chose to use an actual price of $9.11 which I feel was unnecessary and crossed the line.

This marketing plan was clearly not thought all the way through before it was launched. National attention was made out of this occurrence and the name and image of the course also became tarnished, especially when the course tried to get defensive to the criticism being thrown at them. Marketing and promoting on a day with such emphasis to this country has advantages and disadvantages. Clearly the way this advertisement was pitched was wrong and should have never been followed through with.

This article relates very strongly to this course. I feel that this is an excellent learning tool to learn what not to do when promoting or marketing for an organization. All stakeholders must be considered within a marketing plan and I feel that Tumbledown Trails Golf Course neglected to take this into consideration. People all over the country reacted to this and I certainly hope this establishment will do a more intensive brainstorming before they launch any more marketing advertisements.

"Drake named Raptors' ambassador"

From ESPN.com

Analysis by Dru Henderson in SRM 435 (section 1)

In this article ESPN covers the groundbreaking news that the Toronto Raptors hired the well-known rapper Drake as an ambassador for the team. A celebrity in the NBA is no new trend. Jay-Z was a minority owner in the Nets (he recently sold his stock to Jason Kidd), Will and Jada Pinkett Smith are minority owners of the Sixers, and its no shock to catch Jack Nicholson and Spike Lee front row of a Lakers-Knicks game. However, this is the first time a celebrity has been such a vital part of an organization.

So what can Drake, who has no professional experience in the sport industry, bring to the Raptors? A lot actually. The rapper is one of the premier artists in the music industry today. He has a huge following, which is shown by his 13,000,000+ Twitter followers. He can attract an audience that otherwise would not attend a Raptors game. Fans of the musician may not be basketball fans, but if Drake endorses the team its safe to say they will follow close behind. As a native of Toronto, Drake’s fame has made him an icon in the territory. If he attends games regularly he can pull the hometown crowd out to the game by just his presence. He more than likely won’t be the only celebrity in the crowd. Fame has made the rapper an acquaintance of several A-List celebrities. This season you may flip the channel to TNT and catch Drake and Lil Wayne front row of a Raptors game. Celebrity appearances do wonders for the marketing department of an organization as fans get the chance to see celebrities in the same crowd as themselves.

The Raptors have struggled in recent years resulting in relatively poor fan attendance. In 2012 they ranked 17th in the league with an average attendance of 16,835. Through two games this season the organization has attracted an average of 19,312 fans, which is seventh best in the NBA. Has Drake’s presence already made an impact? It’s a little early to know that, but it will be interesting to follow throughout the season. 

Drake’s role won’t be solely focused on fan attendance. The recent trend in the NBA is super stars joining forces during free agency. Drake has become close with several NBA stars including LeBron James. He holds the potential to open up opportunities for stars to team up in Toronto through his networking skills, and his ability to attract the athletes simply by his celebrity status.

Overall I think this was a brilliant move by the Toronto Raptors. Unless Drake has a social mishap that would represent the organization in a less than desirable way I don’t see where this situation could end badly for the Raptors. 

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Analysis by Aaron Jason in SRM 435 (section 1)

The article summarizes the initiation of Drake as the new global ambassador of the Toronto Raptors of the NBA. Drake, a rapper from Toronto, has been a long time sports fan and specifically a supporter of the Raptors. On top of the amount of brand recognition Drake will bring to the franchise with just his name, he brings much more to the table than that alone.

Drake possesses a sort of intellect that many rappers do not seem to possess; he shows true, relatable emotion in his songs and strikes true in the heart of many people through his role on Degrassi as an ex-basketball player with a debilitating gunshot injury. His intelligence will be on full display as an ambassador. He is not focused on creating personal name recognition, he more cares about the revival of a franchise who so desperately needs it. He has shown he understands the fundamentals of a successful ambassador. He connects well with people through his messages on a deeper level than most artists. Not only does he have many music fans, he has many fans of him as a person. From a marketing standpoint, this will be absolutely essential to his success. Fans of his music, fans of the Raptors, and people who simply support him as an individual will all unite into a new demographic of fanhood, similar to what Jay-Z constructed in Brooklyn with the Nets. Beyond the fan connection, Drake’s name will bring more non-basketball fans into attendance of what is going on with the Raptors. Whether people follow him on Twitter or read about him in the news, they will now have a steady stream of information relating to the Raptors show up on their feeds or web searches. Drake also brings a hip factor into the equation. While it is not good to completely stray from the traditional values of an NBA franchise, a little infusion of youth and excitement will only increase sales and awareness of the organization.

Another interesting factor in this equation is his upbringing in Toronto. It is more than ideal that a global representative of a team should be from that area. If anyone knows what the city yearns for most from a fan standpoint, it would be Drake who was submerged in the culture of Toronto and specifically the Raptors. His connection on a cultural level will do wonders for his ability to connect with the outside world and promote his product, the Toronto Raptors. Overall, it seems highly inevitable that Drake will bring large brand recognition and excitement with the Raptors as a new partner of his. Even if the team does not immediately win, the culture and understanding of the city Drake possesses will help him connect to a fan base better than many professional ambassadors could attempt to do. Between high class celebrities, the enticement of star free agents, and the money revenue generated from his name, Drake is bringing a potential storm of success through the city of Toronto and he has the real possibility to turn this project into a serious success not only in the town but across the game of basketball in and beyond our country.

"Tribe seeks to force NFL Redskins name change"

From CNN.com

Analysis by Kyle Linn in SRM 435 (section 2)

This article is pertaining to the fact that a group of Native Americans, the Oneida Nation, is uncomfortable with the Washington Redskins using “Redskins” as their mascot. Both sides bring up valid points as to why they deem it offensive and why it is a cultured history of the Redskins franchise. Supporters of the name change feel that now is the time to change the name because this year marks the 81st year of the franchise since their move from Boston in 1932. Others like Dan Snyder for instance said that, “he will NEVER change his team’s name, even if they lose an ongoing federal trademark lawsuit that would stop the NFL team from exclusively profiting from the Redskins name” (Todd, Steinhauser 2013). 

The article states that two-thirds of Redskins fans in the D.C. area do not want the team to change their name. Although, eight out of ten said that they felt a name change would not matter to them. I value the two-thirds of Redskins fans who do not want the name change. My next question is then if the team name is changed, can you not as a fan wear clothing or other things to the stadium that say “Redskins” on it? I looked up the Oneida Native American Nation, and while the Oneida Native Americans make up about 45,000 of the population, there are only about 1000+ in the actual group from New York that is upset with the name. I greatly appreciate the fact that there is a group offended here, but the name is being used in greatness and jubilee as fans chant, “Hail to the Redskins!” at football games. This in terms of sales and merchandises makes up only a fraction of the entire Washington Redskins nation.

Promotionally is where I feel this is a big area of concern. Supporters of the name change could possibly boycott or continue to slander the Washington Redskin organization for its use of a “racial slur” to some. You could have protests in front of the stadium during game days and it makes for negative attention from the organizations point of view, especially in terms of sponsorships. Then, you have fans who have been fans all their lives and now suddenly, they have to call their team something different because we all now have to be politically correct in our society which hinders free speech and expression, in my opinion. Being a fan, I have never considered the name offensive and many of the Oneida Native Americans do not have a problem with Washington’s mascot. If you do change the name, you then have made a small group of people happy and now your fans can possibly become unhappy, possibly boycott games, and/or protest the name change, all of which again bring about negative publicity to the franchise. Why has it taken 80 years for there to be buzz about the name change now?Dan Snyder has an important decision to make. Either way, he is going to come out winning and losing. This pertains to our class and major because you have an ethical dilemma, a promotional/publicity crisis, and a managerial decision to make. If I were Snyder, I would not change the name (and no not because I am a fan). I think if you look at it from a promotional point of view, you don’t have to stop production and design of now and future Redskins merchandise and memorabilia, ask fans to not wear clothing that says “Redskins” on it, etc. Ethically it should be changed, without question. However, you are always going to have supporters and people who disagree and in this situation with a multi-billion dollar organization on the line, I would not risk upsetting the fan base that is the “lifeblood” of the Washington Redskins versus a group that in terms of geography makes up a small portion of the population. I do stand behind Mr. Snyder and his decision to not (at this point) change the name. 

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Analysis by Steve Mashinski in SRM 435 (section 2)

"I want to say this to Redskins fans. No one blames you for having used a name that was always used as this team. They will only blame you if you continue to use it and if you use it will impunity," I think this was the perfect quote to be placed into the end of this article. It basically says you are either going to have to change your team name or you will have an ongoing battle with the ones you are offending and the media. One of the major problems is some of these Redskins fans have been supporting this organization for potentially 80 years, but the group it is offending is making it known that there is not another option other than to stop using a racial slur to gain revenue for an organization. From a promotions and marketing stand point if the Redskins happened to change their name it would open doors to ultimately give them a fresh start. The Redskins haven’t had a promising season for a while now so maybe a new look will give them that extra push to excite people and make them want to go out and buy the new gear or come to games to be a part of history. The organization would be looked at positively in the media’s eyes for respecting a group of individuals therefore could gain more supporters. Unfortunately, on the other side of the table you will have the long standing supporters of the redskins that will boycott the new name. This will lead to protests to get the Redskins name back and fans that are unwilling to support the new organization. This side of the tables major argument is that they are not putting the name redskins down in any way they are honoring the name and don’t support them for any other reason besides the fact that they are a good football team This topic directly relates to what we have covered in class especially the effect of ticket sales from this major decision. Personally I believe ticket sales will go down because a team being around for 80 years brings in tons of loyal supports and for most of them Washington Redskins football is all they know.

Job Opportunity: Web Content Curator at Mpower Sports and Recreation

Mpower Sports and Recreation is a disability sport news network where journalists, photographers and filmmakers can tell the stories of our community.  They are hiring for a Web Content Curator position and details can be found here.

Information about Mpower Sports and Recreation can be found on their website.

Internship Opportunities: Washington Redskins

The Washington Redskins are hiring for several Spring internship positions within the Corporate Hospitality department.  Please click here for details about the Business Development position and here for details about the Client Services internship.

Internship Opportunity: Valley League Sports Media Internship

Valley League Sports Media Internship

Approximate start and end dates: May 22 - Auguest 7 (11+ weeks)

DESCRIPTION: If you love baseball, this is the internship for you. The Valley Baseball League, a summer collegiate league sponsored by MLB, seeks a sports media relations intern for the 2014 season.

VBL was formed in 1923 and became an NCAA-sanctioned league in 1961. Four former players recently participated in the MLB divisional play-offs, and the league boasts a considerable alumni roster of professional players.

The league consists of 11 teams (one in West Virginia and 10 in Virginia), from Charlestown to Covington. Each team plays a 44-game schedule, concluding with two four-team divisional play-offs and a championship series. Players come to the Valley League from colleges and universities around the country. The hub of the league is its website, which uses Pointstreak software to provide statistics and results to fans and also MLB scouts.

The intern’s daily duties will include preparation and posting of game summaries to the league website. The intern will also write weekly features and press releases. The intern will also represent the league as a media professional in contacts with coaches, players, media, and athletic directors. Other duties will include helping with weekly and end-of-season recognition awards (Player of the Week, All-Valley Team, All-Star teams), and contributing to media-related preparations for the mid-season All-Star Game.

Above all else, candidates for this internship must love baseball. This position requires the ability to interpret baseball statistics, knowledge of baseball rules and terminology, and sports writing experience. The intern should be willing to work nights and/or early mornings on a daily basis (games are played seven days a week through the entire season). Attendance at games is not required.

To apply, include a resume, cover letter stating your relevant baseball and journalism experience, and two sports-related writing samples.

Questions can be addressed to Lauren Jefferson, Valley League Sports Media Director, at lxjefferson@earthlink.net.

"Louisville lacrosse coach accused of abusive tactics"

From NJ.com and USA Today

Analysis by Alexis Cross in SRM 334 (section 1)

In today’s NCAA athletic arena it seems as though emotions are a key component in any athlete and coach. For example, Louisville University’s women’s lacrosse team faced various emotional hurdles this fall with the suspension of head coach Kellie Young. Young is a former 2003 James Madison University women’s lacrosse coach. While at JMU she led the team to three NCAA appearances. Unfortunately, head coach is now under investigation for complaints of abusive tactics from 6 former and previous Louisville lacrosse players. It is believed that head coach Young had just crossed the line. There were a few examples in the various articles, for example one being, coach had made a player with a torn ACL do 250 push-ups as punishment in an airport terminal.

Lacrosse is a fast growing sport and really doesn’t get the media coverage it deserves. However, in this case Louisville is getting almost too much coverage. The team, coaching staff and the school are all under investigation. It is just unfortunate that the coverage the media is providing is apparently exaggerating the information. I have a friend on the team and she stated “I feel so bad for my coach, they’re exaggerating everything, it is just awful here.” As outsiders prospective, it is hard to really know what to believe about this case. Does the head coach have her team brain- washed in other words, thinking that her coaching style is ok and normal? Or is the media just amplifying the information.

As a player, I could not imagine what the team is going through right now. It is my understanding that they did still compete this fall in tournaments under the assistant coaches. But the amount of stress this now adds to the team. It will be interesting to see how the case plays out and will the team overcome this adversity to compete they want to this spring.

Relating this topic to class, the media is inevitably changing the world of sports and how fast stories can get out. Also the fact that media is now so dominant in athletics, as a society we are so wrapped up in sports. The media has to keep up with how interested people are in knowing what is going on in the professional, college and maybe even high school sports. On the other hand, this scandal has showed me if I was ever interested in working in athletics how important being prepared and relationships are. Being prepared to handle any situations that are thrown at us in the athletic department. And the fact that continuing to develop relationships every day cannot only but help you when things like this come up. As a University you get through it together.

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Analysis by Jonathan Barden in SRM 334 (section 1)

The article I focused on was found on usatoday.com written by Adam Himmelsbach and was titled “Louisville lacrosse coach accused of abusive tactics”. The article took little time getting into the meat of the matter and dishing out the gossip a lot of readers would want to read about. After a short introduction the article swiftly moved into bullet pointing some of the worst offenses the coach had been accused of handing out to her players. The head coach, Kellie Young was allowed a few lines to defend herself in which she explained not all of these actions were 100% correct and then the article continued in a rather negative light, explaining more disturbing stories and action, or lack of action taken by the school to combat her behavior.

Analyzing this article from a media standpoint I would say that this article was rather one sided and definitely gave coach Young a bad name if you were to simply read this piece alone. The attempt to create a well-balanced article by throwing in the odd quote from Kellie Young did not really help her case as the next point immediately put her back down again by using rumored stories from disgruntled ex-players. From researching this story in depth a lot of other current players strongly stand by the coach and claim a lot of this information has been blown out of proportion or completely fabricated, but these point of views were unsurprisingly not included.

Despite this I would still say the article was a well written and well-researched piece. It definitely went in depth to the story, had numerous sources close to the camp and was able to use quotes from named players and parents to back up points made. In addition to this the author had clearly researched the topic well and had a good understanding of what was happening in the story, from disgruntled parents to the roles the athletic director and athletic administrator in attempting to control the situation.

I believe this article is extremely relevant to our course as it clearly shows how to write and lay out a news story to grab the reader’s attention. The title of “Louisville lacrosse coach accused of abusive tactics” immediately draws the reader in as it tells you there is going to be drama in the story happening as a very well respected sports program. And sports fans love nothing more than a drama filled sports story. Then after a brief introduction and laying out of the story it immediately gets into the key gossip filled points that most readers probably read the article for. This is an important tactic used for this type of writing as the reader is now hooked into the story and you can start to detail in more detail and more specifically what actually happened. Additionally the use of quotes not only adds more reliable information to the story but also helps break up the monotony sometimes found in articles that drag on without switching pace at all. The use of the “Story Highlights” section down the left hand column also helps to break up the story and is another effective tactic to entice the reader to read on. All of these tactics could be taken on board by members of our class to improve the standard of our sports writing in the future.

"No bowl ban for Miami Hurricanes"

From ESPN.com

Analysis by Alyssa Hough in SRM 334 (section 1)

Our media topic dealt with the NCAA finally making a decision on the University of Miami Nevin Shapero scandal. In November, 2009, Miami notified the NCAA about their investigation of one of their boosters, Nevin Shapero. They were investigating because he was throwing parties for athletes, taking them to strip clubs, buying them several things including food, clothes, and hotels for family and girlfriends, and other things. The media released information about this investigation once it came out in 2009, but very little information was disseminated after that until now. This is because the NCAA has finally made a decision as to what the punishment will be for the University of Miami. 

The NCAA decided to not ban the Miami Hurricanes from any bowl games, but has decided to take away some scholarships for football and basketball. They are taking away three scholarships from football and one from basketball each year for the next three years. This will total to nine scholarships lost in the football program and three in basketball. The NCAA weighed heavily the fact that The University of Miami decided to self-impose penalties while the investigation was going on when making their final decision. Miami put a two year bowl ban on themselves, and limited the number of scholarships they were giving out while this situation was being investigated.

It was interesting how the media released information about the case when it first came out in 2009, but then it faded away until now when the NCAA finally made a decision. I think the media stayed out of the issue because The University of Miami did a great job with their crisis management plan, and took control of the situation from the beginning. They self-imposed what could seem to be harsh punishments on themselves during the investigation to show how they are taking this seriously. There has been a lot of negative talk on social media sites like twitter saying that they think the NCAA let Miami off too easily for what they did. Schools like USC are making their disapproval with the decision known because they were hit hard with punishments from the NCAA in 2010. One thing that happened to USC is that they had 30 scholarships taken away from them while Miami only lost a total of 12. There has been a lot of talk about how the NCAA slapped Miami on the wrist and did not decide on a harsh enough punishment. However, the NCAA defends their decision by stating that they took into consideration their compliance and self-imposed punishments during the investigation.

Like we learned in class, you have to have a good crisis management plan in place because you never know when something unexpected is going to come about. Miami did a great job in managing this scandal, and because of that was rewarded with a lighter punishment from the NCAA. I think this will be something that other schools start to implement into their crisis management plan because it makes the school look good for owning what happened and dealing with it immediately. Even on Miami's website they have a link labeled NCAA Investigation. Under this link you can stay up to date with the investigation and the process of it. By including that on their site I believe they used the media to their benefit. Miami did a great job making sure they controlled the situation so the media could not bury the school in the scandal.

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Analysis by Ben Eidle in SRM 334 (section 1)

Nevin Shapiro is a former booster of the University of Miami. He is no longer a booster because he was violating NCAA rules by providing special benefits to athletes in multiple sports. Shapiro gave athletes access to his yacht and he also paid for certain things that athletes wanted. The investigation by the NCAA began in 2009 and all of a sudden the case resurfaced this past week when the NCAA released their punishment for the University.

This case has a lot to do with crisis management and how it was handled by the University of Miami. The reason for this is because during the investigation stage the story was not talked about much on many media sources compared to other scandals at other similar institutions. There are many reasons that the media could have been ignoring this story that was going on for over two years.

The first thing that I can think of for the media talking about the story for a short period of time is because these types of cases come out about schools a decent amount of time. Improper benefits are given out at schools and they end up being caught. Even though this case was an extreme of improper benefits because they were given out over an eight year period they were still the benefits which may have caused the media not to care.

The next thing that I believe kept the media away from this story is because of the way the university handled the situation internally. The university properly reported what had occurred to the NCAA and continued with their own investigation into the subject matter. They then quickly placed self-imposed sanctions on themselves. These sanctions they put on themselves were unique because they were the harshest self-imposed sanctions a school has given to date. With the postseason bans for football and the reduction of scholarships the media reported this and then it died. I believe this occurred because I feel like the media had the idea that the sanctions were so significant that they did not feel a lot more was going to happen. The crisis management team made proper choices when dealing with the sanctions but they also made sure that they were saying the proper things when necessary. The university was making sure that they were keeping the public updated on what was going on with the case. This takes away from the necessity of the media because if a story is being reported from the main source then it is unnecessary to have the media report on it.

Another thought about the sanctions that the NCAA handed out has to do with the media as well. Usually when a story is being followed a person notices that the penalties are very large. The media was not covering this story as much as others have been. Even though this may not be true the NCAA may be influence by the media because the attention each individual case is given. For example, when USC was receiving their sanctions from the NCAA for the Reggie Bush problem they were being covered all of the time. The sanctions for USC turned out to be some of the worst sanctions given out to a school. The NCAA may have seen that this case was being covered heavily and that may have pressured them into showing everybody they are a strong governing body and over penalized the school. Since Miami was not being covered as much there was no pressure in giving out sanctions that were very large.

Since the NCAA released their sanctions the media has been debating whether or not that the penalties given out were bad enough. This hot topic is important because there are schools that have done less and received more. Also, there are people that believe because Miami put such strict sanctions on their own the NCAA lightened up on the penalties that they were going to give. The debate with the media has grown tremendously since it was first discussed. It has been a topic on social media recently with many different people voicing their opinions from newspaper columnists to fans. All of this shows how powerful the media can be when presenting certain topics.

"England manager Roy Hodgson apologizes for monkey joke"

From Sports Illustrated

Analysis by Alexandra Sullivan in SRM 334 (section 2)

On Thursday October 17th CNN Sports Illustrated posted an article about England’s soccer team manager Roy Hodgson. England played Poland on Tuesday October 15th, which was a big game because the winner would advance to the World Cup. England ended up winning 2-0 against Poland. The article focuses on a greater issue rather than writing about England celebrating the win to advance to the world cup. During half time, Roy Hodgson compared player Andros Townsend to a space monkey. Hodgson meant the comparison as a compliment and did not think about a monkey being a racial slur. The media blew this story out of proportion because Townsend is half black, which means a monkey comment towards him could be taken offensively. Hodgson realized what he had said and apologized to Townsend, the team, and the FA (Football Association). Townsend and other teammates took to twitter to defend Hodgson. Townsend assured the FA and Hodgson that he did not take any offense to the monkey comment, he understood the point the coach was trying to make. Hodgson used the space monkey joke as a generation joke. Space monkeys were used by NASA in the 1960s and 70s and the monkeys were known to be intelligent animals that contributed to success in space flights. Townsend knew Hodgson used this comparison as a good thing. Anti-racism group Kick It Out and anti-discrimination group FARE are demanding an investigation to the story. These groups wanted to publicize this comment to make people aware that the words they are use can be taken offensively. Kick It Out and FARE took to twitter to comment about this story. These groups tweeted that Hodgson knew what he was saying and needs to be aware that he is in a diverse environment and should not be using those kinds of words. The chairman of the FA is backing up Hodgson saying he is an honorable man who is doing a great job coaching the England soccer team. The FA and team stand by Hodgson.

Hodgson is bringing in negative media attention to the team in a time of happiness and celebration. If it were not for social media this story would not have gotten as much attention as it is getting. Now-a-days people are able to freely express their thoughts for everyone to see. Kick It Out and FARE are able to reach more people through social media and get their thoughts to the public faster. Stories spread like wild fire on social media. It is easy for people to share stories to one another and give their opinions. In this case social media blew up the story more than it should have because Hodgson immediately apologizes and no one took offense to the comment. Even with no offense taken from the players, some people still had a problem with the words used and expressed their thoughts through the use of twitter.This issue is relevant to SRM 334 because it proves that everyone contributes to news stories. People can use blogs, facebook, twitter, and other social media outlets to quickly get information out or get their word out. Not everyone has to be a certified journalist or news reporter to get a story out into the public. It is easier for people to stay updated on breaking stories or access information on an issue through the use of social media. Twitter was used positively and negatively in this article. Townsend and teammates were able to assure the public that they still support their coach and this comment was an innocent mistake. On the other hand Kick It Out and FARE were able to use twitter to inform people that comments like that are not acceptable and people need to be aware of their surrounding and the words they use. 

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Analysis by Samantha Mitchell in SRM 334 (section 2)

On October 16th 2013, Manager Roy Hodgson apologized for making a monkey joke during halftime of the England vs. Poland match, the day prior. Someone from Hodgson’s team leaked information to The Sun newspaper, that during halftime he made a joke about space monkeys in the England Locker room as he was trying to explain to his players that they needed to pass the ball to Andros Townsend. Townsend is African American and the word “monkey” has been used in the past in racial context. 

The monkey joke that Hodgson used was referring to space monkeys that NASA sent into space in the 1960s and 70s. In the statement that Hodgson released Wednesday night, he mentioned that he did not mean the comment in an inappropriate way and made that clear to Andros as soon as it happened. He talked with Andros again the next day to make sure Andros understood the way he meant the comment. Andros understood what he really meant with the comment and assured Hodgson and the Football Association that he took no offense to it.

Andros and many other England players took to twitter to defend Hodgson. None of the players thought it was meant in a racist way and think it is ridiculous that it is being reported on. Greg Dyke, the Football Association chairman, also defended and supported Hodgson. However Kick It Out, an anti-racism organization, does not want a similar situation to happen again, so they are demanding an investigation. Piara Power, the executive director of FARE an anti-discrimination organization, also took to twitter mentioning that Hodgson should have known better and it was silly of him to use that term.

If this information had not been leaked to the media and then published, this situation could have been completely avoided. The media took this and ran with it. Not a single player was offended by the comment made and Hodgson did not mean it to be offensive in any way. He explains in this article that it is more of a generational joke. So therefore, anyone who knows of the monkey joke that took place in the 1960-70’s would be able to realize what he truly meant with this comment.

When the media publishes something that should have never been published, people are going to get frustrated and turn to social media to take out their opinions. This is exactly what happened in this situation. Twitter became an outlet for players and other people to comment on this issue. This information being leaked to the media and then published on the front page of The Sun newspaper also took away from the fact that England qualified for the World Cup by beating Poland. Instead of shedding positive light on the England team, the media is shed negative light on Hodgson, which took away from this great achievement. This article is very relevant to this course because this course is about sports media. This article is covering sports and it has to do with the media making this situation a much bigger issue than it should have been. The media is known to take negative issues and report on them because of the drama it creates. The media has certainly done this with this particular incident and it has not given the proper credit to a team that deserves huge recognition.

"Twitter Strikes Deal With NFL"

From the Wall Street Journal

Analysis by Allison Straley in SRM 435 (section 2)

The article “Twitter Strikes Deal With NFL” is an overview on the new relationship that has formed between Twitter and the NFL. This deal allows the NFL to tweet out news, analysis of games and players, as well as in-game highlights from the games on Thursday night and Sundays from the NFL Network as well as other programs such as CBS and Fox.

Adding the NFL highlights to Twitter is part of Twitter’s Amplify program. This is a revenue-generating program that lets organizations, such as the NFL, sponsor tweets that come up in users’ Twitter feeds. In every clip that the NFL puts out, there is a short ad embedded before the clip starts. The revenue generated from these ads is split between both companies. Coming from a marketing and promotion standpoint, I feel that there are positives and negatives to this new relationship. The main positive being that the NFL and Twitter both have such a huge following that what they are trying to accomplish will occur. With these tweets being ‘officially sponsored’ they automatically come up in a users’ Twitter feed so they are easily accessible during the game to see these highlights. However, and here is when the negatives arise, if for some reason a user is not going through Twitter during a game, when they go to check the next day they may have to scroll through multiple tweets before finding the clips. Being in a fast-paced society where consumers want things the quickest way possible, they might give up on finding the clips when they can possibly just YouTube them; especially having the ads play before. 

This deal is relevant to the course because promotion is a main component of the marketing mix. Within promotion itself there are also components, two being publicity and licensing. These mixes are the basis of marketing and without them marketing would not exist. The NFL is using the licensing from Twitter to promote their in-game highlights on users’ feeds and they are giving these companies the publicity by playing the short ads before the clips to help generate revenue. 

The President of Twitter’s Global Revenue, Adam Bain said, “putting the NFL's "highly coveted content" on Twitter "will not only offer our users a unique programming schedule which will deepen their engagement with our platform but will also provide our sponsors with a value proposition that few other partners can bring to the table” (Sharma, 2013). 
This deal is one that other major programs should consider looking into. Word of mouth is one of the best ways to get information across, and with Twitter having millions of followers the NFL’s new platform is definitely going to take off.

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Analysis by Katherine Lampa in SRM 435 (section 2)

In our article “Twitter Strikes Deal With NFL”, the specifics of the deal between the two companies are discussed. It will be a twenty-four- seven service as the NFL plans to have a team “dedicated to producing programming for Twitter users seven days a week”(Sharma, 2013). Games that are aired on the NFL Network will be featured on Twitter during the game, while other highlights from other networks will come later. Every video tweeted will have a short advertisement before the start of the video and the NFL and whichever company is producing the ad will share the revenue. Verizon will be a main sponsor throughout the entire season including the Super Bowl as they will be the “exclusive Twitter advertiser”. They will be paying one billion dollars over the next four years to expand their “rights to air NFL games on cellphones through an NFL Mobile app”(Sharma, 2013). During Monday Night Football the NFL will be the only account tweeting out highlights as ESPN has not been awarded those rights. 

The usage of Twitter will help actually get the ads in the face of consumers because they are short and you cannot skip by them like you may be able to do on television. Twitter has billions of users that are checking in all day every day so promoting the relationship between the NFL and Twitter will not be a problem. I think the deal creates great opportunities for both parties as Twitter continues to grow as the most widely used social media network and the NFL continues to dominate the sports world. As more people find out that clips are in- game highlights I think that more people will join Twitter to consequently follow the NFL. Marketing will pretty much take care of itself because Twitter is so easy to use. Twitter makes for a great promotions platform for the NFL because so many people can view these clips from all over the world. The publicity both the NFL and Twitter are going to get from this deal is going to be huge as they will promote each other constantly.

This relates to our class in a few ways, but mostly because it is a perfect example of social media taking over the sports world as a main promoter. While there is no person to person contact to reinforce the advertisements general users can still communicate with people in charge much easier than ever before. The use of Twitter to promote sports creates many more opportunities for great customer relations and community relations as fans can come together over Twitter. Overall, I am surprised it took this long for the two to sign an official deal and it will be interesting to see how it plays out and how popular it becomes.

"Leagues embrace Twitter, with eye on future revenue"

From SportBusiness Journal

Analysis by Alex Willner in SRM 435 (section 1)

Twitter has developed into an intriguing platform where sporting agencies can capitalize on consumer engagement and consumption. Many sports have recognized that twitter is a cheap and easy way to interact with fans and possible customers. The article “Leagues Embrace Twitter, With Eye on Future Revenue” explains how various sports view twitter as a powerful means to connect with fans on and off the field. 

From a marketing standpoint, twitter is a perfect way for fans to stay tuned-in with team or player interest stories. At this point, twitter is not looked upon as such a way to maximize profits, but more of a menas for fans to stay connected with teams. Leagues believe twitter will drive profits in the long run but in the mean time, it is a great way to stay connected. During major sporting events such as the World Series, Final Four, and Super Bowl, sports can make up about 90 percent of all TV-related tweets. In the last month, the NFL and twitter signed a large-scale deal worth and undisclosed amount in the low eight figures. The deal includes football highlights, fantasy material and other content posted on the micro blogging site. In addition, the deal allows the league to partner with Twitter’s new Amplify advertising platform.

Twitter utilized the Nielson study as of August, which found 29 percent of 221 broadcast shows from across various genres, saw a significant increase in their live ratings from heightened Twitter activity. This not only is a sign that people closely follow Twitter feeds, but also and indication that people took action based off of tweets. An increase in viewership not only means greater exposure for teams, but also opens an intriguing opportunity for sponsors to become integrated. Existing NFL sponsors such as McDonalds and Verizon have signed on as advertisers in the venture. Both of these corporate partners have a shown their values and goals align closely with the NFL and feel they can mutually benefit from an opportunity such as this. Through extensive efforts between Twitter and leagues, there can be mutual benefits to maximize profits. 

---Analysis by Schuyler LaClair in SRM 435 (section 1)

The past five to seven years nothing has grown quicker and more vastly than social media. Twitter is one of the top dogs when it comes to the social media industry. Twitter is so widely used now it’s starting to turn into an untapped marketing tool, especially to sports leagues like the NFL, NBA, and MLB. As John Ourand and Eric Fisher write in an article in Sports Business Journal, leagues are starting to embrace twitter as a possible tactic to increase their revenue stream. 

Two main events that saw increased TV views along with high twitter activity were Sunday Night Football with the Cowboys versus the Redskins and Game 2 of the American League Championship Series with the Red Sox versus the Tigers on October 13th, 2013. Both games had a combined 1.1 million tweets along with increased viewership, SNF getting over 22 million viewers and the ALCS Game 2 around 8 million. Leagues are starting to see the connection between high twitter activity and TV viewership and ratings. The NFL is one league that is trying to partner with Twitter and harness the tools that Twitter offers tweeting game highlights and stats along with fantasy stats. They recently signed a one-year deal around eight figures to “test the waters” and other leagues are watching closely to see how it goes.

This relates to marketing to the point where this is just the start of a whole new type of marketing strategy. Even with leagues having high interest in possibly partnering up with Twitter they are still nervous about the risks of possible flopping if money were to be put into the idea. Over the next one to two years the NBA, MLB, and NHL will be watching closely to see not only what happens with the NFL but to gain more knowledge and find a link between Twitter activity and increased revenue. If successful, who knows where the marketing industry will be after social media tactics are introduced.