For the fourth-straight year, Villanova’s Communication Department will host its annual journalism panel. This year, it will be centered around sports journalism, while the last three have offered glimpses into the rich diversity of people and coverage in the industry.
This panel, looking at the challenges of sports journalism, as well as what the ever-changing industry holds for sports journalism’s future, includes Joe DeCamara, co-Host of 94WIP’s Morning Show; Taryn Hatcher, an on-air host and reporter for NBC Sports Philadelphia; Marcus Hayes, a highly-respected columnist for The Philadelphia Inquirer; Kevin Kinkead, an editor for the online blog Crossing Broad; and Breland Moore, a sports anchor for Fox 29.
The event takes place Thursday, Feb. 20, from 4:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. in Garey Hall Room 10A.
Each of the five panelists brings a distinct style and experience in a specific medium, a choice of no coincidence from Communication Department professor and this year’s roundtable moderator, Michael Bradley.
“These are people who have reached, in the Philadelphia area, pretty high places,” Bradley said. “We’ve got pretty high-end people here who can tell aspiring journalists, whether they want to be in sports or anything else, what you have to do to get to the top. Especially now with the Eagles winning the Super Bowl, I expect this to be a really lively roundtable and people can get a chance to talk and listen to folks talk about covering the sports issues of the day.”
With recent Philadelphia sports success, including the Phillies’ postseason runs and the aforementioned Eagles Super Bowl run, the audience is expected to be packed with both sports fans and those looking to pursue a career in the industry, including Villanova Television’s Sports Director, Mia Zebrauskas.
“I hope to learn more from journalists and professionals in jobs close to mine,” Zebrauskas said. “Even though I am hoping to be a videographer or producer post-graduation, we all share a passion for sports media and I think it’s highly valuable to meet people that work in the same or similar fields, so you can learn from their experiences and establish a connection with them.
For WXVU broadcaster David Szczepanski, a longtime fan of Philadelphia sports teams and sports talk radio, he’s looking forward to hearing from those giants in the field he one day hopes to be a part of.
“I’m excited to hear from some local journalists about their journeys and experiences in sports journalism,” Szczepanski said. “I’ve grown up listening to WIP, so it will be especially great to hear from Joe DeCamara, who hosts a sports talk show like I do on WXVU at Villanova. I’m happy and thankful that Villanova and the communication department is able to give students the chance to attend something like this.”
And much like the five men and women invited to participate at the roundtable, sports journalism requires flexibility, something Szczepanski is no stranger to navigating in multiple ways.
“One of the biggest changes is just from a multi-media lens,” Szczepanski said. “If you’re in radio, you are no longer just hosting a radio show. You must have a social media presence and network yourself on other platforms. It provides challenges, but it also allows you to connect with more people and learn how to become a better journalist and broadcaster.
Bradley, a longtime, respected journalist in his own right, hopes those interested in entering the sports journalist industry are not waiting around, hoping for an opportunity to simply appear.
“As I tell all my students who come to me looking to get into this field, I say, ‘Your grade in Professor Bradley’s journalism class doesn’t mean anything when it comes time to looking for a job,’” Bradley said. “Have you written? Have you done all of the things that you want to do later on in a career while you’re in college? It’s imperative that you’re building a resume while you’re taking your classes because that’s what employers are gonna look at.”
In that same vein, the success of taking advantage of the opportunities afforded in college can be seen with up-and-comers in the industry. Opportunities, as Bradley said, can be in numerous different avenues, be it with on-air reps, writing articles or podcasting about any given sports topic.
For up-and-comers, such as former co-Editor-in-Chief of The Villanovan and now writer for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Colin Beazley, those opportunities made all the difference for where he’s reached in his career.
“I’d recommend taking advantage of any opportunity you can,” Beazley said. “For me, that was getting involved as heavily as I could with The Villanovan, which led to more practice doing journalism, covering more events and meeting editors and other journalists. Also, take advantage of people you know in the field. Villanova has [Michael Bradley], who has plenty of connections and advice on how best to make sports journalism, or any kind of journalism, a career.”
With topics for previous roundtables such as “Women In Journalism,” “Black Journalists” and “Television Journalism,” Bradley acknowledges the need for diversity in the industry.
“It’s vital that we have diversity of gender, diversity of race, diversity of opinion, diversity of platform,” Bradley said. “So people can see there’s a lot of entryways into journalism now. You just have to work hard and find your spot.”
Diversity also speaks to the mediums the general population consume media and journalism through, as sources like a physical newspaper continue to dwindle in terms of television and online distribution platforms. For Beazley, himself a writer for a newspaper, social media seems to be the future of the industry.
“I think the printed newspaper is on its last legs, but there’s still space for good written work,” Beazley said. “That said, sports media and journalism needs to find consumers or readers where they’re at. Social media is a huge resource for journalists that know how to use it, whether that’s short form stories, live tweets, or video analysis. Social media has meant that everyone in sports media has a platform, so you have to make the most of what you have, market yourself heavily, and ensure that consumers know who you are and that you’re someone they can trust with their attention.”
To learn more about the event, visit the Communication Department’s website or social media, @villanovacomm, on Instagram.
