Angsty Journalists Said the WaPo Sports Section Was Indispensable. The Evidence Suggests Otherwise.
The Washington Post shuttered its so-called sports section last week amid sweeping layoffs intended to transform the once-revered paper into a product that makes money because people actually want to read it. Doing what comes naturally, the journalism community shrieked in agony while denouncing anyone who suggested that a media outlet losing $100 million per year was not sustainable. Some journalists were particularly aggrieved by the demise of the sports section, which they hailed as uniquely indispensable due to the fact that some talented reporters had worked there several decades ago.
ESPN reporter Jenna Laine wrote that the layoffs were "so troubling" because they signaled that "the appetite for real sports reporting has died" as the industry continued "its slow, inevitable burn." New York Times reporter Ben Mullin wrote a eulogy for "one of the last bastions of great sports writing." More importantly, he explained, the Post was a "champion of diversity" and a "leader in women's sports coverage."
A Washington Free Beacon analysis of the Post's sports-related output in recent weeks did not find sufficient evidence to support these claims of journalistic greatness. Amid numerous offerings of gambling advice, the Post also published eight feature-length articles since Jan. 29 that—while technically sports-related—few normal American sports fans would describe as engaging content that must be published even if it means losing $100 million per year.
1) Hockey isn't gay enough
Days before the layoffs were announced, the paper's Washington Capitals beat reporter examined how the success of Heated Rivalry—the television series about two gay hockey players who have sex with each other—had made at least several people upset that the NHL wasn't doing more to elevate queerness and promote LGBTQIA2S+ inclusion.
2) NFL diversity police
As part of the Post's Super Bowl coverage, the paper expressed concern that the NFL was still "grappling" with its lack of diversity among head coaches. The story included quotes from NFL executives responding to diversity-focused questions from concerned reporters, and another from a black former coach, Tony Dungy, who said, "I try not to look at it in terms of race."
3) The enduring legacy of Colin Kaepernick
Sports reporter Adam Kilgore conveyed his agonizing displeasure with the fact that Colin Kaepernick—the former San Francisco 49ers quarterback best known for kneeling down to protest the national anthem—was not being widely discussed ahead of Super Bowl LX. Because the game was being played in Kaepernick's former home stadium—where he won roughly a third of the games he started—Kilgore argued there was no one "more relevant." The article included affirming quotes from four university professors specializing in social justice.
4) The Olympics vs. climate change
The Post invited its readers to "see how climate change is threatening the Winter Olympics" with a slew of interactive charts, links to academic studies, and interviews with activists all making the case that abiding by the Paris Agreement is the only way to ensure that the games continue.
5) The Olympics vs. gentrification
The Post published a double-bylined report from Milan about the concern among "advocates" that the "relentless gentrification" in the Winter Olympics host city was "deepening social divisions and widening income disparities."
6) At last, "queer culture" comes to ice dancing
A racial justice reporter who doubles as the Post's resident "figure skating analyst" examined the ways in which Olympic ice dancers were incorporating "an underground style of promenade common in Black queer culture and made more mainstream with the advent of 'RuPaul's Drag Race.'"
7) Olympic athletes vs. Trump
The Post's report on U.S. Olympic athletes who feel conflicted about representing their country (while Donald Trump is president) did not mention Eileen Gu, the U.S.-born skier representing China at the Olympics. Gu has freely criticized the United States while staying silent on issues involving the Chinese Communist Party.
8) Bombshell: Skiing lacks diversity
The Post published a deep dive on Nordic combined, an Olympic event that blends ski jumping and cross-country skiing. It is, horrifyingly, one of the only segments of the Olympic Winter Games that has yet to be "opened, expanded or reimagined in the name of equity." Male athletes will compete at this year's games—as they have since 1924—but Olympic officials have repeatedly declined to open the sport to female athletes. The male event might soon be scrapped as well due to concerns about low viewership and the lack of "global representation" beyond a handful of Northern European countries. Shockingly enough, most participants are white. As the Associated Press reported last month, Europeans are increasingly concerned that the region's burgeoning migrant communities are underrepresented at the Winter Olympics.
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