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As a sports reporter working for any organization, there are some basic rules that you and every other reporter will be expected to follow while covering and attending your event. 

When heading to the reporter box before the game it’s important to make sure you’ve dressed appropriately for the event and wearing something that’s easy for others to identify you and the organization you’re reporting for. During my internship with CSU Athletics as a writer and sports reporter, “If you don’t dress right and rep the brand you work for, then you won’t cover one of my games,” my advisor and CSU’s current Assistant Director of Communications and Contact Development, Mike Brohard said. You should always wear and represent the team and organization you’re with and this was something Mike drilled into my head from the start, it’s become one of the biggest tips I’m thankful to have learned early on in my career and it’s the first step in appropriately attending your game. 

When covering an action-packed sport such as basketball, volleyball or even football, cheering for your team has to be one of the most unprofessional looks and it shows bias towards one team. As an intern who has reported at multiple CSU basketball games, it was difficult to get this tip down at first being a student but you’ll learn to behave like others really quick when you’re put into this type of setting. When I was a Linebacker on the Colorado State Rams football team, my head coach Mike Bobo always reminded us “no matter where you are, always remember that you’re representing the name on the back and most importantly the name on the front of your jersey.” I believe that advice can be applied in anyone's work-life because you should always be conscious of the organization you’re with and know that anything you do will ultimately have an effect on them. As a reporter in any field whether its sports or for the news, it’s critical to maintain a professional attitude and thankfully I had my advisor Mike for the first couple games to help show me the ropes. His advice towards me getting through this was to learn how to “silent cheer” so that I wouldn’t get any turned heads and someone asking “what the hell is he doing here?”. This leads me into my next tip; learn and understand as much of the sport as you can before going into the press box. 

When I was assigned to my first women’s golf tournament in September of 2019, I didn’t know a lot about golf or even the lingo they used when communicating with each other. I felt disconnected within the sport I was covering and one of the other reporters asked me if I’ve ever been to a golf course after the tournament. This experience inspired me to understand as much as possible before you enter into a press box and it was because I didn’t bother to research or learn about the sport/players before watching the event. You’ll be able to come up and write a much better story if you have experience with that sport and know who's involved, so if you’re new to your job and getting assigned events that you aren’t familiar with; take the time to research the sport and realize that most importantly this is a learning experience.  

One of the toughest skills to master in reporting or when covering any story is the interview process for your sources. There are a few essential tips below ranging from recording devices to different types of questions that you could ask. I feel that anyone could benefit from these tips and that all of them should be applied as long as it’s helping someone from repeating the same mistakes that I encountered when entering the world of journalism. 

When covering a game to write a recap or even a career path story, you’ll be required to interview and ask a couple of questions with the coaches and some of the players. For the first couple of interviews, I remember sweating, swaying side to side and my stomach churning from being so nervous. After some experience and practice interviewing you’ll pick up on some things that other reporters are doing and the first is that they’re always coming up with new questions for the post-game interview while the game is still going on. Your questions will be centered around how the game went so it’s crucial to stay focused and never miss anything or else someone will pick up on something that you should’ve seen. 

When heading into your interview, it’s also important that you have an application on your phone or a microphone with a recorder so that you can save all of your interviews for future reference when pulling some quotes. For my phone, I use an app called “Anchor” to record all of my in-person interviews and it allows me to record and save the entire file right to my device so I can listen to it while I’m writing my story. This leads me into my next tip, DO NOT use the “auto-translate” function on any recording device because it’s almost never accurate, so don’t rely on that and always listen to your sources when pulling quotes. In November of 2019, I was writing a career path story on a track star who came from a family of pole-vaulters, and I’ll never forget the biggest mistake I made in journalism to this day and it involves using the “auto-translate” function. I thought I could save time by having the whole conversation in text and right in front of me, but what I didn’t realize was how out of place “auto-translate” can be from what my source actually said. When referring to this woman’s childhood before joining the CSU track team, I misspelled one of her coaches' names and put a sentence in the story that she didn’t actually say. This led me to issue an apology to her, rewrite the story a bit and it left me with a sick feeling that I didn’t want any part of again. If there was any piece of advice I hope you can learn from this, it’s to not make that same mistake that I did when interning for CSU. 

The last tip I’d like to share towards anyone interested in entering this field is that once you obtain your interview recording you should immediately head to a quiet place and start writing. After a CSU basketball game, writers are expected to have their recap published onto CSURams.com within the following hour of the game-ending. This task was something I had trouble reaching at first because I’m tough on my work and always want my writing to flow perfectly. I can spend a lot of time revising and going over my work just to make sure a certain paragraph sounds right, however, you’ll quickly gain with the experience that you have to write under pressure within a strict deadline at all times. The only way to write fast and creatively is to actually enjoy the game you’re covering while having a clear understanding of everything going on. Don’t be afraid to put your own style into your story before it gets reviewed, your editors want to see some creativity that differs from their style of writing so remain confident and take constructive criticism when you know it’s coming as well. 

As a sports reporter, you can be asked to either go report at a game or write a personal career path story. This type of story requires preparation, three or more sources interviewed ahead of time, and they’re meant to make someone and their families day.   

When being assigned a career path story the first thing anyone should do is research and learn as much as possible about your specific source. The writer's goal should always be to present an engaging piece that puts a smile on that individual’s face and to do that you need to know more than their name. Your first and longest interview must be always to the person that the story is about, so do not interview any other sources ahead of them. Once you’ve learned and interviewed the individual it’s time to find three other sources that are close to them and are willing to answer some questions about your main source.    

Before jumping into your other interviews gain a better insight into how your first one went with your main source and then pull some questions for your future sources. Your first interview will always be the longest because you want to find out everything you can that will make your story great. Your first interview will give you more questions that you’ll want to ask them and your other sources.  If you’re struggling to find more sources for your story, you can also ask your main source if they know anyone else who might be great for an interview; so don’t be shy and make a list of some questions beforehand. Once you’ve finished your first interview go ahead and begin writing until you need your next sources.   

After you’ve acquired interviews for your other sources, you have to understand that they have a busy schedule as well. Some people only have time for a quick phone call, text, or even email to get you a quote for a story so get in contact with them quickly before your story is due.    

During my internship, I was writing a career path story about a graphic design artist and one of the biggest mistakes with that story was how I waited too long before getting in touch with my sources. I felt like I could have produced a much more engaging piece if I was able to get an in-person interview. However, I waited and had to email one of my sources for a quote, and it just did not feel like a personal message for the story.    

After you’ve finished all of your interviews and have some written already from your main source, listen to your sources and do not auto-translate anything over the recording. Polish up your initial writing and use your interviews to find a basis for how you want the story to flow. You should never procrastinate these stories and wait to write, especially if you’re given a good amount of time to complete the assignment. 

In the world of journalism and sports reporting, the one sin that can ruin your career for eternity is plagiarism. Copying, stealing or referencing someone without citing their work is another way of theft.

At any national news network where a reporter is writing a story, they must credit their findings and cite them with 100-percent accuracy using direct or indirect quotes. As an intern with CSU, this was the biggest thing my supervisor Mike Brohard emphasized as I was growing within their communications department. In my first meeting with my boss, he told me with a stern face “if you get caught plagiarizing, you’ll be fired immediately; and your career will be tainted,” so the thought of copying someone else's work is something I never went near after that meeting.

Crediting your source is something that can be done in a multitude of ways to avoid plagiarizing, such as having a clear understanding of the context in your interview with the source. This brings me back to one of my most important tips, do not use auto-translation when recording. When looking back at my published story for Aliya Simpson, I miscredited her on a part about her background because of using the auto-translation feature, and she called CSU to tell about how the story was miswritten. I felt terrible and it’s a feeling I never want to go through again so in the case that this happens to you, own up to your mistakes and issue a personal apology. This may not be plagiarism but it is close because if it had been a fact or a statement that required a citation, I would have lost my internship and my career in journalism would have ended before it even started.