SXSWORLD

Sports Sites Hope to Refl ect and Predict What Th eir Readers Want by Ethan Sherwood Strauss S cott Raab, author of Th e Whore of Akron (the cathartic book about LeBron James), once expressed sympathy for the younger generation of sports writers. Over the phone, he wea- rily muttered, "You guys are confi ned to feeding the forever gaping maw." He was right. And if "the maw" forever gapes, we will forever feed it. Today's sports writers have had to come to terms with catering to the almighty consumer and the fact that it is better to stop wor- rying and learn to love the new reality of sports journalism. Sports writers are not the only ones on this consuming mission; anybody involved in sports entertainment must consider his or her audience. Technology has empowered an increasingly hungry sports fan. Th e Internet and its sequel, social media, have simultaneously whet and altered consumer appetites everywhere. So, what does "the maw" want? What will it want in the future? In the sports sphere, through as an NBA PR scrounger and was instantly hooked. Anchored by the genial duo of J.E. Skeets and Tas Melas, the videocast felt genre- defi ning, like a hoops-focused Pardon the Interruption for a younger generation. Comedic whimsy infused the show's spirit, but that wit was conveyed through a wonderfully structured vehicle. Th e show always begins with Skeets belting out the episode number in a familiarly quirky cadence ("Ehhhhhh-pisode 1..3..3"), followed by a song to burnish the beautiful monochrome image of basketballs slowly bouncing around Skeets and Melas. From there, we're treated to a madcap recap of the previous night's NBA action. "Th e Basketball Jones" has grown up a lot since 2008. Th e makers joined forces with Canadian television station Th e Score, added a key piece in co-editor Trey Kerby, and toured the country like a live band. Th ese guys are forever whipping up innovative meals for "the maw," but SXSW presentations often hazard a guess at, and at SXSW Interactive 2012, the questions can generally be analyzed in terms of refl ection (What just worked?) and prediction (What will work?). As for the refl ective approach, speakers at two of this year's live podcasts ("Th e Basketball Jones" and "Th e Solid Verbal") will give us commentary on what has worked for them. Both are trailblazers in their respective inchoate fi elds, ascending fi gurative staircases that no one else knew to look for, and in the process, feeding "the maw" what it had unknow- ingly craved. Back in 2008, I discovered "Th e Basketball Jones" in my daily run- those are two questions that 26 SXSW ORLD / FEBRUAR Y 2012 "Blogs With Balls" panel at SXSW Interactive 2011 "I changed the focus of our game content because readers are telling us that they want it in a different way. Give us the broad strokes. Give us a place where we can react with you." specifi c. voices sought to bottle the far fl ung world of collegiate pigskin into podcast form. Th e pair accomplished this, making the sport accessible to neophytes like me, while also catering to the hardcore fan. "Th e maw" wants broad, but it also wants few often go with a lean, organized grading system for each relevant player. Th e structure enabled faster posting, freeing his writing team to take greater care with longer pieces. readers are telling us that they want it in a diff erent way. Give us the broad strokes. Give us a place where we can react with you. And tomorrow morning, take your time, buddy." In the wake of an emotion-steeped game viewing experience, fans demand immediacy. Cater to that fi rst, and then provide lengthy, tren- chant content. Listen to "the maw" and learn. But "the maw" also wants to be entertained, so it is critical for con- As he describes it: "I changed the focus of our game content because Kevin Arnovitz is an inveterate futurist. With cutting-edge projects like ESPN.com's Th e Heat Index and Clipperblog, his past speaks to such forward thinking. Arnovitz's "Sports Media: Th e Beat Goes Gone" ses- sion at SXSW Interactive will analyze how the fan's craving for immediacy will come to shape sports media. At Th e Heat Index, he instituted a new spin on the hoary old basketball recap. Instead of relying on a lengthy, deadline- nagged retelling of events, Arnovitz would As for the predictive side of the matter, a strong emphasis on fan engagement, building its base until it was incorpo- rated into ESPN's prestigious Grantland Network. Despite its big TV ratings, college football's machinations can seem opaque to the uninitiated. Before Ty Hildenbrandt and Dan Rubenstein, creators of "Th e Solid Verbal," came on the scene, craves familiarity. "Th e Solid Verbal" succeeded with they somehow create them with the ener- gized organization of short order cooks. "Th e maw" craves originality, but it also tent providers to keep things light-hearted and in perspective. It is just sports, after all. One who walks that line better than most is Spencer Hall, founder of college football blog Every Day Should Be Saturday. Hall also will speak at SXSW Interactive, explaining the origins of the online sports media scene while trying his best to predict what might be next on the horizon. ■ To fi nd out about these and other panel sessions, live podcasts and more at SXSW Interactive 2012, visit sxsw.com/interactive. W JOHNSON

• Cover