Sports journalism is a style of reporting that covers matters relating to sports, particularly sporting events and topics. Sports journalism began in the late 1800s when it initially was aimed at the elite and gradually transitioned into a major segment of the media business with various daily newspapers having dedicated sports pages. Sports journalism today has experienced rapid growth over the last few years and has rapidly grown in influence as well as reader base. Sports enthusiasts and commentators are widely read and have a loyal customer base. The internet also provides venues for online sports reporting, with numerous websites providing content that interested parties can easily access.
The growth and expansion of sports journalism have come at the expense of several established sports outlets. In recent years, the popularity of the YES! Network, USA Today and the Los Angeles Times have declined while the popularity of Sporting News has risen. Many sports sections have closed as a result of a lack of ad revenue or a desire to focus on a specific topic. The growth of social networking sites and blogging sites such as AOL Sports, Yahoo! Sports and Bleacher Report have also had a positive impact, with avid readers and fans of sports reporting being able to share their opinions and stories with the rest of the world.
Sports journalism can be broadly divided into two major categories: sports reporting and features writing. Sports reporting is the mainstream style of sports reporting and features content that is more analytical than subjective. Sports writers for major publications are generally well read and respected in their profession. However, there are still many writers who focus on sports for the sake of sports alone, and cover events in a more general or non-sports manner. There are also bloggers who report on events in sports and the general business and economic aspects of sports.