There was always a void.
By most standards, the past 10 years have been fruitful professionally.
I’ve steadily worked my way up the ranks on the The Columbian’s news desk, learning from and mentoring some of the most intelligent and interesting people I’ve met.
Yet, something was missing.
I broke into journalism as a sportswriter. I cut my teeth on the challenge of putting into words athletic feats that sometimes defy description. I was molded by the tension of competition, and the subsequent rush of writing about it under deadline.
Those are thrills you just don’t experience in other facets of journalism. They are what lured me back.
As Sports Editor, I’m re-entering an arena that has changed drastically. A decade ago, there was no Twitter and the Internet hadn’t quite set the expectation of immediacy for reporters.
These are changes I embrace.
Print readers will notice a few changes to the section. We’re more dynamically using color and photos, both crucial elements for conveying the excitement and emotion of sports.
Readers at Columbian.com will find more local content than ever before. The Columbian Sports Department now has its own Twitter account and Facebook page to enhance our reporters’ social media presence.
Our sports blogs 360Preps and Blazer Banter continue to grow in content and reach. They are joined by our latest blog Tailgate Talk: College Football from a Clark County Perspective.
But technological change aside, sportswriting at its core has always been about one thing, good stories. It’s about being at the events that have the town buzzing. It’s about talking to the people whose athletics feats will live on long after their muscles have been slowed by time.
It’s about drama. And in this world where there’s no shortage of discouraging news, it’s about fun. Sportswriting legend Red Smith once wrote, “People go to ball games to have fun, and they pick up the paper the next morning to have that fun again.”
So, let’s have some fun.
Micah Rice is The Columbian’s Sports Editor. Reach him at 360-735-4548, micah.rice@columbian.com or on Twitter @col_mrice. Read his blog, Tailgate Talk, at http://blogs.columbian.com/tailgate-talk.
