LETTER TO THE EDITOR: High school athletes should consider sports broadcasting

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To the editor:

This isn’t something you necessarily dream about doing when you’re a little kid. More than likely, as a little kid, you would want to be an astronaut, a firefighter or even a professional athlete. For kids who love sports, they dream about one day being drafted in the NFL or signing a huge contract with their favorite basketball team or playing in their favorite MLB stadium. All they imagine doing in the future is playing those sports they love.

As we get older, though, our desires and interests begin to change. How do you stay involved with sports when you realize your abilities and wishes can’t live up to becoming a professional athlete? Consider sports broadcasting.

My experience was just like that as a little kid. Sports were my obsession and my life. From my elementary days all throughout high school, I played every sport I enjoyed. Life moves dramatically fast, however, and I soon realized playing sports most likely was not going to be an option for me post-graduation.

All I knew was sports. I knew the players, the teams, the coaches, the stats, the history, the strategies, the situations. So I considered my options. If I knew everything interesting and important about major sports in America, then I knew I could relay that information to viewers at home as a career.

The first sports broadcast was a baseball game that occurred in Pittsburgh in 1921. The first live sports broadcast in the world, however, was in 1936 when the Summer Olympics took place in Berlin.

Sports combined with radio and television were quick to take off after that. A whole new world was created with many famous names and voices also being revealed. Today, every sport imaginable (even e-sports) has been broadcast to viewers in one way or another. Now and more than ever, we have opportunities in the sports broadcasting industry and more generically in the sports media field.

According to careerbuilder.com, the number of jobs for radio and television sports announcers rose on average 22 percent in the United States from 2010 to 2014. Sports as a whole is a fabulous industry because of what’s called a “high multiplier effect,” meaning even more jobs are created for other related industries and occupations thanks to sports broadcasting. The Bureau of Labor Statistics says the employment percentage in the radio and television industry is expected to rise 3.5 percent in the next eight years. No wonder ratings for sporting events on TV continue to climb, and the market for these broadcasting businesses continue to grow.

It’s not just limited to big businesses, though. With my own eyes I have seen multiple schools and communities take a chance and create programs for students or members of the community to get involved. Radio stations, podcasts and live streams are all examples of people becoming more familiar with the business and creating more open doors.

We can easily overlook the voice we hear when we’re watching a game on television, but the good ones don’t go unnoticed. Therefore, don’t rule out being that voice someday if being a broadcaster really interests you. If you’re someone like me who realized a childhood dream wouldn’t come to fruition but has still kept his eyes sharp toward a related occupation, take a shot at being a sports broadcaster. Besides, the world could always use young, fresh faces with the skill set of a Mike Breen or the unrelenting drive of a Jim Nantz. So, you, sports guy! Get involved. The opportunities are endless.

Jarett Lewis

Greenfield