Former students have gone on to positions with major sports networks, newspapers and digital outlets, using their experience covering spring training as a stepping stone into the industry.“For students interested in sports journalism, this is one of the most hands-on experiences they can get,” said Paola Boivin, longtime sports journalist, Cronkite professor of practice and […]
Former students have gone on to positions with major sports networks, newspapers and digital outlets, using their experience covering spring training as a stepping stone into the industry.“For students interested in sports journalism, this is one of the most hands-on experiences they can get,” said Paola Boivin, longtime sports journalist, Cronkite professor of practice and Sports Bureau managing editor. “Spring training offers access to some of the biggest names in baseball in a more relaxed setting, and our students get to sharpen their storytelling skills in an environment that blends local and national sports coverage.”
As Major League Baseball teams chase spring training wins under Arizona’s sun, another team has already claimed victory: Cronkite School sports journalism students are covering the Cactus League action for the fifteenth consecutive year, providing in-depth reporting and multimedia content on one of baseball’s liveliest preseason traditions.This season, students have produced stories on the Los Angeles Dodgers fans, the Arizona Cardinals pitching duo, MLB’s automated ball-strike system, and more.
“Covering spring training through the Cronkite Sports Bureau is one of the main reasons why I chose to attend this school,” Tyler Bednar, a Cronkite sports journalism major set to graduate this spring, said. “I had high expectations of what covering spring training would be like, and this experience has somehow surpassed those lofty expectations.”Each spring, students in the program cover spring training games, interview players and coaches, and produce stories for the multiplatform Cronkite News, Arizona media outlets and newsrooms in the teams’ hometowns, including the The Denver Post, Kansas City Star, Bay Area News Group and azcentral.
The Cronkite News Phoenix Sports Bureau’s involvement in spring training has helped launch the careers of numerous alumni who now work in sports media across the country.The Cronkite News Phoenix Sports Bureau, a capstone-level course and working sports newsroom within Arizona State University’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication, offers students real-world experience in sports reporting.
Students report stories that go beyond the games, finding feature stories, profiles, business angles and community impact stories, aiming to develop their skills and provide comprehensive coverage for baseball fans across Arizona, California and beyond.
“For many of our students, spring training is the first real exposure to what it means to be a professional sports journalist,” Boivin said. “It’s a demanding but rewarding experience that sets them up for future success.”
The coverage also supports local newsrooms across the country with reporting support, with students serving as reporters when hometown news outlets can’t be present.
