World Series Ratings Down Again

The World Series this year featured great stories, the kinds that don't need media manufacturing and fluff. 

The Kansas City Royals find themselves in the World Series for the first time since 1985. Madison Bumgarner is now a cult hero. The series came down to Game 7 with a runner on third base, which apparently was only the third time ever. And the Giants themselves won their third World Series in five years.

The Place of Satire in Recent NFL News

In the wake of widely publicized abuse cases involving Ray Rice, Greg Hardy, Ray McDonald, Adrian Peterson and Jonathan Dwyer, the culture the National Football League has instilled, protected and enabled has crumbled over the past few weeks. And hopefully for good.

The macho man bravado of the football patriarchy run by men for men has taken a very public turn towards the instability that many critical of the sports world have long warned. 

There has been hard-hitting reporting, speculation, a rise in the opportunity for female voices to be heard in the sports media, plenty of good commentary and plenty of cringe-worthy commentary, among so much more. Packaged right along with it all has been the satirical takes on the recent happenings, providing an important and needed perspective.

Massive World Cup ratings and lessons for Fox

The 2014 World Cup featured brilliant play on the pitch, culminating in Germany's 1-0 extra time victory over Lionel Messi and Argentina in the final. The Germany-Argentina final also drew a massive viewing crowd on television, garnering 26.5 million viewers between ABC and Univision, the World Cup's Spanish-language broadcaster. For comparison, the Heat-Spurs NBA finals averaged 15.5 million viewers.

What do the ratings mean for the World Cup moving forward?

Under Further Review: A look back at 1-10

It has been quite a ride through the first 10 editions of Under Further Review. We've talked with people whose coverage is a product of Drexel University and whose coverage is one for national consumption. Some of them freelance, some are full-time writers, some are editors. 10 different perspectives on the sports journalism sphere. But what did we learn?

John Oliver Going All-In on Sports

Not too long ago, John Oliver was filling in for Jon Stewart on Comedy Central's The Daily Show. The 37-year-old Englishman was met with critical acclaim for his relief duty and promptly used the momentum to begin his own gig. Less than two months into his own show on HBO, Last Week Tonight, Oliver has again been met with critical acclaim. And some of his now legendary rants have focused on a topic near and dear to us: the sports world.

Under Further Review No. 10 - Max Blau

This week's Under Further Review is adapted from an informational interview that I did with Max Blau for Dr. Giddings' Professional Portfolio class back in February, so note the different format. For anybody who has an interest in ever writing a freelance article, Blau's insight is extremely valuable. Enjoy!

Under Further Review No. 9: Dave Zeitlin

In most cases, the fans are the ones consuming the stories about a particular player or team, not having stories written about them. The story of Philadelphia Union fans Eric and Gabe Shertz is not most cases. Dave Zeitlin's story about the two and the impact the family had on the Union, the Sons of Ben and soccer in the are is time well-spent.

Zeitlin covers the MLS and the Union for MLSsoccer.com as well as CSNPhilly.com. He took a moment to speak with the SMTSU about what it's like writing a story about fans instead of players, MLS media coverage and how the World Cup could influence the MLS.

Under Further Review No. 8: Andrew Albert

Newspapers aren't dead yet. Chuck Bausman, sports editor of the Philadelphia Daily News, is quick to remind you when chatting about the industry. Andrew Albert is one of the young Daily News talents playing the role of keeping it alive.

Albert has been an intern at the paper since last year in addition to his roles as senior writer for City of Basketball Love and as a student at La Salle University. The Syracuse, N.Y. native has grown to love the Philadelphia sports landscape and has already done a tremendous job covering it alongside some Philly sports writing legends. Albert spoke to the SMTSU about his start in the industry, learning as a new writer and the state of the newspaper industry.

Under Further Review No. 7: Travis Waldron

The sports world doesn't exist in a vacuum, no matter how hard you try to put it in one. Sports have the same kinds of political, economic and social issues that plague the rest of the world but offer a unique platform to disguise the issues in a much more palatable context. Really it's the same way that music, television, movies or any other popular culture can shape and direct conversations.

Under Further Review No. 6: Patrick Hruby

Writer Patrick Hruby has been a good friend of the SMTSU for some time now. Hruby spoke at the Sport for Social Change Conference in October 2013 on the topic of head trauma in football. On most days, you can find Hruby on the pages of Sports on Earth talking up the latest NCAA injustice, administrative blunder or #LOLEmmert moment. That's all among other topics, of course, but lately

Hruby stopped by to talk with us about a recent long-form story he wrote for Washingtonian Magazine, trusting your readers, writing about sensitive and complex topics and the NCAA. He asked in return that we join him in referring to NCAA president Mark Emmert by only his full name -- Indianapolis Cartel Leader Mark Emmert. Do it. Do it now.

Under Further Review No. 5: Greg Hanlon

Every so often, a piece of writing comes your way, hits you in the face and really makes you think about human behavior and how things work. Greg Hanlon's recent story on Sports on Earth about former Major League Baseball player Chad Curtis did just that for me. I could say it's about a 10-year outfielder now behind bars on multiple counts related to sexual misconduct with minors. But that doesn't even begin to tell the horrid and uncomfortable tale. I highly suggest you take some time to read it all as Hanlon laid it out.

Under Further Review No. 4: Josh Verlin

What started as a growing love for college hoops at the University of Pittsburgh then moved to across the state to Temple University has now grown into the posts, pages and profiles of City of Basketball Love. Josh Verlin is the driving force behind it all, and there's no stopping him. He has an unbridled love for college basketball and the sports journalism knowledge to keep building the already impressive site.

Under Further Review No. 3: Kami Mattioli

In just a few short years, Kami Mattioli has gone from a writer at Temple University's Owlsports.com to the college basketball editor at Sporting News. She has the unique perspective on writing from inside an organization that the traditional "news" media covers and now for an outside, news-gathering media. Earlier in the week, she spoke with us about the difference between working inside and outside, content generation and her new position with Sporting News.

Under Further Review No. 2: Aaron Bracy

Philadelphia is known for its passionate sports fan base, and right up their in the long line of sporting tradition in the city is college hoops. With the Palestra oozing with basketball lore and the historic Big 5 -- and Drexel constantly trying to nudge their way in to make it the City 6 -- Philadelphia makes a convincing case as the most exciting college basketball city in America.

Under Further Review No. 1: Adam Hermann

Welcome to the new and improved "Under Further Review" column! From here on out, we are going to get a little more hands-on with the sports media industry and explore what makes the industry so darn great with the people that make it all happen.

Under Further Review: The Good and Bad of the NCAA Tournament Opening Weekend

The first four days of the NCAA tournament are basically the sports equivalent to four straight days of Christmas. And I mean Thursday through Sunday; the "first four" doesn't count. Each day featured 12 or so straight hours of nonstop madness, and luckily thanks to Ohio State's first round flop, we could all enjoy the rest of the day without worrying about our bracket being perfect. Those 48 hours were put on the national television stage by CBS and Turner (TNT, TBS, and TruTV), and, as expected, there were One Shining Moments and there were Chris Webber Timeouts.

Under Further Review: March Media Madness

You're probably still sitting around thinking up the wildest conspiracy theories for True Detective, but remember that this is the only one that matters: the show was placed to run from the Sunday after the BCS National Championship Game to the the Sunday before Selection Sunday. I know. I'm just sayin'. As you get caught up in filling out brackets and wrapping your mind around the upsets, it can be easy to lose track of how big of a media event March Madness has become. Fear not; here are the most important media facts for you to remember as the NCAA men's basketball tournament approaches.

Under Further Review: An Agenda Setting Review of the Michael Sam Coverage

On Sunday Feb. 9, the sports world was hit with one of the biggest news stories of the year: University of Missouri All-American defensive end Michael Sam said he is gay. Only two players in the five major sports had publicly come out prior to Sam – the NBA’s Jason Collins and the MLS’s Robbie Rogers. Sam, who recorded double-digit sacks as a senior and was honored as the SEC Defensive Player of the Year, is projected to be selected as high as the third round in this year’s NFL Draft, which would make him the first openly gay player to play in the NFL. The story was initially broken by ESPN and the NewYork Times, while Sports Illustrated followed closely behind, but further analysis reveals that each covered the news in unique ways.

Media Coverage of Sherman Worth Around $5 million

SI.com

The following post is a guest post from Drexel Sport Management junior Alan Liang.

Erin Andrews’ face said it all. Following the NFC Championship Game, Andrews got the “privilege” of interviewing Richard Sherman after his play ultimately ended the game. I’m sure she was shocked as much as the rest of America of what Sherman had just said. Andrews asked Sherman to take her through the last play of the game. Sherman’s response, “Well I’m the best corner in the game. When you try me with a sorry receiver like Crabtree that’s the result you gonna get. Don’t you ever talk about me.”

Under Further Review: Colin Kaepernick and Beats

Colin Kaepernick is a polarizing athlete. It could be because of his tattoos, his playing style, the combination of his position and race, or his overt confidence in the handling of his haters. Personally, I see no reason to hate. He has overcome great adversity to become who he is, and I feel that some may see his confidence as being brash. No matter which way you slice it, though, Kaepernick has quarterbacked the San Francisco 49ers to another NFC Championship game (the Niners travel to Seattle to take on the Seahawks on Sunday at 6:30 p.m.).

Although the commercial has been out for a little while now, I feel like Kaepernick's Beats commercial does a great job of summing up who he is.