Mark Roszel

Sbnation www.sbnation.com
A Descriptive Analysis: The Sports World o Sbnation Introduction Sbnation.com disc!sses m!ltiple sports and team news as it breaks to the people. "n order to assess the power o the site it is important to take a look at it as a di#ital environment and why it is needed. "t is also important to look at the vis!als and what makes it vis!ally appealin# to the !sers. The site$s credibility is o!nd in the a!thors and those who contrib!te to the in ormation o!nd in the stories. The people who pop!late the site and contrib!te disc!ssions on the topics #ive the news in each story val!e. %elow " will disc!ss each o these actors and how they relate with one another. Factor 1: The Digital Environment of Sports Blogs Sbnation.com is a comm!nity o sports blo#s coverin# all sports. "t is a key e&ample o 'c!lt!romics() the application o massive scale data collection and analysis to the st!dy o h!man c!lt!re.*Michel) +ieberman Aiden, Sbnation.com compiles acts) stats and disc!ssion o that data. Sports talk is a need or most people and these blo#s eed this need. As -rant Davie says) '.&i#ence is some kind o need/.that can be addressed/thro!#h rhetorical disco!rse.(*012, The need or ma3or sports media) like .S45) to oc!s on what they perceive as bi# stories and local sports media leaves a void or specialized oc!s. Sbnation.com ills this void. Factor 2: Visual hetoric ! The Beaut" of Sbnation The layo!t o the site is neat and shows the !sers what they$re lookin# or in order rom the direct cate#ories o sports at the top to the most recent bi# stories below them. The main pa#e displays a bi# vis!ally appealin# lo#o as their header) ollowed by ive ma3or stories that are #oin# on in the sports world. The bi##est or most recent story o the day is on the le t side located by the bi##est pict!re on the screen) showin# its importance and immediacy to the viewer. When the pict!re is interacted with by yo!r arrow) the pict!re t!rns #ray. The other o!r pict!res) or#anized to orm a s6!are o o!r smaller s6!ares) ill!minate bri#hter when yo! interact with them. " the link is to a video) it shows a play b!tton over the ima#e. 7nder those 2 most recent stories are past stories neatly or#anized in a di erent ormat on a plain white back#ro!nd. The ima#es #ive the pa#e te&t!re while the te&t makes it smooth.*Dr!ckrey, The ma3or ima#e displays the smallest amo!nt o te&t as the pict!re is the bi##est) with the smaller o!r prominent stories havin# a little more te&t describin# what the story will disc!ss or the viewer. 4ast stories have more in8depth descriptions with them witho!t a pict!re.

.ach pro essional team has its own separate blo# site) personally desi#ned to it that team$s anbase. " the team$s colors are red and black) the desi#n o the site will certainly match those colors. .ach team has its own !ni6!e lo#o re erencin# the team) b!t not speci ically !sin# the team$s lo#o. 9 ten the team blo# lo#o will incorporate the sport into the pict!re somehow like hockey sticks crossin# with the site$s nickname initials in the 6!adrants mimickin# a coat o arms. Another e&ample is a ootball helmet with the team$s initials aro!nd it or spelt o!t i the words are small eno!#h. The individ!al sites mirror the layo!t o the main site) di erentiatin# itsel rom sites like .S45 or 5%:Sports whose team sites have their own !ni orm layo!t per each team) re#ardless o sport. Factor #: The $udience ! The %eople &ho 'ove Sports 9ne o the #reat thin#s abo!t the internet is it can reach people at all corners o the .arth. Sbnation$s a!dience consists o sports ans rom the 7nited States to .!rope to other co!ntries with American troops. Americans stationed in other co!ntries can stay connected to home by disc!ssin# American sports with their ellow compatriots makin# them eel like they$re with their riends. "$ve even seen orei#ners in co!ntries like "reland) -reat %ritain and rom the 5etherlands disc!ssin# how they came to love American sports and a team in partic!lar. The stories on the main pa#e allow !sers to immediately commentate on c!rrent events. The blo# posts allow the a!dience members to entertain) in orm) pers!ade or ed!cate.*Rhetorical Sit!ation, 7sers can also post their own stories or tho!#hts on the team in disc!ssion posts that aren$t incl!ded on the main pa#e. This option allows !sers to brin# in a li etime o e&periences to their ellow comm!nity members.*:lark and :halmers, 7nlike ma3or sites like .S45 or 5%:Sports) where yo! are #iven a small comments section at the bottom o the pa#e) the comments almost become a part o the story;postin# on Sbnation stories. "t$s more or!m riendly than bi# name sites) almost like a b!nch o riends sittin# aro!nd a table.*:lark and :halmers, Te&t analysis o these disc!ssions can easily show psycholo#ical or emotional states o the persons in these #ro!ps.*Te&t!al Analysis, These sites are or healthy debate;banter and as can be e&pected can lead to heated ar#!ments that can come down to/name callin#) to p!t it nicely) so it$s !p to the administrator to restrict that lan#!a#e. Sometimes yo! will even discover a clash in belie s between those sharin# the same disco!rse comm!nity. *Mac5ealy, Factor (: The $uthor)s* ! The +ontributors of Sports ,e-s A!thors on Sbnation.com span rom ormer sports radio reporters) to ormer sports beat writers) to aspirin# sports 3o!rnalists to simply die8hard ans. The a!thors o ten speak to a lot o pro essional beat writers to #et insi#ht) back#ro!nd in ormation and r!mor mill talk that team e&ecs only tell to .S45 members and local media reporters or their team or sport. This helps them #ain credibility as their so!rces are o ten well known people in the sports world. Their stories are also illed with personal belie s) acts rom the players or team *either statistically or other, and o ten p!ll te&t rom

pro essional 3o!rnalists stories to rein orce their comments. They are e&pected to write pro essionally and respectively as the leader o their respective disco!rse comm!nity. The administrator*s, o each individ!al team site is always a serio!s an*s, who lives to eat) breathe and sleep that team and sometimes the sport in its entirety or back#ro!nd on later news. 7nlike mainstream media like .S45 or 5%:Sports;<o&Sports) they post stories bein# talked abo!t on other sites or on the news or their team and sometimes other news that mi#ht interest the anbase. These people !s!ally have contacts with more hi#hly re#arded 3o!rnalists or their team and city;state. R!les are ollowed by the administrators) s!ch as attrib!tin# comments to a speci ic talkin# head or 3o!rnalist. An administrator may take a 6!ote rom a speci ic article and then tell site !sers to #o read more rom the article on the so!rce site or sometimes they may simply disc!ss the topic and say '-o see what =insert notable 3o!rnalist> has to say abo!t it(. This #ives them credibility as they name their so!rces and it lets the readers see who they are talkin# abo!t i they want to #o check o!t that so!rces story. Discussion: Sbnation.com allows or the specialized oc!s on each team) posin# 6!estions or members to embrace conversation. As a st!dent #oin# to school to become a sports reporter;sports broadcaster) " spend a lot o time readin# articles abo!t the teams) player news and an reaction. These sites allow ans and reporters to take the p!lse o the an base since these blo#s are normally a meetin# point or hardcore team ans or hardcore team haters. "t is an e&ample o Web 0.?) allowin# !sers to interact and collaborate in a virt!al comm!nity.*Web 0.?, Te&t!ally) the a!dience interacts with each other with their own !ni6!e diction. Some people rom the o!tside that #o on these sites may see 3ar#on) or olksonomies) that allow readers to ind in ormation by searchin# or speci ic ta#s in the writin#.*Web 0.?, These ta#s help !sers that may be !n amiliar with the terms) even i they are ans o the sport or the team. A common sayin# like '" " recall correctly( can t!rn into shorthand '""R:( and con !se someone. "t ill!strates constantly evolvin# speak between people and how we are chan#in# the way we !se words online. There is also a vis!al way Sbnation !sers interact with each other. "n each o these story blo#s !sers sometimes !se still ima#es) se6!ential ima#es or movin# ima#es to make their points.*@is!al Rhetoric, These pict!res are commonly re erred to as '#i s( and are meant to be h!moro!s) !nlike the ima#es the site contrib!tors show) which are meant to be story speci ic and pro essional. The ima#es !sers post in their comments are e&pected to it into what %ob Manko describes as 'beni#n violation(. *Manko , They are meant to make the reader eel sa e and e&hilarated while lookin# at them. "n the sports world) these movin# ima#es or #i s sometimes rear more towards socially !nacceptable than acceptable. <or e&ample) or the c!rrent Aaron Aernandez trial some ans have created a meme o a prison 3!mper with his player n!mber on the back with te&t that says 'Aaron Aernandez$s 0?BC team 3ersey(. "n this case) yo! know it$s wron# beca!se he$s s!spected o m!rderin# some one) so yo! eel wron# or la!#hin#) b!t it$s still !nny. %ein# online) !sers can o ten pretend to be ans o one team when really bein# a an o another team) b!t when it comes ri#ht down to it ans don$t have the inal say on

the team. "n the end) it$s 3!st trash talkin# and !n banter between people who love the same thin#) whether they are ans o the same team or ans o rival teams.

+onclusion: There isn$t m!ch to complain abo!t when it comes to Sbnation. The site is vis!ally appealin# and appeals to many di erent sports ans. The site also disc!sses topics that the ma3or news corporation sports sites aren$t talkin# abo!t at the time. Sbnation sticks o!t above all other sports blo#s as it is pro essionally done in all ways like ma3or sites. Aowever) " do believe it can be enhanced in its vis!al rhetoric and in its or#anization o stories. :!rrently) its main pa#e shows ive ma3or stories re#ardless o the sport) which can sometimes lead to m!ltiple stories related to the same sport on the ront pa#e. " the ive s6!ares showed the bi##est story in the lar#est s6!are and o!r di erent sports in the other s6!ares) it wo!ld help viewers. @iewers will immediately identi y their avorite sport$s news 3!st by lookin# or the pict!res instead o havin# to search or a sport not immediately on the main pa#e. So!rces: Rhetorical Sit!ation 4owerpoint. Te&t!al Analysis 4owerpoint. '@is!al Rhetoric.( https:;;webco!rses0c.instr!ct!re.com;co!rses;D11BBE;wiki;vis!al8 rhetoric
'Web 0.?.( Web. ?2 F!ly 0?BC. =http:;;en.wikipedia.or#;wiki;WebG0.?HciteGnote8BE>

:lark) Andy) and David F. :halmers. IThe .&tended Mind.I Analysis 2J *BDDJ,: B?80C. Dr!ckrey) "n#e. 'Teachin# to See.( @imeo. =http:;;vimeo.com;E20C0E1J> -rant8Davie) Keith. IRhetorical Sit!ations and Their :onstit!ents.I Rhetoric Review B2.0 *BDDL,: 01E8LJ. +ieberman Aiden) .rez and Michel) Fean8%aptiste. 'What we learned rom 2 million books(. T.D Talks. Sep 0?BB. Web. B2 F!ly 0?BC. =http:;;www.ted.com;talks;whatGweGlearnedG romG2GmillionGbooks.html> Mac5ealy) Mary S!e. 'Disco!rse Analysis.( 4# B0J.

Manko ) %ob. 'Anatomy o a 5ew Morker cartoon(. T.D "deas Worth Sharin#. F!ne 0?BC. Web. ?D F!ly 0?BC. =http:;;www.ted.com;talks;bobGmanko GanatomyGo GaGnewGyorkerGcartoon.html>