Going for the Gold

Once again, the Olympics are almost here. The biggest American sport seeking redemption is basketball. The U.S. Men's Senior National Basketball Team is looking to reestablish the country as an international powerhouse in the sport of basketball. The multimedia package put together by nba.com has good writing and visual coverage of the team. They have a behind the scenes look of the team as they prepare for the Olympic Games in China. The overall package is called the, "U.S. Team: Road to Redemption". This is actually the name of the documentary put together by ESPN, but 'redemption' is the overall theme of the 2008 mission for the U.S. Men's Basketball Team. In 2004, the men's team finished in third place at the Olympics. For American basketball this is seen as a failure.
The coverage provides up to date stories on games played and practices held. There was also a story on the U.S. Select Team, which was picked to help the Senior team prepare for the Olympics. There is a notebook section, highlighting key events during the minicamp held in Las Vegas. The notebook touched on different situations to help convey how the team was forming. There was a descriptive segment of the notebook used to explain how the coach wants the team to have a sense of nationalism. The next section discusses the injuries on the team. There are a couple of sections that profile some of the players and focus on how they are a key to the team. A notebook or a journal is a good way for a reporter to collect their thoughts before writing a story. In some cases, there might not be a particular story, but just providing a notebook for viewers is a useful multimedia tool. The fans feel connected with the team because they are not receiving a report, but just some highlights of important issues with the team. This is also an informal and efficient way of presenting information. One of the profile stories I read on the site can be closely compared to the profile assignment we were asked to do in class. The story was on Lebron James, one of the younger leaders on the team. The story allows the coach and other players to talk about James and his impact on the team. There is also the use of a video to give visual proof to the story. Overall, the video gives viewers an inside look of preparation for the men's basketball team.

What Could Have Been: A multimedia look at a sad day in sports

A new rookie class will be drafted on June 26 for the National Basketball Association (NBA). ESPN.com takes a look back at one of the top players from the 1986 NBA draft and remembers the legacy he left behind in a special report. The elements brought in to telling the story enhanced the interest in a highly debated topic. The person is Len Bias, who was a two time Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Year. He played for the Maryland Terrapins and was drafted by the Boston Celtics. Two days after the draft, Bias died of a cocain overdose. Twenty-two years later, the issues surrounding the death remain topics of discussion. The photos used throughtout the story connect readers to the situation. For instance, the picture of Bias' grave, which is located next to his little brother, Jay Bias, is really a sad photo to see. For added feeling to the picture, the Boston Celtic jersey of Bias is layed over his grave and the high school jersey of his brother is layed over his grave. According to the article, Bias was held at the standard of Michael Jordan when he was drafted to the Celtics. His legacy lives on to this day because of the changes his death caused to laws regarding illegal drugs.

The story overall is very well done because of the different perspectives. In one part there is a segment about his mother and how she believed her son died to be used as an example to the world. Another example is told from a buddy of Jay Bias and how the effects of Bias' death changed his life negatively.

The different videos posted tell additional stories, such as an Outside the Lines report discussing the social impacts of Len Bias' death, which is located in the story. Also, the highlight films which cover the on the court success of Len Bias.

An additional picture of Jay Bias crying at the funeral was posted with the story, which is very vivid and gives a feel to how devastating his death was to his brother. As explained in the story, Jay Bias never really recovered from the death of his brother and eventually died less than five years after his older brother. The photos from the funeral and of Len Bias on his draft day are easily distinguished as old photographs in comparison to the new photographs in the story. The older photos have an orange look to them, but there was a good editing job done to these photos.

Overall, this is a good job of multimedia uses in telling a sad story, which took place 22 years ago.

Happy Father's Day from MLB.com

I know Father's Day is over a week over due, but I really liked the multimedia presentation done by Major League Baseball in honor of the celebration. Father's Day and baseball seems to be a sport closely linked to this special day celebrating fathers all over the globe. The MLB website does a great job of providing a human interest element for their players. Leagues always need to do public relations assignments like these to portray their players as more than athletes. For examples, the National Basketball Association (NBA) has a campaign called NBA Cares, which is a program that allows players to become involved in their surrounding community. The National Football League (NFL) has a campaign teamed up with the United Way, which is the same as the NBA by involving players in their local community. To bring this back to baseball, the NBA and NFL profiles certain players in their public relations campaign for human interest.

The page dedicated to Father's Day begins with photos of players with their families. There are photos of players with their fathers, mothers, children, wives, other family members or a combination of these people. One of my favorite pages is of Lastings Milledge, who is a player for the Washington Nationals and they are relatively close in geography from the Richmond area. He has a picture with his father, who obviously played a big role in his life.

I also like the PR the MLB uses to get people to buy tickets by putting on the link to purchase 'Take Dad to a ballgame: Buy tickets now'. Also, a link to shop for MLB merchandise to 'Shop for Dad'. They are at the top of every player profile for Father's Day.