SportsManias Digital Media Summit in Miami will advance innovation in sports journalism
MIAMI, May 5, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- SportsManias Digital Media Summit, a one-day forum focusing on how digital media is changing the sports industry will bring together sports journalists, tech leaders and industry executives in Miami on Aug. 21, 2015. The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation is investing $50,000 to support the conference.
The conference will encourage conversations on ways that traditional journalism is merging with social media to engage avid communities of sports fans in new and innovative ways. Panelists will discuss important issues, emerging trends and opportunities in sports media technology.
The SportsManias Digital Media Summit aims to build community among journalists, technology leaders and industry executives from the sports industry. It will host up to 100 participants from across the country in the heart of downtown.
Rick Horrow, "The Sports Professor" and CEO of Horrow Sports Ventures, will host the SportsManias Digital Media Summit. Sessions will feature over 25 renowned writers, editors, entrepreneurs and executives from the sports media industry, including:
M. Scott Havens, senior vice president of digital at Time Inc.; Pete Vlastelica, executive vice president of Fox Sports Digital Media; Gerry Ahern, USA TODAY Sports Media Group; Mitch Gelman, vice president of product at Gannett Co.; Grey Montgomery, director of mobile initiatives at The McClatchy Co.; Jemele Hill, columnist/analyst at ESPN; Tom Garfinkel, president and CEO of the Miami Dolphins; and T.K. Gore, senior director of audience at CSNChicago.com.
The sessions will cover six pressing topics in the sports media world:
- Social missteps, mistakes and must-dos: Highlighting case studies of sports journalism do's and don'ts on social media.
- The Deadspin/TMZ Effect: Exploring how edgy blogs and other non-traditional outlets have changed the discourse and direction of sports media.
- The sportswriter of yesterday, today and tomorrow: Examining how tools and career paths continue to evolve for sports journalists, and the challenges sports journalists face.
- Tomorrow's audience today: Discussing ways to attract millennials to sports journalism both as content consumers and creators—and to keep them.
- The sports digital landscape: Exploring the shift to mobile, trends in social media and how industry leaders are thinking about the future of digital sports content.
- College football in the playoff era: Discussing what "big money" means for the future of the game.
"The Digital Media Summit is a unique opportunity to promote the digital distribution of sports journalism," said Vicente J. Fernandez, CEO and co-founder of SportsManias. "We are all part of a single ecosystem that strives to provide high-quality news, entertainment and experiences for sports fans, and we can accomplish this more effectively if we exchange ideas and form more partnerships. We're excited to rally the sports community around opportunities of digital media."
"SportsManias is helping to advance the evolution of sports journalism and creating new opportunities for innovation in an area that is ripe for audience engagement," said Jennifer Preston, Knight Foundation vice president for journalism.
"Adding to Miami's momentum for ideas, the SportManias Digital Media Summit will forge new connections between leaders in the sports journalism industry and entrepreneurs working to bring new innovations in media to wide audiences," said Matt Haggman, Knight Foundation program director for Miami.
The SportsManias Digital Media Summit is an invitation-only event designed for innovators and leaders in the sports media space. The event will be held on Aug. 21, 2015. Panels will run from 9 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. ET, followed by a closing reception from 5 to 6:30 p.m. The event will also be live-streamed for free and open to the public.
To find out more about the Summit, visit the event website at sportsmanias.com/digitalmediasummit.
About SportsManias
The diehard sports fan's go-to source for team and league news, SportsManias displays 24/7 professional news as personalized feeds. Fans are delivered news, tweets, videos and rumors about the teams they love by the beat writers that cover them. The team continually refines the sports news experience from offices in Miami and New York. Straight from the guys who get it, SportsManias gets it to you. For more information, visit SportsManias.com.
About the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation
Knight Foundation supports transformational ideas that promote quality journalism, advance media innovation, engage communities and foster the arts. The foundation believes that democracy thrives when people and communities are informed and engaged. For more, visit knightfoundation.org.
SOURCE SportsManias
Share this article