Derek Jeter’s recent transition from the diamond to sports blogging
Justin Kasser | Staff Reporter
Since making his anticipated retirement announcement, former New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter has not had trouble finding attention. As the face of baseball for a solid twenty years, Jeter played with consistency, skill, and class, values that young players follow. Throughout the year, as he played his final games in front of different stadiums around the country, Jeter received gifts and compliments by players, coaches, and fans. With gifts ranging from a bench made of his old bats to thousands of dollars donated to his illustrious Turn 2 Foundation, the humble shortstop kindly accepted and thanked everyone for their support over the years. In Jeter’s final at bat at Yankee Stadium, Jeter continued to work his magic with a walk off single to win the game. Finally, with a RBI single at Fenway Park, Jeter gracefully wrapped up his career as a historic ballplayer.
Jeter has had thousands of interviews over the last 20 years and has been the center of media attention from every aspect. Whether it be Jeter in his fierce rivalry with the Boston Red Sox, or his love life off the field with Mariah Carey, he always found a way to keep his profile as non-controversial as possible. Now, Jeter wants change some of the reporting, and so far his idea is taking off. Jeter launched his new website The Player’s Tribune mere days after ending his career. The site, which Jeter is labeled as a founder and senior editor, aspires to be a journalistic hub through first person media from the athletes themselves.
The Player’s Tribune has had only three sports stars write for it so far; Jeter, quarterback Russell Wilson, and auto-racer Danica Patrick. However, these elite stars have written articles in a personal story format instead of the bland way reporters would usually portray them. Each star discusses something rather unique and different than the content found on ESPN and Bleacher Report and they all have a little bit of controversy around their topics. For example, Wilson’s article was shocking, as he wrote about his past as a bully. On the other hand, Patrick, a rather aggresive female racer who is nationally famous for her Godaddy.com endorsement, discusses her love life for a change. Jeter does the job of explaining his true purpose behind founding this site, and what his intentions are for The Player’s Tribune.
Overall, the new sports website poses a few questions. Will this simply be a place for athletes telling their individual stories on an inconsistent basis, or will it transform into something more than what we view it as today?
Fans like junior Michael Shames read the blog when new articles are published, and are enjoying it. “They weren’t the best written pieces, but I don’t think that is the point of the website,” Shames said. “But it is interesting hearing directly from [the athletes] for a change.” In the age of athletic scandals becoming daily news, could The Player’s Tribune become a source for players to announce their successes or mistakes themselves? News website Media Bistro talked to Tribune’s Jason Marks, executive creative director of the new website. “It’s like the GoPro of sports journalism,” Marks said. “Offering an inside first-person perspective.” Viewers hope for this to not only reveal in depth details about interesting elements of the players lives, but also to discuss some of the different and unique attributes of the sports they play. The new blog will continue to garner attention, and expectations have been set high for the news source.
