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While former New York Yankees pitcher Goose Gossage unleashed his tirade on the deterioration of the unwritten rules of baseball and nerds ruining the sport about halfway through my writing of the paper, sentiments like his were inspiration for my topic: the evolution of statistics and data in baseball. By

While former New York Yankees pitcher Goose Gossage unleashed his tirade on the deterioration of the unwritten rules of baseball and nerds ruining the sport about halfway through my writing of the paper, sentiments like his were inspiration for my topic: the evolution of statistics and data in baseball. By telling the story of how baseball data and statistics have evolved, my goal was to also demonstrate how they have been intertwined since the beginning—which would essentially mean that nerds have always been ruining the sport (if you subscribe to that kind of thought).

In the quest to showcase this, it was necessary to document how baseball prospers from numbers and numbers prosper from baseball. The relationship between the two is mutualistic. Furthermore, an all-encompassing historical look at how data and statistics in baseball have matured was a critical portion of the paper. With a metric such as batting average going from a radical new measure that posed a threat to the status quo, to a fiercely cherished statistic that was suddenly being unseated by advanced analytics, it shows the creation of new and destruction of old has been incessant. Innovators like Pete Palmer, Dick Cramer and Bill James played a large role in this process in the 1980s. Computers aided their effort and when paired with the Internet, unleashed the ability to crunch data to an even larger sector of the population. The unveiling of Statcast at the commencement of the 2015 season showed just how much potential there is for measuring previously unquantifiable baseball acts.

Essentially, there will always be people who mourn the presence of data and statistics in baseball. Despite this, the evolution story indicates baseball and numbers will be intertwined into the future, likely to an even greater extent than ever before, as technology and new philosophies become increasingly integrated into front offices and clubhouses.
ContributorsGarcia, Jacob Michael (Author) / Kurland, Brett (Thesis director) / Doig, Stephen (Committee member) / Jackson, Victoria (Committee member) / Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2016-05
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My thesis project, "Reforming the NCAA: How the governing body of intercollegiate athletics should handle student-athletes into the future," sets out to create a working blueprint for how the NCAA should handle the relationship between student-athletes, universities, and the NCAA from this point forward. The NCAA has come under fire

My thesis project, "Reforming the NCAA: How the governing body of intercollegiate athletics should handle student-athletes into the future," sets out to create a working blueprint for how the NCAA should handle the relationship between student-athletes, universities, and the NCAA from this point forward. The NCAA has come under fire in the past 10 years for its failure to meet modern social constructs and provide student-athletes with the resources necessary to achieving a successful educational and athletic experience, and through my thesis, I formulated reforms the NCAA can adopt and enact to respond to the growing issues within intercollegiate athletics. I began the process last spring with my thesis director as we selected a topic together, and I researched a variety of topics relating to current NCAA issues throughout the summer and fall. In the fall, I outlined sources I hoped to interview, and I conducted interviews over winter break. I spent the first two months of 2015 writing and refining my thesis, and through March, I created a PowerPoint presentation I used to defend my thesis project. During the process, I met with my thesis director at critical junctures to discuss the direction of the project and to determine how to find a delicate balance between creating attainable goals for reform and overstepping my boundaries. After a successful thesis defense, I made small revisions to the thesis and had my project re-approved by my director and second reader. In the coming weeks after submitting my thesis, I plan on exploring the possibility of having my thesis published and received critiques from those in the industry who follow collegiate athletics closely.
ContributorsCrowley, Kerry O Shea (Author) / McGuire, Tim (Thesis director) / Kurland, Brett (Committee member) / College of Letters and Sciences (Contributor) / Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2015-05
Description
This thesis documentary film takes a look at the dysfunctional but ongoing relationship between Twitter and sports journalism. The foundation of this relationship's dysfunction is what I have coined as the Twitter Outrage Cycle. In this cycle a sports broadcasting personality comments on a matter while on-air. Next, the program's

This thesis documentary film takes a look at the dysfunctional but ongoing relationship between Twitter and sports journalism. The foundation of this relationship's dysfunction is what I have coined as the Twitter Outrage Cycle. In this cycle a sports broadcasting personality comments on a matter while on-air. Next, the program's audience where the comments were spoken becomes offended by the statement. After that, the offended audience members express their outrage on social media, most namely Twitter. Finally the cycle culminates with the public outrage pressuring networks and its executives to either suspended or fire the individual that said the controversial statements. This cycle began to occur on a more consistent basis starting in 2012. It became such a regular occurrence that many on-air talent figures have noticed and taken precautionary measures to either avoid or confront the Outrage Cycles. This documentary uses the voice of seven figures within the sports media and online interaction forum. Notable using the voices of three notable individuals that currently have a prominent voice in sports journalism. As well as a neutral social media curator who clearly explains the psyche behind these outraged viewer's mindsets. Through these four main voices their ideals and opinions on the matter weave together, disagree with each other at times but ultimately help the viewer come to an understanding of why these Outrage Cycles occur and what needs to be done in order for them to cease. We Should Talk: The Relationship Between Twitter and Sports Journalism is a documentary film that looks to illustrate a seemingly minimal part of many people's lives that when taken into perspective many people look at in a very serious light.
ContributorsNeely, Cammeron Allen Douglas (Author) / Kurland, Brett (Thesis director) / Fergus, Tom (Committee member) / Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2016-05