ADOPTION OF CONVERGENCE TECHNOLOGY FOR SPORTS JOURNALISM

ABSTRACT

This dissertation, study‟s the transformation taking place in the field of sports journalism due to convergence made possible by the emergence of digital plenitude with the following objectives: to find out the extent of convergence adoption by Brila 88.9 FM, to know the current devices of convergence available to Brila FM staff, to know the benefits convergence devices have on the working standards of Brila FM and to know the possible challenges faced by staff of Brila FM in using modern devices for their sport reporting and programmes. Convergence theory and diffusion of innovation theory were adopted to serve as a framework for the study. Using a mixed research method, in-depth interview, observation checklist and questionnaire were the instruments used for data collection. The in-depth interviews were conducted with the heads of stations at Brila FM Abuja headquarter and Brila FM Kaduna station. The study found out that Brila FM have adopted convergence in its work because almost all the activities done or carried out at Brila FM in one way or the other involves the use of convergence technology. The study also revealed that, there has been provision of latest convergence facilities at Brila FM as staff derive benefits from using convergence technologies for their work, some benefits include quick download of sports stories from any sports website around the world. The engineering department at Brila FM also derives benefits from convergence as it uses ICTs to link up with its partners and affiliate station Sky Sports Radio United Kingdom (UK). The study also revealed that staff faced challenges in utilizing convergence devices at the station. The study recommended that, Brila FM should put more efforts in staff training, organizing seminars and workshops to enlighten and update the knowledge of their staff on the latest ICTs used for sports broadcast. Also, it should put more emphasis on servicing their devices other than purchasing new ones always and there should be speedy integration of ICT devices when purchased. Journalists working for Brila FM should not wait for the management to send them for IT training; they can enroll for IT training on their own.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1         Background to the Study

One aspect of the media which for long has been regarded as the “toy department” is the area of Sports Reporting or Sports Journalism. This is so because at its infancy, the area of sports journalism was given limited time and space in the news media. According to Domingo (2006), with the recent improvement in sports journalism to a more highly developed stage, sports journalism should be scrutinized using the professional criteria within the news arena. The advent of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) has transformed beyond recognition, the terrain and institution of mass media, most especially in the area of sports journalism. There is an advantageous paradigm shift in the global practice of journalism and the aspect of sports reporting has seen drastic improvement due to the coming of new communication technologies.

The internet is the fastest growing medium in history. Agba (2001) observed that the digitalization, convergence of computer and telephony technologies which are the most important aspects of the internet have greatly influenced the way news and information are produced and disseminated. Also, in the words of Kindem and Musburger (2009), media production requires both analogue and digital technologies, but in recent times, with the advent of digital technologies, media production has improved including the convergence of technologies as well as corporate integration.

According to Agba (2001), the rapid concentration of ownership and conglomeration, rapid globalization, increased audience fragmentation, hyper-commercialism and steady erosion of traditional distinction among media which today is driven by technology and money is referred to as convergence.

McQuail (2005) sees convergence as the processes of coming together or becoming more alike. The author said that, it is usually applied to the convergence of media technologies as a result of digitalization (computerization). As media continue to evolve, several trends are already apparent which include convergence.

Dominick (2011), buttresses convergence as not a new idea, but the word, which has enjoyed renewed popularity in recent years and which has become the centerpiece in discussions about future trends in mass communication. Dominic further observes that convergence could be in the form of corporate convergence where companies purchase smaller companies or operational convergence, which occurs when owners of several media properties in one market combine their separate operations into a single effort.

In his analysis on the most important type of convergence, Dominic (2011) attributed convergence to device convergence, which combines the functions of two or three devices into one mechanism. Device convergence is manifesting itself in yet another way. All media seem to be converging on the internet, which is a major channel of distribution. Newspapers and magazines have online editions, radio and television can be watched on the internet, music downloads are fast replacing CDs as the preferred delivery methods. TV networks are making their episodes available for downloading as well as starting their own broadband channels. Radio stations can now be picked on high definition and satellite radio, while newspapers, books, and magazines can be found online. With the transformation taking place in the field of journalism, one area of the media according to Mohammed (2014) which has so far been affected and improved is the area of sports reporting (sports journalism). Just like all reporters on special beats, the sports reporter today has so many tools, computers, and media outlets to deliver sporting events to an anxiously waiting audience who would acquire any digital device to keep abreast with what is happening in the sporting world. Millions of dollars is spent on sports, like football, lawn tennis, golf, basketball etc. The media spends a lot to make sure that they get the latest technology available to gather information about sports and spread it to the audience.

In recent times, convergence has made the jobs of sports media more flexible. Many sports reporters today are the editors, reporters, and often times, photojournalists, they do this during different sporting activities like the Federetion Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) World Cup, Olympics championships, National Basketball Association (NBA) Basketball or during tennis championship. We see the journalists with their cameras and their laptop computers; they cover and report the sporting activities as the event unfolds giving every minute update with audio, picture, and text. This shows the extent to which sports journalism has been transformed.

With evolution, globalization has since become a buzzword and as such it has brought about improvement, drastic change and competition in the field of sports reporting. The digitalisation of sports reporting made possible by convergence will be well appreciated if the sports reporters are on the side of the digital divide where they can manipulate all given technologies in reporting sporting activities. This implies that the area of sports reporting cannot be well appreciated by both the journalists and the audience unless the sports journalists are able to manipulate the recent technologies used in reporting sports like the touch screen television used by Sky Sports television and Super Sports television and also some sports radio and print media.

The touch screen television is a perfect example of media convergence because; it has pictures, audio, and text. It is connected to the internet and sports presenters, analysts make valuable use of it. Sport reporters in the stadium, the commentators, and those at different sport press conferences use it in filing in reports or covering sporting activities. The audience also adjusts to the demands of the converged technologies used by the sports reporters or broadcasters. Just as the sports journalists are very important in the 21^st century, so also is the profession of sports journalism. Some scholars have come to recognize this profession as one important department in the field of journalism. Sports Journalism, according to Boyle (2006), in many ways remains a paradox. In the hierarchy of professional journalism, it has been traditionally viewed disparagingly as the toy department, a bastion of easy living, sloppy journalism, and soft news. He views Sport Reporting or Sports Journalism as the most engaging writing in the media, unlike political and international diplomacy reporting because there‟s a bit more latitude given to sports reporting because the writings or broadcast are meant to entertain as much as to inform.

According to the Museum of Broadcast Communication (2008), Sports Journalism involves the coverage of sports as a television programme, on radio and other broadcasting medium. It usually involves one or more sports commentators who add spice to the broadcast by describing the event as they happen. These commentators give more insight on the sport, the stadium and background information on the players. All these information are researched by sports journalists using the ICTs and other digital equipments. With the emergence of digital plenitude made possible by device convergence, the internet and the World Wide Web which has significantly lowered the barriers of access and cost in production of sports programme which has increased in recent years, the number of sports media organizations, clubs and even individual athletes who are able to produce, and distribute content for the consumption of their audience (Boyle 2006). Looking at it from the point of view of Ugwu (2012), the emergence, and convergence of information and communication technologies (ICTs) has made the mass media and sports media witness tremendous transformation. This has brought some challenges to the practice of modern mass communication and sports journalism. With the present sophistication in the information superhighway, the former notion that mass communication is not a science may be having a paradigm shift and the sports department is no exception.

In Nigeria, the media have played a key role in sports ascendancy as a social, cultural and economic institution and with the recent development in the nexus between convergence and media, there is need to examine and acknowledge the relationship between convergence and sports journalism. This is so, because in Nigeria, there have been more debates on the impact convergence has on the field of mass communication in general, and not on sports journalism, as such, there is need to investigate, using grounding empirical research, the impact convergence is having on sports journalism in the country.

1.2         Statement of the Problem

Going by the literature reviewed for this study, like in the study by Boyle (2006) titled “sports journalism: context and issue” and Ifeduba (2011) study titled “European football club Newspapers in Nigeria: Gratifications or Media Imperialism” both reveled that there has been a small but significant contribution to studies in the new field of sports journalism globally. While there has been an increasing recognition of the importance of examining the profession of sports journalism, there are still significant aspects of sports journalism deserving detailed analysis, notably, the impact convergence has on sports reporting and sports journalism, the problems faced by sports media like internet connectivity, and access and infrastructure, costs of power which might be some of the factors that hinder convergence. In Nigeria, literature like the study on “the challenges of media convergence in Nigeria by staff of Voice of Nigeria (VON)” and Mohammed (2014) study on “sports journalism and its contribution to sports development in Nigeria”, both revealed that there is a deficiency of research and literature in the field of sports journalism and most of the studies on the implications of technologies in Nigeria media are channeled towards journalism as a whole but not on sports journalism. This research therefore focuses on and explores the impact of convergence on sports journalism; using Brila 88.9 FM as a case study.

1.3         Research Questions

1. To what extent has Brila FM Nigeria adopted convergence?
2. What are the current devices of convergence available to Brila FM staff?

• What benefits do convergence devices have on the work of Brila FM?

1. What challenges do the reporters of Brila FM face in using convergence devices for their reports and programmes?

1.4.        Aims and Objectives of the Study

This study is aimed at examining how convergence impacts on sports reporting by Brila FM. The specific objectives are:

1. To find out the extent of adoption of convergence by Brila FM
2. To find out the current devices of convergence available to Brila FM

• To examine the benefits convergence devices have on the working standards of Brila FM.

1. To find out the possible challenges faced by reporters of Brila FM in using modern devices for their reports and programmes.

1.5        Significance of the Study

Going by the existing literature, it has been noted that there is a symbiotic relationship between sports and the mass media in Nigeria (see Talabi 2011, Uwaje 2004 and Ifeduba 2011). Sports need the mass media and the mass media also allows for time and space for sports stories as part of its entertainment news. There is a deficiency of research and literature in the field of sports journalism (Mohammed, 2014). There has not been any study seen so far, in Nigeria on the implications of convergence technologies on sports journalism. This is the gap the study wants to fill.

The findings of this study will be of significance to specialized and academic institutions because; it can be used as a reference material for teaching journalism students interested in sports reporting. It will also help in the development of modern mass communication curriculum in Nigeria and in the media industry worldwide. The study is also significant because it will help the management of Brila FM and other broadcast stations including sports media in Nigeria to understand the type of ICT facilities to acquire in other to enhance their operations.

1.6         Scope of the Study:

This study is confined to the context of the strength of convergence on the operations of Sports Radio 88.9 Brila FM, between the year 2014 and 2015. This is the period in thisch the study was carried out. The study Looked at how well the radio station has been able to manipulate and incorporate ICTs and other new media tools in their operations during the period under review. Sports Radio 88.9 Brila FM Nigeria was chosen for the research because it claims to be the only known full time sports radio station in Nigeria and the first in Africa (www.brilafm.net). According to Sport Radio 88.9, Brila FM is Nigeria and Africa‟s pioneer sports radio; it was founded in 2002 by ace sportscaster, Dr. Larry Izamoje, in Lagos State, Nigeria. It started a second (2^nd) station in 2007 in Abuja. It achieved Pan- Nigeria spread in 2011 with new stations in Kaduna (North) and Onitsha (East) of the country.

In addition, the researcher believes it will be the best case study for this kind of research because the radio station can provide accurate data for the study. This work is delimited to Brila 88.9 FM.

1.7         Operational Definition of Key Terms

1. Convergence: The use of multiple devices like digital console, desktop and laptop computers, midgets, transmitters and receivers for simultaneous sports radio broadcast.
2. ICTs: Devices that enhance convergence like digital console, desktop and laptop computers, midgets, transmitters and receivers etc.
3. Journalist: A personnel working for a sports radio station
4. Sports radio: A media house fully dedicated to 24 hours sports broadcast.
5. Sports Radio 88.9 Brila FM, Brila 88.9 FM, Brila FM radio: They are all the-same; this is the case study for the research.

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