Thorough, entertaining sports coverage (despite all the editorializing!)
Written: Apr 23 '01
Product Rating:
Pros: excellent photography; detailed sports journalism; good sense of humor; obscure info and stats
Cons: too much golf coverage! News is often opinionated and prejudice (true journalism is unbiased).
The Bottom Line: The best sports magazine in publication today. Although it sometimes shows its age (they still do the swimsuit issue?!) it's still worth the money to subscribe.
Chad9976's Full Review: Sports Illustrated Magazine Subscription
When it comes to sports magazines there really is none out there better than Sports Illustrated. I hate to sound like a corporate butt-kisser but it's true. These guys have been putting out a quality publication with the latest sports news, insights, trends and other info you don't get anywhere else for about 50 years. You don't last 50 years in any business unless you're really good at what you do and no one covers the sporting world quite the way SI does.
I've been subscribing to this magazine for over a year now which means I've witnessed their coverage of an entire season's worth of all the major sports. From their special season preview issues in which every team in the respective league is analyzed in depth (stats galore, general predictions and insights from opposing teams' scouts), to their playoff round-ups and championship coverage SI does a great job in covering all the major news stories of a sport's season as well as the occasional off-season coverage of possible trades and draft picks, player profiles and retrospectives.
WHY SPORTS ILLUSTRATED IS THE KING OF SPORTS NEWS MAGAZINES
For those unfamiliar with SI, you might be thinking, "So what? I can read the same thing in the newspapers and online every day, what makes this magazine any better?"
The answer lies with their reputation. Sports Illustrated has been around for so long and has earned so much accolade and respect throughout the sporting world that alone gives it a huge advantage that even big national news sources like the Associated Press and the New York Times can't compete with.
Think about it, if you're an athlete, a coach or a general manager and you've got big news to break who would you want to talk to? When SI interviews a newsmaker in the sporting world they dig deeper to get the stories behind the stories. Since this is a magazine they are afforded a lot more room for detail - the kind of length newspapers can't compete with.
Writers for SI manage to balance the news with the personal backgrounds behind all the major players in a featured story and at the same time stir up just a bit of controversy if they can.
You're probably familiar with the personality profile they did on Atlanta Braves' relief pitcher John Rocker in 1999 wherein they published his prejudiced comments which made him the most hated man in America (especially by us Mets fans!). I have a feeling the editors didn't intend to ruin the guy's life, but by publishing those comments they showed they're not going to shy away from controversial subjects and that they still have that "edge."
There hasn't really been anything as controversial as that published in SI in quite a while. But their edginess still shows, albeit subtly, in a lot of their articles as well as their regular columns (the editors just looooooove to make their opinions known on every issue - more on this later).
Almost every feature story in this magazine could be described in one of three ways:
¥ "Everything's going well, but...."
¥ "Expectations are high but [name] hasn't delivered.... yet"
¥ "How this [team/player] is triumphing against all odds...."
Get the picture? It's a good way to keep a reader interested in the article and read it in its entirety and using these themes on the cover is a great way to sell copies at the news stands. Some recent examples include: Mario Lemieux's comeback (he's old); Nomar Garciaparra and how he pushes himself to be the best he can (it pains him); how Allen Iverson and his coach learned to get along (overcoming adversity); how Tiger Woods won another golf tournament and broke more records (he's a phenom); why the Sacramento Kings are dominating the NBA without big shots like Shaq or Kobe (sometimes the little guys are the best); how the Baltimore Ravens became Superbowl champs on the strength of their defense alone, and how their defense "really isn't" the best defense of all time despite all the statistical evidence.
In some ways this might be pandering but that would imply sappiness and when it comes to mainstream sports reporting SI is never sappy.... well almost never.
For the last year or so SI has been regularly inserting colorful feature stories on tragedies, how sports had a huge impact on a small community and the occasional "feel-good" sappy stories. Here's some examples:
¥ An examination of how parents take their children's sports way too seriously. Grown men have actually gotten into fisticuffs, even killed one another, over a call by the referee or they abuse their children because they didn't win.
¥ A story about corruption among a high school basketball program that shocked an entire city.
¥ How two young professional hockey players became friends after one accidentally hit the other in the eye and ended his NHL career.
¥ A 12-page story on how a black basketball coach brought together an entire all-white Amish community was very inspiring and touching. It's the movie "Remember The Titans" but in print form.
¥ Also recently published was an 8-page story on the life of dart players who travel from bar to bar to play in contests and eventually reach a championship tournament.
These stories are well-written and informative, however, as a longtime SI reader I can't help but think these pieces are going to become a weekly feature. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but if I wanted to read about stuff like this I'd read People or Reader's Digest or some other family/news magazine.
IT'S THE LITTLE THINGS THAT MAKE SPORTS ILLUSTRATED GREAT
A typical issue of this magazine runs about 80 pages. What's interesting to note that almost half the magazine is what I call the "introductory departments." It's the first 30 or 40 pages of news briefs, funny quotes, "blotter" notes, amazing statistics and really obscure insights into the sports world you can't get anywhere else.
IN CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER:
LEADING OFF
Three or four pages strictly of photographs with captions explaining them. Photography is one of this magazine's strongest features - their shutter bugs are able to capture precise detail of in-action events in crystal clear, almost gleaming colors. The pictures are usually amazing - the kind you just stare at for minutes at a time to appreciate the artistry of it all.... or sometimes they're just hilarious to look at (the fish-eye lens collage of baseball players was one of my favorites or the fish inside the mouth of another fish). GRADE: A
CATCHING UP WITH....
One of those "What ever happened to...?" columns where SI catches up with an athlete or newsmaker that graced their cover many years ago. This is a great educational piece because it gives a lot of insight to the world of professional sports. Children should read this every week to appreciate the accomplishments of players of the past who didn't have the technology and other means we have today to accomplish what they did back then. GRADE: B
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
A typical letters column, only without the crackpots and the butt-kissers. No letters like "I was in heaven when I read the story on..." People often write in some very funny sly remarks in response to what millionaire players and coaches have said and done. Others write to in to complain about how the magazine missed a key component to the story. My only beef: the letters are about issues from a month ago and I can't always remember the exact story they're referring to. GRADE: B
STEVE RUSHIN'S AIR AND SPACE
For as much editorializing as Sports Illustrated does throughout its publication, it's funny they only have two actual columnists - Rushin and Rick Reilly.
Rushin's column is often an insight into things in the sports world you probably hadn't though of and he makes a lot of convincing arguments such as how so many young athletes have died simply living their lives; how sports as we know them may be extinct in the next few hundred years; how whenever a player signs a huge contract he always says "it's not about the money." Sometime whiny, sometimes witty but almost always interesting. GRADE: B
MULTIMEDIA
One of my favorite pages in the entire magazine. This page is made up of three columns: one describes and reviews a sports-related web site you might not have heard of or visited until now; a feature news story about happenings on TV sports (like how Tiger Woods presence in a televised golf tournament averages a 50% higher rating than when he's not in one/how whenever Steve Levy does the play-by-play announcing for an NHL game is almost always goes into overtime - how do they research this stuff? It's amazing!); the last column is a little blurb called "The Zapper" about something coming up on TV that's sports-related (usually a movie) but not a typical specific sports channel news production. GRADE: A
SCORECARD
A news story too short to get a feature article treatment with a blurb in the corner of a related matter. This news story is almost always biased and opinionated but presented as fact. I read this column with caution because I know it's biased or prejudice in one way or another (we'll come back to this later in the next section). GRADE: C+
GO FIGURE
If there's any reason at all to read Sports Illustrated it's this tiny little column right here. A list of stats and other numbers that are related to sports in some way but are so obscure you'd never figure them out on your own and your daily newspaper certainly wouldn't take the time to research it. These numbers often are shocking and hilarious or just plain mundane. Always entertaining though.
Examples:
¥Ê15: Years since the major league team with the game's highest-paid player on its opening day roster made the playoffs.
¥Ê2: Horses, of the 40 starters who finished Britain's rain-plagued Grand National, which was won by 33-1 long shot Red Marauder.
¥Ê$400,000: Amount Sears is paying the owners of the apartment building at 3631 N. Sheffield Ave. in Chicago this year to put the company's name on a rooftop sign overlooking Wrigley Field.
¥Ê16-0: The Rocket's record against teams in the NBA's Central this season, only the second time in league history that a team has swept an entire division.
GRADE: A
BURNING QUESTION
A brief column that answers a question about some aspect of some sport that you can't really get answered anywhere else.
Examples:
¥ Why do so many NHL players still use wooden sticks?
¥ What's that band around Allen Iverson's arm?
GRADE: B
JUST ASKING
An Entertainment Weekly-style interview with someone somehow related to sports, such as a guy that's been a cut man to pro boxers for 30 years; a guy who's been driving the zamboni for the Chicago Blackhawks for 20 years; the woman that braids Latrell Spreewell's hair. Funny and informative, not used often enough though.
GRADE: B
THE BEAT/BLOTTER
Little tidbits of information, mostly about sports players' personal lives that couldn't fit anywhere else. Plus obscure info that probably could warrant their own full-length articles but there's no room.
Examples:
¥ SUED: The NFL by former Browns tackle Orlando Brown, over the career-ending injury he suffered in 1999 when struck in the right eye by a referee's weighted flag.
¥ Troy Aikman bought a $6.5 million house in Montecito, Calif. At least he didn't have to pay broker fees: he bought the place directly from NFL great Marcus Allen.
GRADE: B+
THIS WEEK'S SIGN OF THE APOCALYPSE/THEY SAID IT
Along the lines of "Go Figure" and the blotter this short section mentions something REALLY obscure that is somehow related to the sports world and is unbelievable or really funny.
Examples:
¥ In the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race in Martinsville, Va., rookie Jon Wood's Ford was sponsored by Virginia Democratic gubernatorial candidate Mark Warner.
¥ Sam Perkins, Pacers center, 39, on Indiana's woes: "If I'm starting you know something's wrong."
GRADE: A
FACES IN THE CROWD
Although SI doesn't do any coverage of minor league sports they do have this weekly column in which an amateur athlete's accomplishments are highlighted. Usually it's high school and college kids who have broken some long-standing record within their region or state. Occasionally coaches show up for the same reason. Senior citizens are often shown for their accomplishments in bowling or swimming in some organized seniors sporting circuit. Sweet and inspiring.
GRADE: B
ASK THE COACH
Parents can write in to anonymously ask SI what to do about their kid's athletic ability (or lack thereof) or their problem with other players, coaches and officials. Cute, but shouldn't this be in Sports Illustrated for Kids?
GRADE: B-
"THE LIFE OF REILLY" - BY RICK REILLY
Sometimes this is the first thing I read when I get the magazine in the mail every week. It's printed on the very last page which makes it convenient to find. This is one of the most offbeat, witty, breezy columns in publication today.
Usually when you think of columnists you think of uptight pricks who want to push your buttons on some controversial issue, not Reilly, he wants to tell you something interesting about something you probably knew nothing about. He's written columns on the most traded player in the NBA and how he doesn't even have an apartment or a house, he just lives out of hotel rooms. His last column was about a guy who's collected thousands of baseballs at stadiums around the country and how he did it. Occasionally Reilly gets sappy and talks about young kids who were tragically killed before they had a chance to shine or how much he loves his wife. Once in a while he'll get confrontational and discuss issues like "apparently no one killed the man Ray Lewis was accused of killing," or he'll make fun of Michael Jordan and goad him into coming out of retirement or how he's done such a great job of managing the Washington Wizards.
If you thought the stuff in "Go Figure" or "The Week's Sign of the Apocalypse" was off beat you have to read this column to REALLY appreciate the uncanny. It's a dandy.
GRADE: A-
THE MAGAZINE'S DOWNSIDE: THE EDITORS REALLY WANT YOU TO KNOW WHAT THEY THINK AND WHY THEY'RE UNDENIABLY RIGHT!
When I first starting writing this review I considered using a different title for it, "Do you want some sports coverage with your editorials?" But upon closer inspection and examination, and flipping through a couple dozen issues I realized that Sports Illustrated really IS a great source for sports news and the bias to it isn't as bad as I had thought.
I have no problem with writers and editors making their opinions known, but isn't that what columnists are for? For example, look at The Sporting News, SI's closest competitor. In every sporting category there's a columnist chiming in with his or her opinions, analysis, commentary and review of something going on in the sporting world. It's news and opinion at the same time but since it's a column the reader knows it's not 100% unbiased pure journalism and it's not a problem. Now look at any given issue of SI, there's only TWO standard columnists (Rushin and Reilly), yet if you were to read this magazine from cover to cover how many different opinions would you say you've read?
I have made a living as a news and sports reporter and I hold an associate's degree in journalism so I think I have the experience necessary to make this kind of criticism. What it all comes down to is that news reporting, no matter what the medium may be, is supposed to be neutral and unbiased, but SI doesn't always follow that rule. As far as journalism goes that's wrong, but as far as making a magazine entertaining and appealing it could go either way. Everyone loves to read something by a so-called expert who makes a statement they totally disagree with and angers them. Then again, when I pay a lot of money for a subscription to a magazine and I often find myself becoming annoyed with their editorializing I feel a little cheated.
Ultimately I'll still give Sports Illustrated a big thumbs-up for its thoroughness, their ability to get the stories and inside info no one else can; their use of the obscure, strange news and overall breezy format.
Sports Illustrated's opinion-presented-as-fact Hall of Shame:
¥ A recent story on Oakland Raiders' owner Al Davis's lawsuit against the NFL which concludes with the assumption, ".... his latest crusades will earn him only animosity from the league, from the city of Oakland and from Raiders fans who will most likely see little reason to trust him again. Though he may take solace in the Silver and Black's return to glory, in the courtroom Davis needs to do a better job of picking his fights."
¥ In early 2001 in the weekly round-up section on hockey the lead story was not so much a story as a cleverly disguised column. "The once novel All-Star format pitting North America against the World ought to be junked" was the headline and the writer, Kostya Kennedy, had a pretty large by-line so the reader knows who wrote it. And to his credit Kennedy did a fine job of writing his piece using quotes from real players and facts about the old way of the All-Star game format. But you have to consider that this IS a totally opinionated column in the NEWS section! Shouldn't this be under "SI's View" or shouldn't there be some kind of disclaimer like "a commentary by Kostya Kennedy" or "The views of Mr. Kennedy do not necessarily reflect those of the entire SI staff, its editors, publishers and sponsors?" I don't want to get hung up on a little disclaimer but by NOT stating the above they can't validly deny that the entire staff feels the same way and want to persuade you to think that way also.
Some actual headlines:
¥ Cheap Thrills: Will sleazy gimmicks and low-rent football work for the XFL? (a COVER headline!)
¥ Islanders' Coaching Search: Who Would Want This Job?
¥ NHL Award Suggestion: Show Lady Byng The Door
¥ STUMBLING START: Already paying dividends for the Rangers off the field, Alex Rodriguez tripped all over himself during his debut with Texas
NFL:
During football season this magazine might as well be called NFL Illustrated. Most of their news coverage concerns individual players and how they've developed over the years and what they've done this season for their team. Teams that have surprisingly risen to the top often get a lot of attention and teams that simply dominate and crush the competition are sure the grace the cover at least once or twice. All brown-nosing aside SI does a very good job at giving behind-the-scenes insight you don't get see on TV. GRADE: A-
Major League Baseball:
Clearly the guys who write for and put this magazine together love baseball. Their season preview issue had as much information in it that you might expect to find in a separate publication. They give you the low-down and this magazine as a whole is pretty good at their long-term predictions. During the regular season there's always at least one feature article on a player or a team that's doing something special. SI noticed how great the Oakland A's were LONG before anyone else and predicted they'd be a real threat to the Yankees' chances of three-peating last year. Sure enough, they were right. Baseball is the most discussed sport in the magazine (read: b!tched about), but that's fine by me - everyone loves to hate baseball. In fact, I'd say they're a bit soft, but when it comes to covering the sports as news SI is always with the game. GRADE: A-
NBA:
Hmmm.... You know what's weird? During the regular NBA season SI features more stories on this league than anything else in the magazine (two or three times as much as hockey). Yet, where's the pre-season and playoff coverage? It's pretty skimpy, but that's okay because not that many people care about the NBA anymore or else they'd probably be a lot more thorough. Well whatever, I don't really pay attention to it, does anyone? GRADE: B
NHL:
My favorite sport and it's given relatively little attention! Maybe it's because hockey is more of a Canadian and European sport than an American one. Maybe it's because the NHL doesn't make as much money as the NFL or MLB and its TV ratings are in the toilet, but that doesn't mean there's not hordes of hockey fans out there! I would NEVER rely on this magazine as my source of hockey news and information ("The Hockey News" does the best job), but as an SI subscriber who is also a big hockey fan I still ready everything about the sport they publish. As with any other sport, SI manages to write stories and get interviews and perspectives no one else can, not even THN! But c'mon guys, why can't you beef up the NHL coverage? Especially during the regular season. GRADE: B-
Golf/PGA:
I'm not sure how it happened but somehow the American media thinks golf is now more popular than football or baseball - but where's the statistics to prove it? There's only two types of golf fans: those that genuinely enjoy the game and play it themselves; and those that just like to see what Tiger Woods is up to. I think the latter has confused the media and thus SI's yes-men have convinced the editors and the readers that the PGA is the hippest, coolest thing on the planet. "You're not cool if you don't like golf" seems to be the message I get when I get my copy of Sports Illustrated every week and immediately flip past all the golf coverage. Although I have to admit that what I've seen is outstanding! As much as they worship Tiger Woods, it's nice that he's not given exclusive coverage and the "Golf Plus" section is true to its name - it's about the whole world of golf, not just Tiger. GRADE: A (for actual coverage); F (for too much coverage!)
College Basketball:
There's about 300 NCAA Division I basketball teams in this country, so why are only a handful of them covered during the season? Frankly, I'm getting sick of hearing about Duke and North Carolina. My take on SI's coverage of college b-ball is basically the same as their PGA coverage - yeah they do a great job of it but some of the space devoted to this sport would be better used for NHL coverage. GRADE: B+
College Football:
Same as above.
College Hockey:
No coverage, although they did do a story on the NCAA Championship game - at least that's something.
XFL:
Ha! Yeah right! Everyone knows this thing is a joke and SI thinks so too but instead of mocking it they simply ignore it all together.
Tennis:
Why is golf given so much attention but tennis is not? This is a much more exciting sport and there's always some big news going on, why don't the guys at SI realize this? There are other things to report about the tennis world than Wimbledon and Anna Kournikova! GRADE: C-
Boxing:
It's hard for me to tell how good of a job they do because boxing is so wide open it's difficult to keep track of all the different boxers, circuits, weight classes, etc. To really follow boxing in SI you have to be a big fan of the sport, otherwise you don't really appreciate their infrequent coverage. GRADE: C-
Soccer:
The fact SI mentions soccer at all, let alone has an occasional soccer news column in its "The Week in Sports" department is pretty surprising to me. They ignore tennis but soccer has been gaining a lot of ground the last few years (credit that to the Major League Soccer organization and the new women's version - WUSA). The coverage of soccer is detailed but also done in kind of an "assuming" matter, meaning they editors assume the readers have some background on the sport, the leagues and the international competitions. In a few years soccer could be given as much attention as the NHL and that's great. Now if only they'd do the same thing for lacrosse. GRADE: C+
NASCAR:
I don't think the people behind SI really consider car racing a sport and the only time NASCAR is given any mention is at the beginning, middle and end of the season or when something big happens (Dale Earnhardt's death for example). Their competitor, The Sporting News, has a regular weekly department devoted to NASCAR but SI's infrequent coverage seems to be done out of spite. True NASCAR fans wouldn't make this magazine their only source of info on the sport - the editors know that. GRADE: C-
Horse Racing:
Why horse racing is considered a sport is a mystery to me. It's more of a tradition than anything else. It's something to gamble on pure and simple, but then again poker has its own World Series too. Occasional coverage of the Triple Crown events and any other major news is what SI will report on but that's about it. GRADE: D
Olympic Sports:
When the summer Olympics in Sydney were going on they took HUGE precedence in the magazine. For over a month every cover was Olympics related and they did an excellent job in covering the overall games as well as the highlighted athletes from both the USA and around the world (Australian swimmer Ian Thorpe for example). During the off season SI will occasionally update readers on the next Olympics and potential competitors, etc. It's more off-season coverage than any other magazine. GRADE: A (during the games); B (during the off season).
Minor league sports/alternative sports/extreme sports:
Nada. Zip. Zilch. Once in a GREAT while something like the Arena Football League or the American Hockey League will be mentioned but only if it has to do with a prospect from a minor league coming up to the majors or how cities with small sports markets get by with their shrimpy little minor league teams. You'll find nothing on the current skateboarding champ or anything about lacrosse or tips on mountain biking or skydiving. But those sports all have their own specialty magazines anyway, what does SI care?
Women's Sports:
Next to nothing - only when something major happens like when the U.S. Women's Soccer Team beat China or the startup of the WUSA. The editors realize SI's readers are mostly men that's why they created Sports Illustrated For Women to give women's sports and athletics the coverage it deserves.
AND NOW, A WORD ON THE SWIMSUIT ISSUE
I'm not really sure what the point of having the swimsuit issue is anymore. Basically, it's the one time of year that all males, from ages 8 to 100 can look at some softcore pornography and not get into trouble with their old ladies.
The only reason this issue is still published and why men still buy it is out of tradition. It's kind of a chicken-and-the-egg thing: men will buy it as long as it's published and SI will publish it as long as men buy it.
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