Game Changers

This study investigates the perceptions of South African soccer journalists regarding the digitalization of the South African sports media industry. New media and digital mediums have globally transformed journalism and ways of reporting. The sports media industry has grown undeniably within the digital world; however, this has not been studied at length outside of the West. This study makes use of in-depth, expert interviews with highly experienced South African sports journalists to gather insights into their feelings towards digitalization. This resulted in a nuanced understanding of the different opinions, viewpoints, and stances expressed by South African soccer journalists on different facets of the digitalized media industry. Research finds that South African soccer journalists perceive digitalization to have created a more competitive, impersonal, commercialized, and less specialized soccer media industry in South Africa. Journalists see themselves as facing more demanding but less rigorous professional demands, pressure to use metrics, and sometimes harmful social media spaces. Journalists do perceive improvements to diversity in the industry and innovations that increase digital access, however, the overall perception of South African soccer journalists of digitalization in their industry is negative, and most maintain a belief that traditional journalistic values are at risk in the new media space. The results of this study imply that there is a need for media organizations to better support South African soccer journalists in addressing the concerns generated by an evolving digital landscape. These included growing workloads, social media abuse, increased commercial pressure, and a threat to investigative reporting.