700 B.C. (Greece)

Homer is the first sports writer.  Chronicles Olympic wrestling and discus in his writing.

“Their backs creaked under the strain of their strong intertwined arms. Sweat poured down their bodies, and bloody welts rose up on their shoulders and ribs.”—Homer, The Iliad

1610 (England)

Little is written about sports until King James of England writes The Booke of Sports, defining sport as dancing, archery, leaping and vaulting.

1618

“Declaration of Sports” in the British Empire

1600s

Native Americans engage in lacrosse, wrestling, and even a primitive form of football. Puritan backlash against sports due to association of sports with rituals, celebrations, etc.

1700s

As Puritan influence diminishes, American colonies begin engaging in sport—wrestling and boxing in particular—as a way of distinguishing themselves from Mother England.

1770s

Sports cut back due to dedication of Revolutionary War cause. This cessation of sports during time of war will be echoed in the coming years.

1860s, 1870s

Post Civil War. Horse racing, cockfighting, bare-knuckled boxing are the sports that predominate. Black jockeys dominate since they had learned how to ride as slaves. The removal of black jockeys around the turn of the century due to Jim Crow laws was the first real case of racial discrimination in sports in our country.

1880s

Baseball comes into its own and forms the American sports character. And for the first time American newspapers create regular sports sections, largely to cover baseball

1915-1920

Newspapers start to become extremely relevant in American society because of a growing literacy rate. That combined with the euphoria of a post-war society led to a feeling of escapism in the culture. And that led to … 

1920s

The Golden Age of Sport. When sports writers began to have influence and created larger-than-life heroes, such as Babe Ruth, boxer Jack Dempsey, golfer Bobby Jones and college football player Red Grange.

And that, combined with our image of athletes—white athletes at least—that was tied into the mythic images of sport led to stories like this …

1940s

The automobile starts to become increasingly important in American society. For the first time fans can easily get to games.

1950s

Television is installed as our national baby-sitter, and thus begins stadium and arena promotions: They had to find a way to keep people from watching everything on TV. Plus, sports writers could no longer write Grantland-Rice-type stories. Fans were watching the game themselves. The mystique was lost.

1970s

Sports, in particular pro football, continues to grow. Athletes such as Arnold Palmer and O.J. Simpson are signed by companies to endorse products. We later discover that maybe O.J. wasn’t the greatest spokesman.

1980s

ESPN, 24-hour talk radio. Athletes realize that onfield celebrations and spectacular plays will get them air time. But they also begin to get tired of constant scrutiny.

1990s

Companies realize the global power of athletes and crossover superstars such as Michael Jordan and, later, Tiger Woods are among the elites of the advertising world.

2000s

The Internet spawns sports websites that feature news continues focus on sports but also goes behind-the-scenes to catch athletes in compromising positions. And scrutiny becomes even more intense.

The Current Era

Athletes and journalists tweet during games, in effect furnishing a new kind of “radio,” providing instant coverage that is sometimes accurate, sometimes regrettably erroneous.

Athletes maintain their own websites, an effort to craft their own image, rather than relying on traditional forms of media.

The public conception of the athlete is mixed. A portion of the public looks at athletes negatively. They are more swayed by the websites, negative reporting, talk radio and the actions of the athletes themselves. 

BUT …

Longform storytelling endures. It is accessible. It has become relevant again on websites, in some newspapers such as the New York Times and the Washington Post, and in some magazines that have stayed solvent.