Wednesday, February 02, 2011

Curley Center chat to address issues in covering recruiting

Sports fans across the country often follow the recruiting of potential college student-athletes as closely as any on-field action, and that coverage of high school students about to make major life decisions comes with many challenges for sports journalists.

The competing agendas, ethics, influences and impact of recruiting coverage will be discussed at 1 p.m. Monday, Feb. 14, during an online chat conducted by the John Curley Center for Sports Journalism.

"Issues in Covering Recruiting" is free, and people may access and participate in the session by visiting http://sportsjourn.psu.edu/live-chats online.

Participants include:

-- Sean Fitz, a recruiting expert who focuses on Penn State for 247sports.com, which operates program-specific web sites for major college athletic programs across the nation;

-- Rachel George, who covers college sports and recruiting for the Orlando Sentinel; and

-- Malcolm Moran, the Knight Chair in Spoors Journalism and Society and director of the Curley Center.

Marie Hardin, an associate professor of communications at Penn State and associate director of the Curley Center, will serve as moderator for the hourlong session, which will also include a coach or recruiting coordinator from a Division I-A football program. Because coaches and recruiting coordinators are finalizing their classes of incoming student-athletes in advance of national signing day this week, the participation of a specific coach or coordinator will not been determined until later.

The Curley Center explores issues and trends in sports journalism through instruction, outreach, programming and research. The Center's undergraduate curricular emphasis includes courses in sports writing, sports broadcasting, sports information, sports, media and society, and sports and public policy, which is cross-listed with the Penn State Dickinson School of Law.

- Curley Center for Sports Journalism

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