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From the Editor:
League of Fans’ sports policy director, Ken Reed, is the host of a new sports issues podcast called League of Fans’ Sports Forum.
Here’s the podcast description:
Sports Forum is an ongoing discussion about current sports issues. The goal of the podcast is to find ways we can improve the sports experience […]
Guest Column
By Gerry Chidiac
In times of crisis, true leaders step forward. While effective political leadership has largely been absent, professional athletes, primarily players in the National Basketball Association and Women’s National Basketball Association, have demonstrated that celebrity status, when embraced with a sense of responsibility, can be a catalyst for global change.
Quite […]
League of Fans’ founder Ralph Nader’s op-ed column on college athletes practicing on college campuses across the country during a surging pandemic was published by USA Today today (“Ralph Nader: Pandemic Can’t Stop the Greed of College Athletic Programs, But Congress Can”). Here’s an excerpt:
Today, we are watching much of the college sports […]
Guest Column
By Gerry Chidiac
One of the most important qualities of a good leader is the ability to listen. It is very easy to jump on a bandwagon and it is easy to jump to conclusions. It takes true courage to hear another person’s point of view, admit we were wrong, shift our beliefs […]
By Ken Reed
America is clearly broken.
We’ve struggled from the beginning of this nation to live up to our ideals.
From our Pledge of Allegiance: “… with liberty and justice for all …”
From our Declaration of Independence: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal …”
[…]
League of Fans founder Ralph Nader recently wrote a compelling column about heroes. He took a look at the disproportionate attention sports stars receive in relation to the heroes who fight for justice and are effectively addressing important socio-cultural issues, as well as the everyday heroes who are stepping up during the COVID-19 pandemic. We […]
By Ken Reed
Many parts of our society have been hit hard by Covid-19. One area that’s received scant attention is youth sports.
During this pandemic, youth sports leagues have been cancelled, athletic facilities have been shutdown, various youth sports programs — public (community recreation centers) and private (e.g., club sports organizations) — have screeched […]
Fans, players and the game deserve a stronger punishment for this blatant disregard of basic fair play and sportsmanship
Originally published by Troy Media
To Robert D. Manfred Jr., Major League Baseball Commissioner
Dear Mr. Manfred:
With Major League Baseball on hiatus due to the coronavirus, you have time to revisit the Houston Astros […]
By Ken Reed
I was walking off the tennis court last Sunday checking my messages when I saw several texts saying Kobe Bryant had been killed in a helicopter crash.
My first reaction was disbelief. Then shock. Then sadness.
As I got in my car, I wasn’t sure why I was so sad. While I […]
Guest Column
By Gerry Chidiac
The word competition often draws to mind hard-nosed athletes and coaches who will do anything to win. We imagine the tough business executive who will eliminate all adversaries to make the greatest profit.
But in fact, the win-at-all-costs attitude brings only short-term success. In order to win in the long […]
Sports Forum Podcast
Episode #22 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: Rethinking Sports Fandom with Author Craig Calcaterra – We discuss Calcaterra’s new book “Rethinking Fandom: How to Beat the Sports-Industrial Complex at Its Own Game” and explore new ways to be a fan in the year 2022.
Listen on Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Anchor and others.
Follow on Facebook: @SportsForumPodcast
More Episodes on Apple Podcasts; Spotify; Google Podcasts; PocketCasts; & Anchor
Episode #21 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: Chatting About a Broken Game With Baseball Writer Pedro Moura – Moura is a national baseball writer for Fox Sports. We discuss how and why the game of baseball is broken, what factors caused it, and offer a few thoughts on how to “fix” a great game.
Episode #20 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: Coaching Youth and High School Sports Based On What’s Best for the Athlete’s Holistic Development – We chat with long-time youth, high school and college basketball coach Jim Huber.
Episode #19 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: Capturing the Spirit of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League with Anika Orrock – We discuss the hoops AAGPFL women had to jump through to play the game they loved as well as the long-term impact and legacy they have in advancing sports opportunities for girls and women.
Episode #18 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: Talking about the 50th Anniversary of Title IX and the Lia Thomas Controversy with Nancy Hogshead-Makar – Hogshead-Makar is a triple gold medalist in swimming, a civil rights attorney and CEO of Champion Women.
Episode #17 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: Talking Sports With Legendary New York Times Sports Columnist Robert Lipsyte – We chat about Lipsyte’s amazing career and some of the athletes he covered.
Media
"How We Can Save Sports" author Ken Reed appears on Fox & Friends to explain how there's "too much adult in youth sports."
Ken Reed appears on Mornings with Gail from KFKA Radio in Colorado to discuss bad parenting in youth athletics.
“Should College Athletes Be Paid?” Ken Reed on The Morning Show from Wisconsin Public Radio
Ken Reed appears on KGNU Community Radio in Colorado (at 02:30) to discuss equality in sports and Title IX.
Ken Reed appears on the Ralph Nader Radio Hour (at 38:35) to discuss his book The Sports Reformers: Working to Make the World of Sports a Better Place, and to talk about some current sports issues.
- League of Fans Sports Policy Director Ken Reed quoted in Washington Post column titled "What happened to P.E.? It’s losing ground in our push for academic improvement," by Jay Mathews
League of Fans is a sports reform project founded by Ralph Nader to fight for the higher principles of justice, fair play, equal opportunity and civil rights in sports; and to encourage safety and civic responsibility in sports industry and culture.
Sports & Torts – Ken Reed, Sports Policy Director, League of Fans – at the American Museum of Tort Law
Books
