League of Fans

When Derek Jeter went 5-for-5, including a dramatic home run for his 3000th hit, we were all Derek Jeter fans (yes, even the Yankee haters). It was one of those amazing sports feats that keep us all fans of the unscripted beauty that sport can be on the field, court and ice.

After his […]

“Edge of Sports Radio with Dave Zirin, where sports and politics collide.”

07/01/11 – This week we chat with Ken Reed of the League of Fans about what his group is doing to make sports better for the fans that consume them…
Click here to listen to the interview.

Increasingly, high school athletes are facing sports seasons that never end.  High school boys and girls are being asked to treat their sports with the same time and energy commitment as professional athletes.  Young players in virtually every sport are being pressured — in subtle and not-so-subtle ways — to attend “voluntary” practices, weight-training sessions, […]

As a tennis buff, I occasionally enjoy watching tennis on television. Usually the venues are plastered with billboard ads and corporate sponsorship signage. Virtually everything you can see is covered with a logo or corporate brand of some type. All this commercialism certainly takes away from the event itself.

However, Wimbledon, is the great exception. […]

Despite the fact fans are the ultimate source of $9 billion in revenue for the NFL; despite huge tax breaks and protection from competition granted by our political representatives; and despite the fact we — as taxpayers — have built giant sports palaces in which NFL franchises can make truckloads of money, NFL owners don’t […]

Debating sports coverage with Ralph Nader
THE WASHINGTON POST
POSTSPORTS
Posted at 04:39 PM ET, 06/28/2011

By Dan Steinberg

So Ralph Nader swung by The Post newsroom on Tuesday afternoon to talk sports with a few editors and reporters. He wanted specifically to discuss a new consumer advocacy group he’s launching for […]

By Ralph Nader
In the Public Interest

Why do many serious readers of newspapers go first to the Sports section? Maybe because they want to read about teams playing fun games by sports journalists and columnists, who have more freedom to use imaginative words and phrases than others in their craft.

The trouble is […]

NCAA Division I sports — most notably football and men’s basketball — are about money, prestige, public relations and bragging rights.  The education and overall college experience of the athletes is a secondary consideration.

More evidence that this is indeed the case was revealed a couple days ago when an Associated Press report […]

NFL owners have more to worry about these days than just the work stoppage with the players. The evidence continues to mount that repetitive blows to the head — both concussive and sub-concussive –from football contact can lead to depression, violent and erratic behavior, and other mental disorders.

Several researchers, including pathologists Dr. Bennet Omalu […]