Football reporters use Twitter to talk tactics with fans

Football fans used to be passive receivers of news and comment from national newspaper sports writers. Now they are engaging in conversations with some journalists, especially through Twitter.

Mark Segal, writing in the magazine When Saturday Comes, says social media tools are changing the nature of football journalism, allowing for greater interaction between reporters and fans.

He reveals that several football journalists are passing on nuggets of information about clubs, mentioning John Cross of the Daily Mirror, who gives insights into what's happening at Arsenal, and the The Guardian's Manchester-based writer Daniel Taylor, who has the inside track at Manchester City.

But that's not all. Segal says: "They are also striking up a conversation with the fans. Not only does this allow supporters to comment on stories but, more importantly, it also makes the journalist more accountable for what they write." He continues:

Before social media created a two-way conversation on the internet, a journalist would only have had their editor and probably the manager of the club they reported on to answer to.

They could print stories knowing they would not be asked to justify them to the ordinary football fan. But it's different now for those who have chosen to set up Twitter accounts.

They are pulled up on any factual errors in their stories, asked to reveal their sources and generally badgered by their followers.

Needless to say, they also get plenty of abuse, but despite the pitfalls they believe the good outweighs the bad. Segal writes: "It's also a good way of testing out theories before you commit them to print. And on Twitter you're not just getting a second opinion but possibly the opinions of thousands of other people."

Not that every writer gets involved. Henry Winter of the Daily Telegraph is the highest profile football writer on Twitter, but he doesn't reply to fans and is often criticised for it.

"There also is silence from the other chief football writers," observes Segal. "Perhaps many of them do not understand Twitter or perhaps they do understand, which is why they choose to stay away."

Source: When Saturday Comes Hat tip: Laura Oliver