Helping women and minorities into newsrooms since 1993
Helping women and minorities into newsrooms since 1993
The Washington Post announced on Feb. 4 that it was eliminating its sports department as part of a company-wide layoff which, according to the New York Times, left about 30% of its employees without jobs.
Potential changes had been rumored in the weeks before the announcement, after the Post reportedly told reporters who were set to cover Spring Training and the Olympics that they would not be doing so.
But even with prior notice, the news was still jarring.
“I kind of had a feeling it was coming,” former Nationals beat reporter Andrew Golden said. “We had a Zoom call that morning, and they told us that we’d receive an email after the call that would tell us whether our jobs would be eliminated or not. Maybe 10 minutes later, I was making breakfast and on the phone with my parents when I got the email that my job was being terminated. My stomach was in a knot. For most of my adult life, the Post was all I knew.”
Golden and other established journalists returned to a life of cover letters, resumes, recommendations and job interviews, but some landed on their feet.
The Post’s downsizing left one of the country's premier sports markets with less coverage, and publications such as the Baltimore Banner, where Golden landed, ESPN and The Athletic took advantage of an influx of experienced talent becoming available.
Candace Buckner, who worked at the Post for nearly a decade, noted a trend that previously hurt local newspapers has begun to keep sports journalism alive.
“Unfortunately, when The Athletic first started, they’d take writers from traditional newspapers, and that hurt the traditional newspapers,” Buckner said. “As a person who was born and bred in their career with the newspapers, I hated that.
“Now, The Athletic seems to be saving sports journalism,” she added. “It’s unfortunate how that happened, but there are so many people from the Washington Post or other places who could not have found a home had The Athletic not been there, and that definitely worked out for me.”
However, some were not as fortunate as Golden or Buckner.
Tashan Reed, a former Washington Commanders beat reporter, moved more than 2,000 miles to D.C., after spending more than seven years at The Athletic, eager to cover a team with a bright future and a superstar quarterback.
Five months later, he was fired.
“There was some anger and frustration there, because I left The Athletic by choice,” Reed said. “I think it was only about four and a half months before the layoffs happened. I moved across the country and started on a new beat. I uprooted my life, both professionally and personally, to take the job.
“To get caught up in something like that: It felt like my legs kind of got cut out from underneath me before I really had the chance to show what I was capable of doing.”
“Until this day, I still haven't decided on what's next for me in terms of my next spot.”
So, what is the future of sports journalism if a paper as historic as the Post is willing to cut it loose?
According to Missy Khamvongsa, former Deputy Editor at the Post and current Senior at News of the United States(NOTUS), the future lies in versatility, independence and multimedia journalism.
Khamvongsa was a sports copyeditor at the Post for 11 years before covering news in 2018. She credits her experience in the ever-changing, fast-paced landscape of sports for a seamless transition into politics.
“I think no matter the platform, there will always be a need for people to report facts and tell people what is happening and convey information in a way people can understand,” Khamvongsa said.
“But I will encourage young journalists to acquire as many skills as they can if they have the opportunity to. If you're focused on print and you have the opportunity to learn how to shoot and edit photos, video, and audio for podcasts, take it, because all of the jobs now have different components of all of those, and there's far less of the one-skill specialty than there used to be.”
“You may have to leave something and come back to sports,” she continued. “But you have to be open to all of the possibilities. Just know that you're building your skills to become a better journalist, and that as you become a better journalist, you will find opportunities, and opportunities will find you.”