WHAT I DID
- Was a member of the Silver Spring-Takoma Thunderbolts’ newly-created media team (six people total)
- Primarily a beat writer
- Wrote recaps of every game
- Interviewed players and coaches
- Occasionally helped with radio broadcasts
- Provided live play-by-play and commentary for fans
- Produced a few of those broadcasts
- Assisted with social media
- Posted live updates during games, keeping fans engaged and abreast of what was happening
- Created graphics to post and celebrate big moments
- Prepared detailed notes before every game to reference in game stories and broadcasts
- Other roles:
- Scorekeeper
- Stand-in public address announcer
WHAT I LEARNED
- How to write a proper game story
- Experimenting with different feature ledes
- Picking out and writing about only the most pivotal moments from each game
- Finding ways to vary my work so it did not become repetitive
- How to interview athletes
- Determining what questions are appropriate and what will elicit the best response
- How to stick to tight deadlines
- Especially critical if the game’s outcome was undecided toward the end of the night, as the story would be unfinished
- The daily grind of being a beat reporter
- Putting in long, often odd hours daily
- Preparing extensively every day
- How to properly call a game over the radio
- Learning to speak at a specific cadence, vary my choice of descriptors and be simultaneously conversational yet professional
- How to properly run a team’s social media account
- Learning when to post
- Determining when casual banter is appropriate versus when to take a more professional tone
- Creating motion graphics for posting
Alexander Dacy's Portfolio 