Editor’s Preface

For the first time in a long time there really isn’t anything “new” to report for the Journal of Sports Media. Of course, there’s always something new and interesting going on as we seek to advance the cause of sports media scholarship. For example, JSM has now worked out an agreement with the Broadcast Education Association (BEA) for some cross-promotional efforts. An advertising barter has been worked out, and BEA members can now get a discount for a JSM subscription. BEA members can get 20% discount ($24 instead of $30) for U.S. delivery by using the coupon code BEAJSM; contact the BEA for more information.

Other than that, it’s been a very quiet fall and winter, which I believe suggests stability. Our subscriber base continues to grow, and we continue to get a lot of interest from researchers and those submitting scholarship. We’re extremely happy with the move to biannual publication because we can publish more deserving research. Our acceptance rate has increased to somewhere around 25–35%, which is much better than our rate when we published only annually (around 10–15%). That doesn’t mean we’re publishing undeserving research; just that we don’t have to turn away good research for lack of space.

On the subject of good research we have three more excellent articles this issue. I’m glad to see some work from JSM board member Andy Billings of Clemson. Andy has published extensively on the Olympics, including a book that came out last year titled Olympic Media: Inside the Biggest Show on Television from Routledge Press. His paper looks at how the media portray identity from the perspective of the on-air broadcasters. Nancy Cheever of California State University, Dominguez Hills investigates why people watch mixed martial arts, a sport that in just a decade or so has risen from obscurity to one of the most popular on television. Ron Bishop of Drexel looks at race through the lens of contract holdouts with particular emphasis on two stars of the NFL.

Our essay this issue comes from another heavy hitter in the world of sport research. JSM board member Larry Wenner at Loyola-Marymount may be the most prolific and accomplished scholar in the field. He further explores the notion of sports “dirt” in a media sense, and we’re grateful for his contribution. They let me do something beside write in the front of the issue this time; my book review is of a noteworthy contribution to sports communication texts and something you should seriously consider for the classroom.

Don’t forget our important web addresses. Information about subscriptions can be found at the JSM home page, http://www.olemiss.edu/depts/journalism/JSMindex.html or at the University of Nebraska Press, http://www.nebraskapress.unl.edu/product/Journal-of-Sports-Media,673232.aspx . Our JSM blog is at http://journalsportsmedia.blogspot.com/ ; contact me directly (bschultz@olemiss.edu) if you are interested in becoming a blog contributor or simply want to publicize what you’re doing in sports media research. We are happy to pass along requests for help, calls for papers and other related items.

Thanks again to our colleagues who reviewed papers for this issue:

Peggy Beck Kent State University-Stark

Ron Bishop Drexel University (but not his own paper!)

Brian Carroll Berry College

Robert Brown Daniel Webster College

Stephen Dittmore University of Arkansas

John Fortunato Fordham University

Herman Howard Johnson C. Smith University

Kevin Kemper University of Arizona

Richard King Washington State University

Dave Leonard Washington State University

Anthony Moretti Point Park University

Demitrius Pearson University of Houston

James Sayer Wright State University

Mary Lou Sheffer University of Southern Mississippi