Photographed: Dylan Brown source: https://pacechronicle.com/
This past Thursday, we had the pleasure of sitting down with the Pace Chronicle Sports Editor, Dylan Brown in an exclusive interview on his work and contributions to the newspaper and his involvement in writing and documenting for various sports games at Pace. Brown, is a junior at the Pace University Pleasantville Campus studying Digital Journalism at Dyson College of Arts & Sciences. In this interview, he will share more about his experience working for the Pace Chronicle and his process with accuracy in observing in game action, fair share in statistics and advice for aspiring sports journalism majors.
Interview:
1. Can you tell us about the work that you do at the Pace Chronicle?
DB: I am the Managing Editor and Sports Editor. As Managing Editor I oversee writer-editor relations. I am responsible for taking minutes, making sure all information is finalized. When the Editor- in-Chief, Leanna Ward, is absent, I assume responsibility to run the meeting. Other tasks include assuring a story has been assigned to a writer. As sports editor, I oversee everything published in relation to sports. I ensure accuracy of recaps, names spelled correctly, statistics attributed to the correct person. The entire section is my realm.
2.What motivated you to pursue writing for sports?
DB: I am already a sports lover. I went to games with my high school and was going before I joined the Chronicle. Editor-in-Chief at the time, J.J. Perdido ’24, recounted seeing me at games multiple times before. He first approached me in the gym during a workout, suggested I come to a meeting. Once there, he suggested I take on the task of writing about our men’s lacrosse team as their season got underway. I was open to it. I came into that meeting in early March 2022, eyes open and ears clear, looking to just get a start and say “I wrote that”. Turns out my start was with sports which combined a love for competitiveness and pride for my school.
3.What are the most important aspects which go into covering sports at Pace?
DB: Accuracy, for one, and understanding for the non-sports person. I write about sports in a way that someone with little knowledge of a sport knows what happened. Was it good for Pace, was it bad? So with that, I avoid jargon. It has been noted I write most about basketball, it’s because I played before so I know the lingo and terms. Someone who sees our newsstand or decides to check out our website and go to the sports section may not, so I avoid words within the community. Of course there are basic words like goal, touchdown, basket, home run. But I avoid mentioning, in soccer, an offside , or specific plays in basketball like the pick and roll.
4. How important do you believe a sports community is in college sports and its learning environment?
DB: Sports is part of pride. Seeing a group of athletes don the school colors and compete at high competitiveness. What helps in a school this small is just seeing one of the athletes in your class, they are regular people that you just root for their success. There’s also the angle of being able to say our school is better than yours. For example in basketball, we are very competitive with Adelphi University. The school recognized its significance too. Whenever we get into the Northeast 10 playoffs, the official school Instagram is posting about it.
5. In which ways do you gather information on sports events for your articles?
DB: I watch every game. I try to go to every game in person. If not, I watch them on http://Ne10now.tv or the Pace Sports Network. As I watch I write down all important happenings or what can be turns of fortune for our teams or their opponents. I also go by word of mouth, sometimes I just overhear someone complain about a Setters defeat, it perks my ears and makes me open my laptop to see if the game is in progress. If it’s done, I rewatch it over.
6. Is there any sport in particular you enjoy covering in your articles?
DB: I previously mentioned basketball. I appreciate a good game. I played before so it makes being a spectator even better. Lacrosse has also been a new one. I enjoy the fast paced nature of the game and its mix of physicality and fitness. Finally, swimming and diving I enjoy. I know the strength it takes to get yourself from one end of the pool to another as fast as possible.
7. What goes into the process of fair coverage in reporting for competing teams in a sport?
DB: I try not to get too descriptive. To be more descriptive I use adjectives very sparingly. I am a fan but I want my work to be as if I am someone from off-campus just covering the local college teams. I am fair to all the players, referring to them by name and do my best in humanizing them. I do not get into words that would offend the players if they read it, I decide to write about a defeat, it doesn’t put salt in the wound. If a team gets dominated, say our baseball team gets no hit. I am going to avoid saying something like “all the banners fanned on the swings”; maybe they did, but at that point it’s insult to injury. What also contributes is if we are playing a nationally ranked team or if there is rivalry.
8. Do you have a memory of a game you enjoyed covering for the Pace Chronicle?
DB: My favorite was the Pace Women’s lacrosse East Regional Final right here at Pace (now Northwell) Stadium. An NCAA Tournament game, right here in Pleasantville. No traveling out of state, no having to watch a live stream. All I did was walk from my dorm to the stands. I have been lucky during my tenure to see most of the teams reach NCAAs. Both basketball teams made it in 2022; WBB reached the Elite 8, who knew it would feel better than that as a fan. Baseball and softball both got into their respective tournaments the same year. Field Hockey got in last semester. Pace Diving has sent divers to the big meet two years in a row. Knowing I had a front seat at history made it exciting. Admittedly, it was the hardest game to write about. Not for the success but to properly put in enough words the history made. Adding on, unfortunately, the team was playing during Finals week, as people move out for the semester, so I hoped to make it as entertaining as possible. I knew those players names by heart: Porcello, Corretjer, Tanguay who I had the pleasure of meeting, Juvelier, Conway. Seeing the bright blue NCAA logo on the jersey with PACE in the front made the game feel special . Capturing a photo of the NCAA Regional trophy in hand was something to see. I remember remarking in the communications for The Pace Chronicle, how lucky I am , so many sports editors before me and will be after me, and I get the privilege to write about such a historic group.
9. Have you observed a growth in your writing throughout your journey as a sports writer for the Pace Chronicle?
DB: I know how to get to the point faster. I used to give a bunch of background information on articles related to sports. At some point I just knew to keep it simple. I had my dad read one and he said “This is quite a read” and he was right. People want to know did we win or lose, who got what statistics. Editing numerous articles to our standards has helped me. I have given final edits to move reviews, news, a writer giving tribute to someone in their life. Each time I have to remember what we do: Italize titles, don’t use bold except in certain situations. I do it for my journaling now when I sit down and write just about myself as rare that maybe.
10. What advice would you give for students who are interested in pursing writing for sports and studying sports journalism overall?
DB: My advice is to be flexible. Sometimes you will need to write sometimes it’s take pictures. One day it is a recap, one day you will have to interview an athlete. Another thing is get a relationship with people. I have professors I have a pretty good relationship with. I just had Dr. Pulaski-Behling answer a few questions about journalism last week, had two classes with her. I am in talk with Samuel Ravech, announcer for ESPN who taught me Sports Journalism. For the social butterfly this will be easy but for the shy kid, trust me, save your social battery for your major classes. I was partially persuaded by Lilah McCormack to get my feet wet with the Pace Chronicle and I met her in my first journalism class. You will be used to their faces, what their strengths are, do projects with them. I know professors do not like talking in class that’s off topic, but a journalism major just getting to know each other in class turns to trust with them when it’s time for helping each other out at study sessions.
Check out Dylan’s work at the Pace Chronicle at https://pacechronicle.com/!
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