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SPTM 4800: Multiplatform Storytelling for Sports, Fall 2022
SPTM 4800: Multiplatform Storytelling for Sports, Fall 2022
Course objectives
Grades and assignments
Required materials
Rules and policies
Overall schedule
Module 1: Introductions
Module 2: Writing and interviewing bootcamp
Module 3: Data and visualization
Module 4: Video reporting and editing
Module 5: Trend stories and visual elements
Module 6: Podcasting
Portfolio
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Module 3: Data and visualization

Data and tables
One of the most important new skills to learn is telling stories using data. Many of you may be scared of math or have bad memories of trigonometry or calculus. But we’re going to develop some new skills here and learn how to use spreadsheets and simple visualizations to tell stories with data. We will discuss “big data” and some of the higher-level trends facing sports today, but will limit the hands-on stuff to the basics.
What we’re going to be doing has nothing to do with your actual beats, simply because your beats are unlikely to generate data. Instead, we will be working on a project for newsletter called
Extra Points with Matt Brown
⁠
. It reaches a fairly high level of college athletic administrators, academics who study college sports, and fans/media with a particular interest in off-the-field issues. Our question is going to be simple: Which colleges generate the most revenue and have the highest expenses in the “nonrevenue” sports? Matt has gathered the NCAA’s detailed financial reports for most if not all public universities in the “Power Five” conferences, so we’re going to do a deep dive on those to figure out the financial picture for college baseball, softball, men’s ice hockey, women’s gymnastics, women’s volleyball, men’s and women’s soccer, and men’s lacrosse teams.
Along the way we’ll learn to manage data in spreadsheets, proof and clean our data, and discover great ways to visualize these and other data. There are stories in numbers. Don’t be scared.
Module 3
7
Day
Date
Time
Type
Module
Description
1
Wednesday
9/14/2022
​11:59 PM
Homework
3
Homework quiz 3_1
2
Thursday
9/15/2022
​12:45 PM
Class
3
Introduction to data and data gathering
3
Monday
9/19/2022
​11:59 PM
Homework
3
Homework 3_2
4
Tuesday
9/20/2022
​12:45 PM
Class
3
Data cleaning and setup
5
Wednesday
9/21/2022
​11:59 PM
Homework
3
Homework 3_3
6
Thursday
9/22/2022
​12:45 PM
Class
3
Data and stories
7
Monday
9/26/2022
​11:59 PM
Homework
3
Homework 3_4
8
Tuesday
9/27/2022
​12:45 PM
Class
3
Interviews for stories and introduction to data visualization
9
Wednesday
9/28/2022
​11:59 PM
Homework
3
Homework 3_5_1 and 3_5_2
10
Thursday
9/29/2022
​12:45 PM
Class
3
Story structure and conceptualization
11
Tuesday
10/4/2022
​12:45 PM
Class
3
Visualization workshop
12
Wednesday
10/5/2022
​11:59 PM
Field Assignment
3
Field Assignment 3_A
13
Friday
10/7/2022
​11:59 PM
Field Assignment
3
Field Assignment 3_B
No results from filter
⁠

Homework 3_1

These videos were produced for a different version of this class, but concentrate on the general points I make.
⁠
⁠
⁠
⁠

⁠
Quiz 3_1
⁠
⁠

Homework 3_2

Find the schools you’re responsible for in the
Extra Points FOIA database
⁠
. For each school, go to
this Google form
⁠
. Fill out the form noting the following data for each school:
Ticket sales revenue for each sport (around p. 15 in the PDF)
Contributions for each sport (p. 23)
Royalties, licensing, advertising and sponsorship for each team (p. 31)
Total operating revenue (p. 36)
Athletic aid equivalence and total dollar amount (p. 38)
Recruiting expenses (p. 47)
Total expenditures (p. 63)
Here, again, are the sports we’ll be looking at:
Sports
1
Baseball
Softball
Men’s ice hockey
Women’s gymnastics
2
Women’s volleyball
Men’s soccer
Women’s soccer
Men’s lacrosse
There are no rows in this table
⁠
And
here are the schools you’ll be responsible for
⁠
. If the school isn’t available, just check the box
in the form.
⁠
⁠
⁠
⁠
⁠

Homework 3_3

Using the database you created in class, work with your partner to create a Google sheet with the following information:
Records and accomplishments of the top 20 (e.g. final national rank, notes on qualifying for/placing in national tournament, conference finish, etc.) for the 2020-21 academic year
All the data for the subcategories in the data gathered, such as donations, athletic aid, recruiting, etc.
Profit/loss based on total operating revenue and expenses
Post your sheet to #module3_3. Make sure to include both your name and your partner’s in the doc.

Homework 3_4

Referring back to your Google sheet and our class discussion, build two graphics illustrating the interesting data points. Copy them to a Google doc and include headline and a sentence or two of explanatory chatter. Post to module #3_4.

Homework 3_5

Homework 3_5_1

With your partner, put together a call log like you did for the informational interview and post to channel module3_5_1.

Homework 3_5_2

With your partner, write up a to-do list explaining what you see as the hook and the news peg of your final story. Also, list who will do what for your story:
Interviews
Table
Visualization
Writeup
Edit (proofread)
Edit (fact-check)
Post to #module3_5_2.

Field assignment 3_A

Produce one table and one visualization from the data in your analysis illustrating the points made in the main story. Post as Google Sheets to module3_B. Make sure to include a headline, chatter, and a source. Here is the rubric for the visualization:
Component
100%
90%
80%
70%
1
Infographic composition
Clean presentation; easy-to-comprehend process or relationship among variables
Fairly clean presentation; easy-to-comprehend process or relationship among variables
Problems with presentation; difficult-to-comprehend process or relationship among variables
Presented with poor executiion
2
Infographic chatter
Headline, descriptive sentence(s), and sourcelines all clearly explaining relevance of graphic to story
Missing one of elements at left
​
Missing two elements from left
No results from filter
2
Count
⁠

Field assignment 3_B

Write a story about your sport and the relationship between spending and winning, or any other fact you find most compelling in the data analysis of teams in your sport. Your story must have a headline, byline, a lede, a nut graf, and key information throughout. The story should be 400 words, ±50. Post as a Google doc to Here is the rubric for this assignment:
Component
100%
90%
80%
70%
1
Factual errors
Zero
Zero
Zero
Zero
2
Headline
Clear, relevant, implied verb, invites reader into story
Missing one of those characteristics
Missing two of those characteristics
Present, but missing all of the characteristics
3
Lede/intro
Hooks reader with compelling image or story in first graf/10 seconds of video
Explains topic but fails to include image or story
Double lede, news lede, failure to connect lede to rest of story
Generic lede
4
Nut graf/hook
Clearly encapsulates story and explains why it's important
Nut graf/hook clear and hook but misplaced
Nut graf/hook missing clear encapsulation,
No nut graf/hook
5
Grammar and style
Error-free
Fewer than two errors
2-3 errors
No more than 4 errors
6
Structure and sequencing
Clear, logical flow from paragraphs/points
Mostly clear flow with some difficult transitions
Many difficult transitions
Difficult to follow
7
Conclusion
Revisits character/point and/or looks ahead to the future
Offers basic ideas for what will happen next
Concludes by offering unsupported praise for subject
Stops abruptly
8
Length
Within 50 words/15 seconds of assigned length
Within 100 words/30 seconds
More than 100 words/30 seconds
More than 150 words/45 seconds
No results from filter
8
Count
⁠


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