Though you may think sports writing is only for the major sports fans out there, all you really need to thrive in this genre is an interest in people. As ESPN staff writer and Guest Judge Joon Lee says, “Use sports as an entry point into telling human stories. My favorite sports stories rarely have anything to do with stats or the results on the field. They’re often stories of triumph, tragedy, and the human spirit.”
Read on to get more of Joon Lee’s great advice, plus learn how he went from a grade schooler show-and-telling the sports section of newspapers to a professional sports writer!
You’re a staff writer for ESPN! What does this entail, and what has your career path looked like thus far?
In eighth grade when I realized the odds of a 5’7” pitcher who throws no faster than 70 mph had a slim chance of making the major leagues, I started to think about how I could pursue a job in the sports industry. I took a sports magazine class at summer camp and when I realized that people could get paid to do this job, my heart became set. From there, I pursued as many writing and media opportunities as possible, starting as an intern for the Boston Herald following my sophomore year of high school while also maintaining a YouTube channel where I covered consumer technology. By the time I got to college, I put most of my free time into pursuing this career, working on the student newspaper which eventually turned into pursuing freelance opportunities and eventually led to the editor at Bleacher Report finding my writing and offering me a job as a staff writer. After two years at Bleacher Report, I started at ESPN, and I’ve been working there for three years now.
You’ve mentioned that when you were in grade school, you’d bring the sports section of the Boston Globe and Boston Herald to show-and-tell to describe game stories and scores—did you always know you wanted to be a sports writer? Were there other outlets in school which allowed you to cultivate and express your passion for sports and sports writing?
I always knew I was passionate about sports and storytelling. The student newspaper was one of the major ways that I cultivated a passion for writing, but I also think that my time working on YouTube helped shape the way that I approach this job because it was important to think about what other people needed—in this case, reviews for headphones, keyboards, phone cases—and how I could best serve those audiences. Combining those two passions shaped my mindset towards pursuing a career in journalism.
For the competition, we’re asking young writers to submit a piece of sports journalism, which can include many different topics and/or angles. What are some examples of different approaches to sports journalism from your own career?
I always try to center human stories first. I think in America, we tend to place athletes on pedestals and treat them like gods among us, but in my career so far, I’ve found that the most enriching stories come from a place of trying to understand the emotions and people behind the amazing highlights we see on television and on our social media feeds. I’ve always enjoyed covering stories at the intersection of sports and business, so when those two parts collide and you can tell stories about how business decisions affect humans tangibly and emotionally, those are often some of the most interesting stories for me.
What advice would you give to young writers who want to write for sports but don’t think of themselves as sports fans? Where should they start?
Use sports as an entry point into telling human stories. My favorite sports stories rarely have anything to do with stats or the results on the field. They’re often stories of triumph, tragedy, and the human spirit. As a first-generation American myself, I’ve learned a lot about how America functions and places values—moral or financial—through the stories we can tell through sports. Sports, like many parts of America, reflects our culture in both good and bad ways, and the stories we can tell through sports often shows how we’ve evolved and not evolved over time.
What are some of the elements that are essential to any good piece of sports writing?
Humanizing athletes. We love sports because of their inherent drama and the emotions that come alongside. I try to never lose sight of the fact that I fell in love with sports because they were a place where I could feel every emotion in my body to its core. Sports are so important to our culture because they inherently don’t matter, yet we as sports fans still choose to care that much. When I’m reporting out a story, I’m always thinking about figuring out why we choose to care.
What team/sports figure are you most excited about right now?
I love seeing the rise of greatness and athletes coming back down to earth. I’m really curious to see the evolution of Patrick Mahomes and how he reacts to some of the first major obstacles he comes across in his career, while I’m also interested in seeing Tom Brady and his final years in football. So few athletes get to have happy endings, yet Brady seems to be in a rare position where he can choose how he goes out. On similar notes, I’m fascinated by Kylian Mbappe, Cristiano Ronaldo, Giannis, Ja Morant, and LeBron James.
