The 2022 World Cup in Qatar, which will take place from 20 November to 18 December, is fast approaching. Therefore, Betway Ghana partnered with Media General (MG) to share best practices with Ghanaian journalists. On this occasion, some long-time sports journalists shared their experiences in the coverage of global events.
These included the President of the Sports Writers Association of Ghana (SWAG), Kwabena Yeboah, and the Communications Director of the Ghana Football Association (GFA), Henry Asante Twum. Furthermore, Michael Oti Adjei, Godfred Akoto Boafo and Ibrahim Saani Daara contributed to the event. Also, the journalists who attended the forum debated best practices and new technologies.
Facts, accuracy, and discretion constitute the be-all and end-all
Yeboah appealed for the seriousness in all areas of reporting: “If you compromise your integrity as a journalist, you are screwed. Facts and accuracy play a crucial role. Therefore, I constantly emphasized that facts are sacrosanct. Moreover, it is essential to show discretion in reporting.” Regarding the cooperation between the GFA and journalists that will be involved in this year’s World Cup, Asante Twum pointed out that “journalists without accreditation won’t be allowed access to the teams’ hotels during this year’s World Cup.”
Football represents a fraction of the World Cup
Godfred Akoto Boafo, a recognized digital media expert, advised the journalists who work online to prepare for the “keyword map out”. He said this would ensure that their work gets noticed. Plus, it would enable them to stand out from the myriad of colleagues who do the same. Michael Oti Adjei, who works for the organizers of the event, added: “People who want to stand out when covering the tournament should always keep in mind that football constitutes only a fraction of the story.”
Moreover, Ibrahim Sannie Daara underlined that journalists only count as truly qualified if they can write adequately. “If you cannot write appropriately, you can’t be a good journalist. Whoever can’t write appropriately should exclude themselves.”
Alice is half Austrian and half Italian. So, she experienced the 1990 World Cup in Italy at very close quarters. And that sparked her enthusiasm for football. Since she loved to write since childhood, Alice began to engage in journalism while still at school....
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By Alice Kopp
Alice is half Austrian and half Italian. That's why she experienced the 1990 World Cup in Italy at first hand. And that awakened her enthusiasm for football. Since she has loved writing since childhood, Alice began to study journalism while still at school. It was very convenient for her that her class took part in a project of a German daily newspaper. She was also allowed to write for the children's pages of an Austrian daily newspaper and to get a taste of the sports department of the same medium. This is how she received her first press accreditations, which was of course anything but a matter of course for the then 18-year-old.
Although she was partly advised against it, Alice decided to study journalism and communication sciences. After a few years, she decided to use the exams she had taken as an elective. Nevertheless, she applies the knowledge she has acquired in her further professional life. The same applies to her language skills. In addition to her mother tongues German and Italian, Alice is also proficient in English and Spanish. She also understands French and can use this language in research.
During her studies, Alice was involved in an Austrian football club. At the same time, she wrote for a total of three Austrian portals and worked as an Austria correspondent for an Italian-language online medium. This collaboration started during Giovanni Trapattoni's era at Red Bull Salzburg and continued during EURO 2008. This gave her the opportunity to interact with Trapattoni as well as with Italian journalists.
From the following year, Alice initially worked with a Swiss portal before discovering sports betting content for herself. On the one hand, this kept her in sports journalism, and on the other, it broadened her horizons. And that both in the context of the sports betting industry and with other sports as well as countries. In the field of sports journalism, she focused in particular on football from around the world, volleyball and beach volleyball.
In addition, she naturally wrote several guides, bookmaker profiles, bonus articles and other content for betting enthusiasts. She did this for the same company for about ten years, writing articles in German and Italian. She also built the Italian-language website together with the managing director. Meanwhile, Alice started working with another Austrian football club. Furthermore, she joined the Association Internationale de la Presse Sportive (AIPS) in 2016. This gives her the opportunity to watch teams and athletes on the ground relatively often.
Not only sports betting, but also radio
In January 2019, the next step in her professional development followed. For: she started creating premium content on the topic of sports betting. In the process, she finally put out feelers to almost all countries and all continents. And this was not least due to the fact that both German and English-speaking users subscribed to her content. Nevertheless, Alice continued to use her knowledge of Italian, among other things. On the one hand, because she regularly exchanges ideas with Italian colleagues, and on the other, because she works with a web radio station.
The Corona crisis had a strong impact on the sports world and on interest in sports betting, primarily in the early days. Therefore, a fresh start was necessary and, on balance, Alice found the fields of activity that suited her best. She also writes articles for an agency on almost all disciplines as well as on eSports and content for a German online medium.
Alice is half Austrian and half Italian. That's why she experienced the 1990 World Cup in Italy at first hand. And that awakened her enthusiasm for football.
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