Tales from Sports Journalism with Dan Sheldon

Dan Sheldon joined Salt Lake City's KUTV Channel 2 in September 2005 as a sports reporter and anchor. He reports on weekdays, anchors the sports on weekend mornings, and co-anchors "Talkin’ Sports", a half-hour sports show on Sunday nights at 10:30. His KUTV profile website can be found here, and his blog here.

The reason Sheldon got into journalism is what he calls "the search for truth". In the world of sports, it would seem that truth is just what the box score tells you, but Sheldon says some digging is still required.

"Whether that's doing some digging to see if steroid use is a significant danger to local high school athletes or cutting through the spin to see if the Utes really have moved past what happened last year with Wyoming, all of it boils down to the search for truth," he said.

When it comes to his definition of "good" journalism, Sheldon says it's "aggressive, accurate storytelling that informs the viewer". KUTV, he says, does well with this, always striving to be "right" rather than "first". These views of journalism have remained constant since he began his college studies in journalism.

Even though his views remain the same, Sheldon recognizes that the profession is changing.

"Until we all figure out a way to best utilize the Internet (and monetize it properly), jobs are at risk," he said.

When it comes to citizen journalism, Sheldon feels that, in Sports, the passion of fans makes it difficult for a fair and balanced report.

"I think people know and appreciate the difference between, for instance, a sportswriter filing a report online and a fan blogging about his favorite team," he said. "I believe both have a place while serving different purposes."

For those aspiring journalists out there, Sheldon's simple advice is this: "You really have to want it."

"Once you get your foot in the door though, there's amazing thing that happens in that first job," he said. "If you work hard and are dependable, you'd be blown away by how far ahead you can get just by showing up and being consistent. It takes more than that as you move up the ranks, but those qualities will get well on your way."