You should write about the effects of college athletics on academics and the student body, and you should present it in a mechanical media format because I, as part of your audience, found this topic compelling because the amount of funding and administrative focus given to college athletic programs is having a diminishing effect on academics and the general student body populace. Colleges and universities primary mission is to educate and I believe that today, the majority of universities across the country place too much focus on athletics, taking away from the most important aspect of college, education. There is no question that athletics can be a very lucrative moneymaker for universities, especially major athletic programs such as football and basketball. The notoriety that comes with a successful athletic program is also beneficial because it can bring recognition to the school and attract perspective students. But colleges that put a disproportionate amount of focus on athletics can negatively affect the academic aspect of the school. With a large percentage of attention and money going into athletics, it can take away from the general student population’s academics because they aren’t getting the necessities such as adequate professors, small class sizes, quality accommodations, updated technology and accommodating classrooms. The distribution of funds at the major public universities seemed to go largely to athletics resulting in a subpar education for the rest of the students.
Education is a fundamental part of our society and the current state of our college system with regards to athletics affect on academics needs to be discussed. I believe it would best be discussed through mechanical media because it would give the audience a chance to hear first hand, the problems caused by college athletics. This type of media would include interviews that would be published and televised, social media from athletes and colleges to get their insight on the controversial topic, and dialogue from college staff, administrators and anyone else linked to the topic.
To tackle this issue of college athletics affecting academics the group could start by researching people who both agree and disagree with this argument. This would help them to see both sides and begin researching the positions of each side of the debate. I think it would be very important to research the schools themselves and find out the facts and statistics of their finances, along with their future plans for both athletics and academics, and any other information that affects the general student body. To make your statements and facts clear, site your sources and explain how those sources are related to the topic and if they are relevant to the argument.
-Micaela Gotfredson