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Sports journalist vs sports writer

The differences between sports journalists and sports writers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a sports journalist and a sports writer. Additionally, a sports journalist has an average salary of $61,682, which is higher than the $36,041 average annual salary of a sports writer.

The top three skills for a sports journalist include twitter, facebook and news stories. The most important skills for a sports writer are SEO, game coverage, and feature stories.

Sports journalist vs sports writer overview

Sports JournalistSports Writer
Yearly salary$61,682$36,041
Hourly rate$29.65$17.33
Growth rate-10%-10%
Number of jobs2,02216,981
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 81%Bachelor's Degree, 83%
Average age4040
Years of experience22

Sports journalist vs sports writer salary

Sports journalists and sports writers have different pay scales, as shown below.

Sports JournalistSports Writer
Average salary$61,682$36,041
Salary rangeBetween $37,000 And $100,000Between $25,000 And $51,000
Highest paying City--
Highest paying state--
Best paying company--
Best paying industry--

Differences between sports journalist and sports writer education

There are a few differences between a sports journalist and a sports writer in terms of educational background:

Sports JournalistSports Writer
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 81%Bachelor's Degree, 83%
Most common majorJournalismJournalism
Most common collegeMassachusetts Institute of TechnologyMassachusetts Institute of Technology

Sports journalist vs sports writer demographics

Here are the differences between sports journalists' and sports writers' demographics:

Sports JournalistSports Writer
Average age4040
Gender ratioMale, 79.1% Female, 20.9%Male, 82.6% Female, 17.4%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 6.4% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 12.6% Asian, 9.7% White, 66.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%Black or African American, 6.6% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 13.2% Asian, 8.8% White, 66.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage10%10%

Differences between sports journalist and sports writer duties and responsibilities

Sports journalist example responsibilities.

  • Achieve worldwide coverage with one particular article criticizing racism in soccer.
  • Commentate expert analysis on college gymnastics and experience working live on ESPN
  • Construct and edit web-published multimedia pieces that are featured on the university's athletic programs.
  • Commentate expert analysis on college gymnastics and experience working live on ESPN

Sports writer example responsibilities.

  • Manage and encourage the Student/Staff in completion of tasks that are present.
  • Achieve worldwide coverage with one particular article criticizing racism in soccer.
  • Manage athletic contest statistics using various programs including Dakstats and other software.
  • Maintain social media presence on Facebook, Instagram and twitterconduct interviews with sourcesWrote local sports stories and take photographs
  • Produce content for multiple MLB and NFL stand-alone publications and special sections.
  • Assist with writing blogs for former Exitos939.com, tweets, facebook, Instagram posts on a daily/weekly basis.
  • Show more

Sports journalist vs sports writer skills

Common sports journalist skills
  • Twitter, 15%
  • Facebook, 15%
  • News Stories, 14%
  • Sports Stories, 10%
  • Local Sports, 6%
  • Sports Events, 4%
Common sports writer skills
  • SEO, 9%
  • Game Coverage, 9%
  • Feature Stories, 7%
  • Twitter, 5%
  • Soccer, 5%
  • News Stories, 4%

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