Abby Young, Sports Editor
On November 8th, Sports Writer for the Philadelphia Inquirer, Mike Sielski made a visit to Perkiomen Valley High School.
Sielski majored in English and communications with a minor in political science at La Salle University. He later continued his education at Columbia, where he earned his degree in journalism. After working at multiple newspaper outlets (including The Wall Street Journal), Sielski landed his dream job at The Philadelphia Inquirer. Mr. Sielski was invited by the sports marketing teacher, Mr. Collins, to share his experiences and thoughts on sports, journalism, and the connection of sports to the rest of life.
During his visit, Sielski covered a plethora of subjects under the umbrella of sports, athlete interactions, and journalism. A major topic covered was the importance of athlete interaction relevant and important to the general public. Sielski described the always-evolving use of social media by athletes and sports fans, and how this affects his line of work. He noted that the increased amount of social media usage has made journalists and fans all “realize they don’t really need [journalists].”
To Sielski, this is a mere challenge rather than an obstacle. In response to the constant competition with the internet and social media, Sielski attempts to go beyond scores and plays in his articles and columns. He focuses on the lives, challenges, and personal victories of Philadelphia players and teams. Sielski explained that people want to hear about the general idea of sports and the history that prefaced a major win or loss, rather than “what sneakers Joel Embiid was wearing”. By using this approach, Sielski gives readers a unique look at players and teams, oftentimes in a way they never had before.
Another interesting point that Sielski covered was his change in mindset about Philly sports over his lifetime. Sielski reminisced that his life growing up “revolved around which sport was on that night.”
The constant presence of sports in his life influenced him to find a career writing about what he loves, in the city he loves. However as he found his niche in writing about his favorite teams, the passion for the teams, the players, and their records fell. His explanation to the decline is because of the constant analyzing of each team and each score.
Sielski continues to write for The Inquirer, and often appears on sports talk television and radio as a special guest.