Audience engagement, reader loyalties — news & politics sections should take a look at sports

Last summer, I tried to make sense of Tony Gwynn’s death.

Gwynn — the former San Diego Padre with a statue propped outside of Petco Park — died of salivary gland cancer, and the entire baseball world was grieving. He was revered as one of the greatest hitters of all time and lauded for his 20-year career. But, as Tom Friend — a former Padres beat reporter — said, “If you want to get technical, baseball killed him.”

There wasn’t any mystery behind what took his life. Gwynn was addicted to chewing tobacco. At his highest intake, he was going through a can and a half of Skoal a day.

I was contributing for Athletics Nation — an SB Nation affiliate dedicated to the Oakland A’s — at the time and was inspired to write something on the topic. I explored this: What is the right course of action following the death of a transcendent star who seemed invincible on the field, yet was using a substance that is linked to baseball and ended his life?

The response was the most engagement I’ve ever experienced with my writing. One hundred five people took part in a survey I attached to the story. There were 101 comments, and the majority of the conversation stemmed from the issues I addressed. Trolling and flaming were minimal.

That’s what SB Nation has built. By building tight communities (blogs) meant for specific college and professional sports teams, the conversation involves fans who, for the most part, have a deep and vested interest in their team.

But that is tough to mirror outside of the realm of sports. Jan Boehmer, an assistant professor of new media at Miami University, revealed just that at the What is Journalism? conference on Saturday. In his study, “Online news sites as sources of political information,” he found that Internet users prefer not to discuss politics in the comments section or public forum space. They prefer to “take it to their circles and discuss it there,” he said.

A solution he offered: build smaller online communities.

When his panel concluded, I asked him about how SB Nation acts and whether a political website could function in a similar way.

I knew the answer before I asked it. Boehmer said that there is a possibility, but it is just much more difficult. “I ask four different people who should be the starting quarterback, and I get four different opinions,” Boehmer said. Political opinions don’t tend to vary that way.

The reason why a site like Athletics Nation garners so much reader engagement is because all of the readers are fans. They are inspired to discuss Monday night’s game differently than those interested in a city council meeting are. It’s really that simple.

In addition, Boehmer says that when he has free time, he may go out and play basketball. He feels like he has a fundamental understanding of the sport because of that. With politics it is different — no one goes out after work for a political pick-up game. That’s why a reluctance to publicly express one’s opinion exists.

As for a solution to the lack of discussion online within the realm of politics, it is worth pondering how SB Nation and other sites have developed communities. Boehmer cautions against creating distinct groups just for Democrats and Republicans, but he does see a way the model could be imitated.

Think about it. Developing small, tight-knit communities can exist in any space. The comments section of the 309 SB Nation blogs prove that.