Tailgating 101 treatment

The University Star’s “Tailgating 101: A football fan’s guide to game day,” located here, was a story centering on the experiences and exploits of Texas State fans tailgating before football games. The story featured some good quotes and examples of activities, and had a few pictures to accompany it. School spirit was stressed as a major point in the story, and I had a few ideas how it could be improved with a multimedia treatment. The use of video footage, an interactive comment box, links to other tailgating sites and graphics have gone a long way toward improving the overall story.

The simple step of a reporter arriving early at Bobcat Stadium’s parking lot and looking out for colorful tailgating characters to interview on camera would have been excellent. I tailgated at both home games this season, and there is no shortage of colorful characters in the parking lot. Face and full-body painted Bobcat super fans are aplenty, and self-proclaimed barbecue experts are even more abundant. The sound bytes alone would have made the extra time worth it. A narrator’s personal account of his preparation, interlaced with some video footage of him being painted would be a great addition.

Adding a comment box at the bottom of the page would take a step toward the future of journalism. By adding interactivity, readers would have the opportunity to share their secrets to tailgating, showing school spirit and barbecuing. The growing Internet trend of interactivity and online communities is the best example of how successful a simple comment box can make a story.

Other tailgating sites, including those for other sports would also give readers interested in becoming game day champions more information to absorb. This site list could include more than other articles. Forums and blogs would go two ways, as both more information and another venue for interactivity.

The use of graphics charting tailgaters’ attendance for Texas State football games would also be another good choice for this article. An effective graphic can go a long way toward sending a message to viewers and readers — often times more than the article itself. An overview map of the stadium, with fans in the stands (more fans reflecting higher attendance numbers) would be cool. Finally, a poll asking readers’ opinions about tailgating or barbecuing methods would fall under both graphics and interactivity. The results of the poll could be sent back to readers in an unusual way. Instead of displaying a bar graph, a simple flash mini game of possible popular answers would be entertaining and informative.