Blog Post #10: Muhammad Ali vs. Sonny Linston and Sports Writing Strategies

                    In the informative article "It was lightning and thunder" by Will Grimsley of the Sun Chronicle, it displays the controversy between Sonny Linston and Muhammad Ali's Heavyweight Championship Title boxing match. The reporters address concerned fans with direct quotes and primary information to provide them with evidence from both sides of he argument but with a bias slightly favoring one fighter. Grimsley begins with rhetorical questions about who is at fault for the existing controversy regarding the fairness of the Ali-Linston fight and whether or not Linston heard the count. In addition, Grimsley uses the logical, ethical, and emotional appeal to expose the reader to different aspects of the fight. He displays the fact that officials and time keepers are trained professionals and know how to run a match, especially a championship. The ethical appeal is that Linston was favored over Ali so it would have created a much bigger deal and publicity if Ali won. The emotional appeal is that both fighters work very hard and deserve to win, but Ali was strategically smarter and had a clean, solid punch. Grimsley also includes direct quotes from the fighters to observe their point of view. All of the strategies Grimsley uses allows readers to be informed of all different sides of the argument. Although Grimsley was slightly biased towards Linston by providing more quotes and background information in his favor, Grimsely avoided the use of personal pronouns to keep his article mostly objective.

                 In the article "Pedroia power not enough for Sox" published by the Sun Chronicle, the article addresses the Red Sox vs. Twins game on Wednesday, May 27th with the Sox being defeated 6-4. The article highlights Dustin Pedroia's stellar performance of two home runs, but also explains that the Twin's matching momentum caused Pedroia's hits to not be enough. Quotes from the athletes and coaches are used to display their view of the game. Statistics from previous games along with the game on Wednesday night are correctly annotated to provide background information on the subject. The article displays detailed information about the game itself and events leading up to it allowing readers to have a solid understanding of the significance of the Red Sox vs. Twins series.