The media landscape is ever evolving and this morning there is another element for fans to get their fix of content with the launch of The Players Chronicle.
The new online service has been launched by Packed.House, the media group behind entertainment.ie, beaut.ie and rollercoaster.ie and has kicked off strong with Jamie Heaslip as the Founding Contributor, reflecting on his career by way of a letter to his younger self.
We have worked with Heaslip on a number of projects, including in content, and he is a strong advocate with which to launch at a febrile time for Rugby content.
All content on ThePlayersChronicle.com will be first-hand accounts from players and athletes, inspired by the growing trend towards “direct to fan” sports content.
This will include long-form written content, podcasts and video series all created by the players, for the fans, from numerous sports and disciplines.
The service is free, and users can subscribe for updates and alerts as new content from players is published. Following the model of Packed.House’ other titles the financial model will ultimately be advertising driven, though it could also branch towards an element of paid content like Second Captains, or exclusive Membership benefits like Sport for Business.
A third way is that it could just remain as a direct way for players to increase their own value through investing time and financial backing behind the venture and reaping the reward in enhanced profile opportunities and connection to their fans.
The service is clearly modelled on The Players Tribune, a service created by baseball legend Derek Jeter in 2014 which has grown to become a strong authoritative source of direct content from players.
It was the original source for Kobe Bryant’s retirement, a personal story of a Boston Celtics trade involving Isaiah Thomas that was the first major viral story it generated and which is now being run by the former Chief Revenue Officer of Spotify.
“Packed.House is intended to combine the strength of several established and successful media businesses with new innovations in digital services and communications,” said Richie kelly, CEO of Packed.House.
“When it came to our sports offering we decided that the market needed something new, fresh, authentic and exciting.”
“We believe ThePlayersChronicle.com will be a game changer in sports content delivery and we’re delighted to work with Jamie Heaslip to deliver this innovation in how players communicate with fans.”
There is clear value for the players in having full control of what they say and a direct line to the fans without the at times resented filter of a journalist.
In recent years there has been increasing frustration on the part of traditional media about the restricted access they now have to players and the fact that most are only made available as part of sponsorship deals.
It’s the way of the world and there is a place for this branded content where the viewer, listener or reader will need to make their own mind up as to what is to be believed and judge whether they are getting the whole truth or a sanitised version of it.
Like in many areas sport is a testing ground where great battles can be waged and nobody dies, great passions ignited and then calmy picked over on a stool or in a bar after the game.
Social and online media has given everyone a platform to be a fan or a critic, without filter, and in many ways that has fuelled the growth in the importance of sport.
If an independent media is eventually muscled out of the fans mindset of what is important then the world will keep turning.
The danger lies in whether this prefaces a similar move in politics and Government. Trump’s America may present such a case for a strong independent media that it bounces back where it matters most, or maybe not.
The New York Times writer Amos Barshad wrote last month in a long piece about the Players Tribune that “In the future, perhaps, every last person will get to broadcast his or her own particular worldview, free of objectivity, on a bespoke, partisan media organ, with slick photography and design. And it will be up to us to decide what version of the truth we want to believe.”
The choice ultimately will be down to us. And the choice will also be whether we give ourselves the choice.
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