By Ken Reed
I always get excited when a new baseball season starts.
Baseball has a hook in me and I’m not sure why.
It’s not my favorite sport. It might not be my second. But I’m drawn to it in ways I’m not with other sports.
Believe me, I’m not a big fan […]
By Ken Reed
Spurred by the patronage of Nelson Mandela, Laureus Sport for Good is a non-political sport-based organization founded in 2000 that uses sport as a powerful and cost-effective tool to help children and young people overcome violence, discrimination and disadvantage in their lives.
The organization has created the Laureus Sport for […]
By Ken Reed
There’s a sports organization in the United States that almost nobody has heard of, but nevertheless, is doing outstanding work: The U.S. Center for SafeSport.
The Center for SafeSport’s mission is to create a safe sports environment by preventing abuse in athletics — sexual, physical and emotional. Following a growing number of […]
By Ken Reed
FIFA’s World Cup games are watched by millions of people around the world. That’s impactful as the games excite and inspire fans, especially the young variety. As a result, more children are likely to play soccer, or play more often, which will benefit their physical and mental health.
However, in the […]
Today might be a good time for a little perspective in SportsWorld. Fans of numerous college and pro football teams are very upset about outcomes from this past weekend’s football games.
The following story is a reminder that there are a lot more important things in life (and sports, for that matter) besides the outcome […]
By Ken Reed
Last week, 31-year-old Wynton Bernard finally got the news he’d been waiting 11 years to hear: He was going to the big leagues.
The Colorado Rockies called up Bernard from their AAA farm team, the Albuquerque Isotopes, last week. It was a mountaintop moment for Bernard after a long, hard, winding climb […]
By Ken Reed
In the Southwest Region final of the Little League Baseball World Series tournament, Kaiden Shelton of Texas drilled Oklahoma’s Isaiah Jarvis in the head (which luckily was protected with a batting helmet). Jarvis fell down like a rock and was shaken up for awhile. But he eventually got up and made it […]
By Ken Reed
Five years ago, Max McGee was a server at a couple different restaurants, trying to make ends meet. Today, he’s a sports anchor for ESPN.
McGee, a Cherry Hill, New Jersey native, had dreamt about being an ESPN Sports Anchor since he was a boy growing up. He went to Temple […]
By Ken Reed
Last summer I wrote about a cool, progressive sports organization called Bohemian FC, a Dublin-based football team that plays in the highest tier in Ireland.
The Bohemians are a member-owned club that makes addressing various social causes a high priority. They even have a climate justice officer on board in an […]
By Ken Reed
The MVP of Super Bowl LVI was Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Cooper Kupp. It could have just easily gone to Rams QB Matthew Stafford, who had three TD passes and led the winning scoring drive. Or, Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald, who made two amazing plays to end the hopes of […]
Sports Forum Podcast
Episode #33 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: Ken Reed Announces His Retirement and Chats With League of Fans Founder Ralph Nader – Ken and Ralph talk about the history of League of Fans and the reasons it was created. They then move into a discussion of a variety of contemporary sports issues that League of Fans has been working on in recent years. Ken and Ralph end by talking about the need for sports fans, athletes, and other sports stakeholders to get involved in the sports reform movement and be activists and change agents on issues important to them, whether that be at the local, state, or national level.
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Episode #32 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: Prolific Author Joe Posnanski Joins the Show – Posnanski is one of America’s best sportswriters and has twice been named the best sports columnist in America by the Associated Press Sports Editors. We chat about his new book, “Why We Love Baseball,” his new Substack newsletter called Joe Blogs.
Episode #31 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: Foul Ball Safety Is Still an Important Issue at Ballparks – Our guests are Jordan Skopp, founder of FoulBallSafety.com and Greg Wilkowski, a Chicago based attorney. We discuss the historical problem of foul balls injuring fans and why some teams are still hesitant to put up protective netting in some minor league and college baseball parks.
Episode #30 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: The State of College Athletics with Dr. David Ridpath: Problems and Potential Solutions – Ridpath is a sports administration professor at Ohio University and a member of The Drake Group, a college sports reform think tank.
Episode #29 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: The Honorable Tom McMillen Visits League of Fans’ Sports Forum – McMillen is a former All-American basketball player, Olympian, Rhodes Scholar and U.S. Congressman. We discuss the state of college athletics today.
Episode #28 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: A Chat With Mano Watsa, a Leading Basketball and Life Educator – Watsa is President of PGC Basketball, the largest education basketball camp in the world. We discuss problems in youth sports today.
Media
"How We Can Save Sports" author Ken Reed appears on Fox & Friends to explain how there's "too much adult in youth sports."
Ken Reed appears on Mornings with Gail from KFKA Radio in Colorado to discuss bad parenting in youth athletics.
“Should College Athletes Be Paid?” Ken Reed on The Morning Show from Wisconsin Public Radio
Ken Reed appears on KGNU Community Radio in Colorado (at 02:30) to discuss equality in sports and Title IX.
Ken Reed appears on the Ralph Nader Radio Hour (at 38:35) to discuss his book The Sports Reformers: Working to Make the World of Sports a Better Place, and to talk about some current sports issues.
- Reed Appears on Ralph Nader Radio Hour League of Fans’ sports policy director, Ken Reed, Ralph Nader and the New York Times’ Tyler Kepner discussed a variety of sports issues on Nader’s radio show as well as Reed’s updated book, How We Can Save Sports: A Game Plan. Reed's book was released in paperback in February, and has a new introduction and several updated sections.
League of Fans is a sports reform project founded by Ralph Nader to fight for the higher principles of justice, fair play, equal opportunity and civil rights in sports; and to encourage safety and civic responsibility in sports industry and culture.
Vanderbilt Sport & Society - On The Ball with Andrew Maraniss with guest Ken Reed, Sports Policy Director for League of Fans and author of How We Can Save Sports: A Game Plan
Sports & Torts – Ken Reed, Sports Policy Director, League of Fans – at the American Museum of Tort Law
Books