By Ken Reed
The Winter Olympics kick off on Friday in Beijing with the Opening Ceremony. In my experience, this is the least excitement and build-up I’ve ever seen for an Olympic Games – winter or summer.
Maybe it’s the Covid cloud that hangs over all sporting events these days: Will the Games be […]
By Ken Reed
Ever since the possibility of PED-enhanced baseball players being enshrined into the Hall of Fame came up, I have been strongly against it.
Basically, I believe the essence of sport is fair competition, a level playing field, if you will. Major League Baseball players who took PEDs scoffed at that ideal. […]
By Ken Reed
Originally published by Troy Media
Educational, physical, emotional and spiritual developmental goals for youth and high school sports programs are increasingly being brushed aside by win-at-all-costs and profit-at-all-costs ethos.
The professionalization of youth sports organizations, our ‘little leagues,’ is appalling. Adults – parents and coaches – treat youth sports […]
By Ken Reed
As John McEnroe was wont to say, “You can’t be serious!”
Sunday’s Chiefs vs. Bills NFL playoff game was the best football game I’ve ever seen.
That is, until it was decided by the referee’s toss of a coin before the overtime session.
Hey NFL pooh-bahs, how can you create an overtime […]
By Ken Reed
Increasingly, educational, physical, emotional and spiritual developmental goals for youth and high school sports programs are being brushed aside by win-at-all-costs (WAAC) and profit-at-all-costs (PAAC) ethos.
The professionalization of youth sports organizations, our “little leagues,” is appalling. Adults – parents and coaches — are treating youth sports like the big-time pro and […]
Coaches Need to Be Held to a Higher Standard
By Ken Reed
University of Hawaii football coach Todd Graham resigned Friday night following numerous abuse allegations from players.
A report that came to light a little over a month ago said current and former players claim the coach verbally assaulted and demeaned […]
If a huge majority of Americans can’t denounce what happened on Jan. 6, 2021, the U.S. has big problems
By Ken Reed
Originally published by Troy Media
Imagine a country where football players kneeling on the sideline peacefully protesting inequalities in their country are labelled “unpatriotic,” “treasonous” and “sons of bitches” by the president […]
League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast
[Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Anchor and others]
Robert Lipsyte was a long-time sports reporter and columnist for the New York Times. He later served as the ombudsman for ESPN and is the author of more than 20 books. One of Lipsyte’s best-selling […]
By Ken Reed
Imagine a country where football players kneeling on the sideline peacefully protesting inequalities in their country are labeled “unpatriotic,” “treasonous” and “sons of bitches” by the president of the country, while citizens who violently storm the nation’s capitol and break into the House Chamber in an attempt to stop the certification of […]
By Ken Reed
It’s past time for the college football bowl system to die. There are over 40 bowl games these days. The vast majority are irrelevant — and completely unattractive — matchups (some pitting 6-6 teams against each other). The games have no impact on who will be crowned national champion. In fact, they […]
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.
Listen on Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and others.
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More Episodes on Apple Podcasts; Spotify and others.
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
