Blogging popular in the world of sports

This week's blog topic...well, blogging. Blogging is the latest craze where anyone can have their own website and write whatever they want on it. A blog is a great way to express oneself; the most common use of blogs are as personal journals. They are also an efficient for collecting writing samples and assignments, as I am required to keep two blogs for classes this semester. Blogs can bring people together. They are used as discussion boards that people with common interests can read and post comments. Specifically though, I would like to talk about the rising use of blogs in the sports industry.
Recently, I have discovered that many athletes, professional or not, keep blogs. Greg Oden, the first overall pick in June's NBA draft, has kept and up-to-date blog all summer long and into this fall about the draft, NBA summer league, living in his new city of Portland and having his tonsils taken out. It is his way of letting his fans see a different side of him. He has more control of this than what journalists write about him after interviews. He even posts videos on his blog. I think it is awesome that he does this. It helps people keep in mind that athletes are real people just like the rest of us. They go through good and bad days, pay bills and go shopping like every other normal person. Also, it shows that NBA players actually have talents outside of basketball and are capable of writing on their own. Oden is only 19 years old, still a teenager. In the career that he is in, however, he is forced to mature quickly. It also gives the rest of us a small sense of what is like behind the scenes in the NBA. There are a number of rookies in the NBA that keep blogs. Oden's and others can be found at yardbarker.com.
Another blog I like to read is Mark Cuban's, owner of the Dallas Maverick's of the NBA. He is unlike most owners who sit up in the luxury boxes during games and have hardly any contact with their players. Cuban sits right behind the Maverick's bench, yells at referees and high fives his players. He is also involved in quite a bit of controversey for the way he acts. He covers all kinds of topics in his blog, from basketball to politics. Again, it is interesting to see the perspective of an NBA team owner who is a millionaire but doesn't act like it. He often blogs multiple times during Maverick games to describe how pleased or displeased he is at how his team is playing. His blog can be found at blogmaverick.com.
A last note about blogging in the sports industry is how popular it has become in online sports media such as ESPN.com, newspapers, etc. They all have journalists that blog on their sites and allow readers to write their comments and opinions.
So blogging has become a major part of the sports world, from giving normal people like you and I the chance to talk about our favorite team to giving professional athletes the chance to connect with their fans. I think they are a very positive thing for sports.