Abstract
The study explored the influence of Twitter's usage on sports reporting and audience engagement whilst using the Barclay's English Premier League (EPL) as a case study within the South African context. The research was aimed at exploring how mainstream sport journalists appropriated Twitter for sport reporting and audience engagement, which has resulted in an influence in the coverage of a specific news beat, sport reporting. A mixed method approach was adopted that analysed the agenda set by sports journalists and sports channels through a qualitative approach by using thematic analysis through interviews and virtual ethnography. The study also employed a quantitative analysis to analysed the type of engagement received on Twitter from selected English Premier league (EPL) matches the study used. The tweets analyses were based on those that were posted pre-match, during the match and post-match from the major games within the 2020/2021 football season. The study indicated that from the massive media coverage the EPL generates globally, sport media and sports journalists have used Twitter as a way communicate breaking sports news and sports updates to their audience that follow the EPL coverage. The main findings suggested that Twitter, has not only opened new horizons for EPL news coverage from a South African perspective but the research showed how engagement has been revolutionised in that the audience do not just need to comment on the tweet, engagement is also received in the form of a like, re-tweet or re-share. The study also finds that as Twitter has constantly evolved, sports journalists themselves must also evolve which sees them take a step out of the traditional role of sport reporting. The research also finds that sports journalists are selective as they navigate through Twitter as they have now chosen when and when not to tweet. The challenge, however, that the study found was that sports journalists are then at risk of missing out crucial breaking stories that are tweeted online, as Twitter is immediate. Therefore, it is recommended that even though sports journalists are selective, having an active presence on Twitter still allows sports journalists to stay in touch with the conversation and use this medium to enhance their personal brand. For sports journalist entering the industry this can be used to create an independent portfolio within the sporting industry.