Beginning this fall, Sidwell varsity teams will have the opportunity to experience a “media day” led by the Sidwell Media Team, a new student organization. A media day is an event where athletes take individual and team photos in uniform. The photos taken by the new Media Team will be used to promote Sidwell sports teams both at school and in the wider Washington community.
The Media Team is composed of student-athletes who are passionate about photography and media management. Although advised by Sidwell’s Athletic Director John Square and head of photography department Lely Constantinople, the head of the photography department, the students on the team will be given the responsibility to run these media events. Official Sidwell media days will begin this September, and the dates will be announced soon.
The launch of the Media Team was inspired by one of Sidwell’s core values, equity, in the hopes of creating exposure for all teams, regardless of their performances or popularity. Moreover, both the experience and photos produced will inspire a greater sense of community across all of Sidwell’s impressive athletic programs. Another major objective of a media day is to build team camaraderie and morale. The Media Team will strive to make media days a fun and positive environment for athletes to be proud and prepare for their respective seasons. The goal, simply, is to level the playing field and give all varsity teams a media day.
Within the team, there are a few appointed social media managers, who will meet with athletic team captains about creating more consistency and professionalism throughout social media platforms, primarily Instagram. Currently there is a distinct disparity between each team’s social media.
While some Sidwell programs, such as Boys and Girls Sidwell Varsity Basketball, already have professional third-party media days and a large following on their Instagram, other teams either do not have an Instagram account, or they are inconsistent and varying in quality. Ideally, the social media managers want to establish a standard for the type and quality of posts. This goes hand in hand with the photography aspect of the Media Team, as the high quality photos taken during media days and media events will be shared within teams, the wider Sidwell community and on social media platforms.
When asked about the group, junior Daria Ghassemi said, “I’m really excited for the launch of the Media Team because it is an opportunity for the athletic program at Sidwell to stand out.” Ghassemi also expressed why she decided to apply to be a part of the team, saying that “as a member of the tennis team, I know how strong the players on our team are and how hard we work, so I thought the Media Team would be an amazing idea to let everyone have the chance to spotlight and showcase their passion for their sport.”
Furthermore, the Media Team will continue to be involved during the season, not just for one round of pictures. If a varsity team has a senior night or an important rivalry game, the Media Day Team will plan to send at least one photographer to capture photos of the game.
Junior Desi Amprey expressed her excitement regarding the launch of Media Days, saying that she “look[s] forward to participating in a media day because it will bring attention to the swim and dive team, since it is one of less popular winter teams.” Amprey also appreciates that media days allow for “athletes to connect with their teammates and gain a more positive view of themselves playing their sport.” She highlighted how widening the lens of attention to all sports rather than a select few would foster feelings of inclusion within the athletic community, a key objective of this project.
