Esports: A new era of professional sports
By Jourdan Kerl Medill Newsmakers Professional video gaming, formally known as esports, is transforming ordinary people who play games into professional paid athletes through leagues like the NBA 2K League and Madden Championship Series. In this edition of Medill Newsmakers, we take an in-depth look at one of the fastest growing sports that is sweeping […]
When girls go gaming, the trolls soon follow
By Yifan Wu Ellen “DreamCrazzy” Elizabeth learned a lesson early in her life: Boys can be sore losers. The professional “Call of Duty” player preferred a controller to a Barbie Doll at 3, after watching her 11-year-old brother, Chris, drive a “Mario Kart” on a Super Nintendo. Their living room, in Waukegan, Illinois, heated up […]
From ‘scam’ to scholarship: How one student attended college thanks to ‘League of Legends’
By Tolly Taylor When Carl Leone’s father heard his son had received a scholarship to attend Robert Morris University, he didn’t believe it. After all, the scholarship was for video gaming. “Just don’t give them any personal information, don’t give away your address, because this might be a scam,” Leone’s father, also named Carl, said […]
Wildcat gamers ask for a little respect — and club status
By Yushun Wang Getting video games recognized as a Northwestern “club sport” might be harder than reaching the Challenger tier in League of Legends. Last week James Yoon, the president of Northwestern University’s eSports group, met with the athletics department to see about upgrading from a “registered student organization” to this next level.
