Are sportswriters the same as reporters?

Tomorrow is Election Day in Minnesota. Would you expect a political reporter in the Twin Cities to predict a winner in either of the big-city mayoral races? Obviously, not (even though most newsies do have predictions).

So why is it OK for newspaper sportswriters to predict the outcome of games? If you follow football, for example, you’ve no doubt seen the Friday comparisons of two teams ending with a prediction of who will win.

Those days are over in Denver, apparently, where the Denver Post has banned the practice.

“We did not get a single complaint from outside,” (Editor Greg) Moore continues, “but I did look at the predictions before the San Diego game. Obviously, I had seen these for years. And it occurred to me that it must be making it hard for news reporters, especially when they pick against the team they cover. In an equal vein, these beat reporters don’t want to seem like homers, always picking the Broncos. The more I thought about it, the more it seemed an unreasonable position to put these reporters in.”

Moore says it’s a matter of ethics.