Rick Reilly sends a message to his readers

Each week I rush to the library to read the latest issue of Sports Illustrated. Unlike most readers who read the cover then flip to the first page, I on the other hand go to the back page before all else. This is because one of my favorite journalists, Rick Reilly, has occupied this page with his weekly columns for as long as I can remember.

Reilly isn't the normal sports journalist, however, which is why I like his stuff so much. He doesn't do the same old, tired topics all the time. He strives to find unique and interesting personal stories by making the extra effort to look for and research them. In Reilly's view, every person has a story to tell, whether they are famous or not. He rarely covers professional sports in his writings, instead opting for areas that don't receive the publicity they deserve. One can find Reilly giving due to Division III athletics, cheerleading or special olympics, among other topics.

In this week's edition, Reilly writes about a 60 year old man from a small town in Vermont with cerebral palsy named Buth Varno. Varno has attended almost every Middlebury College football and basketball game since he was a teenager. It is a tradition that begun when he was 13 that students from the college would drive to his house to pick up him and his wheelchair to take him to whichever athletic event. He sits field/courtside every game and has even given pre-game speeches to the teams. He loves the tradition at Middlebury: "These kids care about me. They don't have to, but they do. I don't know what I'd do without them."

I think it's great that Reilly takes the time to look for and write these emotional, feel-good stories that otherwise would never be heard or told. He goes beyond sports to show that there is so much more to them than just the athletes. I think this is the message or "dominant reading" that Reilly tries to imply each week. That is what he wants his readers to take away. His column is how he reflects/constructs reality. He links the media to the real world in this way as well. His column is his discourse, the way in which his ideas are expressed. His readers will interpret his text in their own way each week on the last page of SI.