Company: Chicago Blackhawks
Position: Social Media Manager
Leah’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leahhendrickson/
Chicago Blackhawks Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nhlblackhawks/
The Chicago Blackhawks have been around since 1926. Since then the team has gone on to win three stanley cups which is one of the hardest trophies to win in all of sports. Enter Leah Hendrickson.
Leah has been with the Blackhawks for the past 11 years. She has had many roles that have led her to the social media manager position that she is currently in. Her position allows her to accommodate In addition, she also does her best to make sure that all of her posts are relatable to the general public and to all hockey fans. An example of this can be seen on the Chicago Blackhawks Instagram that she runs where she has posted a reel about the 35 top moments from Jonathan Toews career for his birthday. This is one of many posts that the fans can relate to as they may remember being present for a highlight or two. Furthermore, she is able to accommodate by making sure that she posts about all of the players and the team equally so that one player does not get more attention than the rest. According to an academic article written by Suggs, “reporters have no guaranteed privileges in the locker room or press box” (2016, p. 275). This quote is important to recognize because it talks about how reporters for the different teams and companies do not always get the game recap straight from an athlete after a game. This is valuable information for Leah because she is responsible for posting about the player’s interview or highlights on the Chicago Blackhawks Instagram that she runs. Around the holidays Leah enjoys posting about the player’s holiday outfits, especially the suits that they tend to wear around the Christmas season. This can be seen in Leah’s posts on the Chicago Blackhawks Instagram. Leah further takes the confidential information about each player and organizes it into the highlights that she has for each player on the Instagram page. She does this in order to keep her information organized.
There are a few takeaways from Leah that are important to highlight. The first one is her ability to verify with the players that the post is okay to go on Instagram before she publishes it. I will use this takeaway in my future job especially after I have finished interviewing someone. Another important takeaway from Leah is that she understands that she might not be able to get the recap of the game straight from the athlete directly after the game. This is important for me to recognize as a woman entering the sports world is that I might not always be the first person to hear new information first hand from the player. Leah aspires that more women will follow in her footsteps as she continues to open doors for women in the sports world. Leah sees herself working for the Chicago Blackhawks until she retires. Leah is optimistic that there will be more women in the sports world who will be able to stick up for female athletes in the near future.
Citation:
Suggs, D. W. (2015). Tensions in the press box. Communication & Sport, 4(3), 261–281. https://doi.org/10.1177/2167479515577191
