The hundreds of media outlets in today’s sports landscape, along with its thousands of sports media reporters and pundits, have transformed pro and major college sports into the multi-billion dollar entertainment mega-force it is today.

To have a voice in that mega-force is a powerful thing. When thoughts and opinions about the day-to-day activities in sports, whether written or spoken, are followed by tens of thousands to millions of people, egos tend to become very large. That’s only natural.

But from time to time those voices in sports need to step back from their roles in their extremely competitive industry and get a grip. They have to remind themselves that what they do, in the bigger picture, is really not that important and just another form of entertainment.

One of those times occurred this past week when the news was released that ESPN commentator and Fanhouse.com writer Jay Mariotti was arrested Saturday, Aug. 21, and booked on suspicion of a felony after a domestic altercation with his girlfriend.

Now most people who are immersed in sports – the type who watch and read most of the popular sports media personalities in America – are aware that Mariotti is not a very popular guy with other colleagues in his industry.

Breaking into the business as a columnist for the Detroit News in the early 1980’s and becoming a national name after moving to the Chicago Sun-Times and then also ESPN’s Around the Horn in the nineties, Mariotti has had dozens of feuds and run-ins over the years with athletes and other media colleagues.

His style is brash and confrontational and as a result Mariotti has developed a reputation as a sometime mean-spirited and vindictive sports media personality.

Perhaps his actions that have created this reputation have been a deliberate attempt to standout in the cluttered sports media world and create a unique image, separating himself from his competitors. Or maybe the reputation is an accurate reflection of him personally and thus fair and well deserved.

Either way, the gleeful and revenge-type reactions of Mariotti’s arrest by many of his detractors have been disgraceful.

Various writers, commentators and executives in the sports industry (who shall remain nameless in this post) have used Mariotti’s arrest as an opportunity to take shots at him on a public stage and attempt to cause him further pain and embarrassment.

I’m not suggesting it’s wrong or even unprofessional to possess ill will towards someone in your industry. But to use a serious and extremely personal situation, like an arrest for domestic violence, as a platform to voice your abhorrence for another person is very classless and not a reflection of someone with solid character.

Along with facing serious criminal charges, Mariotti will most likely lose his job at ESPN and suffer other career setbacks and financial hardships as a result. Not to mention the fact that a woman may have been hurt or even beaten up during a domestic dispute. Clearly not a situation to make light of.

So if there ever was a time to take the high road, this was it.

The industry feuding and fighting with Mariotti always made for good entertainment and interesting debate. But as a media personality you must know where to draw the line and not allow your own personal feelings to blur it.

So if a pro sports team can’t attract fans with the allure of big named athletes or pricey multimedia advertising campaigns, other marketing avenues must be developed to spark interest and attention that, hopefully, increases attendance.

One of the most reliable and tested forms of “minor league marketing” is community relations. Regardless of the level a sports organization competes on, area businesses, community groups, schools and most other local organizations will appreciate its local sports teams and have an interest in aligning itself with them.

Whether its school kids selling your team’s tickets for fundraising, arranging for players to work on a house for the local Habit for Humanity chapter, or your team’s mascot handing out orange slices and free tickets at a local 10K charity run, the community is rich with opportunities to get your name out there and promote your organization and possibly secure media coverage for your good deeds.

And just as important, a minor league team can generate attention for community groups and causes with its support and help make a difference for people in need. A true win-win.

But there’s only so much a minor league team can accomplish with its community relations efforts and only so much of a difference that organization can make.

So what about teams at the major league level?

Sure, most of the “big four” teams (MLB, NFL, NBA and NHL) are involved in their communities and have programs designed to keep in touch with local groups, schools and businesses. Those major league level teams and athletes involved in their communities not only help improve their organization’s image but, more importantly, improve the lives of people in need – a commendable act.

But this past week the sports world saw a major league level team take the community relations concept of improving your brand and helping out in the community and absolutely blow it out of the water.

HOPE Week (Helping Others Persevere & Excel) is a unique week-long community program by the New York Yankees that has redefined community relations and perhaps blazed a new trail for teams to support their communities.

Created and coordinated by the Yankees’ Director of Media Relations, Jason Zillo, and his staff, HOPE Week’s purpose is to provide hope and encouragement to special people and inspire individuals into action in their own communities.

For one designated week each year, every single Yankees player, coach, the manager, general manager and team executives will spend ample time with selected people who are in need or have made a tremendous impact on their community and give them an experience they’ll never forget.

Although the Yankees experiences during HOPE Week is tailored to be special for each of the selected people or groups, the special experience usually consists of a visit with some Yankees, a tour of the field and locker room, lunch and a suite to watch the day’s game.

Jorge Grajales, a quadruple-amputee is surprised by New York Yankees Mariano Rivera (l.), Mike Harkey, Dustin Moseley, Brett Gardner and Nick Swisher (r.) at a party in New Jersey (photo courtesy of the N.Y. Daily News)

One of the special experiences for the first HOPE Week in 2009 was tailored for a group of kids stricken with Xeroderma Pigmentosum, an extremely rare genetic disorder (suffered by only 150 people in the United States) that prevents sufferers from going outdoors in daylight. UV light, including florescent lighting, causes the sufferers severe burns and eventually skin and eye cancer.

The kids (and their families) from a special camp that caters to their unique needs traveled to Yankee Stadium, arriving after sunset to watch the remainder of the evening’s game from a party suite. Immediately after the last pitch, the field was transformed into a massive open-air carnival for the families, who were joined by Yankees players and their families. The special experience lasted until about 4:00 a.m. (with the entire Yankees team staying the whole time), when the XP families re-boarded their buses to get back to camp before daybreak.

This year’s HOPE Week (Aug. 16-20) included a day for the ”Beautiful People”, where a number of Yankees (including Mark Teixeria, A.J. Burnett, Joba Chamberlain, Phil Hughes, Andy Pettitte, Jorge Posada and Javier Vazquez) were paired with a child with autism, cerebral palsy, Down syndrome or other challenges and became their buddy for the day. The players also assisted the kids while they played a baseball game on the field at Yankees Stadium.

The “Beautiful People” program was started in 2005 by Peter Ladka from Warwick, N.Y. Mr. Ladka got the idea to create the program while playing T-ball with his healthy daughter. He said he felt that there was something he could do for children and their parents who couldn’t enjoy what he enjoyed with his kids.

Since the first official “Beautiful People” gathering, the game has grown from eight players, their families and 20 volunteers to over 60 players, their families and 65 volunteers.

Another fantastic example of a major league level team using its established fame and resources to support a community group is the Boston Red Sox and the Jimmy Fund. An organization dedicated to raising money for children with cancer, The Jimmy Fund, along with its partnership with the Red Sox, has raised more than $600 million to date.

Obviously what the Yankees and Red Sox have achieved for their communities is not attainable for every sports team. But it should serve as a lesson that pro sports teams (minor or major) possess the power to make a difference in their community while marketing themselves at the same time.

Which brings to mind the old sports marketing saying: “If you take care of the fans, the fans will take care of you.”

For more information and a detailed account of HOPE Week 2010, click here