The Influence of the Media on Sport and Its Effects - Term Paper Example

The Influence of the Media on Sport and the Effects al Affiliation Since the introduction of the media in sports, the two institutions have enjoyed a mutual relationship. This however does not mean that each institution cannot exist independently, but they have rather decided to form a loyal partnership. Consequently, the influence of the media in sports, and sports in the media is significant, and the merger has brought about both positive and negative consequences. This paper focuses on the history of sports media and the impacts of the media on sports. Its positive impacts include promotion of business, transformation of normal sports into social events and spectacles, promotion and airing of public forums, provision of entertainment through sports, bringing in of sponsors in sports, and improved performance on the part of coaches and performers. The negative impacts of the media on sports include reduced physical participation in sports, preying on athletes, increased costs of tickets making it difficult for families to attend sports events, reduced profits for clubs and events, infringement into the private lives of sports figures, execution of gender stereotypes, and reduced coverage and sponsorship for minor sports. Keywords: Media, Sports, Influence, Impact, Sponsors, Sports Personalities, Sports Figures Introduction The relationship between sports and media is complementary. Today, sports media is used throughout the world to serve a number of functions. These include informational roles, entertainment, interpretation, diversion, excitement, integration, business, and forging National identity. Despite the fact that the media can survive without sports and sports can survive without the media, they are loyal partners in the modern world. As a result of this, the influence of the media on sports and sports on the media is quite significant. The union between the media and sports has brought about both positive and negative consequences. This is because each institution has benefited, and to some extent lost from the relationship. Through focus and airing of sports content, the media has been able to reach huge audiences. On the other hand, various sports have gained profitability and cultural significance through the media. Raney and Bryant point out that in the modern world it is difficult to talk about sports and the media as independent establishments (2006). This is because through the media, sports became merchandise that can be purchased and sold. Contrary to this, the media has played a role in lowering actual participation in sports. The television for example has made people all over the world too busy to physically participate in sports, since most of them prefer to watch them. However, this can only be left to individual attitude since there are those that believe watching sports stimulate people to physically take part in them. For example, Honeybourne, Hill, and Moors point out that “during the last few years, ice skating , hockey, and gymnastics have all witnessed upsurges in popularity when Britons were seen on the television winning medals” (2000, p. 193). History of Sports Media Sport media is a creation of novelty. This is because it only emerged in the late decades of the nineteenth century. The introduction of the media in sports led to a progressive rise of sports magazines. According to Horne, Tomlinson, and Whannel (1999), “from the 1880s, the Sportsman, Sporting Life, and the Sporting Chronicle were all selling 300,000 a day” (p. 162). In 1896, the Daily mail was launched, and this consequently led to the rise of sports pages in the popular newspaper. During the reign of King Edward, elite spectator sport matured, and as a result of this, there were huge audiences and great sport sections on football, rugby, cycling, cricket, golf, tennis, and athletics. From the beginning of the twentieth century, the cinema evolved bringing sound with it (Horne, Tomlinson, & Whannel, 1999). Consequently, a cultural practice of regularly going to the cinema was formed. This led to further development of the media in sports through the sports section in Newsreel that was a significant element in cinemas. “For the vast majority of the audience, this provided their first glimpse of moving action from major events like the Cup Final or Derby Day” (Horne, Tomlinson, & Whannel, 1999, p. 162). While movement was provided in cinemas through newsreel, the rise of the radio brought about proximity, due to the fact that descriptions of sporting events could now be aired as they occurred (Delaney & Madigan, 2009). In 1922, the British Broadcasting Corporation was launched as an independent corporation (Horne, Tomlinson, & Whannel, 1999). However, due to protected concerns of newspapers, the corporation was blocked from airing sports commentaries. This changed in 1926, when the British Broadcasting Corporation became a government corporation (Horne, Tomlinson, & Whannel, 1999). With this, it became possible for viewers at home to follow major sporting events. A vast majority of the British population were happy about this development, as most of them followed sporting events making the habit a national corporate tradition in Britain. In 1936, the Television was introduced. However, it was impossible to get through a big audience, since “it could only be received within about 20 miles of Alexandra Palace, the sets were expensive, and only around 20,000 had been sold by the time of television’s war time suspension in 1939” (Horne, Tomlinson, & Whannel, 1999, p. 163). Re-launching of the Television took place in 1946 as part of remodelling, and sport was slowly added to the Television schedules. The British Broadcasting Corporation also became well established by the late 1950s. From the start of the 1960s, British Television underwent through massive evolution in terms of signal strength, colour, and picture quality. As a result of this, the modern Television era was established in 1970 (Horne, Tomlinson, & Whannel, 1999). In effect, prominence of sport in British media, and the rest of worldwide media have been promoted over the last thirty years. The association of private and public domains has also shifted, and intensified the sensationalism of British media in sports coverage. Influence of the Media on Sports In today’s society, practically all sporting events at all levels including high school, college, youth, and professional are covered by the media, be it radio, television, or newspapers. As mentioned earlier, the media and sports are loyal partners, and each institution has benefited and to some extent lost from the relationship. Therefore, the relationship between sports and the media can be said to hold both positive and negative outcomes. The focus of this paper is the influence or impact of the media on sports. The positive impacts of the media in sports include: Business. The commitment of the mass media to sports programming has brought about a lot of economic success to sports. Delaney and Madigan point out that “ESPN pays the NFL more than $1 billion a year (2006-2011) for the rights to broadcast Monday Night Football and NBC pays the NFL $650 million a year (2006-2011) to broadcast on Sunday nights” (2009, p. 283). From their economic involvement with the media, sport celebrities and individual athletes have greatly benefited. This is because out of the sports celebrities and athletes, the Television and media outlets have made stars giving them a chance to gain great economic success. Technology. The media has positively influenced sports by providing technology “to help referees and officials control the game more easily” (Wyse, 1998, p. 216). Transformation of normal sports to social events and spectacles. A number of aspects arise anytime the media is involved in a sporting event. First, more attention and recognition are drawn to sporting events by the media through hyping of the events. Secondly, events chosen for broadcasting by the media are perceived as important, and thirdly, with the hope of being seen on Television, most people attend such events. Promotion and airing of public forums. Through public forums, sports celebrities and athletes are able to discuss aspects of a game, something made possible by the media. Through this, sports fans are able to get confidential information about a game, while sports celebrities and athletes get a chance to present their views. This serves well in promoting both sports and sports personalities. Providing entertainment through sports. Mass media makes sports an enjoyable feature of everyday life. According to Guerrero, “in modern societies, the media of sports appears as one of the main forms of entertainment, which is also reflected in economic flows among Televisions, sponsors, and sports organisations” (2009, p. 66). Bringing sponsors in sports. The pace of modern sponsorship in sports has been promoted by sport commercialization. Nafziger and Ross support that “top athletes need sponsors; both athletes and sponsor are dependent on the TV media, which enables them the proper communication on global level” (2011, p. 522). Therefore, more sponsors have been brought into sports by the media (Wyse, 1998). Improved performance of coaches and performers. Sports coaches, as well as celebrities and athletes are able to view their behaviour during sporting events. Interpretations and comments by fans, which are all made possible by media such as television, radio, newspapers, and the internet help coaches and performers correct any mistakes they may have done in future, and improve in some aspects of their undertakings. The negative impacts of the media in sports include: Reduced physical participation in sports. With huge amounts of sport being available on the media, the participation of individuals in sports has decreased. Live games on Television have especially promoted this, as people prefer to watch them at home, rather than on the stadiums (Honeybourne, Hill, & Moors, 2000). Exploitation of athletes. The performance of sports celebrities and athletes is subject to analyses by the media, whether they lose or win. Expectation, glorification, criticism, and jealousy are brought about by a win, while losing brings about additional criticism and negative judgement to these sports figures (Ott & Puymbroeck, n.d.). High costs of tickets making it difficult for families to attend events. Sports teams earn very little money from media contracts. According to Delaney and Madigan, “in order to cover their expenses, sports owners and promoters have continued to raise ticket prices” (2009, p. 286). Reduced profits for clubs and events. As the media promotes watching and tuning in to sporting events away from the stadiums, clubs and events lose money that they would gather if sporting events were watched at stadiums (Wyse, 1998). Infringement into the private lives of sports personalities. In a bid to gain more audience, the media has constantly invaded into the private lives of sports figures. Just like other people, they are also entitled to privacy, something that the media hardly respects. Andrews points out that “the debate is especially fierce around kiss-and-tell stories and whether the media should pay for bedroom revelations about sporting celebrities” (2005, p. 76). As a result of this, there have been numerous cases of sports personalities turning against the media to complain that they have gone too far (Belsey, 1992). Execution of gender stereotypes. The media objectifies sports figures, especially women. Its coverage also carries some bias towards gender. According to Chrisler and McCreary (2010), “female athletes receive much less coverage than male athletes do, and the type of coverage differs by gender, with the emphasis on athletic ability and masculinity for men, but on feminine characteristics and physical attractiveness for women” (p. 571). In America for example, sports commentators and athletes have usually been African American men, rather than women, who are often sidelined from such roles (Andersen & Taylor, 2009). Reduced coverage and sponsorship for minor sports. Wyse (1998) points out that “sports like football and racing get wide coverage, while others find it hard to get coverage in the media, and minor sports find it hard to attract sponsorship” (p. 216). Conclusion In conclusion, despite the fact that sports and the media can exist as separate institutions, their relationship in modern day is mutual. This has in turn brought about positive and negative consequences. The impacts of the media on sports have been discussed in this paper. Reference List Andersen, Margaret L. & Taylor, Howard Francis. (2009). Sociology: The Essentials. Belmont: Wadsworth Cengage Learning. Andrews, Phil. (2005). Sports Journalism: A Practical Introduction. London: SAGE Publications Ltd. Belsey, Andrew. (1992). Ethical Issues in Journalism and the Media. London: Routledge. Chrisler, Joan C. & McCreary, Donald R. (Eds.). (2010). Handbook of Gender Research in Psychology, Volume 2. New York: Springer Science+Business Media, LLC. Delaney, Tim & Madigan, Tim. (2009). The Sociology of Sports: An Introduction. North Carolina: McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. Guerrero, Manuel Alejandro. (2009). Empowering citizenship through journalism, information, and entertainment in Iberoamerica. Mexico City: Universidad Iberoamericana. Honeybourne, Hill, John Michael & Moors, Helen. (Eds.). (2000). Advanced Physical Education & Sport for As-Level. Cheltenham: Stanley Thornes (Publishers) Ltd. Horne, J., Tomlinson, A., & Whannel, G. (1999). Understanding Sport: An Introduction to the Sociological and Cultural Analysis of Sport. London: Routledge. Nafziger, James A. R. and Ross, Stephen F. (Eds.). (2011). Handbook on International Sports Law. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar Publishing Limited. Ott, Kyle & Puymbroeck,Marieke Van. (n.d.). Does the Media Impact Athletic Performance? The Sport Journal. ISSN: 1543-9518. Retrieved from http://www.thesportjournal.org/article/does-media-impact-athletic-performance Raney, Arthur A. & Bryant, Jennings. (Eds.). (2006). Handbook of Sports and Media. London: Routledge. Wyse, Jon. (1998). Pe for You. Cheltenham: Stanley Thornes (Publishers) Ltd.   Read More