Mastromartino KINS 7210 Final Exam 2

KINS 7210 Sport and the Mass Media

Final Exam
Brandon Mastromartino
The University of Georgia
Fall 2014

Mastromartino KINS 7210 Final Exam 2

1.

As a visual medium, there are often connections between sex and sport. In the

documentary Beyond the Glory: Sex and Sport, they highlight many important aspects of
how sex influences sport. I dont believe sport and sex are synonymous, but I do believe
it plays a big part in how the sport is packaged and displayed, especially on television
broadcasts and related product advertising. Relying primarily on advertising dollars to
fund their networks, there is constant pressure for the networks to broadcast quality
programming to increase viewership numbers and appeal to advertisers. Although I am
more interested in the actual game and quality of performance, I am fine with using sex
to sell the sport. If the athlete, league, and consumer want to participate in that they
should be able to. If there is someone that is against that, they dont have to watch it.
There are still some athletes who dont participate in endorsements or use their body to
sell their sport which is why I dont believe they are synonymous, but those who are
consenting adults should be allowed to participate in that. To make it as a professional
athlete is extremely tough and once they make it, most dont stay on top or in the public
eye for very long. They should be able to capitalize on their celebrity and make a living
how they see fit.

I believe sport has made a negative impact on what is an

acceptable body image for females. Since sport is close to the
entertainment industry, star athletes are in advertisements,
magazines, and tabloids along with other celebrities. These mediums
want to attract readership and advertising dollars, so they put images
of females that will make people want to buy. Since sport is such a

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visual medium, its constantly around us and it becomes part of the
paradigm that these are the images of people who are healthy,
successful, and happy. I believe this is a negative impact. Many
magazines use photo-editing software to enhance pictures and create
unrealistic versions of the human body. However, people see these
images, not realizing they are fake, and force themselves through
unhealthy diets or workouts that can lower self-esteem and harm
them.

I believe there is a double standard in the demands on women

and men sports regarding performance, body image, and producing a
profit. As mentioned in the documentary, womens sports have to
perform and entertain. They have to sell their sport to advertisers,
audiences, and TV networks unlike mens professional sports, which
sell themselves because of how popular they have been for decades.
Womens sports often have to be visually appealing in order to get on
the publics radar and generate a profit. We are socialized to see sport
in a certain way and it is a double standard for men and women. Also
mentioned in the documentary, women are often criticized for being
attractive athletes who are endorsing a product, but that rarely
happens with men. There have been strides made in order to create a
more serious and respected image of female in sport. One example of
this is there are more and more female broadcasters who are part of

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the overall presentation of a sport, including male sports, and they
arent just the cheerleaders anymore. There is still a double standard in
that area as the majority of the time, the female broadcasters are
attractive individuals who are used to appeal to a certain demographic,
whereas for male broadcasters there are many who most would not
consider attractive.

2.

There are two major components that are involved in content decisions as it

relates to broadcast media. The first is ratings, which are important to content decisions
because without a certain amount of viewers, there could be no program at all. These
ratings measure how many people are watching, and who is watching. Content is often
geared toward a specific audience and decisions are based on the type of audience they
want to attract. Neilsen and Arbitron are the two major ratings companies in the United
States. These ratings drive the price the networks set for advertisers on how much it will
cost them to air ads. Advertising is the second major component that is involved in
content decisions. Content needs to be high quality and something a lot of people want to
watch in order for advertisers to pay top dollar for air time.

The TV Industrial complex is the idea that a product is created (a television

broadcast) which leads advertisers to buy ad space, which creates more money for the
network who can then create more products, and then more ad space is sold and it creates
a never ending cycle. This is important to content decisions because it is in the networks

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best interest to put high quality content out there so advertisers keep buying it and the
network will have more money to create even better programming in the future. It is this
complex that allows networks to be profitable and continue to stay in business.

There are a few ways in which content decisions impact what I choose to watch.
The first is following my favorite sports and hometown teams. Its important to me Im
able to see these teams, even though I dont live in the region where these teams are
based. Content providers are aware of other viewers like me and find ways broadcast
sports and teams to viewers who might be outside of the main region. I choose products
like online streaming services because that content appeals to me and gives me the ability
to still follow my favorite sports and teams that arent broadcasted regularly here.
Second, is the overall broadcast package. Its important for me to have good on air talent
who are knowledgeable in the sport, passionate about the game, and provide a quality
visual experience. I enjoy the insider tips and expert breakdowns of the game to give me
a more in depth look at the sport. If there are multiple broadcasts of the same event, the
decision to put high quality broadcasters on air leads me to choose that product. Lastly,
large and historical sporting events are important for me to see. The Super Bowl,
Olympics, a famous athletes last game, a potential record-breaking performance, are all
events Id like to be able to see. If a network is promising a good presentation and
coverage of those events, I will tune in and consume that product.

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3.

There are two main theoretical and two sub-theoretical explanations that

explain why and how we consume media content (Raney, 2006). The first theoretical
explanation is Balance Theory which says viewers look for content and information
that align with their own personal beliefs, attitudes, and thoughts. The second one is
Cognitive Dissonance Theory which goes along with Balance Theory in that when
people consume information or content that goes against their personal beliefs, attitudes,
or thoughts they go through cognitive distress that causes them to look out for means to
alleviate that distress through other content consumption. The first sub-theoretical
explanation is Selective Exposure Theory which says people intentionally select media
content that is aligned with their attitudes, beliefs, and thoughts. The second subtheoretical explanation is Mood Management Theory which says viewers use media
content to minimize the length and intensity of bad moods and also use it to increase the
length and intensity of good moods.

From the class presentations, how most people consume media was generally
aligned with the theoretical explanations. The majority of people consumed media for
entertainment, companionship, and eustress. Other factors followed closely behind
including family, aesthetics, and release. These align with Raneys theories. All of these
factors have something to do with ones personal beliefs and psychological release from
stressful times. Usually, one gets their beliefs and attitudes from family and they also
choose their friends base on things in common, including common thoughts, beliefs and
attitudes. This makes sense then why media consumption also aligns with those factors
and it all comes together. Eustress and release were also common themes in why our class

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consumed media. This goes with the mood management theory in how one seeks out
media in order to relieve some stress or distract them from other things in their life.
Factors such as self esteem and economics were commonly low on our classs list of
reasons for consuming media. This can also make sense as Raneys theories outlined that
the other reasons explain the greater reasons for consuming media.

Selective Exposure Theory best describes my consumption of media content, and

specifically sport media content. I usually go out of my way to find sports or sport
content that aligns with my personal attitudes and I dont stray too far from it. I am a very
team, good sportsmanship, positive leadership orientated person. I tend to lean toward
team sports and dont usually have much interest in solo sports. I enjoy the human side of
the sports story and will usually look for sporting events where there is an underdog of a
team that I can relate to and watch. My favorite regular sporting event is Hockey Night
in Canada which airs every Saturday night and shows NHL hockey games. They usually
take time to profile human interest stories and often profile small Canadian towns and
their impact on hockey. Being from a small Canadian town, watching this makes me feel
closer to home when Im away, and when I lived there it made me feel connected to the
world outside of the town. Especially now that I live away from my home country, I
intentionally seek out sports that are related to my strong passion for my home country
and align myself with other sport media that identifies those passions and contributes to
my identity.

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4.

There are 11 main steps in developing a crisis management plan. To highlight

each step, I will discuss it in context of the University of Georgias football teams
perspective who went through a crisis when their star player Todd Gurley was suspended
by the NCAA earlier this year for alleged violations of his eligibility requirements. The
first step is research. UGA would look through all related contracts and documents to
make sure they have all the information. They would have to contact other schools and
see if there have been similar situations elsewhere and how they dealt with it. Next they
would prepare an assessment, which is a brief situational analysis, and evaluate what they
need to do going forward. After that, they would outline common communication
channels. For the UGA Bulldogs, this means their webpage, twitter account, and
University outlets such as the campus newspaper, University webpage, and University
twitter account. Here they would also keep all key stakeholders in the loop and outline
their responsibilities who would include the team coach, University Athletic Director, and
University President. Next is preparing notification procedures, which outline what each
member of the crisis management team will do when the news breaks. Communication
control center is the next step, which is setting up a central location where the team
prepares and releases all of the information to the media and public. This is probably in
an office on campus near the Athletic Directors office. This area is usually also a
common meeting area for the crisis management team. A crisis kit will then be prepared
in that room which will include phone and Internet connections, office supplies, and other
logistical materials. Here it will also become important to prepare steps on dealing with
the media. Next is a recap of all the policies and procedures, which comes from the
research at the beginning. These will be reviewed at this stage and be kept handy in the

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crisis kit at the communication control center. Lastly, Appendices will be created which
includes contact information for all executives, media contacts, University personnel or
any other key stakeholder information. In this case, it could also include the lawyer or
agent for the player.

In times of crisis, it is important the Sports Information Director (SID) works

effectively with their two major stakeholders, the institution and the media. The SID
works as an inbetween for those two and they must be well organized and have a plan of
attack for the incident. They should be creating a timeline for the situation and assisting
the institution with the process as it goes. They should be in constant communication with
both stakeholders and be available when either side has questions or issues. They could
stage events on campus to add or lessen attention from a certain team and help portray the
institution in other positive lights if something negative is happening in another area.
They can come up with features on athletes or lower profile sports and give the media
lots of material to work with. The SID can assist and encourage the institution to come up
with a schedule of public announcements to coincide with key events or to help get the
message of a crisis out to the public. Overall, the SID should be flexible, organized, and
on top of all issues and act as a link between the institution and the media.

5.

Expanded media coverage is the movement for sports media in countries outside

the United States. This goes two ways now more than ever, American sports are being
broadcasted outside of the country, and International sports are now being broadcasted in
the United States. This impacts globalization because it has now become a global

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business entity that allows other businesses to expand. Many corporations are buying
properties in other countries to expand their media empire, which allows for expanded
coverage of various sports in many countries. Since the rise of PVR and on demand
television watching, live sports have become a very lucrative product for networks to
broadcast because it is one of the few things viewers tune in to see live. This is means
potential for even larger profits for the media organizations because advertisers pay top
dollar for these time slots. The expanded coverage of sport media also impacts
globalization because as the world becomes more accessible with other technologies and
other businesses expanding worldwide, its important for people to stay connected to their
favorite sports if they are traveling or living elsewhere than their home town.

With this expanded coverage also come some challenges. One of them being
losing some the unique culture that comes with how one nation can broadcast a sport.
Few large corporations own many smaller stations that account for much of this globally
expanded media coverage. They now have a large influence in the agenda that is set and
what sorts of ideals are portrayed in their broadcast. Some of these beliefs and attitudes
may not reflect those of people in every culture, which will cause some conflict. When
looking at a global mega event such as the Olympics, this expanded coverage can cause
other political and economical challenges. An example is the Russia winter Olympics in
2014. Leading up to the event there were many stories of poor human rights in the
building of the stadiums, human equality debates and other politically related stories
coming out of Russia. Different media coverage showcased these stories in different
ways, some not at all. This raises the challenge and asks the question if its the Sport

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medias role to cover this or just focus on the sport itself. In an increasing global
spotlight, content and coverage decisions are now scrutinized on a global level, not just in
one country.

There are advantages and disadvantages of this expanded media coverage. The
advantages are you get to learn about new sports you may never had access to, stay
connected to home if youre traveling, and have more opportunity to work in the sport
media field. Some disadvantages include a loss of unique culture, a small amount large
companies having a lot of control, and oversaturation of the product. Overall, I believe
most of these challenges can be overcome and the globalization of sport media is a
positive movement.

6.

With more globalization and corporations becoming larger, there is greater

consolidation in the media industry. There are few companies controlling the majority of
media influence. I believe there are some ethical dilemmas that have developed from this
consolidation. The first is the medias duty to report the truth up against their partnership
with other corporations. Since the media outlet may be the only one, they may be making
content decisions based off of corporate interest, not what is in the best interest of the
public. If they are controlling all of the decisions, there may be things that the public
never gets to hear about. Also, the power of shaping cultural ideology will lie in the
control of just a few people at the top of these organizations. Few will decide the
perspective in which the content is broadcasted and their beliefs and attitudes may not
align with the general public, but it could force change.

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The media gained its power through four main ways. First is constitutional
protection in that there are many laws that make it hard to break up or control large media
conglomerates and what they broadcast. Second is their universal access to the public.
They have the type of reach to spread their message that the average person doesnt.
Third is corporate organization where they have the resources to make purchases of other
corporations and have those other corporations make money for the parent company and
continue to build power. Fourth is the ideological hegemony where they are dominating
individuals by controlling their ideas. This was mentioned above and the large
corporations are able to shape others opinions and have their own agendas projected and
the general public goes along with it.

There are some advantages and disadvantages of having larger, but fewer media
corporations. For advantages, one is more access to more content. The larger the
conglomerate, there is an ability to have more channels and create more interesting
content, as well as reaching out to niche markets. Also, they have the ability to provide
global access to their sport content, covering international events and sports that occur in
other countries while this world wide reach gives the viewer more options and an ability
to see the global landscape of sports. The disadvantages associated with this are that there
is too much power in the hands of a few executives at the top of the chain. These few get
to shape the thoughts and ideas of their viewers and have final say on what does and
doesnt go into the public eye. Also, it becomes harder for others to show their own

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independent media as it gets swallowed up and overpowered by larger corporations. Its
hard for anyone else to have a voice.

This media consolidation contributes to the process of globalization. Often large

companies are buying out smaller media companies in other countries and have media
properties in various countries. This allows coverage of various sports to cross boarders
and a global audience to have access to the same content.

7.

There are four major theories used to explain television violence (Gunter, 2006).

The first is the arousal theory which says when someone watches violence on
television it increases aggression because it arouses the viewers and causes excitement.
The second is the social learning theory that suggests we behave by learning and
observing others. Especially for children, this is a way of acquiring unfamiliar behavior.
However, acting on that new behavior depends on several other factors as well. Third is
the disinhibition hypothesis which states, that in certain circumstances, violence on
television will result in increased interpersonal aggression because it lowers the
inhibitions against that particular behavior. Fourth is the catharsis hypothesis that says
under certain circumstances exposure to television violence will reduce any following
aggression. This means that once someone sees it on TV, that urge is fulfilled and they
wont feel the need to act it out in real life.

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In our group interviews, we found that most people are motivated to watch violent
sports because it is something they grew up watching with their family, they find it
interesting, and because it sparks interesting conversations and debate. They enjoyed
being a part of the public conversation and we found that fairly consistent with the other
groups. Many other groups cited tradition and the need to be part of debates or office
chatter regarding big violent sporting events. We found that in general the people we
interviewed enjoyed violent sports when they are part of the natural game, but didnt
enjoy seeing freak accidents or violent fights break out. They enjoy a good body check or
tackle, but if there is a player who showed intent to injure, they felt that had no place in
sports or on television. This was also consistent with the other groups where it entertained
people but extreme violence was unnecessary for their viewing pleasure. One difference
between groups was that most females from other groups had no interest at all in violent
sports and preferred other non contact sports, but the females we interviewed preferred
the violent sports more than the males. This could be due to the small sample size, but it
also shows that males, as well as females do enjoy violent sports on television. These
results reinforced my ideas about violence in sport on television. Those sports are
constantly the highest rated and most talked about. When an extremely violent incident
happens, it is all over the news and talked about in schools and offices. I am not surprised
that many people enjoy violent sports on TV and find it exciting.

For me, the catharsis hypothesis best describes how I consume violent sports on
television. Im also a fan of other violent media such as films or video games, and for me
it relates to that theory. I dont feel the need to play those acts out in real life and it fulfills

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any need to show aggression or be a part of violent acts. Also, the arousal theory does
apply to me too, as I can feel excitement rising when there is a big hit. Fighting in hockey
is a hot debate, but it doesnt matter which side youre on in that debate, in the moment
when a fight breaks out, it causes arousal and excitement for the viewer. I can feel those
changes in me when those events happen. Those are the two theories that most apply to
my consumption of violent sports on television.

8.

The media content analysis conducted in our group assignments were very

informative in learning how and why we consume that particular media. It was also a
good way to think critically about the messages we are receiving and how the people
putting them out there construct those messages. These analyses allowed for a more
objective evaluation than just casual watching or reading about sport. Through
interviewing other people, quantifying some of it like ad space and content, and doing
external research really gave a broad view of the content and made me think in different
ways about what I am consuming. It allowed me to be objective and detect some trends
that were happening across all mediums.

The first of the major trends is the large presence and influence of advertisers.
This was especially noted in the print media content analysis. A lot of the times reading a
magazine or newspaper you dont notice the ads and its easy to just flip by them.
However, in the presentations it was noted that some publications had upwards of 6070% of ad space and the rest was actual content. As well, advertisers have a significant

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influence on what is broadcasted on television. Networks rely on advertising dollars in
order to stay profitable and choose their content accordingly in order to attract advertisers
to their programming. This became very apparent in the television content analysis,
especially around sports programming since they attract large live audiences. The next
major trend is how technology is shifting the type of content we see. The presentations
that covered newspaper showed that readership is in decline and those publishers are
constantly adjusting their content to keep it fresh and keep people reading. As well,
television content is trying to link up and synergize with online content because thats
where the technology is on the rise. Many of the presentations on TV programming
mentioned online options where people could consume that media on their computer or
mobile phone instead of traditionally watching it on a television with a cable
subscription. The third theme of sport media was the demographic audience it was
targeted to. The majority of all the sport media content across all mediums is targeted
toward males, especially those around 14-55. Some appealed to females, but after doing
the critical analysis most of them were clearly targeted to that audience. Most groups
discussed the need for more female related programming and some mediums, such as the
Sports Illustrated with Mone Davis on the cover, are showing growth in that area.
However, many cited that sports media content needs to be more appealing toward
female audiences.

Overall, there were many similarities across the board. It is interesting to see that
some of the mediums at first seem very different, but are very much the same after all.

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These analyses allow me to think more critically about what Im consuming and allows
me to look at many areas before deciding what I consume and how I consume it.

9.

New and emerging technologies are changing the landscape of sport media. Social

media is one of the larger ones, with Facebook and Twitter really taking the lead and
making an impact in sport media. Many journalists use Twitter to break news first and
comment on games as they go on. Sport teams and leagues also use these tools to send
out information. The advantage of this technology is that information can get out fast and
reach a wide audience. Also, with athletes on social media the fan has more access and
insight to their life than they ever have. A disadvantage with this is its hard to separate
real information from fake. On Twitter, anyone can have an account and put out any kind
of information. Often, rumors get started that cause confusion and untrue information to
spread. Twitter has taken steps against this by creating the verified user account so
people know which users are legitimate, but it is still sometimes a sea of information and
finding the truth is hard. A second emerging technology is television upgrades. The
picture quality has changed drastically as is no longer a fuzzy black and white picture on
cable with one or two games a week, it is high definition, sometimes in 3D, and hundreds
of channels, games, and sports to choose from at any time of day or night. An advantage
is this is the amount of sports available is incredible and watching from the comfort of
your own home on a high definition television can be an even better experience than
going to the event. A disadvantage for this is on the end of the sports teams and leagues.
Often people will choose to stay home and enjoy the game from their own home instead

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of paying for tickets and concessions at an actual event. A third emerging technology is
streaming video. An advantage of this is it allows for even more access to sporting
events, especially for niche audiences whose events might not be on mainstream national
television. The NBA, MLB, and NHL all offer streaming services to watch out of market
games that wont be on local television. However, a disadvantage is a slow internet
connection could make for a bad viewing experience. Also, games that are available on
network cable are often blacked out on these services, even if you dont subscribe to
cable. So, it cannot be a replacement for cable and has some limitations in what you can
view. A fourth emerging technology is podcasts. These are becoming very popular and
are often free content available on the Internet for download. They often contain
interviews with important sports figures, and commentary on sporting events. Podcasts
are great for the consumer because they are usually free and are accessible for you to
listen whenever you want. A disadvantage is for radio technology that is losing
consumers to podcasts. Advertisers will pay less to radio stations for declining users and
the podcasts could hurt the radio industry. A fifth major emerging technology is smart
phones. Its hard to find someone who doesnt a smart phone who benefits from having
sports updates, news, and video streams available to them right in their pocket.
Information gets sent instantly and a sports fan constantly has access to any type of sport
media no matter where they are. A disadvantage to this is perhaps to athletes or high
profile sports figures. If they are out in public, a mistake can be caught be someone with
a smart phone in a photo and sent across the world via social media within seconds. This
has caused some controversy and landed some people in hot water because of the
prevalence of smart phones.

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For me, all of these technologies are something I use a lot and add to my
enjoyment of sport media. Since I live out of my home teams regional network I rely on
streaming services for access to my favorite teams games. Also, having social media on
my smart phone is something I check multiple times a day to get the latest sports news
and information. Its important for me to watch sporting events in high definition and I
purchased a high quality television with watching sports in mind. I look out for and
download many sports podcasts and enjoy them while Im working and on long drives.
They all add to my experience as a sports fan and I hope these technologies continue to
grow and improve.

10.

Sport media content has come a long way since mainstream media and technology

became accessible to the average citizen. Sport media content began being disseminated
in print form in the late 1800s and people were able to purchase periodicals like The
Sporting News. Over time, circulation began to rapidly increase and the sports section
became a staple in most daily newspapers. Eventually color and wider distribution led to
popular magazines and niche magazines being available. When the Internet came along in
the early 90s, there has been a decline in print sports media. With technologies such as ereaders, social media, and websites much of the print media is now outdated before it
even hits shelves. There is a small niche audience for these mediums but many of them
are due to nostalgia and remembering the feeling of holding a newspaper and are
purchased more so out of habit and tradition. However, as that audience gets older, I

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believe in the next 30-50 years print media will be totally abolished and it will all be
online. Shortly after print media became accessible, radio broadcasts were made available
and this was popular for listening to live events, especially baseball and boxing. To this
day, many sporting events are still broadcast over the radio. It experienced a sharp decline
with the introduction of television but there remains a following. Sports such as baseball
still lend itself to radio, as it is a very descriptive game with lots of breaks between action
for commentators to discuss other interesting things. It is still useful for people driving or
in remote areas with no internet or cable, there is often still radio technology. Television
is arguably the biggest and most important technological advance in sport media and it
came to be mainstream in the early 1950s after the second world war. At first, black and
white grainy images were celebrated and it was a breakthrough technology. Football was
the first sport to really take advantage of this technology and changed the way sports
were broadcasted. The NFL created a package around the actual game with pre and post
game shows with talented and interesting broadcasters, interviews with players, and
separate features. It has made television the most important technology for sport media.
Today, with many people choosing to PVR their favorite shows and watch them when
they want and fast forward through commercials, live sport media are often the most
watched live television programs. Advertisers television deals with professional sports
leagues are extremely high cost because of the amount of people who want to watch live.
This directly impacts the teams and players as they get a piece of the revenue and it has
changed the way sports business is done. Even with the rise of internet streaming devices,
television will still be the most important sport media technology. Going forward, they
are improving it through more cameras, more player interaction, and increased TV

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capabilities such as high definition and 3D. Other technologies such as websites and
social media are going to be used as a compliment to television with the purpose of
making the broadcast more interactive. The television broadcast will synergize with
online social media and encourage viewers to use those tools to be more interactive with
the sport broadcast.