Sport Mass Media: Convergence and Shifting Roles

Chapter 8: Sport Mass Media: Convergence and Shifting Roles

21st-Century Media Convergence

  • Media:

    • Defined as the variety of means through which communication takes place.

  • Mass Media:

    • A segment of media focused on reaching the masses.

    • Comes in various types and uses different modes of delivery.

  • Primary Roles and Functions of Mass Media:

    • Informing

    • Creating

    • Influencing

    • Entertaining

    • Telling

    • Delivering

    • Reinforcing

Symbiotic Relationship Between Sport Media and Sport Entity

  • Sport Media:

    • Responsible for filling programming schedules and newspaper columns.

    • Engages in selling advertising and increasing profits through higher ratings.

    • Works to improve circulation figures and increase web traffic.

  • Sport Entity:

    • Provides visibility, promotion, and marketing to the sport.

    • Aims to enhance credibility and provide information, advertising, and publicity.

    • Generates revenue through various means.

Hannah Withiam Profile

  • Role:

    • Former Editor for The Athletic and Associate Editor for The Athletic New York.

  • Focus of Work:

    • Identifies reasons for increased coverage on WNBA.

    • Explores the symbiotic relationship between The Athletic and WNBA.

Media Convergence and Corporate Consolidation

  • New Media:

    • Characterized by digitization, convergence, and interactivity.

  • Multimedia Convergence:

    • Evident in sport reporters’ expanding routines and responsibilities.

    • Involves the integration of words, pictures, videos, audio recordings, and other interactions across legacy and digital platforms.

  • Sport Media Entities:

    • Engaged in more than one genre of sport communication.

    • Content creation is evolving with multimedia platforms enhancing credibility.

  • Corporate Consolidation:

    • Driven by financial reasons, leading to the consolidation of talent among various positions.

Sport Publishing and Print Sport Communication

  • Sport Publishing:

    • The business or profession involving the commercial production and dissemination of information related to sport.

  • Print Sport Communication:

    • A medium for disseminating printed matter related to sport.

    • All print sport communication is considered sport publishing, but not all sport publishing is print communication (e.g., electronic sport publishing).

  • Newspaper Sport Coverage:

    • Characterized by a macro and micro level symbiotic relationship.

    • Traditionally a major source of news, but experiencing a decline in daily newspapers.

  • Wire Services:

    • Provide contents including text (e.g., articles), graphics, audio, video, and photographs.

    • Examples of popular wire services:

    • Reuters

    • Associated Press (AP)

    • United Press International (UPI)

Web Sport Media

  • Use of the Internet:

    • Focus shifting on the causes of events and interpreting their significance for fans.

    • Creation of enterprise, feature, and investigative pieces.

    • Maneuvering resources to websites, resulting in reduced page numbers in daily editions.

  • Emergence of Web-Only Journalists:

    • Introduction of journalists who primarily work for online platforms.

Sport Magazines and Books

  • Sport Magazines:

    • Facing decreased subscribers.

    • Survival Strategies:

    • Demassification

    • Digitization

    • Example: Sports Illustrated reduced print editions, ESPN The Magazine stopped production in 2019.

  • Sport Books:

    • Important in transmitting culture, entertaining, and diffusing information, ideas, and knowledge.

Experiencing Sport Through Radio

  • Effects of Radio:

    • Powerful and immediate effects on listeners.

  • Notable Historical Events:

    • 1920: First broadcast by KDKA Radio covering the U.S. election result.

    • 1921: Broadcast of Jack Dempsey–Georges Carpentier boxing bout and Grantland Rice's radio debut during the World Series.

  • Increased Demand:

    • 1920s and 30s saw heightened interest in acquiring information about sport events through radio.

    • Examples include boxing bouts, horse racing, and baseball.

Radio's Evolution and Popularity

  • Golden Age of Radio (1930s):

    • Viewed as a major distraction during difficult times (Blanchard, 1998, p. 238).

    • Characterized by realistic sound.

    • Development of all-sport radio format amid a landscape transformed by digital technology.

  • Segmentation of All-Sport Radio Listeners:

    • Categories of listeners include:

    • Sport enthusiasts seeking scores and trade news

    • Fans devoted to specific sports

    • Casual fans without strong allegiance to teams or events.

    • 1987: Introduction of WFAN, the first all-sports station.

Television's Impact on Sport

  • Significance of Television:

    • Regarded as the most powerful medium; instrumental in shaping a sports-oriented American society (Garrison & Sabljak, 1993, p. 235).

History of Sport Through Television

  • Pivotal Events:

    • 1939: First televised sport event, featuring college baseball.

    • 1944: First network sport broadcast.

    • 1945: NBC broadcasted the first college football game.

    • 1950s: TV programming shifted primarily to weekends.

    • 1960s: Significant audience growth as advertisers recognized sport's value.

    • 1963: Introduction of instant replay changed broadcast dynamics.

Notable Television Developments

  • Key Moments:

    • 1970: Monday Night Football introduced by Arledge and Rozelle in prime time.

    • 1973: ABC's broadcast of the "Battle of the Sexes."

    • 1976: ABC covered the Montreal Olympics, showcasing sport's national importance.

Emergence of ESPN

  • Cultural Phenomenon:

    • SportsCenter emerged as a significant cultural aspect of sports media.

  • Technical Innovations:

    • Innovations included electronic cut-ins during the 1980 NCAA Tournament.

    • First instance of stereo broadcast in 1983.

    • On-screen, in-game scores introduced via ESPN Sports Updates in 1985.

Relationship Between Sport and Network Television

  • Mutually Beneficial Relationships:

    • Networks recognized sports’ importance for viewer ratings during the 1980s.

    • Major monetary commitments were made to secure sporting events and solidify audience bases.

    • Networks differentiated themselves by acquiring popular sporting events, thus shortening cycles between sport news segments.

Influence of Cable Television

  • Growth and Diversity of Programming:

    • Noteworthy acquisition example: Comcast’s acquisition of AT&T Broadband in 2002.

  • ESPN's Dominance:

    • Continues to cover a broader range of sport programming than any other network.

  • Regional Sports Networks:

    • Established to cater to niche markets and increase interest in localized sports.

    • Professional teams may own or share majority stakes in regional networks or maintain minority stakes in distributor-owned networks.