Sports Communication

Sports Communication

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Sports Communication History Sukjoon (SJ) Yoon Independent Study 1st Project In 21st-century America, the nature and culture of interpersonal communication and human relationships is changing dramatically and becoming a global concept. As society moves more and more towards the widespread use of digital technologies, individuals turn to sports and communication activities as a way to connect with others. This paper will examine the historical development of sports communication by understanding key figures of each era in sports communication history.

The primary aim is to become better acquainted with key pioneers in sports communication’s ascent to the major field it is today and to consider the evolution of sports coverage and its relation to cultural history. Early Eras of Sports Communication From the earliest times in human history, individual activities were generally more recreational, and leisure has taken on the meaning of sports at the present time (Garrison & Sabljak, 1993).

Before the 20th century, individuals participated in activities such as fishing, hunting, horse racing, and swimming. In the latter half of the 18th century, Americans began to spend their leisure time reading daily and weekly newspapers. As the culture evolved with the increasing literacy rate and development of new technologies, individuals felt a need to connect with their interests and information; because of this, newspapers soared in popularity and created a sensation as people began reading more and more (Rader, 2004).

Although the first sports journal to be printed was known as the American Turf Register and Sporting Magazine, it also included boxing, wrestling, and horse racing (Garrison & Sabljak, 1993). After the American Civil War ended, baseball became a popular sport. Newspapers especially played a vital role in the spread of baseball’s popularity, and as baseball became one of the most popular sports in the 1870s, the press and the public realized the importance of innovative and regular sports reporting (Betts, 1953a; Fountain, 1993).

Newspapers as the Most Important Medium of Sports With the invention of the telephone (1876), the improved typewriter (1869), and the web printing press (1865), sports journalism was expanded and advanced dramatically and globally. By the turn of the 20th century, “new journalism,” a factor of social change, appeared in mass-produced, sensationalized newspapers. It meant that journalists explained in explicit detail society’s systemic problems such as immigrants, outcasts, and degenerates, and was focused on the changing and increasingly modern technological society.

Even though they described political and economic injustices of American life, newspapers approached sports as performance. This was attractive to the public and influenced more people to read newspapers, especially since sports coverage included features such as photographs of athletes and detailed descriptions of events. This allowed individuals to enjoy their leisure time and to spend money on related activities through newspapers’ influence.

Sports provided and increased respectability, connecting each person with an individual’s growth and rebirth, societal restoration, and the will to live a healthy and fulfilling life. Golden Age of Sports After World War I, as the military legitimated wider interest in sports, the decade from 1920 to 1930 was called the “golden age of sports” and was an appropriate title since many great athletes (i. e., Babe

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Ruth and Bobby Jones) and sportswriters (i. e., Grantland Rice & Damon Runyon) gained iconic status during this time.

The sportswriters dealt with the agenda for sports coverage by writing about athletes’ unique background stories and their athletic achievements. This period of sports had implications for the sports world and the ensuing culture for generations afterward, with a great number of sports-related stories appearing in many general interest and sports magazines as well as newspapers. During this era, sportswriters used imagination and colorful expressions to develop stories using vivid language and imaginative literary devices. Network

Television and Sports Although sports fans had already paid much attention to sports before the 1950s, a new medium, television, which appeared during the transition years between 1950 and 1970, enabled fans to experience sports instantly and visually. It also allowed print journalists to modify their style. Television let fans witness events live and visually capture key moments, events, and plays. Moreover, it made sports a lifestyle for both American and global news agencies by transporting fans to the events instantly.

During this era, television contributed to sports journalism by diversifying the increasing stories of the athletic world. Today’s Sports Communication In the last decade, communication has arisen as an innovative sector of development in sports journalism. According to Lawrence A. Wenner (1998b), the word “media-sport” was first used to signify the “mediation of sport” within culture. “Media-sport” played a more significant role in the value system, such as sponsorship and commodification, than commercial television.

Whereas network television primarily influenced the development of sports from the 1950s through the 1970s, cable television, and more specifically the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network (ESPN), advanced viewership of sports exponentially in the late 1990s. It catered to sports fans wherever sports are watched, listened to, discussed, debated, read about, or played in the moment. As the use of technology has increased with the advent of social media in the 21st century, individual companies are providing interactive two-way communication tools to access fans in a new and unique way.

Social media is a new kind of online media through which people communicate, share, and create news and information. Social media websites such as Twitter and Facebook provide direct and indirect communication tools connecting consumers to sports teams through team identification and desired interaction. Social media has penetrated nearly every facet of the entertainment culture in the United States, including marketing, public relations, advertising, and the interpersonal communication landscape. With the differences between sports journalists of yesterday and today, the technological advancements of sports overage and the varieties of available sports content has evolved and emerged as a potent force in contemporary American and world culture. Tracing the history of sports communication from the 19th century to the present allows us to see how the key trends and pioneers of each era have contributed to creating infinite possibilities in various aspects of sports communication, from print journalism to electronic media. The method of sports communication is still undergoing change at the present time, and will continue to do so indefinitely. References Garrison, B. and Sabljak, M. (1993). Sports Reporting (2nd Ed.).

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United States of America, USA. Iowa University Press / Ames. Rader, B. G. (2004). American sports: From the age of folk games to the age of televised sports (5th ed). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Betts, J. R. (1953a). Sporting journalism in nineteenth-century America. American Quarterly, 5. 39-56. Fountain, C. (1993). Sportswriter: The life and times of Grantland Rice. Bridgewater, NJ: Replica. Wenner, L. A. (1998b). Preface. In L. A. Wenner (Ed.), MediaSport (pp. xi-xiv). London: Routledge.

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