Sport and the Mass Media

On March 24 in my American Sport in the 21st Century class, we discussed the roles and characteristics of the mass media and the linkage between sport and mass media. We learned that sport and media are very closely related, they are symbiotic to one another which means that they rely on one another and are strengthened by one another. We also learned that sports and the mass media are two of the most successful businesses in the United States valued at $1 trillion and $350 billion dollar industries. Also, sport popularity is a result of media coverage. The media generates enormous sales in circulation and advertising based on extensive treatment of sport.

(Picture representing a collage of words in the mass media field)

(A man filming a soccer match)

Roles of the Media

The Media has four roles:

1. Inform

2. Entertain

3. Educate 

4. Advertise

*Improvements in technology have increased the potential of the media to fulfill its roles

Characteristics of the Media

There are two types of media: Print Media and Electronic/Visual Media

Print Media- Words/images printed on paper. Examples include: newspapers, magazines, books, catalogues, event programs, trading cards

Electronic/Visual Media- Words/commentaries and images we receive through audio and or video internet. Examples include: radio, television, film, video games, the internet, cell phones

(Media)

(Media)

Social Media and Sports

I found this article when I was browsing on youtube: Social Media and Sports. The retired model, Helen Yee has her own talk show called the Social Media Show in Las Vegas and is on the radio every night from 9-10pm. She begins to go into detail about how important social media means to sports. She says that it is a faster way to know scores and important updates to tweet or get an involvement within the social media field. Sports are constantly evolving and things are always happening, so it is a huge part of social media. She has a passion for sports and talks about golf and different types of sport television broadcasts such as fox sports. Helen puts out her social media tag for twitter to hopefully obtain comments and information from her followers about sports and such. Social Media plays an important part in sports. If there weren't broadcasts or social media, how would we know what was going on in the sports world? I mean, back then there was radio and there still is today. How many people actually wished to know the exact event that was happening in a sports game at the time that it was playing? Social media and sports have evolved thoroughly throughout the decades and it still continues to evolve today. As stated in the notes, this video can go hand in hand with the linkage between sport and mass media. The notes state that the media depends on sport and there is much more then just sports but there is some dependence which includes movies, magazines, books, radios, newspapers and the internet. Also, the notes state that during the 19th century, sport was seen as a valuable experience in its own right. During the 20th century, sport became part of the entertainment industry. Today, sport is just a branch of the advertising industry. 

(Facebook Social Media)

(Instagram Social Media)

(Vine Social Media)

(Twitter Social Media)

Social Media Gains

As I was browsing through the Sports Business Journal, I came across an interesting article in the April 6th edition titled: MLB Social Media Gains. This article talks about the mass amount of social media gains that the MLB has received in the lead up to the upcoming season. The fact that Will Ferrell and other famous celebrities are tweeting and talking about sports, it makes individuals want to become involved with that team especially because Will Ferrell likes the team. Also, this creates a huge amount of publicity for the team and the athletes on the team. We discussed in class that the sport popularity is due to the massive amount of media coverage. The media can generate huge amounts of sales in advertising, such as celebrities talking about their favorite teams on social media. Below is the chart for the increase in the amount of social media gains. I find this chart interesting because every team on that list increased, whether it was by .01% or 14.2%. The increase in the social media will cause more individuals to pay attention to the MLB and other specific sports. I thought it was pretty cool that the Pittsburgh Pirates were in the top four for the amount of increase of social media gains at 10%.

(MLB social media growth chart)