SPORTS AND BROADCASTING
What do you think about this excerpt of the article I gave you in class? How much the media and advertising have changed the way we watch sports today?
Televised Sports and "Real World" Sports
Fans may watch televised sports for many of these reasons, but this involvment is not without its costs. Here the difference between sports and television's other forms of programming becomes clearer. That is, unlike soap operas and situation comedies, sports exist apart from television. Major league baseball, for example, was born before radio was invented and developed its rules, traditions, nature and character apart from television. Moreover, sports are played in front of and for paying customers. This produces two important tensions. First, what have sports lost and gained from their wedding to television? Second, what have fans lost and gained?
The gains might be obvious. The leagues and athletes have prospered. More and more teams and tournaments are played in more and more cities and fill more and more television screens. Television has helped create tremendous interest and excitement for the public, turning the Super Bowl, for example, into something akin to a national celebration.
Television has also been instrumental in changing sports in other not-so-obvious ways, for example in the alteration, even the destruction, of traditional college sports conferences. In February 1994 four schools, The University of Texas, Texas A and M, Texas Tech and Baylor, left the 80 year old Southwest Conference to join another regional conference, the Big Eight. One goal was to cash in on ABC's promise to pay the newly expanded league between $85 million and $90 million for the next five years, with the promise of an additional $10 million if this new football "super-conference" developed a play-off.
Such a view might be attributed to no more than nostalgia, a common aspect of sports in any medium. And certainly different critics' lists might vary. But here are several other "concessions" that fans and the games themselves have made to television: 1) games moved to awkward times of day to satisfy television schedules, ignoring fans who've bought tickets; 2) giant video screens in arenas and stadiums; 3) alteration of game rules, as in the creation of the "TV time-out" for television commercials; 4) free agency for players and consequent moves to the "highest bidder;" 5) pro teams moving to better "markets;" 6) wild-card games designed to increase playoff partipants; 7) expanded playoffs; 8) the 40-second shot clock in the NFL; 9) the designated hitter in the American League; 10) over-expansion in the professional leagues; 11) salary caps; 12) umpire and officials strikes; 13) recruiting abuses as college teams chase television riches; 14) the playing of World Series games at night in freezing October weather (Game 7 of the 1994 Series was scheduled for October 30); 15) electric lights in Wrigley Field. And 16) players strikes and lock-outs.
source: Stanley J. Baran
www.museum.tv/archives
Televised Sports and "Real World" Sports
Fans may watch televised sports for many of these reasons, but this involvment is not without its costs. Here the difference between sports and television's other forms of programming becomes clearer. That is, unlike soap operas and situation comedies, sports exist apart from television. Major league baseball, for example, was born before radio was invented and developed its rules, traditions, nature and character apart from television. Moreover, sports are played in front of and for paying customers. This produces two important tensions. First, what have sports lost and gained from their wedding to television? Second, what have fans lost and gained?
The gains might be obvious. The leagues and athletes have prospered. More and more teams and tournaments are played in more and more cities and fill more and more television screens. Television has helped create tremendous interest and excitement for the public, turning the Super Bowl, for example, into something akin to a national celebration.
Television has also been instrumental in changing sports in other not-so-obvious ways, for example in the alteration, even the destruction, of traditional college sports conferences. In February 1994 four schools, The University of Texas, Texas A and M, Texas Tech and Baylor, left the 80 year old Southwest Conference to join another regional conference, the Big Eight. One goal was to cash in on ABC's promise to pay the newly expanded league between $85 million and $90 million for the next five years, with the promise of an additional $10 million if this new football "super-conference" developed a play-off.
Such a view might be attributed to no more than nostalgia, a common aspect of sports in any medium. And certainly different critics' lists might vary. But here are several other "concessions" that fans and the games themselves have made to television: 1) games moved to awkward times of day to satisfy television schedules, ignoring fans who've bought tickets; 2) giant video screens in arenas and stadiums; 3) alteration of game rules, as in the creation of the "TV time-out" for television commercials; 4) free agency for players and consequent moves to the "highest bidder;" 5) pro teams moving to better "markets;" 6) wild-card games designed to increase playoff partipants; 7) expanded playoffs; 8) the 40-second shot clock in the NFL; 9) the designated hitter in the American League; 10) over-expansion in the professional leagues; 11) salary caps; 12) umpire and officials strikes; 13) recruiting abuses as college teams chase television riches; 14) the playing of World Series games at night in freezing October weather (Game 7 of the 1994 Series was scheduled for October 30); 15) electric lights in Wrigley Field. And 16) players strikes and lock-outs.
source: Stanley J. Baran
www.museum.tv/archives
posted by ulises at 10:02 PM
5 Comments:
I think that TV has changed the way sports fans see the games. It makes it easier for more fans to watch the games than before. It's also cost effective to watch the games on TV, instead of paying for tickets to see games played live. However, with more fans from farther places than games are played, sports corporations have created bigger stadiums that end up costing fans more money to see a game.
As I have mentioned before I personally do not care for sports. I think they all get paid too much money to play a game, but that in turn also has to do with advertising and the media. Sports, I do admit, does have positive aspects as far as teaching discipline, responsibilty, edurance and focus, just to name a few. There is an underlying passion for those who become interesed in playing sports or those who just get into their favorite team as a source of local or national pride. When it is broadcasted on television that is a good thing because for many people who cannot afford to go to arenas or stadiums, it allows for them to still be involved in the action. But as Nathalia Alvarez mentioned, even atempting to go to one of these games will cost someone big bucks(and that is for the tickets alone, food and beverage will cost as much as the tickets) because of investments in the team whether it be for stadiums or even player salaries. Advertisers also play a big part by hiring specific players from teams to advertise their product increasing the popularity of the player and their product. That then kind of pressures players as well as tam management to try and market the team and its players as sort of "products" themselves attempting to increase the attendance and viewership of that team. I do still think that there is a form of purity for the love of any sport when the viewer is watching the game, but I also believe advertising and media also desensitizes the player from that enjoyment. The team becomes a sort of corporation. No touchdown, homerun or slam dunk is the equivalent of no sale and your stock immediately goes down.
What struck me the most is that many sports are not suited for television, so we the consumers lose. These sports are not covered as much as other sports, so we have limited options. We just don't experience these other sports the same way or we don't try to go out and practice them, because when we see it on television it seems boring. For example, golf. I have always thought it to be the most boring sport on the planet, but maybe I just think and feel this way, because it looks boring on television.
I love television, I think it is a great medium when it is utilized properly, but like all technology, I feel it drags us way from life. Maybe we might not explore as much, because everything we want to know we can find on the computer or on television.
I just hope that all this technology does not numb our minds.
The history of broadcasting and the evolution of television and digital technology has placed a big impact on the way in which sports is showed on televsion. Sports is a big business. The viewership and Nielson ratings are very high especially during playoffs and championship finals. The networks and the advertisers need each other. They depend on the fans being dedicated to watching the games whatever time it is being showed. It is sad that the fans that like to see the games in person must do so in awkward times. It's because of these awkward times that student miss school and truent officers come knocking on your door because a camera panned to the audience and you were spotted at the game. The little guys (the fans) are always the ones to pay. If the fans decided to go on strike I believe we would be better appreciated. Without the fans, the sport teams would not be able to pay their players. Without the fans, the advertisers would not have their products viewed. This would become evident by the ratings. Without the fans tuning in on their favorite sport station, they will lose money to stations that are not broadcasting sports games. Instead of the fans being the ones to deal with the concessions, every one will lose.
While televising sports events has brought about some problems for the players and others involved, it is also primarily responsible for the world-wide support of these sports. Without televised broadcasting many people would not follow these sports, especially those who could not afford to buy tickets. In order for sports to have the support that they do today, it is necessary that some things about the games be compromised, such as the TV time-outs and large TV screens. I, personally, think that the broadcasting of sports on TV has been a great improvement on the sports world rather than a detractor.
-Jacquelyn Haas
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