Reinforcing Racial Stereotypes in Media

Reinforcing Racial Stereotypes in Media: On-‐Air Announcing

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Reinforcing Racial Stereotypes in Media: Content Analysis of Athlete Descriptions in

College Basketball and College Football Announcing

William Benson

University of Minnesota-‐Morris

Dr. Barbara Burke, Dr. Peter Koprince


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Reinforcing Racial Stereotypes in Media: Content Analysis of Athlete Descriptions in

College Basketball and College Football Announcing

Topic Rationale

The issue of race within sports media often finds itself in the crosshairs. The

discourse begins with a literature review of related “racialized” sports commentary

and audience studies. The related research gets to the root of two very polar racial

stereotypes: African-‐American athletes have innate athletic skill and Caucasian

athletes are more intelligent (Buffington et al., 2008). Although disregarded in our

modern ethics of society, these stereotypes can find a foothold subliminally in

today’s sports media and on-‐air commentary.

Having media within any platform eliciting stereotypes is dangerous in our

society today. Sports are now interwoven with modern culture; many controversies

receive heightened mediated exposure (Hartmann, 2007). The power of the media

dictates a level of public opinion, and can be dangerous if operating as an unchecked

gatekeeper. Focusing in on the sports media landscape, the potential for off-‐the-‐cuff

racialized remarks exists primarily in live sports broadcasts and commentaries

(Calvert, 2012). There is an impromptu nature to this media distribution, and time

constraints increase the likelihood that undertones of a hidden agenda emerge.

Communication scholars address concerns when the media releases

supposedly impartial reporting or journalism, but contains the outlet’s agenda

clearly or beneath the surface. This allows communications and media studies to


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explore the intentions of the messages the public receives, and the potential for

unprofessional publications or descriptions. Scholars within the communications

and media discipline and other members of the media need to hold reporting to a

higher standard. In today’s society, it is more than just a message; there is a constant

process of analyzing and evaluating the underlying motives of media products.

Examining this field of research and discourse enables the public to think critically

about the messages the media provides, and addresses the potential effects of

emerging racism in modern society.

Literature Review: Theoretical Framework & Background

Sports are commonly viewed as an opportunity for equality and success to

minorities; however, media portrayals of these athletes continue to experience

problems. Examining men’s sports indicates that African-‐American and Caucasian

athletes are often presented in a “”black brawn vs. white brains” distinction

(Jackson, 1989). The literature presents African-‐American players as natural

athletes with superior physical skills such as speed, strength and jumping ability,

where Caucasian players are commended for mental ability and skills such as hard

work and leadership talents (Jackson, 1989).

Hartmann (2007) pinpoints racism at its most dangerous in examining the

controversy surrounding the comments of newly appointed ESPN studio

commentator Rush Limbaugh during NFL Countdown on former Philadelphia Eagles

quarterback Donovan McNabb in 2003. Limbaugh stated that the media was

desirous for an African-‐American quarterback and favored McNabb because he was


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black (Hartmann, 2007). After the comments, rather than confront the racist

remark, the rest of the NFL Countdown crew, including Chris Berman, Cris Carter,

and Tom Jackson, sat idly by. It took several days until McNabb stated that it is sad

when race gets brought into sports that the media truly went after Limbaugh, and

was forced to resign. This demonstrates how racial discourse in modern media can

slide through into public messages if left unchecked. Hartmann states the focus on

the media responses demonstrates,

“How deeply engrained and largely unrealized the discourses and ideologies

that perpetuate White cultural power and social privilege are in the

American sporting establishment and its attendant media” (Hartmann,

2007).

Race is not the only controversial attribute discussed in sports commentaries

throughout scholarly discourse. The media’s ability to frame a particular athlete’s

attributes that allow success warrants further exploration. For example, research

analysis was conducted of NBC’s coverage of the 2012 London Olympic Summer

Games to examine differences between attributions of success, failure, and

personality or physicality within male gymnasts and other male Olympic

competitors (MacArthur, Angelini, Billings, & March, 2014). The relationship of

broadcaster dialogues and the divergence between male gymnasts and other male

athletic counterparts in other sports indicates the gradual accumulation of framing

in broadcasts that can lead to shaping perceived social realities. The media may not


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be able to tell people what to think, but are successful in telling people what to think

about (MacArthur et al., 2014).

Other avenues of research explore other cultures’ media, such as the racial

discourse of Brazilian sports media in the World Cups. Metaphors are part of the

daily language used by the Brazilian sports media (Silva et al., 2012). This research

looks to find potential negative representations spread with subtle language in the

Brazilian sports media when addressing colored soccer players through the use of

metaphors (Silva et al., 2012). This highlights the levels of acceptability within

different cultures and media.

Racial discrimination today does not solely find dwelling in on-‐air sports

broadcasts. Print media still holds influence in the public despite the advances of

television and the Internet. Focusing on the understudied medium, Calvert (2014)

wanted to discern how African-‐American and Caucasian athletes are portrayed and

whether stereotypes in other media platforms transfer to newspaper. Calvert

examined racial rhetoric within the sports section of the USA Today newspaper over

a 12-‐day period, with findings having an indication that the newspaper displayed

athletes more objectively in relation to personal performance and statistics (Calvert,

2014).

One trend that existed was that African-‐American athletes are more often

depicted than Caucasian athletes as getting in trouble based on the data (Calvert,

2014). The results were logical based on the nature of the newspaper compared to

other forms of news media. Broadcasting is quick, in the moment dialogue, allowing


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more potential racial bias. Magazines are less formal, and tend to focus more on

personality and character of the athletes (Calvert, 2014). Print media’s

comprehensive editorial process reduces the risk of perpetuating prior racial

stereotypes in discourse. Nonetheless, racially charged language still can exist in

print media without consistent analysis of the perceptions carried in journalism.

Denham (et al., 2002) looks at a specific case study of the 2000 Men and

Women’s Final Four basketball tournaments, and differential accounts of race in

broadcast commentary. Denham presents a “comparative content analysis of

announcer commentary… [and] provided an appropriate heuristic for the study of

race descriptors” Results of the content analysis demonstrated, “while black athletes

continue to be praised for their athleticism and physicality, they also are receiving a

greater number of comments about their intelligence and ability to lead” (Denham,

Billings, Halone, 2002).

Billings (2004) conducted a content analysis to examine the possibility that

sportscasters still use a double standard when commentating on athletes with

different ethnic backgrounds. He based research off of a Rada (1996) study, with

results indicating if the player was Caucasian, sportscasters put an increased focus

of the cerebral attributes of the player (cognitive qualities). If the player was

African-‐American, the focus was on body size and strength of the given athlete

(Rada, 1996). Billings looked at 162 hours of collegiate and professional football

games, focusing on the descriptors of African-‐American and Caucasian

quarterbacks. The results indicated no differential treatment was discovered in


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terms of the likelihood an African-‐American or Caucasian athlete is to be

complemented for being smarter. Stereotypes still held true in the area of perceived

athletic skill, however (Billings, 2004).

The way the media can frame a story to make one aspect more noticeable,

while ignoring other aspects is important to consider. Mercurio (et al., 2010)

provided a content analysis on the written descriptions of NFL quarterback

prospects featured on the “NFL Draft” section of the Sports Illustrated website

SI.com from 1998-‐2007. Results confirmed the idea that the media’s portrayal of

these draft prospects can lead to a repetitive pattern of social learning for both

public media consumers and sports journalists who continue to extend the

stereotypes in their coverage (Mercurio, Filak, 2010). The constant framing by the

media that African-‐American and Caucasian quarterbacks have certain traits can

lead to cumulative negative perceptions, in which the public comes to accept as

reality.

Sports broadcast commentary in American mass media is often taken for

granted today; we currently hear in-‐game analysis from announcers as just a

byproduct of the game and audience appeal. However, Rada (1997) states

establishing social norms in this particular form of media can lead the way for

stereotyping to fly under the radar. Sports commentators maintain the

responsibility of “having to inform and entertain… often without the time to choose

words carefully may… dredge up comments based on subconscious beliefs, images,


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attitudes, and values” (Rada, 1997). Race logic is evident in specific case studies

examinations even today, questioning funneled perceptions of race from those

delivering these sport mediated broadcasts.

If these broadcasters have established credibility in the field, listeners are

generally influenced and the dialogue holds elements of persuasion through this

reputation. Denham (2002), Billings (2004), and Mercurio (et al., 2010) paved the

way for the continuation of this type of research. This research narrowed its scope

to strictly Division I college basketball and college football athletes, and looked

directly at the source of media with the highest potential for off-‐the-‐cuff racialized

discourse: in-‐game announcing. I expanded the research pool to all positions, not

distinctly quarterbacks as in the Mercurio (et al. 2010) content analysis. I also

examined solely the two most predominant races (African-‐American and Caucasian)

in college football and basketball in order to limit the number of variables.

Research Questions

Previous research on race and descriptions made by the media provides a

basis for this study. Using current examples from the major college sports world,

this analysis examines on-‐air announcing as a population to add research to the

relationships within this field of study. After reviewing previous relevant discourse,

the following research questions were formulated:


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RQ1: When discussing athletes in on-‐air broadcast commentary in terms of

cerebral and physical abilities, how are Caucasian athletes portrayed?

RQ2: When discussing athletes in on-‐air broadcast commentary in terms of

cerebral and physical abilities, how are African-‐American athletes portrayed?

Theoretical Connection

Although this communication research is not directly based off of a theory,

there is relevant theoretical framework surrounding the subject matter within Dr.

George Gerbner’s cultivation theory. Gerbner’s cultivation theory maintains a

primary proposition stating that “the more time people spend ‘living’ in the

television world, the more likely they are to believe social reality portrayed on

television” (Cohen, 2000). This gradual process relates to framing theory, in which

the media focuses attention on certain events and then places them within a field of

meaning. Both framing and cultivation theories suggest how something is presented

to the audience influences the perception of the message (Davie, 2010).

However, cultivation theory is broader and applied more gradually over

time. The theory is really related to the argument about the importance and

relevancy of this field of research. Solely, cultivation theory does not go to explain a

great deal, other than these racialized remarks lead to cumulative mediated effects

that are carried down over time. These effects then influence the announcers

subconsciously. Cultivation theory provides the basis of the notion that when the


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public hears announcers discussing players, the commentary gradually influences

the audience in small ways over time. The audience’s innate perception gives the

media power and influence.

Methodology

After viewing the related research literature, I conducted a content analysis

of on-‐air commentary of college basketball and college football games in 2014-‐2015.

Twenty collegiate games (ten basketball and ten football) were analyzed for the

study. College athletics were chosen for analysis because there are a better spread

of African-‐American and Caucasian athletes in comparison to professional

basketball and football. College football and basketball are generally the only two

college sports that generate significant income and revenues for schools, often

funding the entire athletic department. Most of the revenues come from television

contracts (Gaines, 2012). In the college sports world, funding correlates directly

with influence.

The games were selected as part of a convenience sample, looking at

competition from October 2014 to March 2015. Commentary from network-‐

employed individuals was the only on-‐air text included in the content analysis. For

the purposes of the study, discourse from players, coaches, and fans were not

included. The race of each athlete with an on-‐air player description was determined

by numerous techniques, including a simple eye test and conducting Internet


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searches and research of demographic information on the players when

inconclusive.

In order to test the research questions, I examined each player description

for any word or phrase that illustrated athleticism, intelligence or effort attributes.

This study’s variables looked specifically at the differences in rhetoric between

African-‐American and Caucasian athlete descriptions. Data was entered into the

coding database into one of five distinct categories:

(a) Positive Physical characteristics (e.g., “he’s got a huge arm” Bryce Petty –

Baylor QB),

(b) Positive Mental characteristics (“shot preparation is excellent” Bryce

Alford – UCLA PG),

(c) Negative Physical characteristics (“not the most physical dominant pass

protector” Jay Ajayi – Boise State RB),

(d) Negative Mental characteristics (“makes some mistakes in his reads and

decision making” CJ Brown – Maryland QB), and

(e) Effort characteristics, including determination, toughness, dedication, and

intangibles (“you got a couple junkyard dog types on the floor” Trey

McDonald – Ohio State C).

Neutral commentary or descriptions that do not fit the categories of

athleticism or intelligence were not included in the analysis. Only attributes were

examined for this study. Statistics and demographic information were excluded.


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Each comment depicting athleticism, intelligence, or effort was recorded in the

coding, along with the name and race of the given athlete. The recorded

commentary discourse was then placed into one of the five provided categories.

After all player descriptions were completed and coded, a 10% random check

of the coder’s total results were done by the researcher to test intercoder reliability.

Two fellow coders were used to analyze the player descriptor in the data. This

process was implemented by having the fellow coders conduct analysis on one of

the coded basketball games and one of the football games with me. The chosen

games for the 10% check were based on convenience and chosen at random. The

coders were given basic training on the methodology in order to be familiar with the

positive and negative descriptions associated with athleticism and intelligence.

Subsequently, the intercoder reliability check’s similarity demonstrated the

effectiveness of the provided coding scheme. After all of the coding and the 10%

random check of the total results were completed, the statistical results were

charted for analysis.

Results

The separate college basketball and college football coding results are as

follows. The data consists of 138 total player descriptors in basketball and 200

player descriptors in football. Under African-‐American descriptors in basketball,

positive physical characteristics were by far the most prevalent at nearly 50% of all

attributes (49.4%, N=43). In African-‐American descriptors in football, positive


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physical attributes were also the most common (60%, N=72). For Caucasian

attributes in both basketball and football, positive mental characteristics were the

most frequent (Basketball: 45.1%, N=23 and Football: 40%, N=32). For negative

physical attributes in both sports, results indicated little difference (Basketball:

3.4%-‐5.9% and Football: 5.8%-‐6.3%). Negative mental characteristics percentages

were also very similar in the results for both sports (Basketball: 8.0%-‐9.8% and

Football: 7.5% for each race). Finally, after examining the data for the final coding

category, effort, results also indicated fairly little variance in regards to race for both

sports (Basketball: 13.7%-‐17.2% and Football: 10%-‐21.3%). The statistical

tabulation for each individual sport and combined results are provided below.

Basketball: (N=138)

Football: (N=200)


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Combined Results (N=338)

Discussion

The results of this study indicate prior racial stereotypes can still find a

foothold in today’s live media commentary. The data shows that African-‐American

athletes in college football and basketball are referred to at twice the rate of

Caucasian athletes when portraying positive physical characteristics, while

Caucasian athletes are portrayed at twice the rate of African-‐Americans as having

positive mental attributes. It is easy to reveal overt and blatant forms of modern

racism, but these findings reveal a dangerous trend, with repetitious but less

graphic examples of discrimination in regards to physical and cerebral abilities of

African-‐American and Caucasian athletes. I believe that if these athletes are

portrayed under these categories at over double the rate as the other ethnic

background, this extends far beyond the role of a genetic predisposition. The

findings presented indicate a troublesome pattern.


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The similarities in the rates of negative physical and negative mental

characteristic descriptors for both races are also telling. In college athletics,

commentary strives to remain objective, with far less of an emphasis in terms of

negative analysis of individual players than the professional game. These are college

students and unpaid athletes, and despite many lucrative athletic scholarships

offered, announcers have a responsibility not to individually scrutinize a player.

These findings indicate that overall, commentators are successful in this objective.

The findings shows very low amounts of negative attributes, ranging from eight to

sixteen coded descriptors in the combined data. The effort and intangibles coding

category was slightly more spread out than the negative descriptors, but still

remained within about 5% in the combined data for each race. The Caucasian

athletes were depicted at a slightly higher percentage rate, which possibly could

signify announcers are compensating for the overwhelming amount of positive

physical descriptors attributed to African-‐American players.

This is further troublesome when looking at the cultivation theory’s effect on

the audience perceptions of these messages. This constant referral by the

commentators of African-‐Americans as physical talented but less intelligent in

comparison to Caucasians teaches the public to look for these aspects in the course

of a game. The gradual accumulation of these messages over time becomes

subconsciously ingrained in the audience’s heads, leading to racialized thought

patterns. On the other side, when fans witness a mistake by a Caucasian athlete, for


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example, the audience may have a higher likelihood to attribute the error on a lack

of physical skill, rather than lower cognitive abilities. The media has influence in

dictating the transfer of these old racial stereotypes. Subliminally, racism then finds

the ability to grab a foothold in modern society, hidden in the nooks and crannies of

trends in live athletic commentary.

Despite the fact that the findings supported the aforementioned research

questions, there are indeed limitations to this research. I was the sole, independent

coder of the data, resulting in a reliance on my personal discretion of which

descriptors counted, and which category best fit the piece of commentary. There is

an unequal representation of different races in NCAA athletics; for example, there

are not many basketball teams with a precise even number of African-‐American and

Caucasian players. In the results, the percentages are relevant and telling, but it is

important to note there were a greater number of African-‐Americans in the coded

games than Caucasians. Negative player descriptors are also uncommon in college

sports, leading to a skew leaning towards positive attribute descriptions. Finally,

player descriptors can fit into multiple categories, making it sometimes difficult to

determine the best coding fit.

This field of research offers plenty of future avenues of discourse. Beyond

live in game announcing, exploring multiple media platforms adds substance to the

field, including print, magazine, television shows, and social media. Instead of

examining in game player descriptors, you could analyze coaches’ dialogue or the


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media’s descriptions of coaches in relation to their respective ethnic background.

Different sports than basketball and football, different races than Africa-‐American

and Caucasian, or different competition levels than college sports could be examined

and studied. Examining potential gender differences under a similar coding scheme

merits further exploration, and other live commentary forms could be researched,

such as radio or podcasts.


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Reinforcing Racial Stereotypes in Media