Rowe’s (2007) examination of the role of Sports Journalism within
the Australian media aims to identify if sports journalism’s tag of news
media’s ‘toy department’ is fully justified.
The recent heart attack of soccer player Fabrice Muamba during an
English Premiere League game has been covered from many different angles and
allows us to discuss Rowe’s findings from the context of an uncommon sports story.
Text 1
Rowe,
D. (2007). Sports Journalism: Still the ‘toy department’ of news media?. Journalism: Theory, practice and criticism, 8 (4),
385-405. Retrieved from http://jou.sagepub.com.ezproxy.library.uq.edu.au/content/8/4/385.full.pdf
David Rowe, of the University of Western Sydney, uses data from
the International Sports Press Survey 2005 to determine if sports journalism’s
tag of the ‘toy department’ of news media is fully justified. The aim of the
study was to ‘address the role of sports journalists in the creation,
maintenance and enhancement of a sports celebrity system’ in an attempt to
disprove the ‘toy department thesis’ (Rowe, 2012, p385). From the survey and an
extensive analysis at its outcomes it was evident that sports journalism not
only provides a ‘critical inquiry into sport’ it also maintains a ‘relationship
with other major areas of society and culture’. Rowe concludes that this
information refutes the tag of the toy department.
While the article focuses on the Australian journalism realm, its
data and findings are relevant to any sports journalist around the world. This
is because it identifies the key areas, such as results, gender, spectators,
etc. that make up sports journalism on a universal basis. Its accuracy is
unquestionable, as a peer-reviewed journal the source is considered and
credible.
Of the three sources cited for this essay the article by Rowe is
arguably the most authoritative and balanced as it is written as an academic
paper. Consequently it has a basis of extensive research and sourcing other
academic literature. In contrast the three following articles are written as
news stories which aim to report on an event as opposed to act as a scholarly
paper.
Text 2
Buckingham,
L (2012). Soccer Star Suffers
Possible Heart Attack on Field. Fox 8
News. Retrieved from http://fox8.com/2012/03/17/soccer-star-suffers-possible-heart-attack-on-field/
This story of Fabrice Muamba’s mid game heart attack was released as
‘breaking news’, 3 hours after the incident had occurred by Lindsay Buckingham.
Buckingham uses the little information available about the incident, alongside
unrelated facts, such as Muamba’s contracts and previous similar event to
produce the article. Due to the small time space between the incident and the
publication of the news story, it can be assumed that the reliability of the
information is questionable. This is reinforced by the use of qualifying terms such
as ‘possible’ when referencing medical evaluations of Muamba.
Fox8 News is regarded as a highly commercialised and propaganda
media outlet. For this reason it can often be regarded as a biased
source. Because of the nature of commercial media, articles, such as this one,
can often be marked as disreputable or inaccurate. However it would be argued
that this is not the situation in this case. As the story is sensational enough
all that needs to be done is to present the facts of the event. Still due to
how immediate the release of the article was, the uncertainty of the facts and
the limited number available bring it under scrutiny.
While most may see the prominent news value as sport in this story
there are various other aspects incorporated. Rowe (2007) categorises the story
above as an ‘other coverage related to performance’ to incorporates other
aspects of society and social media. Not
only does the inclusion of other values of the news, such as health, help prove
Rowe’s hypothesis of eliminating the tag of ‘the toy department’, but it also enhances
the appeal of the article.
As the story contains various news values it increased its
priority of public and media agenda. Thus the ‘breaking news’ angle of the
story, is a critical element to obtain more attention from it audience.
Text 3
Winter, H
(2012). Fans won’t forget as football asks: how could this happen?. The Age. Retrieved from http://www.theage.com.au/sport/soccer/fans-wont-forget-as-football-asks-how-could-this-happen-20120319-1vega.html
Taking a more social, fan-based angle, The Age’s Henry Winter
incorporates the facts of Muamba’s heart attack with the impact upon the fans
to create a more ‘human interest piece’ as opposed to being straight sports
journalism. Although it still identifies the key details of the event its
primary focus is on how Muamba’s family and associates as well as how the
supporters of the game have reacted to the tragedy. As a ‘human interest piece’ it not only aims
to reach the supporters of Muamba and the game but also intends to capture a
wider audience of people who can in some way relate to the emotion portrayed
within the article.
The Age, as part of the Fairfax Organisation, although seen a
commercial media source takes the form of a social media outlet. Because of
this ‘social’ aspect, articles often take the form of ‘human interest pieces’ meaning
that stories can sometimes be exaggerated of soften depending on the angle that
is taken.
The format of the article varies significantly from Fox8 News’s
article. While containing vital information about the heart attack, the Age
fails to identify much information about the game in which it took place due to
the angle of the story they took. Instead focusing more on the people involved
and aiming to provoke emotion in the audience. This method increases the
publicity or response of the article but limits its reliability when
introducing emotion. This is evident when reading the article and seeing that a
large portion of is filled with photos and concerned words of fans and associates.
While the facts presented in the article are correct, in showing a softer side
of the story, bias is introduced.
Text 4
Fabrice
Muamba was ‘dead’ for 78 minutes – Bolton doctor (2012). BBC Sport. Retrieved from http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/17460781
Presenting the relevant facts, the BBC Sport’s article, looks at
the facts related to Muamba’s heart attack midgame. Released 4 days after the
incident, it goes into depth into what occurred on field and the aftermath that
followed. While providing a factual account of the event it also identifies key
points that are of particular interest to the audience, specifically that
Muamba was technically dead of 78 minutes.
As the BBC is generally considered to be a highly regarded public
news source, it is seen by many as more reputable. Thus because of the history of the BBC and
the factual form that the article takes, its credibility is strengthened. The time span it took to release this article,
4 days, indicates that they wanted to obtain all the facts.
When compared to both the Fox8 News and The Age’s articles it
would be regarded as a more reliable source of information. This is because that it predominantly focuses
on the facts of the event and when quoting information on the attack it is
taken directly from a medical professional instead of through the words of
others, which the previous articles have done. Unlike the other sources which a
tailored to have an intended angle of the story (‘breaking news’ or ‘human
interest’) the fact that the story is focusing solely on the events and as
opposed to photos includes a timeline of the treatment that occurred. This
insures the reliability of the source and eliminates the possibility of bias
within the article.
