Legacy Media: The History and its Role in Shaping Sport-Media Relationships

Historical Overview: The Relationship and Power Dynamics

Traditional legacy media, encompassing newspapers, radio and television, has played a pivotal role in shaping the relationship between sport and media. As this relationship has evolved, the two have created a mutually beneficial dynamic where sports provide compelling content whilst media offers unparalleled exposure (Gantz & Lewis, 2014). This dynamic has followed a one directional hierarchical model where mass media has authoritative power and high influence on the audience, allowing them to control the narrative of what is received by the passive audience (McQuail & Deuze, 2020). The media’s embrace of sport content was driven by unique characteristics of sport such as audience loyalty, real content unpredictability, international accessibility and the cost-effectiveness of sport’s continuous content.

Newspapers: The Foundation of Sport Media Coverage

In the early 1980s, newspapers began to recognise the potential of sport content to captivate audiences, leading to increased competition among journalists for exclusive stories and insights surrounding athletes and teams (Wanta, 2006).  As sport began to grow in newspaper coverage, readers became united through common narratives covering local and national sports fostering a sense of identity among readers in what Benedict Anderson conceptualised as ‘imagined communities’ (Ay, 2017).

Although sport was popular across both genders, the power dynamics of mass media reflected societal biases with men’s sport dominating headlines which were typically written by male journalists, perhaps demonstrating some origins of stereotypes regarding the legitimacy of women’s sport with their limited visibility (Wanta, 2009).  

The growth of sports coverage in newspapers was somewhat in conjunction with the revolutionising introduction of live radio broadcasting. By the late 1920s, radio broadcasting of sport became widespread within the Unites States boosting from one in 400 households to one in three within ten years (Owens, 2006). As radios became more widely available, sports consumers were brought closer to the action with live play-by-play commentary which created a sense of immediacy and intimacy among listeners who could feel more personally connected to sporting events (Huggins, 2007).

As this trend grew among sport fans, sport organizers initially resisted live broadcasting with concerns of revenue loses from ticket sales. This stance changed however as, funded by advertisements, broadcasters commonly purchased rights to air games, solidifying radio broadcasting’s role in sport consumption and commercialisation (Owens, 2006).

Television: Enhancing the Spectacle

The introduction of live televised sport arguably became the most influential medium in the sport-media relationship, captivating global audiences by the mid-20^th century (Lever & Wheeler, 1993). The introduction of live television coverage of sport further contributed to the commercialisation of sport, attracting large audiences of loyal viewers who were less likely to switch channels, making them ideal for advertisement (Whannel, 2000).

This digital transformation revolutionised the way in which sport could be consumed outside of the stadium giving fans the chance to watch games live, whilst offering post-match videos for those who could not watch the game live. This added layers of visual representation to radio broadcasting, shaping audience perceptions through selective storytelling with visuals, as seen in the first ever broadcasting of BBC’s Match of the Day:

Traditional legacy media- newspapers, radio and television- has shaped the sport-media relationship enhancing sports cultural, economic and social impact. From the localised storytelling of newspapers, to the real-time personal intimacy of radio and the global spectacle of television, the mass media have laid the foundation for today’s sports landscape. With the growth of social media and new consumption models breaking down hierarchical power, does the mass media still hold the same power and control over what passive audiences receive? Don’t miss our next post where we will be discussing just that.