Deviant Behavior Not Unexpected for Bryant

In my March 29th and 31st American Sport in the 21st century class we talked about deviance in sport.  We defined deviance as an act/ person that differs from the norm, especially behavior or attitudes that differ from acceptable social standards.  Before even discussing this topic in class I was fairly familiar with deviance in sport because as a fan I am used to hearing about athletes getting into trouble on and off the field.  The class discussion made me think of a situation that unfolded a month ago that directly effects on of my favorite sports teams the Pittsburgh Steelers.  The situation that I am referring to is the year long suspension of Steelers' wide receiver, Martavis Bryant, for violating the the NFL's substance abuse policy.  Here is the article that I read to make some connections to the aspects of deviance in sport, that we discussed in my class:

http://www.post-gazette.com/sports/steelers/2016/03/14/NFL-announces-Martavis-Bryant-will-serve-1-year-suspension-immediately/stories/201603140138

The first connection that I made made to the class discussion, which was obvious, was the use of illegal drugs in, in this case marijuana, by a high profile athlete.  The second connection that I made to the class discussion was, what is deviant outside of sports may be acceptable inside of sports.  Bryant's suspension actually shows the opposite end of the spectrum, because over the last few years the use of marijuana has been decriminalized and some of the negative public perception of marijuana has started to go in the opposite direction, but it is still not allowed to be used by players in the NFL.  The final connection that I made to the class discussion was, that leagues are enforcing stricter rules and handing out bigger suspensions for drug policy violations.  In Martavis Bryant's case he was suspended for the first 4 games of this past season for violating the substance abuse policy and as a repeat offender he was handed a year long suspension without pay.  Since this suspension was handed out Bryant has checked into a rehab facility and is said to  be suffering from depression, which shows the negative effects of engaging in deviant acts.  Colin Cowherd did a great job of pointing out just how hard it is to find a high profile athlete that has not displayed some form of deviance during their careers, video below:

These examples are not to say that all athletes are deviant.  In fact, the general society is a far more deviant environment than sport, but this information does further display how sport mirrors society.

Media Influence in March Madness

In my March 22nd American Sport in the 21st Century class we discussed the relationship between sport and the media.  We talked about how closely related the two entities are, and once again I found myself thinking about the Men's NCAA basketball tournament and how it is related to a lot of the topics we discussed in class.  Here is a link to the article on CBS' widely popular selection show for the tournament, that I pulled the following connections from.


http://www.sportsbusinessdaily.com/Journal/Issues/2016/03/14/In-Depth/Selection-Show.aspx

The first connection that I made was regarding stereotypical ideologies in the media and it is not directly mentioned in the article and required thinking about the scope of the basketball landscape, and that's the point.  The selection show that CBS has for the Men's tournament is 2 hours long, and features tons of analysis and predictions based on the match ups that are revealed.  I would be hard pressed to find any sport programming on the women's tournament that lasts more than 30 minutes.  This demonstrates the extreme favoritism of male sports in America.  The second connection that I made was the role of the media that focuses a huge amount on entertainment and advertisement.  When CBS started their selection show, in 1980, it was 30 minutes long and now in 2016 it is 2 hours long.  Why?  Because the demand and interest in the tournament kept getting larger and larger over time, and with the growing popularity CBS turned the show into more than just announcing the bracket.  They added an extra hour an a half of in depth analysis to give viewers more information for selecting teams when they fill out their own brackets, and because of the amount of eyeballs watching this show CBS is able to make a huge amount of money selling advertising.  The last connection that I made was that commercial sport depends on the media.  When we talked about this in class we posed the question, "Has commercial sports sold out to the media?"  By the expansion of the selection shows I think that answer is yes.  Also, the fact the we call it "commercial" sport I think immediately means yes because they need the media to sell their product.  The bottom line is sports and the media have a mutually beneficial relationship, and in most cases sport needs the media more than the media needs sport.

Colin Cowherd hosts a national radio show on Fox Sports 1 and did a great job of outlining the media's influence in an event like March Madness, video below:

The Economic Impact of March Madness

With the NCAA Men's Final Four set to take place next weekend I thought the tournament was a perfect example to use to demonstrate sport and the economy's relationship to one another.  On March 15th in my American Sport in the 21st Century class, we discussed sport and the economy.  We outlined how money is foundation of sports at all levels, and the various aspects of how economics drives sport.  After looking through a few different articles on tournament, I found an article from Forbes that I thought incorporated a lot of what we talked about in my class.  Here is a link to the article:

http://www.forbes.com/sites/simonogus/2016/03/17/the-economic-impact-of-the-ncaa-basketball-tournament-from-first-four-to-final-four/#4c85c1d8d438

The first connection that I made after reading this article was a sport entity using their status as a monopoly to negotiate huge media rights fees for the Tournament.  CBS/ Turner spent an estimated $10-$11 billion dollars on their current deal to broadcast the tournament.  The second connection I made to my class discussion was that owners (in this case universities & conferences) benefit economically from sport.  The conferences participating in the tournament got a cut of $205 million between the media rights and ticket sales produced from the tournament.  The last connection that I made was public assistance being provided for team owners (in this case the City Houston).  The state of Texas gave the city of Houston an $8 million dollar subsidy to help aid in putting on the Final Four.  This is a case of people who do not necessarily care about a sport having to pay to help put an event on.  The economic benefit comes from the $300 million in revenue the city expects to make during the Final Four.  Pittsburgh radio personality, Mark Madden, did a good job of explaining the real goal of the NCAA tournament in a blog post where he was ranting about bracketologists (link below). 

http://www.1059thex.com/onair/mark-madden-25939/wtf-is-a-bracketologist-14484392/

In my opinion there is no denying that all levels and especially high levels of sport are entirely driven by money.

Elmira Jackals Youth Hockey Association See's the Benefits of the ADM Program

In my classes on February 11 and 16, 2016 we talked about the current state and structure of Youth Sport in the United States.  We looked at how organizations have become increasingly privatized, that there is an over emphasis on winning, and how many youths burnout from specializing in one sport too early on.  Although Youth Sport in America has many problems facing the participants, there are still some governing bodies and private associations that understand the correct way to develop young athletes in this country. The Elmira Jackals Youth Hockey Association, for example, has seen an improvement in their player’s abilities and popularity of their teams since switching to USA Hockey’s American Development Model (ADM) a few years ago. Below is the link explaining the Jackal’s approach to using the ADM model in their organization. 

http://www.usahockey.com/news_article/show/620617?referrer_id=752796

The first connection I drew from the article that related to my classes discussion was the trend in youth sport puts a strong emphasis on performance.  The Jackals are doing the opposite with the ADM model because in their mini-mite program the article states that, "Basic skills are taught in a non-competitive environment with fun and physical development stressed within a more social atmosphere".  The second connection that I made was in regards to Youth Sport programs becoming increasingly privatized.  Once again the Jackals are making an effort to combat this with their try-hockey-for-free days, where participants with minimal skating experience get a chance to learn to skate and some basics of the game.  This is so valuable in a sport like hockey where situation often dictates the ability to play.  The third connection that I made was recognition young kids should not be worrying about specialization because it can cause them to burnout and it can hurt their overall athletic development.  

Here is a video that explains what the ADM model is all about:

Do you think that organizations that are transitioning to the ADM model are a good thing for youth hockey in America?  

Pope Francis Wants to Use Sport to Change Culture

Pop Francis’ initiative to use sports to bring about social change throughout the world with his “Sports at the Service of Humanity” conference seems to be a promising idea for the future of sport and society.  In my American Sport in the 21^st Century class on February 9, 2016 my class discussed sport and socialization.  Socialization is the active process of learning the culture of a society and in sport there are 4 socialization agents that shape how people learn about sport.  The agents are family, peers, school, and community. The article I read on this conference was from the Sports Business Journal.

http://www.sportsbusinessdaily.com/Journal/Issues/2016/01/25/Sports-in-Society/Pope-Francis.aspx

The article outlined that the Pope’s plan to have the “Sport at the Service of Humanity” conference, will bring together 150 of the world’s sport, government, and religious leaders who will discuss ways to grow school, sports, and jobs around the world. The first connection I made between the article and class discussion on socialization was family.  I believe this because religion is a big part of many families in not only the United States, but also around the world.  The second connection that I made between the article and class discussion was the focus on school.  School is one of the focuses of this conference and it is a major socialization agent in everyone's lives so whatever comes of this conference can have a positive impact.  Finally, the last connection that I made between the article and my classes' discussion was peers.  I believe these are also connected because if the conference is also focusing on jobs then that certainly will include peer groups which are a socialization agent as well.  The hope is that this conference will result in many positive improvements of society and sport.  One of the CEO’s of the sport marketing groups helping to organize the conference, Bernie Mullen of The Aspire Group, said the programs hopefully generated from this conference are, “Programs that work on the guiding principles that guide humanity — play by the rules, sacrifice, teamwork, be part of a team and be part of a larger good.”  I for one think that any sport programs that can promote principles as important in life as that is extremely valuable to society.

Bryce Harper a Product of American Values

  In my January 28, 2016 class we talked about sport and societal values, where we stated that sport mirrors society in many ways and this includes value systems.  We outlined that American societal values include things like achievement, materialism, freedom, conformity, and individualism.  I think star baseball player Bryce Harper, is an athlete that showcases a lot of the values that are mirrored in society and sport.  I drew many connections between Harper's story and our class discussion from an article feature on him the current issue of ESPN Magazine.

http://espn.go.com/espn/feature/story/_/id/14935765/washington-nationals-bryce-harper-wants-change-baseball

The first connection I made between the article and our class discussion on societal values was freedom.  The article tells a story about 6th grade career day where Harper and his classmates were asked to declare careers.  When Harper said he was going to be a professional baseball player his teacher told him he should pick something else, and that was when a classmate told the teacher, "No you really don't understand he's going to be a professional baseball player.  He's the best 12 year old in the country".  This declaration as a 12 year old, despite how small the odds are portrays the societal value of freedom that in America anyone can accomplish anything if they work for it.  The second connection that I made between the article and the societal values we discussed in class was the value of individualism.  In this article Harper says that he thinks the unwritten rules of baseball make the game "tired" and that he plans on changing the game and making it exciting for fans and players.  Harper is able to be an individual and play the game the way he wants to, and because of our societal values that is a very achievable thing.  The last societal value I drew parallels to between class and the article was achievement and success.  Harper has been a prodigy almost his entire life and with that comes a burning desire to be the best at what he does even if he rubs some people the wrong way, and personally I like it.

Conor McGregor Embodies Why People Pay Attention to Sport

In my January 21 and 26, 2016 class we talked about what sport is and why we study it.  We defined sport as being physical, competitive, institutionalized, and motivated by a combination of personal gain and external rewards.  We then stated that many of the reasons for studying sport are the size of the industry (4^th largest in the US & 11^th largest in the world), the amount of money sports generate, the number of people who are interested in sport, and the amount of media coverage (TV, radio, internet, newspaper, magazine) that is devoted to sport.  There is no current athlete that I think exemplifies the traits of sport and why we study it more than the UFC’s “Notorious” Conor McGregor.  McGregor’s rise in the mixed martial arts world has been astronomical and one of the most entertaining displays of sport that I have personally ever witnessed.

Here is an article that I think did a good job of explaining McGregor's rise and just how incredible it is. http://www.sherdog.com/news/articles/The-Bottom-Line-Conor-McGregors-Surreal-Rise-97261

The first connection that I made with McGregor's story is that it exemplifies the personal gain that sports can provide that captivates people.  McGregor literally came from nothing and through shear hard-work and what he describes as an "obsession" he literally fought his way to the top.  The second connection I made between this story and my class discussion was the money that is involved in sport.  McGregor's trash talk and promoting of his fights showcases how conflict in sports hooks fans in to wanting to watch sport events and that is what drives a great number of revenue in any sport.  Finally, the last connection from this article that I made to my class discussion on why we study sport this that McGregor's bold predictions on what he is going to do in his fights is an example of why so much media coverage is devoted to sport because people want to see these larger than life events play out and covered extensively.  So, as a future sport manager I can only look at Conor McGregor and think that he is the perfect example of why people are so obsessed with sport in the United States and around the world, and that obsession is why we study sport.  

Here's video giving you a closer look at the Irish Superstar's Journey: