Race and narrative in media presentations of athlete autonomy in the National Basketball Association, 2010-2016Tools King, James (2023) Race and narrative in media presentations of athlete autonomy in the National Basketball Association, 2010-2016. MRes thesis, University of Nottingham.
AbstractBetween 2010 and 2016, two seemingly similar events in the NBA – the free agencies of LeBron James and Kevin Durant – received markedly different reactions from ESPN, the largest sports network in the US. This thesis interrogates the reasons for ESPN’s changing presentations of black athletes over this period, which resulted in a less overtly racialised treatment of Durant in 2016. Using elements of narrative theory to provide a framework for analysis of both print and social media content, I argue that the joint forces of social media and public discourse on police brutality and race were the primary catalysts for this change in presentation. I argue that there is evidence, revealed by Eduardo Bonilla-Silva’s useful theory of racial contestation, for the endurance of the racialised sentiments present in 2010, and uncover an intricate relationship between ESPN and social media which allowed for the perpetuation of racialised sentiments in 2016 and beyond.
Actions (Archive Staff Only)
|
Tools
Tools
