Sports TV: Athletes, Industries, Audiences

4.0 credits · Undergraduate

Since the first live sporting event was televised in 1939, sports and television have enjoyed a privileged relationship. Sports coverage has driven technological advances in television production, while also serving as an economic linchpin for broadcast media. Meanwhile, the political activism and personal lives of athletes have generated controversy, captivating news media. This course will examine the medium of television from postwar to present, using sports to explore American politics, nationalism, identity, celebrity, and audiences, as well as media industries, consolidation, and the transition to digital streaming platforms. It will likewise engage with important narrative television centered around sports, including recent hits, Heated Rivalry and Off Campus, as well as the "sportification" of television more broadly, such as with the rise of competitive cooking shows.