Mass media and sports

![CDATA[Mass media and sports are formally separate social and cultural institutions that have, over the past century or so, become so inextricably linked that it is now almost impossible to imagine their independent existence. There are two main questions addressed by social and behavioral scientists in relation to these institutions, the first of which is the extent to which the mass media, especially TV, may be said to have ‘taken over’ or even ‘ruined’ sports. The second principal area of debate in this area concerns the relationships between media sports ‘texts’ and audiences, especially their capacity to reproduce or challenge prevailing structures of power. In considering these issues, this article examines first how fundamental social trends have produced the mutually attractive features of mass media and sports that have led them to become so closely entwined.]]