Question 3: The breakdown of the revenues from the four professional sports demonstrates the strong distinction among leagues to operate according to either a cultural logic of local publics and national publics. The MLB, NBA, and NHL teams attract a large amount of revenue from the local media compared to national media, whereas the NFL does the opposite. This is due to the MLB, NBA, and NHL attracting a local public by attaching teams to locations. They generate social support and build on a loyal local following through broadcasting their games to cable and local television. Furthermore, the creation of a permanent fan base by creating a support system of “home” teams creates a strong tie between cities and teams. These leagues have attached …show more content…
Football’s huge following can be viewed as a direct product from its lack of attachment to cities and no local television contracts, and rather, the cultivation of a national public. By embracing televisions and nationwide broadcasts, the NFL has attracted a nationwide audience due to its easy accessibility. Due to television, sports consumptions has changed dramatically, in that fans do not have to settle for their local team, and rather, are able to search for a team. All teams that are in the NFL attract a single national public, compared to the many teams in other sports attracting various local publics. NFL teams still have associations with cities due to their names, however, they are to be watched by the nation. With the NFL, people have free choice on who to follow and support and do not have to settle for convenience. Therefore, the revenue from national media is larger than the local media’s revenue, in that the entire country is able to watch and support the team of their choice. With this, the revenue generated at the stadium is not as high as in other sports, due to these teams not attracting local audiences and …show more content…
College Sports used to be viewed as part of higher-education, and not a business. As college athletics became to be viewed as being under threat of corruption due to various scandals, college athletics’ legitimacy was increasingly questioned. With this, it was seen to be in need of protection, which is where the NCAA came into play. The NCAA controlled college sports by enforcing the amateur ideal as well as controlling TV programing. The NCAA promoted the idea that varsity athletes were strictly amateur performers, and therefore, they were not recognized as wage laborers. The NCAA enhanced its legitimacy and began to institute controls through televised football, making revenue that was shared by the teams playing the televised game and the NCAA. They gained complete control of the television market for intercollegiate sports. With this, the NCAA asserted its power allowing the NCAA’s way of understanding college sports to become the taken-for-granted understanding in