Media Analysis paper Due Date: TBA see syllabus above Assignment Objectives: To apply course concepts, theories and perspectives to the analysis of sport media. To learn about the methods (content analysis, discursive analysis) researchers use to study the media. To present these findings in an APA style, academic paper. Definitions: Content analysis: Seeks to demonstrate the meaning of written or visual sources (like newspapers, magazines) by systematically allocating their content to pre-determined, detailed categories and then both quantifying and interpreting the outcomes. Involves quantitatively analyzing word frequencies, space measurements (column inches in the case of newspapers) time counts (for television), etc. Ideological analysis: A type of textual analysis that seeks to get beyond the superficial (denotative) meanings embedded in the media to examine the more implicit (connotative) social meanings within that text. From these methods, the media is viewed as creating and recreating narratives, or stories that can be linked to wider ideas that circulate in our society. Assignment Guidelines: The media is one of the central ways that dominant ideologies regarding sport and culture are circulated in the U. S. In this assignment, you are required to critically analyze the ways a particular theme(s)/ concept(s) is/are represented by the media. Your chosen topic should relate to the main concepts, topics discussed in the course: pluralism vs. hegemony, gender and sport (cultural definitions and ideologies of masculinity/ femininity; gender inequality in sport) race and sport (popular ideology, myth of social mobility; stacking, intelligence vs. athleticism, etc.), class (ideologies of the American Dream, meritocracy, etc.), sport as a “character builder”, etc. The type of media you choose to analyze will dictate which form of analysis you use in your research. For example, if you choose to analyze the sport section of the Los Angeles Times, you would utilize content analysis and focus on the number of articles on men’s/ women’s sports, the number of column inches, number of photographs, etc. If you choose to analyze a sport film, you would utilize ideological analysis and examine how ideologies and dominant societal narratives are reproduced in the film. Once you choose your topic you should find 3-4 other research articles on the same or similar topic. This will help you in terms of formulating ideas on how you will want to go about its analysis. It is required that these are empirical, academic research articles published in peer-reviewed journals. You may want to use the Sport Discus database available through the university’s library system to find relevant articles in the sport studies field. There is also a vast array of research sites in the Coakley text. If you are having trouble locating relevant research articles, please see me for assistance.
The post Discus database available through the university’s library system to find relevant articles in the sport studies field. appeared first on My Blog.
