Chapter 7 The Olympics and the Mass Media

“Whatever else the Olympic Games have been, they are now the ultimate media festival.” - Garry Whannel

Introduction According to Slater (1998), the press has traditionally had four key functions: –To inform (news) –To persuade (through advertising) –To entertain (features) –And to pass on cultural heritage (education). (Photo Courtesy: FreeFoto.com)

Relationship Between the Olympics and the Mass Media Technological advances in the mass media have enabled the Games to become more accessible to audiences throughout the globe. In the past, the media held the upper hand. Recently, however, the Olympic Movement has become the dominant partner.

The Relationship Between the Olympics and the Mass Media (cont’d.) Four distinct phases: –pre-television (1894–1932) –television, before satellites (1936–1964) –satellite television before the Internet (1968–1988) –era of Olympic dominance (1992 onwards).

Relationship Between the Olympics & Mass Media (cont’d.) Table 7.1. Growth of television coverage of the Olympics

The Nature of Olympic Television Broadcasts Television networks have focused on glamour events and their own country’s athletes within the Olympics. Consequently, some Olympic sports and champion athletes do not receive due media recognition. Concurrently, the Olympic message becomes modified, subsumed or altered in exchange for national prestige.

Nature of Olympic Television Broadcasts (cont’d) Table 7.2. Television rights holders and fees – USA, Europe and Australia Source: Sydney Olympic Broadcasting Organisation, 1998: 20; IOC, 2006a: 53.

History of Olympic Television Coverage Early days, : –Television cameras first captured Olympic images at the 1936 Berlin Games. The audience was estimated at more than 162,000. –Melbourne Olympics of 1956 provided a turning point in the relationship between the IOC and the media. –However, there was concern over the possible taint of commercialism.

History of Olympic Television Coverage (cont’d.) IOC involvement, 1958-present: –Rule 49 of the Olympic Charter was altered, allowing the television rights to be negotiated by each organising committee (OCOG). –Broadcast rights of the Rome Olympics were sold to the American ABC group for US$4 million. –In 1966, the IOC devised a new television revenue sharing formula, known as the ‘Rome Formula.’ –The formula was flawed as OCOGs started to negotiate separate ‘technical services’ contracts with television networks to increase their share of revenue.

History of Olympic Television Coverage cont’d Technological advances: –Advances in broadcast technology have enabled the Olympic Games to be seen by more of the world’s population. –Satellite broadcasts and colour televisions are some of the key improvements that impacted the growth of the Games coverage. –These television advances led to increased commercialisation in the Olympic Games.

History of Olympic Television Coverage cont’d Record audiences: –At the Los Angeles Olympics, 156 nations acquired the broadcast rights estimated 2.5 billion viewers worldwide. –The 1998 Nagano Winter Olympics : new record for the number of countries televising the Games 10.7 billion viewers. –The Athens 2004 Olympic Games set further record levels for dedicated coverage and global audience.

History of Olympic Television Coverage cont’d Table 7.3. Athens 2004 Olympic broadcast partners and rights fees

Host Broadcasters Until 1988, the Olympic broadcaster from the host country reached an agreement with the IOC to provide coverage to all the international rights holders. The latest phase, which mirrors the IOC’s general ‘transfer of know-how’ philosophy, links a local provider with an ongoing IOC related company, Olympic Broadcasting Services (OBS).

Other Media The Internet –Official sites: Multiple roles, including, ticket sales, news and results, etc. –Internet newsgroups: Interactive/discussions format (see table 7.4) Radio –Following Melbourne, 1956, television coverage outperformed radio coverage. Film –To date there have been over 100 motion pictures made about the Olympic Games. –Documentaries have been the most common genre.

Other Media (cont’d.) Table 7.4. The development of the thread on fitness-related newsgroups