ABSTRACT
Media framing (Goffman, 1974) has been integral to the discussion of sports media influence for decades. While sportscasters obviously have the ability to determine storylines and shape narratives (most notably when overseeing a live sporting event), the producers determine what events (and subparts of main events) will be shown. Frames, then, are “conceptual tools which media and individuals rely on to convey, interpret, and evaluate information” (Neuman et al., 1992, p. 60). Many studies (see Dayan and Katz, 1992; Halbert and Latimer, 1994; MacNeill, 1996) have illustrated how television’s narratives shape the viewers’ interpretations of sporting events and many interrelated issues of identity.
