ABSTRACT
The analysis of media coverage and public responses to the mediatized object that is the Rugby World Cup points to powerful emotions generated by shifts in the way that rugby is structured and mediated. The affective power of media and cultural discourses around rugby appear to work in two directions: one that bolsters feelings of pride, patriotism and national belonging, and one that alienates, angers or frustrates. Mediatization can be seen as "a long-term process" that "implies transformation of practices and institutions" including media, which takes place in the "interplay between changes in communication media and the societal, political and cultural context". This chapter explores the ways that individuals exert agency in their adaptation to the transformation of "social patterns and cultural horizons" that are triggered by mediatization, including their "reflexive interpretation of the possible room to act in and against the media".
