Media outlets rely on views and clicks on their websites and broadcasts to generate money. What better way to create a catching headline than to derive stories from one of the biggest parts of United States culture: sports.
Sports are loved nationwide and followed by many US citizens. Sports viewership is on the rise and so are media outlets’ desires for money. Capitalizing on sports drama is the perfect way to generate attention to news articles.
Sometimes sports drama has the potential to be covered by the media, such as major injuries like Damar Hamlin from the Buffalo Bills. Incidents like this are newsworthy, as they bring attention to issues bigger than simple sports drama. Attention was brought to the Hamlin incident because it increased awareness of cardiac conditions and raised questions concerning the safety of the NFL.
Such incidents are valuable topics for news outlets, but it sometimes appears that the smaller, much less important issues are the ones that receive the most attention from media sources because they generate a higher number of views.
USA Today headlined an article, “Angel Reese taunts Caitlin Clark during LSU’s women’s NCAA Tournament title win over Iowa” in April of 2023. Taunting and trash talking are commonplace in all sports. Clark was known for her “you can’t see me” celebration, which Reese used back at her once at the end of the NCAA championship game.
Many believe the media was overreacting to the situation. “It wasn’t that big of a deal,” said senior Ainsley Hindman. “Once it started popping up on all sorts of media outlets, it got to be a huge deal when it really didn’t matter.”
News outlets all over the country capitalized on the insignificant issue, despite Clark coming out and supporting the actions of Reese saying that it was simply part of the game.
The 2023 Golf Ryder Cup saw similar issues with the media. American golfer Patrick Cantlay was seen not wearing the USA hat while playing in Rome. Media outlets immediately made assumptions about why Cantaly was not wearing the hat.
“Cantlay reportedly partook in a silent protest on Saturday,” stated an article from Bleacher Report. Before Cantaly was given an opportunity to respond to the controversy, news outlets all over hopped onto the issue, adding to its unnecessary attention.
In reality, the situation was far more innocent. “It just doesn’t fit,” said Cantlay.
Obviously, the controversies around Caitlin Clark and Patrick Cantlay are two recent and prevalent topics covered by the media.
Reporting on these issues not only raised concerns to insignificant problems, but it also brought traffic to their own websites, generating wealth. Media outlets are able to blow up little issues just like Caitlin Clark and Patrick Cantlay.
Media can profit off of these issues because people are naturally intrigued by drama. However, this is an exploitation of the media’s power. “News sources shouldn’t be able to say anything they want,” said senior Connor Shutte. “It can damage someone’s reputation and create a bigger problem.”
Media outlets’ coverage of sports drama hits every part of the spectrum. All issues on and off the field find their way into a news article somewhere being posted as fast as possible. Some articles are able to report truthful data, while others may come short in providing accurate information quickly.
