Accounting for Athletic Performance: Race and Sportscaster Dialogue in NBC's 2008 Summer Olympic Telecast

Abstract

The Olympic telecast is perhaps the most racially diverse in all of television, where athletes from many different racial backgrounds receive a substantial amount of airtime. This analysis explores racial differences within on-air dialogue in the 74.5 hours of NBC's 2008 primetime Olympic telecasts to determine whether depictions of athlete successes, failures, physical make-ups, and personalities alter significantly based on the race of the athlete being described. Results indicate that traditional dialogue divergences (such as White athletes being more hard working and Black athletes being innately skilled) were not prevalent, but that types of dialogue employed differed significantly in over a dozen taxonomical areas. Implications and directions for future research are explored.