Audience Responses to Media Portrayals of Professional Athletes and Intimate Partner Violence

Abstract

This study examines audience responses to media portrayals of athlete-perpetrated intimate partner violence (IPV). Participants ( N = 569) were randomly assigned to view one of ten video news stories involving an incident of athlete-perpetrated IPV. They reported their perceptions of news story severity, perpetrator responsibility, and victim credibility post-viewing. In general, stories featuring White perpetrators were rated as more severe than stories featuring Black perpetrators. For moderately violent stories, victims of White and Latino athletes were rated as more credible than victims of Black athletes. Implications for a better understanding of athlete-perpetrated IPV and social outcomes are discussed.