The State of Black Quarterback Media Depictions in the NFL: Reasons for Both Celebration and Concern

Abstract

ABSTRACT A total of 64 games (roughly 200 hours of broadcast game content) of the first 4 weeks of the 2023–2024 NFL season was analyzed. While the majority of taxonomical areas yielded no significant differences, four areas were notable deviations as (a) quarterbacks of color were more likely than White quarterbacks to have their successes attributed to running ability, (b) White quarterbacks were more likely than quarterbacks of color to have their failures ascribed to a lack of experience, (c) White quarterbacks were more likely than quarterbacks of color to have unclassifiable “other” commentary, and (d) White announcers were more likely to be the ones advancing the comments about White quarterback inexperience than were quarterbacks of color. Ramifications for framing theory and sports media professionals are advanced.