Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Hong Kong, 2006. / Title proper from title frame. Also available in printed format.

published_or_final_version / abstract / Linguistics / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

This research is an investigation into the political economy of sports broadcasting within a South African context, using the ICC Cricket World Cup 2003 (CWC2003) as a case study. The staging of this global event, hosted by South Africa, is the focal point of many the world's largest sports media institutions and the production, packaging and distribution of the event is worth hundreds of millions of dollars. There are also many economic spin-offs generated by a media event of this magnitude in the form of ad spend and media merchandising which add to the monetary value of the Cricket World Cup as a mediated commodity. This dissertation looks at the political economy of the media in relation to the rapid globalization of the economics of sport and the role that technology has played in this development. In particular, the research will focus on the South African television broadcasting environment while at the same time acknowledging the trends and impact that global forces in sports economics have had on broadcasting. The research pays particular attention to the question of national identity and the role that sport broadcasting on television plays in building a spirit of national unity. This unifying tool has raised debates by the government regarding access to sporting events that are deemed to be of 'national interest'. In light of this, the dissertation looks at the role that public service broadcasting now plays in broadcasting sport to the greater population in South Africa. Finally, the dissertation looks at the case study of the cricket World Cup 2003 held in South Africa against which to apply the theories of political economy, globalization, and national interest. The dissertation looks at the audiences and spectators at the center of a dynamic relationship between Sports bodies, commercial agents, broadcasters and advertisers. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of Natal, Durban, 2003.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Ohio University, June, 2010. / Title from PDF t.p. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.S.)--Springfield College, 2002. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (doctoral)--Universität, Köln, 2000. / Includes bibliographical references (p. [147]-156) and index.

Following the early days of the Internet and the World Wide Web, news media in Canada have gone on to develop their own news web sites with the intentions of meeting the on-line needs of media audiences, expanding their audience reach, and adding to revenue production and profitability on- and off-line. Web strategies have varied somewhat across the different media, but anecdotal evidence suggests that sports contents have been important for both print and television. This thesis focused on the latter, sports contents on television network websites, and was undertaken to evaluate how Canadian television stations are utilizing the Internet and web technologies to feature sports news and information. Only a few studies specific to sports television web sites have been done, and these have mainly focused on American news stations. The research objective of the thesis was to systematically examine the web presence of sports contents on Canadian television web sites by conducting a content analysis of identifiably unique sites in the Canadian context. A site analysis protocol was developed through an iterative process. An initial instrument was constructed drawing on past research in this area. In particular, prior work by Bates et al. (1996 & 1997), Pines (1999), Bucy, Lang, Potter & Grabe (1999), Sparks (2001) provided systematic measures for examiriirig the Web presence of television stations. Ha & James's definition of interactivity (1998) was also useful as was the work of Cho (1999), Rogers & Thorson (2000) on Internet advertising. The initial instrument was evaluated and modified during a series of trial scans. The final instrument focused on five areas: body of the home page, types of content, presentation mechanisms, interactivity and advertising. A systematic site analysis was conducted from August to October, 2003, and a total of twenty-one sports home pages were analyzed. Three web sites (TSN, Leafs TV and The Score) were found to have a good balance in the five areas evaluated in the study. The results of independent-samples t-tests showed that general television networks had more sports top news and hyperlinks to other news items than sport specialty networks. By comparison, sports specialty networks tended to have more sport-related search engines and greater efficiency of space. CBC's "Sports Forums" that were configured on its sports home page gave the public broadcaster the highest quotient for interactivity in comparison with the twenty private networks and stations in the study. Advertising was present in all of the sites, and the findings point to an increasing interest in the televisual and sport web site media in producing revenue through web-based advertising.

This dissertation sets out to identify the national interest in terms of South African sport, as represented by the 2003 ICASA Position Paper and Regulations on Sports Broadcasting Rights. The dissertation focuses on South African rugby which, along with cricket and soccer, is one of the main sports deemed to be in the national interest. The government’s use of televised sport as a means of disseminating the ideology of nationalism amongst South Africans is explored. A critique of the national interest is provided with the importance of private, commercial broadcasters to the financial sustainability of sporting unions stressed. Commercial broadcasters are often the only broadcasters capable of acquiring sports broadcasting rights at international market related prices. Commercial broadcasters are, therefore, important to the longevity of professional sports and cannot be sidelined by related policies which could give preference to free-to-air broadcasters. The concept of ‘responsible broadcasting’ is introduced as a means of maintaining the national interest. Broadcasters, sporting unions and the public are imperative to the promotion of the national interest and are analysed further in this regard. The dissertation ends with a discussion of televised sports’ contribution towards efforts of nation-building within a South African context. This discussion establishes whether rugby events deemed to be in the national interest are readily accepted by South African audiences and warrant their inclusion in future ICASA policies. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2008.

Universiẗat, Diss., 2007--Mainz. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 379-395).

Thesis (M.A.)--Florida State University, 2005. / Advisor: Dr. Carrie Sandahl, Florida State University, School of Theatre. Title and description from dissertation home page (viewed June 16, 2005). Document formatted into pages; contains viii, 73 pages. Includes bibliographical references.