Media Sport: Hot and Cool1

Abstract

Marshall McLuhan's revolutionary ideas about the role of media in society established him as the prophet of what he terms "the electric age" and had a major impact upon the field of communication. According to McLuhan, understanding media means understanding society, for the two are so closely related that societies can in fact be characterized by the media form most prevalent in them. McLuhan's books are packed with fascinating contentions about the effects of media upon other as pects of society. However, McLuhan's expansive style ultimately leaves the thought ful reader unsatisfied. In the course of his books, he briefly touches on a wide range of exciting ideas, yet he never attempts to develop any one particular subject nor does he offer testable assertions. McLuhan's comments on sport furnish an excellent example of his lack of spe cifity. He makes several provocative observations about sport yet one is left to wonder: exactly what would McLuhan predict about sport? The objectives of this paper are to summarize McLuhan's basic contentions about the media in society, to suggest applications of McLuhan's ideas to sport, and to examine critically McLuhan's ideas in the specific context of sport.

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