MediaSport Podcast Series

Robert McLeman from Wilfred Laurier University in Canada speaks to the series about RinkWatch, a fascinating citizen science research initiative that traces the impacts of climate change on outdoor ice rinks and ponds in North America. We discuss the community and tech that makes RinkWatch possible, the media and public responses to its findings, and future scenarios for ice skating in a warming c...

This episode features Markus Stauff from the University of Amsterdam. He outlines the complex relationship between television, technology, mediation and sport across time. We discuss datafication, forensic fandom and sports photography, before concluding with some reflections on the politics of open access publishing.

Jim Cherrington and Jack Black from Sheffield Hallam University in the UK join the Series to discuss their new edited collection, 'Sport and Physical Activity in Catastrophic Environments'. We discuss the role of sport around the world in rebuilding after catastrophe, the relationship between nature and technology, and mountain biking. The weird and eerie also feature.  (Note: This podcast uses so...

Episode 41 features a conversation with Jessica Murfree from Texas A&M University in the United States. Jessica shares her insights about climate injustice, extreme weather and the benefits of adopting an intersectional perspective on the environment. We also discuss the attitudes of fans towards climate change and importance of research impact.

We're joined for Episode 40 by Dan Henhawk from the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg, Canada. Speaking as a proud Kanien’keha:ka and Haudenosaunee man, Dan shares his insights about the value of Critical Indigenous Studies and the need to rethink notions of sustainability grounded in colonialist norms and values. We also discuss race, racism and the fascinating history of lacrosse.

Sport and climate change leader Madeleine Orr speaks about slippery slopes at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, the role of sport at the COP26 conference in Glasgow, and the origins of the Sport Ecology Group. Read about Maddy’s research and activities on her website (https://www.madeleineorr.com/), follow her on Twitter @maddyjorr, and hear her on the Climate Champions Podcast (https://www.mad...

A Tokyo 2020 Olympics and Paralympics special episode. I'm joined by scholar-activist and leading Olympics expert, Jules Boykoff, to review recent events in Tokyo. We discuss the staging of the Games in the middle of a public health emergency that saw celebration capitalism and disaster capitalism collide. Jules also offers his insights on greenwashing, anti-Olympic activism, and the announcement...

This episode covers the serious issue of suicide in elite sport. We're joined by Holly Thorpe to discuss her recent article in The Conversation, 'The price of gold — what high-performance sport in NZ must learn from the Olivia Podmore tragedy'. Holly highlights the costs of elite sport culture, mental health, and the urgent need for institutional change to better protect the well-being of athletes...

Recorded in lockdown via Zoom, Episode 36 examines human-animal relations, sport and physical activity. Melanie Sartore-Baldwin explains why our social relationships with animals matter and the intricacies of speciesism and animal-standpoint theory. We also discuss the relationship between sports mascots and endangered species, horses and dogs in sport, and food. Get vaccinated everyone!

We’re back! This episode features Rebecca Olive and Belinda Wheaton discussing their new special issue(s) of the Journal of Sport and Social Issues – ‘Understanding Blue Spaces: Sports, Bodies, Wellbeing, and the Sea’. In a wide-ranging discussion, they share their insights about surfing, pollution, waka ama paddling, and the value of transnational research perspectives. Listeners should check out...

Panel presentation from the 70th Annual International Communication Association (ICA) Conference (May 2020). Also available on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRoTTRUJplQ&feature=youtu.be This panel of scholars from Australia and New Zealand uses the sport-nation-region nexus to identify the contested meanings and politics of sport and media in Oceania, and discusses why sporting cultures...

Recorded in the wonderful city of Madrid, this episode features sports media and journalism scholar, José Luis Rojas Torrijos. We discuss ‘footballisation’ and sports media scholarship in Spain and among Spanish language researchers more broadly. Our conversation also covers ethics and accountability in journalism, the blurring of news and entertainment, and the gamification of sports news.

This episode returns to the enduring relationship between sport, politics and media. It features Michael J. Socolow, a media historian and author of the award-winning 'Six Minutes in Berlin: Broadcast Spectacle and Rowing Gold at the Nazi Olympics'. We discuss the significance of the 1936 Berlin Olympic Games as a sport and media event, the role of the Games in commentary and technological innovat...

Adele Pavlidis from Griffith University in Brisbane discusses roller derby and why it matters as a site for both feminist politics and the politics of sport. In a discussion that travels from Australia to China, Lebanon and then back again, we also discuss the body, affect, and the significance of women's contact sports.

This episode sees feminist media scholar, Jennifer McClearen, share her research insights into gender, mixed martial arts, and the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Our conversation outlines the complex intersections between fighting, skill, violence and the body, the UFC's operation as a transmedia sport empire, and the significance of Ronda Rousey’s celebrity. Other topics discussed include...

Younghan Cho from Hankuk University of Foreign Studies in Seoul reflects on the 2018 Winter Olympics and Paralympics in Pyeongchang. We discuss relations between South and North Korea, the combined Olympic women’s ice hockey team that represented Korea, the role of sport in Korean history, and baseball. Younghan also outlines the importance of ‘inter-Asian emotions’ given that the 2018, 2020 and 2...

Episode 28 of the Media Sport Podcast Series features sports sociologist and cultural studies scholar, Ben Carrington. In a particularly rich conversation, we discuss race, class, Marx and the resurgence of activism in US sport. We also chat about the experience of living on both sides of the Atlantic, the legacy of Stuart Hall, and his must-read essay, 'Living the Crisis Through Ten Moments'.

Episode 27 of the Media Sport Podcast Series sees leading media and cultural studies scholar, Toby Miller, discuss his latest book, Greenwashing Sport. In explaining the relationship between sport and the environment, he highlights the ways in which professional sports are complicit in global environmental crises and climate change. Particular attention is paid to the examples of motor-racing, foo...

Episode 26 of the Media Sport Podcast Series features feminist media and sociology scholar, Kim Toffoletti (@ktoffa), discussing the crucial intersections between sport, transnational feminism and female fan practices. She also shares her insights on violence against women by sportsmen, differing notions of living a feminist life and the pride of throwing like a girl.

This episode features a leading international figure in the sociology of sport, John Horne. We discuss his efforts to globalise sport studies, football in East Asia, and the contested legacies of mega-events such as the London 2012 Olympics. Our chat finishes with a fascinating reflection on the importance of disappointment in sport.

The Series is back in 2017 with a fascinating discussion about the relationship between women, gender and sport in Japan. I am joined by Robin Kietlinski, the author of 'Japanese Women and Sport: Beyond Baseball and Sumo'. We discuss the history of women's sport, the challenges of linguistic and cultural translation, and the significance of the upcoming 2020 Olympics and Paralympics in Tokyo.

In the final episode of 2016, Jimmy Sanderson (@Jimmy_Sanderson) from Arizona State University outlines the changing features of the social media landscape. We discuss the rise of Snapchat, Twitter and its discontents, and the pressing need to examine family communication in the context of sports. We also speak about the spectacle of the Little League World Series and what it says about the state...

Speaking via Skype, leading games studies scholar, T.L. Taylor (@ybika) from MIT Game Lab, explains why eSports matter in terms of social inclusion (the AnyKey Initiative – http://www.anykey.org/), fandom, and the rise of live streaming. We also discuss the history of eSports and their complicated relationship with other types of sporting competition.

In a wide-ranging discussion, leading digital media scholar and keen surfer, Mark Andrejevic (@MarkAndrejevic), explains the logic of drones and their relationship to automation, sensors, data and power. We also discuss journalism, post-truth politics, the World Surf League and the appeal of surfing as a pastime.

Recorded in the lead-up to the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, this episode features a discussion with leading sport communication and Olympic media scholar, Andy Billings, from the University of Alabama. He shares his insights on the power of the Olympic Games as a television and media event, and its intersections with nationalism and race. We also discuss the relationship between sport and...