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MEDIA COVERAGE OF OLYMPICS.
Term Paper ID:29216
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Essay Subject:
Centers on the 2002 Olympic Figure Skating Contest.... More...
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4 Pages / 900 Words
9 sources, 13 Citations,
APA Format
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Paper Abstract:
Centers on the 2002 Olympic Figure Skating Contest. Differing versions of whether Canadian or Russian team won. News coverage in the U.S. and Canada. Views of British, French and Russian news agencies. Controversy over French judge awarding two gold medals. How what the media reported was not necessarily what happened.
Paper Introduction:
There is a parable about several blind men who were put into the same room with an elephant. When asked what type of animal it was, there were as many different answers as there were individuals, yet none of them came up with the answer of elephant. A similar circumstance occurs when the media gets hold of certain stories. Each television station, radio station, and internet service has the capability of creating a story that is quite varied from the original, and may or may not represent reality, as may be seen with what occurred during the 2002 Olympic Figure Skating Competition.
On February 11, 2002 the figure skating competition had been narrowed down so that the Russian team was in close competition with the Canadian team. For the last 38 years, Russia’s figure
Text of the Paper:
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. Hecontends, furthermore, that the French judge was merely a scapegoat becauseFrance is not a big contender in the ice skating competition and because ofthe public outcry against the outcome of the competition. judges fromRussia, China, France, Poland and Ukraine preferred Berezhnaya andSikharulidze. Available online at:http://www.cnn.com/2 2/US/ 2/15/oly.skate.row/index.html Elliott, H. . . Cheating does happen. LosAngeles Times. Duncan Mackay, of the Observer (2 2) (also out of theUnited Kingdom), was even more cynical, asserting that NBC had the finaldecision over what the Olympic judges decided and that the "scandal [was]only a scandal because the American papers decided it was" (p. Figure Skating Scandal is Pure Gold for NBC.Calendar. . . People who live in North America areused to getting their way more often than not. (2 2). . Eventalk show hosts Jay Leno and David Letterman commented that they thoughtthe Canadian pair should have won (Stewart, 2 2, n.p.). The U.S. In reality, what happened was a combination of all ofthe above. . Additionally, Zeigler, of the Sign On San Diego, asserted that"practically everyone" and "tens of millions" of viewers on televisionthought that the Canadians deserved to win (Zeigler, 2 2, p. These articles,aimed at the American and Canadian audience, however, mostly just describeone aspect of the competition and the outcome. PhilippeCandeloro, who won the bronze at the 1998 Nagano Olympics, was quoted assaying: All the countries do the same. Two Gongs Don't Make A Right. There is a parable about several blind men who were put into the sameroom with an elephant. February 14. (2 2). He doeslater cite that the Toronto Sun, as well as other Canadian news agencies,had numerous emails from commenting on the outcome. Russians seem to viewincident as proof that Westerners are spoiled and poor losers. (2 2). . According to the CNN WorldNews Service, where the polls in North America showed a 96% approval ratefor awarding the Canadian pair with a second gold medal, the polls inRussia run just the opposite (Chance, 2 2). It's easy to accuse Le Gougne, but she was only doing what she was told to do (Candeloro in CNN, 2 2, n.p.). 1). When asked what type of animal it was, there wereas many different answers as there were individuals, yet none of them cameup with the answer of elephant. Canadian Skaters Get Gold; Judge Suspended. .We are supposed to becivilized" (Chance, 2 2, n.p.). Available online at:http://www.cnn.com/2 2/WORLD/europe/ 2/14/russia.skating/index.html CNN. French Sports Minister Backs Judge. 1). Mackay, D. February15. In all of these instances, what the media reported, was notnecessarily what happened. Russians Close Ranks Behind Skaters. (2 2). If France didn't cheat, it wouldn't win medals. Zeigler, M. Plus, if NBC had not taken advantage ofthe audience outcry, or if the Canadian press had not reported their polls,and if the Olympics had been held in another country not in North America,the IOC may not have decided to award a second gold medal, and the elephantin the roomful of blind men would have become an entirely differentcreature altogether. News agencies in Europe didnot necessarily have the same point of view, and those articles andcomments were not necessarily readily available to the North Americanpublic. Rookwood, D. Los Angeles Times. Judging debate erupts after Canadian skaters getgolden snub. Zeigler also quotesFrank Carroll, a coach, as saying, "This is the worst thing that hashappened in a long time in figure skating" (Zeigler, 2 2, p. Russia's Pairs Win Leave's Em Seeing Red. Fools Gold for Canadian Figure Skaters.Guardian Unlimited. Available online at: http://cbc.ca/cgi-bin/templates/view.cgi?category=World&story=/news/2 2/ 2/15/golds 2 215 Chance, M. Stewart, L. For the last 38 years, Russia's figure skating teams have won thegold medals during the Winter Olympics. 1). Additionally, officials from both France and Russia appeared to havea different opinion of what actually happened. 1). One maninterviewed stated that, "to even raise this question, to doubt a judge'sdecision, that's not acceptable for modern people. According to their report, "the Russian pair.. He also pointsout that while he was actually at the competition and could see littledifference between the two performances, American television has made itappear as if "Sale and Pelletier lost to a couple of clumsy idiots whocould hardly stand up" (2 2, p. Observer.February 17. press does tend torewrite history for their benefit. However, many observers assumedafter watching the competition that the Canadian team had won thecompetition, yet it was the Russian team that received the higher marks andwon the gold medal (Zeigler, 2 2). .favored Sale and Pelletier. The press in the United Kingdom viewthe incident as one more string pulled by the American press, such as NBC,to make the world over in its image. February 15.Available online at:http://www.cnn.com/2 2/WORLD/europe/ 2/15/oly.french.sports.minister/index.html CNN. February 15. . In the mean time, both Canadians andthose in the United States, were of the opinion that two "nice kids" hadbeen cheated out of their rightful gold medal by the former SovietSocialist Republic. On February 11, 2 2 the figure skating competition had been narroweddown so that the Russian team was in close competition with the Canadianteam. (2 2). One point of view that was recorded that night was from the CanadianBroadcasting Company (CBC). Each television station, radiostation, and internet service has the capability of creating a story thatis quite varied from the original, and may or may not represent reality, asmay be seen with what occurred during the 2 2 Olympic Figure SkatingCompetition. (2 2). References CBC. While l'Agency France-Presse (AFP) chose to focus on the success of theFrench ice dancing couple, French Sports Minister Marie-Georges Buffetattacked "certain international media" for "lambasting a French judge atthe center of the Olympic figure skating controversy" (CNN, 2 2, n.p.).Moreover, those French skaters who were interviewed pointed out that thistype of cheating is commonplace in the figure skating world. 1). There is cheating, connivance. The Los Angeles Times reported that,"although the crowd . Sign On San Diego Union Tribune. It is at this point that the differentnews agencies record several different versions according to their point ofview, and so influence the observer on how to judge the outcome of theevent. CNN.February 14. February 13. (2 2). That's the law in figure skating. (2 2). According to CNN, the Russia media has"adopted an indignant tone" (2 2, n.p.) and have accused the Americanmedia of a smear campaign against the Russian figure skating couple. (2 2). Russians saw a North American public that didnot know how to lose graciously, while the French thought the NorthAmericans as naively assuming that cheating never happened and takingadvantage with an emotional outburst. ignoring a stumble by Sikharulidze" (Elliot, 2 2, p. Thetone of the Russian press is similar to that displayed by the French Press. February 12. turned in a less than perfect performance - and were still awardedhigher marks than the Canadians, who turned in an almost flawlessperformance" (CBC, 2 2, n.p.). A similar circumstance occurs when themedia gets hold of certain stories. The Guardian Unlimited (2 2), from the United Kingdom, dubbed thesecond set of gold medals "fools gold" and seemed to imply that theInternational Olympic Committee (IOC), had awarded the medal simply to keepthe masses happy. Gold for Sale and Pelletier Stirs World Reaction.February 16.
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