SOC 985 Final Research Paper
Introduction
Introduction
- Defines what the paper is about, why you are interested, central questions, if any.
The purpose of this research is to examine how new media shapes athletic identities, moving beyond descriptions, and contributing to the reality of who these athletes actually “are.”
Literature Review
Theoretical perspectives & Literature Review
- How is the topic described within social science literature? Are there debates or incomplete knowledge that your study hopes to address? Are you committed to specific paradigms or outlooks as you carry out your study? (i.e. Symbolic Interactionism, Multiracial Feminism, etc.)
Since the invention of printed media, TV, and radio, it has been difficult to separate media from popular sport. Of course, the connection between sport and media is nothing new. Egyptian hieroglyphics, in the form of wall paintings, exist and provide evidence of sports “media” existing in ancient periods (Kyle, 2007). However, the connection between sports and media became stronger and more frequent as sports media become more prevalent in society, especially in the United States.
From multi-million dollar Super Bowl advertisements, which represent the value of an outlet to reach viewers, to the massive quantity of broadcasting hours, sports media is embedded in the American media. The Entertainment and Sports Programming Network (ESPN) broadcasts games and sports stories 24/7. Wenner (1989) estimated that three American television networks together broadcasted about 1,800 hour of sports programming during one recent year. The marketing force of sports media is quite apparent.
Yet, the power of the media that shapes athletic identities does not exclusively originate from the number of viewers tuned in. The commentators actually have the power the shape perceptions of individuals and groups based on race. For example, white media produces have the opportunity and ability to stereotype the ways white athletes and coaches are framed. They may repeatedly convey that whites are “hard workers who allegedly possess intellectual advantages in comparison to black bodies” (Hundley & Billings, 2009).
Moving past the business framework, sociological effort has been put toward examining how sports media shapes athletic identity. Through this lens, it is possible to see how sports media goes beyond simply showing the games and begins to contribute to who the athletes actually “are” (Omi & Winant, 1986). Prior research has been done on framing athletic identities (Billings, 2004; Billings & Eastman, 2002, 2003; Billings, Halone, & Denham, 2002; Bruce, 2004; Byrd & Utsler, 2007). A substantial amount of that research is based upon content analysis of sports commentary, be it televised or print.
That is one viable approach. As Omi & Winant (1986) point out, “film and television, for example, have been notorious in disseminating images of racial minorities which establish for audiences what people from these groups look like, how they behave, and ‘who they are.’” It is difficult to argue against the media power held by conglomerates like ESPN, Sports Illustrated, and network TV during the period of 1960-1999 and that those entities’ portrayals of athletes shaped the athletes’ identities.
The purpose of this research is to supplement that already conducted on a macro-level and that which examined mass-media. I assume the theory professed by Omi & Winant (1994), studies of race need to occur on several levels:
“Public debate and mobilization takes place [at the macro-level]. But important as this is, the terrain on which racial formation occurs is broader yet. At the micro-social level, racial projects also link signification and structure, not so much as efforts to shape policy or define large-scale meaning, but as the applications of ‘common sense.’ To see racial projects operating at the level of everyday life, we have only to examine the many ways in which, often unconsciously, we ‘notice’ race.”
Previous research has been conducted to analyze macro-structure (mass media) at the micro-social level (sports commentators). Yet, there are still several micro-social level occurrences still requiring analysis. I pattern this research off the approach of many prior studies: recording data at the individual level to draw conclusions for larger application. The purpose of this research is to examine how new media shapes athletic identities, moving beyond descriptions, and contributing to the reality of who these athletes actually “are.”
Recent literature has restated many stereotypical images, too extensive to list. Many documented sports media stereotypic portrayals of minorities are in comparison to whites while some are exclusive to the race (Raney & Bryant, 2006; Wenner, 1998). Comparative stereotypes include “white men can’t jump” and “Asians can’t dance” (Omi & Winant, 1994). There have been multiple subsequent manipulations of those phrases used to title similar research (Brooks, 2009; Wooten, 2006). Of course, what individuals physically “can” and “can’t” do in a sports arena is essentially connected to their physical makeup more often than at the discretion of a white TV commentator. It is outside the scope of this research to determine the potential differences in physiology between races. And, as stated previously, research has been conducted to analyze how sports commentators in the mass media have described differences, real or not.
In addition to physical traits, research has been conducted on characterizations of personalities of black sports figures (Abdel-Shehid, 2005) most often involving black masculinity. Black individuals’ aspirations for success, and adjoining pressures on the athlete, have also been analyzed (Boyle & Haynes, 2009). These topics are more difficult to pull from sports commentary than the common “that guy can shoot” or “he’s a leader.” Such subjects are more appropriate to discovering through the individual athlete himself.
Methods
Methods to be used
- What is your research procedure? How will you contact and interact with respondents? What sampling methods will you use? Do you have a personal relationship with the topic or research subjects? If so, how does this shape your research project? Are you making any efforts to avoid biases? How do you propose to collect, record and analyze data?
- (Include interview guides, data management sheets, photo shooting scripts, coding instructions, etc.)
This research is framed on individual perceptions, descriptions, and constructions of American athletes. The two distinct groups under analysis are the fans and the athletes themselves. Using social media, I conducted a hermeneutic phenomenology initiated by dialogue with sports athletes and fans as subjects. Hermeneutic phenomenology, which is usually tied to medical (especially nursing) research, is appropriate because I am engaging with subjects that have already interpreted the meaning of their lives (Cohen, Kahn, & Steeves, 2000). Social media is a perfect example of individuals turning their experiences into stories and narratives through text.
Soliciting narratives, later used for analysis, occurred through a “conversation” held over social media. Forums like Twitter bring distant subjects closer to the researcher and exemplify an “entire system of perspectives whose optimal sphere is the sphere of near things” (Husserl, Merleau-Ponty, Lawlor, & Bergo, 2002). Social media brings forward a large quantity of action produced by the individual, so there is new discussion to be had regarding whether a social action strictly occurs when the meaning of the act is social (Schütz & Luckmann, 1989). In other words, if an actor brushes his teeth then tweets about it, we are left to wonder the motivation of each and all actions in the series. Thus, one of the assumptions of using Twitter to connect with subjects is that the actors are providing true information through their interview responses that are accurate, rather than simply a performance for a random tweeter.
To eliminate the possibility that the athlete was performing for me, I made it explicitly clear who I was and that the questions were for research for my dissertation as opposed to for the media. I maintain a professional appearance on a Twitter account that was started roughly one year prior to this research. My bio is a follows:
PhD student in Sociology at Michigan State University; Hospice Volunteer Coordinator; Founder of Educational Non-Profit
There is a photo of me, a white male, and my actual location (Flint, MI) is listed as well as my personal web site. Through the initial stages of my research, I found that athletes were more willing to talk to the “real me” as opposed to a couple separate identities that I created. This stemmed from two particular elements: my true individual identity and my reputation. The other two, less engaging, Twitter accounts were for “Study Sports: the premier network of sports academics and theorists” and “The world’s coolest sports girl, MSU Spartan, put on for Flint, MI. Handling my business” respectively. The former had a logo as its account image, as opposed to a person’s face, and the latter account was so new it had only 11 followers to following 185. This ratio provides evidence to the respondent that the user is not very popular yet latches onto follow accounts who do not reciprocate the action.
Interviews
I conducted interviews with seven athletes who formerly participated in sports at the collegiate level. The subjects were contacted directly and asked to undergo a short, casual interview for dissertation research. Contacting the respondents was unique and employed a relatively new technique. I never personally met any of the respondents prior to the research yet 6 of the 7 agreed to participate in the interview simply after a request through Twitter social media. Although I extended an offer to dozens of current collegiate basketball players to participate in the research, none would. The only actual reply I received from an active college basketball player was “Yes” to my question of whether or not he would be willing. After I followed up to his basic affirmation, I never heard another word from him. In opposition to the extremely weak participation by active college basketball players, I was pleased that roughly half of the inactive and former players agreed to participate. Further exemplifying those players’ willingness, several agreed to participate and repeatedly responded to my requests yet we just could not lock down a mutually available time. Dealing with athletes’ tight schedules over multiple continents and time zones is difficult when conducting research in such a brief period.
The general message I sent directly to potential subjects via Twitter was:
hey i’m a phd student @michiganstateu can i interview you for research? its easy, less than 30 mins – thanks man!
Certain variations of that message included rewriting the phrase “< 30min” to fall within the 140 character limit of Twitter. Additionally, some athletes requested that I send them the questions prior to interview. Initially, I planned to conduct interviews in person but, as previously mentioned, the athletes’ schedules made that virtually impossible. To overcome that, I requested and received permission from the Institutional Review Board (IRB) to conduct interviews using the phone as a communication device. This allowed me to conduct interviews over Twitter direct messaging, over the phone by voice, and over the phone through email. The iPhone provides an amazingly robust set of research tools of which I only used a few. I did not choose to use tools on the iPhone like phone call voice recording, voice mail, or text messaging to conduct interviews mostly because I was aiming for new methods of communication and simultaneously adhering to the anonymous and confidential goals of the research. Tools that I thought of using but did not included Facebook messaging and various survey forms online. There were no surveys conducted during this study but further research would benefit from utilizing that method to triangulate data. The interview questions can be found in the Appendix.
Content Analysis
To gain a fan’s perspective of athletic identities by utilizing “new” media, I looked at three online articles from varying sources that included comments sections for users to leave a narrative of their own opinions. I chose articles that were relevant, current, and specifically tied to active collegiate athletes. I included two cases where the athlete pleaded to charges brought against him and one more vague scenario of sexual assault. The instances of potential law breaking are alleged to have occurred on campus, adjacent to campus, and an hour from campus in the hometown of the individual. The array of articles spread wide enough to gain a broad perspective (especially the assortment of crimes, rape being very provocative and white collar theft less so) while maintaining geographic, age, and chronological proximity. The limitations on this study include passive observation without active researcher participation. I encourage future researchers to engage with the commenting users.
The articles for content analysis originate from the following sources: (i) traditional media: MLive.com which is part of the Associated Press and exists as today’s “local online newspaper”; (ii) student newspaper: StateNews.com which is the MSU Student run newspaper and one of the nation’s leading university papers (Parker, 2010); (iii) a substantially popular collegiate sports fan blog. The comments used for analysis directly mention a character trait or description of the athlete. The athletes in the articles were in compromising positions and enduring legal duress at the time the article were printed and comments made. This allowed me to watch for potential contrasting comment stances, like sympathy for the athlete or anger towards wrongdoing. Although such contrasting themes in comments do not directly answer the research objective to analyze identity formation per se, such emotional narratives result in very clear descriptions of the athlete. For example, they take the form: “Only a punk/thug would [do that].” I will bring forth such comments in the results portion of this article. A second limitation on this study is the use of strictly negative news stories. I encourage future researchers to examine a thorough time-line of comments on a particular set of individuals. I chose negatively themed articles because they are more likely to result in opposing stances and a variety of data to analyze. Preseason and articles during more pleasant times would probably result in a vanilla monochrome sentiment. If there is nothing to immediately detest, the comments are generally of the same nature. However, it would be beneficial to examine what types of pleasant descriptors exist in comparison to negativity regarding the same individual.
Virtual Immersion
An unexpected but beneficial outcome of my initial contact with athletes, when I requested participation for interview, was that it initiated a dialogue with certain individuals. Having never met any of these athletes, I had now become virtually embedded in their social media network. What started as a strict invitation to become involved in my research carried on to casual banter with the athletes. I also accumulated quite an extensive list of persons on my Twitter “follow” list. This method is quite new and unique and has yet to be fully developed. Future research would benefit from an extensive literature review and theory building that describes the ramifications and potential for studying subjects by engaging in new forms of media with respondents. The limitations on this study include a lack of complete analysis on whether the forum of the interview, for example Twitter, changed the respondents answers in any way. There is very little research to be found on online social networking and the research that exists tends to focus on social capital (Ellison, Steinfield, & Lampe, 2007). Such research predominantly analyzes, e.g., Facebook users but does not employ new media as a tool to get to know the research subjects. Rather than simply observing players, some researchers have gone so far as to coach sports teams for several years (Brooks, 2009). Although there is plenty of merit in that approach, it is vital to gain new understanding by becoming immersed in new and different ways. I propose reaching out via Twitter and Facebook as a new frontier of contacting and immersing oneself in a culture. Again, the constraints of this research (time and scope) prevented me from furthering that discussion. However, future research will benefit from clarifying the new technique of the researcher becoming virtually immersed through new electronic social media (e.g. Twitter, Facebook, online message boards, etc.). In this study, I gathered athletes’ tweets during everyday activities. To narrow my analysis, I reviewed athletes’ descriptions of other athletes and themselves. I discuss this analysis in the results section that follows.
Results
Findings and Conclusions
- What did you discover either in terms of theory, substantive information or both? What are the implications of your findings for existing knowledge and future research or social action? (Include glossaries, path diagrams, coding schemes, typologies, photos, etc.).
[PREFACE TO RESULTS GOES HERE]
Interviews
I interviewed seven individuals ranging from American to European professional. One female was interviewed and five men. The female used to coach at her alma mater university and two of the men interviewed are currently employed by the college they played for. Six of the respondents are from an American deindustrialized city and although I did not have a specific research objective within this project to carefully analyze their backgrounds as it related to deindustrialization, I hope to keep in contact with these subjects to study how their background influenced their choice to participate in sports as a potential means for career employment. Particularly, I want to examine the transition from backyard ball player to international professional through sports.
The first willing respondent plays professionally in Asia. I met him originally at a local health club and we played pick-up basketball together. At that gym, I am generally the only white player and whether or not that affects my place as an outcast is not determinable within this research project. However, this player was always very pleasant and unselfish on the basketball court which made him stand out from the other players who constantly chattered and yelled and puffed their chests during the games. This player was quiet and extremely good at basketball. I found out one day, while I was talking with another player on the sidelines, that the man played professionally overseas. Later on, I found him on Twitter and began to follow him through social media. After a few months, I contacted him to participate in my research and he was very willing. He continually made statements like “whatever you need” and “happy to help.” He was always very reachable through social media. I surmised that his politeness was simply in his nature, as I witnessed it on the basketball court. Yet, I understand the connectivity of social media to stem from his location overseas. There are very few tall black males from American deindustrialized cities hanging out in Asia and this is generally exemplified by professional team pictures showing many Asians and one or two big African Americans off to the side. Whether or not that made him more apt to connect with me as an outsider on the court in Michigan is worth considering.
The first respondent (#1) described himself as strong, whose most influential family member during childhood was his grandfather. He played basketball with his uncle and cousins as a kid. Surprisingly, this was the very same answer given by another unrelated respondent (#7). Both male athletes played sports with other close male relatives during their youth. In another interview (NBA.com, n.d.) the player refers to his dad and uncle as well as two brothers. In that interview, he also refers to his hometown as his favorite city. Because I regularly tweet that I am a “homer” and support that city and other cities in the state, perhaps the respondent was more likely to be willing to participate in the research.
The seventh respondent (#7) provided similar answers to #1. Both stated defensive traits as dominant in their current skill sets (strong, good defender, defense) but included more offensive skills when they were younger (more of a scorer, more of a jump shooter). The tendency to focus on offensive scoring as a youth stems from two aspects: flaunting your skills and being better than everyone else. Several respondents said they were taller or better than everyone else as a youth. As a player develops, they gain a sense of success when they receive accolades and praise (Brooks, 2009). Rarely does a younger player receive praise for good defense. Therefore, possessing a scorer’s mentality is beneficial to successful development of a player should he want to continue to move up in ranking.
Two of the shorter respondents (6’2″ male and 5’6″ female) listed speed as their current best physical trait. This was expected, as the shorter players need to rely on quickness to survive on the courts. No matter how strong a player is, rarely can he out-muscle someone who is 200 pounds heavier or out-jump somebody 2′ taller. Surprisingly, the players added that they were strong and pretty physical. This is likely due to the fact that rarely are successful short players one trick ponies unless their one talent is extremely greater than all others. If you are quick and short, you need to be the quickest. If you are a good passer and short, you need to be the best passer. Therefore, if you are quick and short but not the quickest, you need an additional trait to supplement your speed. Strength is a common supplemental skill for shorter quick players. The shortest male respondent of the group (#4) also said he was strong and quick. It was a very common pairing of traits. A second possible reasons for the expression of strength is that these respondents were black. Research has shown that black males are overrepresented as strong in the media (Hardin, Dodd, Chance, & Walsdorf, 2004). Further research is necessary to determine if this perception of self is influenced by the media, or vice versa.
Two of the seven respondents said that school/academics is easier now than when they were younger. I expected those who are not currently playing professionally would have responded as such. However, it was one of each. A current professional athlete said schoolwork is easier now while a few currently out of sports said they are less skilled academically now. That finding was interesting because those with no athletic future probably need to flaunt their academic skills now while there is no vocational future for them in sports. Especially for the black respondents, I would think they would want to shed any potential “dumb jock” image (Billings, 2004). Research has shown glaring differences in the ways White and Black players are depicted in terms of innate athletic skill and perceived intelligence. Yet, any desire to shed such an image appeared to be a personal choice and did not follow any trend in the interview responses. Further research is necessary to uncover trends in how the athletes are aware of this identity and if there is any desire to alter it.
Content Analysis
I utilized content analysis to gain a fan’s perspective of athletic identities by utilizing “new” media. The first article I reviewed was in the State News, a highly esteemed college campus newspaper. Although the comments come from anonymous sources, it is likely they are students, faculty, or those in the area who are interested in the goings on at the university. In other words, it is likely they are close to the situation geographically or socially and they are not random online “trolls” who probably gravitate to the bigger “stages” of the NY Times and USA Today online comment sections. All the articles I chose to compare were regarding legal malfeasance on the part of MSU student athletes. This allowed me to have a control variable: law breaking. The first article was about MSU basketball players involved in an alleged sexual assault in August, 2010. The first comment called for socially enforced punishment for the athletes, that they should be “tarred and feathered.” The article never lists the race of those charged and “tarring and feathering” is not necessarily a racially motivated punishment. However, it is an example of citizens taking the law into their own hands which is similar to lynching (Flora, MacKethan, & Taylor, 2002). At a deeper level, the desire of the individual to determine the punishment is representative of the motivation of those who comment. Commenting in and of itself is an attempt to make an individual voices heard. Another user commented on the legitimacy of the source of the article. In that comment, the user himself was determining what is legitimate news and what is not. The source legitimacy was a theme that ran over several comments and users. Another subtle theme was the reference to other law breakers. Users drew similarities to a recent computer theft ring and a former MSU tight end on the football team, respectively. Further research is needed to understand who and why the users draw such connections. In the few articles reviewed for my research, I found that most of these references were to black former offenders. The current connection was drawn to Dion Sims, whose potential involvement in a computer theft ring will be discussed later. The past connection was drawn to Eric Knott, an athlete who was involved in a rape trial. Although the user mentioned relevant cases (MSU athletes, currency, sexual deviance) he could have wrapped more elements into one recent case: Ben Roethlisberger endured a sexual grievance against him this summer. Yet, the commenter chose to overlook the glaring similarities to that case and focus on a ten year old case and one involving computers instead of assault. I argue this is because athletes are perceived more often as grouped by race than performance.
The second article was about Korie Lucious, current MSU basketball player, who was arrested for drunk driving in the fall of 2010. There were twenty pages of comments. Coincidentally, the first page showed a randomly generated advertisement featuring Brett Favre who is currently being looked at for sexual misconduct. One of the initial comments pointed out that Korie is on scholarship and should be able to afford a cab. This is a similar theme evident in the prior article, through a commenter who mentioned that “nobody cared about this case until basketball players were mentioned.” That is a common theme throughout comments: taking sides. This particular article is a fan site and there are those who support Korie and those who support the team and Coach Tom Izzo. Conversely, there are some who antagonize Korie and the program respectively. Just like the previous article, many of the comments give opinions on punishment. Maybe he should be kicked off the team, maybe he should serve his punishment, etc. Surprisingly, one comment draws a connection to Scott Skiles, a former MSU point guard. I came across that comment before any reference to Mateen Cleaves, another former MSU point guard. Mateen was accused of DUI this year (Wood TV, 2010) and arrested for minor in possession of alcohol when at MSU (CNNSI, 1999). Skiles is white and Cleaves is black. Yet, the commenter was correct in making a connection to Skiles (SI.com, 1986). Although this conflicts with my assumption in the preceding paragraph, it does provide a new possibility: users comment on what they have experienced. This user was probably an older gentleman who was around MSU during the 1980s.
The final article is about Dion Sims, a sophomore in 2010 who played tight end for MSU and was accused of stealing over $100,000 in computer equipment recently. The first and second comments mention athletic scholarships. This refers back to the Lucious situation, but the difference here is not the benefit the athlete receives. Ironically, this would have been an ideal time for the commenter to state that Sims “had enough money” and ask “why did he need to steal?” Yet, the initial comment is about “deserving” the scholarship. The theme is that athletes are viewed as a separate group from other students, a group that needs to earn their stripes. There are punishment suggestions, even as odd as “spanking,” and others that include suspension length. Another commenter refers to Sims as a “typical” MSU athlete. This again points to the grouping of athletes as separate and potentially special.
Virtual Immersion
Through virtual immersion, I want to discover whether or not athletes view themselves as separate, different, or special in relation to other groups. My assumption is that athletes share one essential trait when using social media: they comment on what they have experienced. By default, they group themselves into a collection of “followers” and “following” on Twitter. Further research is necessary to statistically analyze the qualities in common with such groups. My research finds themes in the words they express on new media, Twitter specifically. The first themes I discovered were: (i) exercise; (ii) religion; (iii) self-promotion; (iv) quoting someone. With the research question “What are the athletes doing right now?” in mind, I recorded that they were at the gym, practicing, at church with teammates, or watching TV. To divide two ways, they were working at their trade, relaxing, or performing extra-curricular activities.
I also found that athletes expressed network connections. From wishing their “girls” good luck on the women’s team to visitng church with teammates, the athletes expressed more connections than I expected. I assumed there would be more self-promotion, which there was, but there was less than expected. Self-promotion was exhibited in the forms like (paraphrased) “watch our game on TV tonight.” Surprisingly, some athletes expressed philosophy. “I believe everything happens for a reason” and “When sumthing new is placed in front of u. U have to get use to it. That what I’m doing now. Learning process. #itwillgetbetter”. Others discussed music and girls around them. However, the main theme that was expressed more than any other unique to this group: network support.
Conclusion
I framed this research on individual perceptions, descriptions, and constructions of American athletes through the lens of two distinct groups: the fans and the athletes themselves. Using social media, I conducted a hermeneutic phenomenology initiated by dialogue with sports athletes and fans as subjects. I conducted interviews, performed content analysis, and virtually embedded myself in the players’ culture.
Reflections (Epilogue)
Reflections
- Given more resources and more time, how would improve your study? How did your methodological approach shape your process of discovery?
Appendix
INTERVIEW
Preface (not read aloud)
This interview will examine the following categories:
- physical index = height and weight
- background = hometown and previous school
- academics = major and GPA or other mentions of academics
- family = any mention of family
- skills = shooting, ball handling, defense, moves, etc.
The text below includes the collection of interview questions. It is not necessary nor is it a goal of this research to obtain an answer to every question. One of the goals of this research and interview is to see which direction the athlete takes the interview. Therefore, the questions are generally vague and open ended. The text [in brackets] will not be spoken during the interview. Interview begins now:
INTERVIEW – Questions
This interview will be broken up into three separate sections: (1) Physical Attributes; (2) Historical Data; and (3) Current Data. The interview will last no more than 30 minutes in total, 15 minutes for questioning and 15 minutes of extra expected time before and after questions. Please be aware of the time. You will participate in a brief 5 minute interview with each of the three sections so make your answers count! There are five minutes for each section to answer five questions. Don’t hold back and please provide clear and honest answers. The interview starts now (interviewer continues to read blue text):
- Physical measurements (category #1: physical index)
- What is your height and weight?
- [Interviewer will make note of what interviewer believes the athlete's race is, then ask the next question.] Are you Caucasian, African-American, or Other? You can only choose one.
- Are you a physical player?
- Are you athletic?
- What’s your best physical trait? [Interviewer is allowed to make suggestions, such as: "Do you jump well or are you strong or quick or fast or...?"]
- Gathering historical data such as previous school and hometown (category #2: background)
- Would you say that you had a rough childhood? (category #4: family)
- Who was your most influential family member growing up? (category #4: family)
- Did any of your family members play sports with you when you were a kid? (category #4: family)
- Were you really athletic as a kid? (category #5: skills)
- Was your game different as a kid and how so? [Interviewer is allowed to make suggestions, such as: "Are you stronger now or did you have a late growth spurt or are you more team-oriented now or...?"]
- Assembling recent/current data
- What is your current (or your most recent) academic major in college? (category #3: academics)
- Are you better at school work now or was school easier when you were growing up? (category #2: background)
- Who is the closest family member you stay in touch with? (category #4: family)
- What are some of the attributes in your current athletic skill set? (category #5: skills)
- Do you have goals for the future, either professionally or athletically?
THANK YOU
END OF INTERVIEW – Questions
Content Analysis Websites
http://statenews.com/index.php/article/2010/09/report_msu_basketball_players_involved_with_alleged_sexual_assault_in_
Report: MSU basketball players involved with alleged sexual assault in August
http://www.spartantailgate.com/forums/msu-red-cedar-message-board/459810-korie-lucious-arrested-owi.html
An MSU Spartan Fan Blog “Where Michigan State Fans Gather”
http://www.mlive.com/news/detroit/index.ssf/2010/09/msus_dion_sims_two_others_face.html
Update: MSU football player Dion Sims pleads guilty in Detroit Public Schools laptop theft
