Brogley Webb 1
Concussions and Other Headaches:
An Analysis of the Journalistic Coverage of the Concussion Crisis
and Football-Related Brain Trauma
______
A Thesis Presented to
The Honors Tutorial College
Ohio University
______
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for Graduation from
The Honors Tutorial College with the degree of
Bachelor of Science in Journalism
______
By
Jordan Brogley Webb
April 2014
Brogley Webb 2
This thesis has been approved by
The Honors Tutorial College and the Department of Journalism
Ohio University
______
Professor Thomas Hodson
Thesis Advisor
Professor, Journalism
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Dr. Bernhard Debatin
Honors Tutorial College Director of Studies, Journalism
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Dr. Jeremy Webster
Dean, Honors Tutorial College
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This thesis would not have been possible about the care and guidance of many individuals. First and foremost I would like to thank my parents, Douglas Webb and
Joycelyn Brogley for all of their love and for giving me the opportunity to pursue my journalism degree in a world-renowned institution like Scripps and the Honors
Tutorial College. Their pursuits and passions for careers and medicine and law have inspired a great deal of my thesis. Thank you to Dr. Michael Butterworth, Dr. Julia
Keller, Dr. Brian Ragan, Dr. Craig Chappell, Dr. Aimee Edmondson, and Bill Reader, for their help in my research. To my fellow HTC journalism senior, roommate, and best friend, Maggie Krueger, I thank you for tremendous support of me throughout this entire process. I never would have seen this project through if it were not for her help on numerous aspects of it. Finally, the greatest amount of thanks to my advisor
Tom Hodson and my director of studies, Dr. Bernhard Debatin. It has been a true pleasure and honor to work with the both of them on this thesis. Thank you so much for all of the advice you have given me over the past four years, I know it will serve me well as I move forward.
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ABSTRACT
Black Sunday, the day when, for the first time on October 17, 2010, three NFL players were fined for vicious and illegal hits, was the starting point of what would then become a national debate about concussions and football-related brain trauma.
Just three years later, brothers Mark and Steve Fainaru, reporters from ESPN would collaborate with PBS’s Frontline to expose how the NFL attempted to cover up its knowledge of the risks of brain damage in League of Denial. This thesis uses a variety of analytical tools, including metaphor, valence, framing, source, and descriptive statistical analysis to better understand how the mainstream sports media have covered what has been deemed the “concussion crisis” at the professional, collegiate, and youth levels of football. In 489 articles from both ESPN and Sports Illustrated, this study finds a distinctly negative slant to the reporting, and a prevalence of war, violence, death, and sickness metaphors. It additionally examines through what frames journalists have tried to make sense of this debate, finding frames of labor/management, race/gender, public perception, scientific debate, and opinion.
Lastly it analyzes the implications of which sources these media organizations most frequently cite for medically based information.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Introduction…………………………………………………………………………9
Part 1: Literature Review………………………………………………………..…11
Chapter I: College Athletics …………………………………………………..……11
Definition of a Student Athlete.……………………………………….…...…11
Ethical Transgression Made by Universities…………………………….…...13
NCAA as the Cause of the Corruption and a Moral Arbiter …………………14
Compensation of Athletes, Rules, and Impermissible Benefits………………16
Chapter II: Science Journalism and Sports Media….……………………….………18
Chapter III: The Development and Culture of Football ……………………………20
Masculinity and Homophobia……….…………………..……….………...…20
Aggression and Violence Within the Game, Militarization…..……….……...22
NFL Films and the Cultural Influence of Football……….……….……….....24
Chapter IV: The NFL……….. ……………………..………………………………25
Brief History of the Modern NFL……….…………….….……….………....25
Prominent Players Whose Deaths Have Been Associated with Football Induced
Brain Trauma……….………………………………….………….………….26
NFL’s mTBI Committee and Player Safety Under Paul Tagliabue………...... 28
Heightened Awareness of Concussion Danger in the Roger Goodell Era...... 28
Rule Changes and NFL Player Safety Initiatives……….……….…...…….....29
Prominent Brain Injury Research Groups……….……………….……..….....30
Health Benefits Under the New Collective Bargaining Agreement…....….....32 Brogley Webb 6
Lawsuit Filed by NFL Players Against the League and Settlement……...... 32
Chapter V: Concussions, CTE, and Brain Science. ..………………………...……..33
Definitions of Concussions, mTBI, and CTE…...……………….……..….....33
Injuries Among High School, College, and NFL Football Players ……….....35
Injury Prevention………………………………...……………….……..….....37
Diagnosis of mTBI in athletes……………….….……………….……..….....38
Treatment of mTBI in athletes………………….……………….……..….....39
Part II: Research and Conclusions…….………………………………………..…42
Chapter VI: Methodology…………………………………………………………..42
Metaphor Theory………………..…….…………….….……….……….....…42
Research Questions…………..……..….…………….….……….………...…43
Sample……………………..………….….…………….….……….………...46
Descriptive Statistics……..….………………...……….….……….………...50
Source Analysis………...……………………………….….……….………...51
Metaphor Theory………………………….…………….….……….………...52
Valence Analysis……….………………….………….….……….…………..54
Topic Valence…….………………….….…………….….……….……….....55
Tone Valence………….…………….….…………………...…….………….56
Framing Analysis…………………….….…………….….……….………….57
Chapter VII: Discussion of Findings and Results…………………..…………..…59
Metaphor Analysis……….…………………...….…………….….………….59
Valence Analysis……….………………….………….….……….……….....69 Brogley Webb 7
Topic Valence……….……………….….…………….….……….……….....70
Tone Valence………….…………….….…………………...…….………….75
Framing Analysis…………………….….…………….….……….………….80
Source Analysis……….……………………………….….……….………….92
Descriptive Statistics…………………….…………….….……….………….99
Chapter VIII: Conclusions and Further Questions……………………...………114
Metaphor Analysis……….…………………...….…………….….………...114
Topic Valence……………………….….…………….….……….………...116
Tone Valence………….…………….….…………………...…….………...117
Framing Analysis…………………….….…………….….……….………...118
Source Analysis……….……………………………….….……….………...121
Descriptive Statistics…………………….…………….….……….………...123
Summary of Major Findings…………………….….…….……….………...125
Limitations……….……………………………….….……………………...127
Questions for Further Research…………………….….….……….………...128
Bibliography……..………………….….…………….….……….………………...130
Appendix A: Bibliography of Articles from Sample………….…….…...... 136
Appendix B: Tables and Charts………….……...….….……………….………...167
Table 1: Major Trends for Each Subtopic………………..………...... 167
Table 2: Stories by Year…………………...….….……………….………...169
Table 3: Stories by Level of Football………………….....………...... 169
Table 4: Stories by Publication….………...….….……………….………...170 Brogley Webb 8
Table 5: Topic by Publication…………………..………..………...... 170
Table 6: Topic by Level of Football ……...….….……………….………...170
Table 7: Breakdown by Topic……………..……………..………...... 171
Table 8: Topic Breakdown By Number of Stories Per Year….….………...171
Item 9: Timeline for Each Subtopic……………..…….....………...... 172
Appendix C: Metaphor Tables….………………...….…...…………….………...188
Appendix D: Source Tables………………..……………………….…...... 200
Appendix E: Valence Ratings…………………...…….……………….……….....205
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INTRODUCTION
In September of 2002, Mike Webster, a Hall of Fame center, who played in the
National Football League from 1974-1990, died of a heart attack at age 50. Webster, who was beloved by fans of the Pittsburgh Steelers, notably suffered from depression, dementia, chronic pain, and memory loss in the later years of his life. Getting divorced a mere six months prior to his death, Webster had been living out of his pickup truck in between Wisconsin and Pittsburgh. Dr. Bennet Omalu, a Nigerian pathologist, conducted the autopsy, and found distinct accumulations of a substance called tau protein, present in Webster’s brain. Omalu went on to call the disease chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a condition once believed to only affect boxers, providing an explicit connection between the brain trauma Webster suffered as a football player to the dementia he developed after he retired. Upon his attempted publication of his findings, Dr. Omalu encountered staunch opposition from the NFL’s medical experts, who tried to discredit him and destroy his reputation within the scientific community. Omalu began to understand that he had inadvertently poked a wasp’s nest, as he found himself at the dangerous intersection of political motives, business interests, and scientific research.
The issues of brain trauma, concussions, and CTE in football players did not become widely covered by the mainstream sports media until 2010, when the NFL began a concerted campaign to improved player safety by instituting a number of rule changes. The effects were immediate and dramatic, with the NFL singling out a number of defensive players and in effect, publically shaming them by handing out Brogley Webb 10
five-figure fines for what it deemed illegal and dangerous hits. Over the past several years the mainstream sports media, for the purposes of this thesis, Sports Illustrated and ESPN, have made a concerted effort to cover the “concussion crisis” from a number of angles, reporting about concussion education clinics, medical issues, new scientific research, and featuring players whose lives have been altered by the effects of football-related brain trauma. The 2013 Frontline documentary League of Denial was highly critical of the NFL’s attempted concealment of the knowledge it possessed that football could cause long-term brain damage. This active deception resulted in a lawsuit by 4,500 current and former NFL players, which they settled with the NFL in
August 2013 for a reported $765 million dollars. In January 2014, the initial approval of the settlement was rejected by Judge Anita Brody, who questioned whether or not the sum would be sufficient to cover the medical needs of past, current, and future
NFL players.
This thesis aims to examine how the mainstream sports media, including both
ESPN and Sports Illustrated, have covered the concussion crisis. It provides analysis using a variety of theoretical approaches including a review of metaphorical language, and valence analysis, a system which rates how favorably or unfavorably a journalist has reported a specific topic. It also endeavors to see which frames journalists use to better understand aspects of the concussion crisis and how they package this information to the public, for example the frame of scientific debate. Additionally, it takes into account which medical experts and scientific researchers are cited most frequently, as currently there are a number of competing views of football-related head Brogley Webb 11
trauma within the scientific community. The project offers a weaving together of each of these techniques to compare the similarities and differences between the two media organizations, as well as discuss the strengths and weaknesses of their coverage.
The background of the debate, including its history within both the NFL and college football will be discussed in the next several chapters. The purpose of this thesis is not to argue for or against the manner in which the NFL, NCAA, and youth football leagues have handled player safety. It serves to provide an objective account and analysis of the portrayal of this issue by the sports media.
PART 1: LITERATURE REVIEW
CHAPTER I: COLLEGE ATHLETICS
Definition of a Student Athlete
To begin the discussion of football-related brain trauma, it is crucial to recognize that separating football from violence is inherently impossible. Even in its formative years at the collegiate level in the 1870’s, faculty members at Harvard became so concerned with the sheer violence of the sport that they attempted to ban it.
Also concerned with the “win at any cost” mentality promoted by coaching staffs, the faculty proclaimed, “Making cheating and brutality profitable is the main evil,” and vowed to see the game abolished (Branch, 44). Much like President Obama is seen today publicly questioning whether he would allow a son to play football, based on inevitable safety concerns and emerging brain science, President Theodore Roosevelt was also outspoken about the dangers of football in the early twentieth century.
Roosevelt promised that he would either “civilize or destroy football,” which led to a Brogley Webb 12
major reformation of college athletics and the creation of a uniform governing body composed of representatives from 68 colleges, the National Collegiate Athletic
Association (NCAA) (Branch, 47).
Today the NCAA remains the primary regulator of college and university athletes, athletic programs, and conferences, but even so, most institutions allow their own compliance department to handle potential rules violations. Some have even argued the NCAA’s purpose for existence in the today’s landscape of college athletics, but as author Taylor Branch says, “Much of the NCAA’s moral authority and justification is vested in its claim to protect what it calls the student-athlete,” (Branch,
80). Although a casual observer might ascertain this classification to be something positive, such as including the word student to suggest that academics should be the first priority of anyone playing college sports, but in fact, the NCAA created the term for legal protection. The term “student athlete” specifically does not allow for individuals to be considered employees of the institution for whom they play, and thus prevents them from receiving certain health benefits and from filing workers’ compensation claims. Student athletes have long been stripped of bargaining power and a voice regarding their collegiate athletic careers. In 1973, scholarship rules changed from four-year guarantees to grants that could be renewed for each season, giving college coaches tremendous power (Sperber, 28).
In addition to the fear student athletes had about their scholarships not being renewed due to diminished performance, perhaps as a result of an injury, they were also not able to fight the universities for compensation for the physical damage they Brogley Webb 13
suffered. The impact of this designation has been felt most strongly by injured football players. The fight first began in the 1950’s when the widow of former Fort Lewis
A&M football player Ray Dennison’s petition for workers’ compensation benefits was denied. Dennison had died of a brain injury he suffered while playing football. Since the Dennison case, the NCAA and its member institutions have earned a number of legal victories through using the student athlete defense. Other than the Dennison case, the liability claim that received the most media attention was former TCU football player Kent Waldrep, who was paralyzed from the waist down after a vicious hit during a 1974 game against Alabama. In Waldrep v. Texas Employers Insurance
Association, a district court jury overturned a ruling by a compensation commission and affirmed that Waldrep was not an employee of the university (Branch).
Ethical transgressions made by universities
The issue of lack of compensation for injured players represents just one example of how the NCAA and its member institutions have committed moral and ethical transgressions at the expense of athletes. It does not require statistical analysis to understand that the majority of college athletes will not go on to play professional sports, yet their college years are still treated like minor league training. This attitude, precipitated by coaches and athletic department administrators, severely undermines the true objective of attending college, to receive an education. Major college football programs have been known to funnel players into easy majors and fake independent study classes to keep them academically eligible. In the 1970’s and 1980’s, the increasing pressure and demands for victories and more importantly, championships, Brogley Webb 14
corrupted the agendas of many university administrators, causing the health and welfare of athletes to suffer the most (Sperber, 23). In today’s world of hyperactive media coverage of college athletics, it has now become commonplace to see a story about a recruiting or other ethical violation making headlines. Murray Sperber, in part blames the NCAA for turning a blind eye on much of the corruption, and instead of demanding for widespread reform, it “removed a few putrid programs, but continued to let the rest float along,” (Sperber, 26). Most recently, the Penn State child abuse scandal, resulted in NCAA President Mark Emmert handing down unprecedented sanctions to the football program and university. There was widespread outrage on the
Penn State campus over Emmert’s sanctions, which included a four-year postseason ban, loss of scholarships and 112 wins, and a $60 million dollar fine. Instead of directing their outrage to the actions of convicted sex offender Jerry Sandusky, a former coach at Penn State, students protested over President Emmert’s penalties, which they perceived as “unfair” to punish current athletes that had no connection to
Sandusky.
NCAA as the cause of the corruption and a moral arbiter
Perhaps the great irony of the NCAA is that while it proclaims to uphold morality and swiftly discipline any rule-breakers, it is the primary source of corruption. To establish their authority NCAA officials, have sought to strike down minor, petty violations and take the focus away from larger and pressing concerns.
Sperber claims that the bottom-line cause of this corruption is money, comparing the
NCAA to large companies like IBM and General Motors and calling it a trade Brogley Webb 15
association that disregards the wishes of its members and indiscriminately makes its own rules. The money from television contracts has become crucial over the years for driving the financial behemoth that is the NCAA. In 1961, the NCAA negotiated a contract that would pay them $3.1 million per football season, more than the NFL received in its contract (Branch, 66). In 1984, the court case NCAA v. Board of
Regents of the University of Oklahoma, The Supreme Court said the NCAA’s monopolistic television contracts adversely affected its member institutions and fans, leaving the NCAA primarily dependent on revenue from “March Madness”. Despite these restrictions, the NCAA still received $771 million from Turner Broadcasting for the rights to carry the 2011 men’s tournament (Branch, 113).
ESPN and the advent of the 24-hour news cycle, the notion of a student as a paying customer of a university, and how significant a university’s athletic success is to a prospective student, all are used to justify the importance of the financial side of college athletics. Sperber notes “The Flutie Factor” as a particular example, in which
Boston College’s applications went up 25 percent after quarterback Doug Flutie’s incredible Hail Mary pass to defeat the University of Miami in 1984 (Sperber, 60).
More recently, a 2012 study by Michael L. Anderson found that if a college football program improves its season win total by five games, it can expect “alumni athletic donations to increase by $682,000 (28%), applications to increase by 677 (5%), the acceptance rate to drop by 1.5 percentage points (2%), in-state enrollment to increase by 76 students (3%), and incoming 25th percentile SAT scores to increase by 9 points
(1%),” (M. Anderson). Branch questions the irony of banning players from putting Brogley Webb 16
personal messages on their bodies and selling their autographs for tattoos, but allowing advertisements to be sewn onto athletic uniforms, for the purpose of raising money for the university (Branch, 145). He also notes the importance of the landmark decision in
NCAA v. Tarkanian (1988), which exempted the NCAA from any due process obligations because it wasn’t a government institution. According to Branch, the failure to provide sufficient procedural protection for college athletes who accused of committing a violation stems from the idea that “college athletes own no interest in sports beyond exercise, character building, and good fun,” (Branch, 188). With the high financial stakes of today’s college sports, it is ridiculous to think that college athletes do not have a vested interest, and the fact that this interest has gone largely unchallenged in the realm of public discourse, is even more appalling, he says.
Compensation of college athletes, rules and impermissible benefits
Over the years, the NCAA has established a plethora of rules designed to deprive student athletes of bargaining power. In 1973, it implemented the one-year rule, which prohibited universities and colleges from offering athletic scholarships lasting longer than a one-year period. Scholarships could be renewed with each subsequent season, but a four-year scholarship was no longer guaranteed. According to Branch, in actuality, the rule permitted coaches to cut underperforming student athletes in the same manner that professional teams released players, even though student athletes enjoy none of benefits or compensation the professionals do (Branch,
213). Brogley Webb 17
Amateurism and compensation of student athletes is one of the most contentious debates of the new millennium in sports, and the idea of an athlete receiving impermissible benefits lies central to the controversy. The Sanity Code of
1948 was the first attempt of the NCAA to punish athletes for receiving what it called
“concealed and indirect benefits,” (Branch, 54). The United States today remains the only country in the world to have major sports at a university level. While college football coaches are paid an average of $2 million per year, roughly 20 times the compensation for a university professor, student athletes are left with nothing, even once their playing days have ended. Former Wooden Award winner, Ed O’Bannon says that he is still unable to receive compensation for the NCAA using his likeness as a basketball player for UCLA, arguing that by signing the required “Student Athlete
Statement” form, he relinquished claim to his image being used for promotional purposes forever. Sonny Vaccaro, a marketing executive famous for signing Michael
Jordan to his first shoe deal, said “This goes beyond race to human rights. The least educated are the most exploited,” (Branch, 17). This exploitation of student athletes has further permeated into the realm of player safety. Despite the widespread denouncement of the dangers associated with playing football by university faculty and government officials, it was not until 1939 that the NCAA mandated the use of helmets in football (Branch, 49). Moreover, in 1933 the NCAA's medical handbook included warnings about concussions, recommending injured players rest and be under constant observation, not being allowed to participate until symptoms had been resolved for at least 48 hours. If symptoms persisted beyond 48 hours, players should Brogley Webb 18
not play for at least three weeks if ever again (Petchesky). Despite these published warnings, it was not until the 2010 football season that the NCAA mandated that each football program have a concussion protocol in place.
CHAPTER II: SCIENCE JOURNALISM AND SPORTS MEDIA
Sports journalists today often focus exclusively on game and event coverage, occasionally writing a profile or providing commentary. Investigative sports journalists, such as those working for HBO’s Real Sports or ESPN’s Outside the
Lines, are often looked upon to provide in depth coverage of any scandals, controversies, or larger cultural issues reflected in sports. Despite the depth of their reporting experience, these journalists often have little background knowledge of scientific and medical information, which is crucial for reporting on a topic like brain trauma. Both sports journalists and the general news media are required to cover stories and newsworthy events, even if they are not fully familiar with the subject matter themselves. This reflects a pressing issue for today’s journalists, says Pulitzer-
Prize winning journalist Julia Keller, either you allow scientific experts with a full understanding of the material and not the most polished writing skills to provide news coverage, or you possibly relinquish some scientific accuracy to have the piece written by a trained communicator. The changing news climate requires journalists to either be highly specialized and well versed in one particular area or to have a broad base of collective knowledge and be able to provide satisfactory coverage of a myriad of topics (Keller). It is the role of the journalist to provide the connection between an expert and the general public. While journalists may not possess expert knowledge, Brogley Webb 19
they still must be well informed and familiar enough with the subject matter to provide an accurate and comprehensible rendition of the facts.
In her book, Ideas Into Words, science writer Elise Hancock provides insight and examples from her publishing and editing career to aid journalists in rendering more thorough and comprehensive scientific reports. Much of Hancock’s book is dedicated to explaining how journalists can get the most out of their interactions with scientific and medical researchers. It is important to remember, she says, that both journalist and scientists share a common goal of enhancing public understanding and each offer a unique skill to their partnership; the scientist understands the research, and the journalists acts as a translator. Crucial to the success of the journalist’s work is a discerning eye and a healthy sense of skepticism. Especially in a field as new and rapidly evolving as athletic-related brain trauma, research is still in the early stages, and preliminary results are often mistaken or do not provide a complete picture of the truth. According to Ohio University concussion researcher Dr. Brian Ragan, we are at the proverbial tip of the iceberg in terms of our level of comprehension of concussions and chronic traumatic encephalopathy. Longitudinal studies of brain trauma in athletes beginning in youth leagues and extending all the way into adulthood are badly needed, and the results of these studies will not be conclusive for decades (Ragan).
In examining scientific research, and in this case concussion research, the writer must question how the research was funded and if the results of a study fit expected findings so well that it is almost suspicious. Scientific truth is at its core empirical and can be replicated by others. Even though some variation will exist and Brogley Webb 20
eventual new discoveries will be made, the top scientists in the field should all accept the current best theory (Hancock, 15). With the prevalence of a number of NFL associated and independent research groups, some of which have vastly differing opinions of concussion science, it is important for a journalist to question whether others in the field generally accept the interpretation and findings of a particular report. If they do not agree, what is the central issue and point of contention? In describing research, the writer must go beyond basic recapitulation of the methods used by the researcher and the results that they found. Instead, the writer should be able to ascertain the significance of the results and discern where they fit into the larger picture. Said Dr. Ragan, “It’s great to have exposure and to generate interest in the topic, but accuracy is just as important,” (Ragan). A journalist does not have to sacrifice the appearance of being un-biased to provide this analysis. The effect of generating publicity for certain research can have far-reaching impacts, including the public believing the research is accurate and without flaws just because the media has covered it. These assumptions may or may not be true, but to mitigate these effects, journalists may seek to shift their focus away from strictly event coverage and instead examine the implications of new research and medical discoveries.
CHAPTER III: THE DEVELOPMENT AND CULTURE OF FOOTBALL
Masculinity and Homophobia
According to anthropologist William Arens, football is “a male initiation ritual…that manifests both the physical and cultural values of masculinity,” (Falk, 99).
From the time boys beginning playing in Pop Warner leagues they are taught that they Brogley Webb 21
must inflict as much pain on their opponent as impossible and if they suffer any pain, they must silently accept it and continue playing. The adoption of these attitudes toward pain is critical in the development of a player’s masculine identity. These masculine ideals are further ingrained because football coaches associate them with being victorious on the field of play. Hall of Fame coach Vince Lombardi asserted that
“Winning isn’t everything; it is the only thing,” a mantra exemplified by many of today’s top tier NFL players, who share the common belief that to win in football you must assert your domination over the opposing team. Falk notes that many football fans are attracted to watching the game because “they seek to identify with power, control and dominance,” (Falk, 98). Moreover he supports this notion by citing a study by sociologists Jeffrey Goldstein and Robert Arms, which concluded that without regard to team preference, spectators of football games demonstrated higher levels of physiological markers for stress and hostility after a game had ended, than before the game started (Falk, 21).
The hyper-masculine football culture and glorification of on-field violence has, in some regards, led to the devaluation of femininity and feminine traits, and homophobic attitudes surrounding football teams and locker rooms. According to sports writer Dave Zirin, there are “two great fears that bind the ‘jock-ocracy’ together- being called a girl and being called gay,” (Zirin, “Not Just a Game”). Much like drug abuse had defined the dark side of the NFL in the 1980’s, domestic violence became the NFL’s most pressing concern in the 1990’s. After a rash of incidents in the
90’s, the NFL brought in marketing and public relations expert Sara Levinson, to help Brogley Webb 22
attract more female fans. Before she assumed her position with the NFL, its fan base was already 40 percent female and by 2005, more than 1,300 girls played on high school football teams (Oriard, 199). Some sociologists argue that as women garnered more power and influence in the workforce and other traditionally male realms, men began to defend the realm of football more fiercely. For writer and former NFL player
Michael Oriard, this mentality exemplified the pervasive “Guy Culture,” which he calls, “a reaction to a vast industry of Oprah-fied women’s media based on gross sentimentalism, political correctness, and the dearth of a sense of humor,” (Oriard,
204).
Despite the long perpetuated myth of the masculine ideal in football, a 2012 study by Anderson and Kian found that media coverage of head trauma in the NFL has actually led to a softening of masculinity. By shifting from glorifying big hits to examining the potentially adverse long-term impacts of such violence collisions, the media has, whether intentionally or not, diminished the association of crushing hits and masculinity. For example, the study looks at stories published about a concussion that Green Bay Packers quarterback suffered during an NFL game. Specifically the stories highlight the interaction between Rodgers and teammate Donald Driver, who tries to reassure Rodgers that he doesn’t need to “man up” and should come out of the game if he was injured. The authors emphasize that not only are media attitudes toward violence in football changing, but also they argue that NFL players are more likely to want to protect their own health (Kian, Anderson).
Aggression and violence within the game, militarization Brogley Webb 23
The catharsis theory of violent sports says that football’s purpose is to “provide a vicarious outlet for the human instinct of war” (Oriard, 31). The sheer number of
NFL players that are veterans of the U.S. military supports the prevailing warrior culture that exists today in the NFL. Some scholars argue that the ideological and political function of football is to promote patriotism and the American Dream (Falk).
Zirin argues that the promotion of military appreciation nights at NFL and other kinds of football games exemplifies the intersection of war, politics, and sport. He argues that by glamorizing war, for example dramatic stadium flyovers by Air Force jets, this ideology becomes naturalized, even though it is a form of propaganda (“Game Over”).
A commonly asserted statistic by sports media is that the average length of a running back’s career in the NFL is just under three and a half years. With this stark reality in mind, much of and NFL player’s offseason is dedicated to spending time in the weight room and practice facility, improving speed and building muscle, literally and figuratively putting on armor. While many young players do not consider what they will do once their playing careers are over and are convinced of their invincibility, many veterans understand that football represents their livelihood; it helps to feed their families and they are only one play away from being seriously injured and perhaps permanently disabled. Boston University researcher Dr. Robert
Cantu estimates NFL players are involved in anywhere from 1,000 to 1,500 collisions per season, with each one providing the force of a car accident (Oriard). With such a high number of impacts, it is easy to see why the average NFL player’s life expectancy is 20 years shorter than the rest of the male population (“Game Over”). Brogley Webb 24
The glorification and sanitization of violence is then especially troubling because it skews our perception of actual long-term consequences.
NFL Films and the cultural influence of football
Throughout the history of the United States, sports have been a powerful cultural and political force, and the game of football has become an integral part of its national identity. Football serves an essential social function as well, shaping norms and power structures, while demeaning those who do not fit into prescribed categories.
Football also functions to bring diverse groups of people together and to provide social and economic mobility (Falk). Zirin argues that the football is everything, winning is everything, becomes problematic, especially when comparing the 2012 riots at Penn
State University with those at the University of California-Berkeley. At Berkeley, students vehemently protested proposed tuition increases, while at Penn State students rioted after hearing the NCAA’s sanctions against their university for the Jerry
Sandusky abuse scandal. The outrage surrounding the Penn State riot was not about the children that were victimized by the former football coach, but instead over the scholarships and bowl appearances that were taken away from the football program
(“Game Over”).
Since its founding in 1962, NFL Films has been the centerpiece of the NFL’s cultural empire. In essence it is a marketing tool for the league, exploiting high- resolution images and artistic camera work to show the league’s best moments. NFL
Films has had no legitimate competition regarding, “Capturing the moods and rhythms of football,” and has had an “immediate and enduring impact as professional football’s Brogley Webb 25
troubadour and epic poet,” (Oriard, 14, 18). While quarterbacks and high powered offenses are usually the primary attraction at an NFL game, some of NFL Films’ best and most notable work captures bone-crushing hits made by linebackers and defensive backs, making them the true heroic figures in football’s narrative. ESPN took a similar approach by developing a segment on its Sunday NFL Countdown program called
“Jacked-Up,” where clips of the most vicious hits of the week were edited together and played while the commentators proclaimed that the recipient of the violent blow had been “jacked-up.” ESPN eventually went on to cancel the segment due to national attention on the concussion crisis.
CHAPTER IV: THE NFL
Brief history of the modern NFL
Many scholars agree that the modern NFL was born when 30 million people watched the Colts defeat the Giants in the 1958 NFL Championship. Commissioner
Pete Rozelle is often regarded as the modern NFL’s architect, presiding over the
NFL’s merger with the American Football League, engineering the creation of the
Super Bowl, overseeing the development of NFL Films and NFL properties, and growing television contract rights by more than 1000% in less than 10 years by 1970
(Oriard, 13). Monday Night Football also debuted in 1970, featuring a logo made up of two helmets colliding with one another, clearly marketing the violence to the viewing public (Fainaru-Wada, Fainaru). While Rozelle was the NFL’s best public relations strategist, his successor Paul Tagliabue was a master of marketing. In 1993, the average yearly earnings of restricted free agents more than tripled with the Brogley Webb 26
beginning of the free agency plan, causing NFLPA director Gene Upshaw to declare,
“For the first time, we are the partners of the owners,” (Oriard, 143). Some 75 percent of the league built, had plans to build, or renovated stadiums during the Tagliabue era.
Both wealthy and lower echelon teams profited, especially during the period of 1998-
2005, from $18 billion in revenue from television contracts, representing slightly more than half of the NFL’s yearly revenue (Oriard, 167). Since its founding in 1979, ESPN has revolutionized the way sports are watched with the 24 hour news cycle and has completely changed the way athletes fit into the larger celebrity culture. For an estimated $476 million per year, ESPN’s signing with the NFL “assured the long-term financial health of the league,” and unwittingly set the stage for future clashes over the reporting of football related brain trauma (Oriard, 188).
Prominent players whose deaths have been associated with football induced brain
trauma
Mike Webster was a nine-time All-Pro center, who most notably played for the
Pittsburgh Steelers from 1974-1988. Webster was inducted into the Pro-Football Hall of Fame in 1997, five years before his death at age 50 of heart disease. After he retired, Webster’s health began to deteriorate; he had bouts of rage, was angry, and was confused. His marriage ended, and at one point he was living out of his pickup truck. Pathologist Dr. Bennett Omalu performed Webster’s autopsy and first found the brain disease chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), which at the time Omalu thought was something similar to Alzheimer’s disease. Before his death, Webster filed a disability claim against the NFL, alleging the brain damage and dementia he suffered Brogley Webb 27
was a result of his NFL playing career. The NFL’s retirement board granted him monthly disability payments, which represented a shocking acknowledgement by the league that repeated blows to the head could cause lasting brain trauma (Fainaru-
Wada, Fainaru).
Junior Seau was a Hall of Fame linebacker, most notably of the San Diego
Chargers, who committed suicide in May 2012 by shooting himself in the chest. Seau had been one of the hardest hitting and most respected defensive players to ever play football, but near the end of his life began behaving erratically, getting arrested for domestic violence, losing millions of dollars on gambling and alcohol, and attempting to drive his SUV off a cliff. Seau’s death brought a renewed interest and attention in the media to football-related head trauma, and among researchers, his brain was the most highly sought after specimen ever. Seau’s family eventually chose for the NFL- backed National Institutes of Health to study his brain, choosing them notably over Dr.
Omalu and the research group at Boston University. The results were conclusive to show that Seau had suffered from CTE (Fainaru-Wada, Fainaru).
Dave Duerson was a four-time pro-bowler who played 11 seasons in the NFL, winning Super Bowls with both the Bears in 1985 and Giants in 1990. After his football career he enjoyed a successful business career until his marriage ended and he went bankrupt. Showing symptoms of brain trauma like memory loss and abusive behavior toward family members, he died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the chest. Prior to his death he left a note requesting his brain be donated to the Boston Brogley Webb 28
University research team. He joined two-dozen other former football players to be posthumously diagnosed with CTE (Schwarz).
NFL’s mTBI Committee and player safety under Paul Tagliabue
In 1994, Commissioner Tagliabue selected Dr. Elliot Pellman, a rheumatologist and his own personal physician, to chair the NFL’s mTBI committee, which was formed in response to injuries sustained by a number of top-level players including Steve Young and Troy Aikman (Keating). mTBI denotes a mild traumatic brain injury and generally concussions are given this designation. Pellman had no background in brain research and was joined by other NFL “loyalists,” which were primarily team doctors (Fainaru-Wada, Fainaru). According to League of Denial, a
Frontline documentary and book that uncovers the NFL’s systemic denial of the risks of football-related brain damage, for the next 15 years the committee performed experiments designed to appear that the NFL had an interest in protecting the wellbeing of its players. In 2003 it published a report in the medical journal
Neurosurgery denying the lasting and cumulative effects of mTBI’s and stating there was no risk for second-impact syndrome after sustaining a concussion and that a player could return to play in the same game (Keating). Throughout the 1990’s
Commissioner Tagliabue had been dismissive about the issue of concussions, once calling it a pack journalism issue (Fainaru-Wada, Fainaru).
Heightened awareness of concussion danger in the Roger Goodell era
Once Roger Goodell assumed Tagliabue’s position of commissioner of the
NFL, he replaced Dr. Pellman with Dr. Ira Casson, an NFL doctor who soon became Brogley Webb 29
known as “Dr. No” for his repeated denial of playing football causing long-tern brain damage (Fainaru-Wada, Fainaru). In the summer of 2007, Goodell ordered that all 32
NFL teams send doctors and athletic trainers to a special conference on concussions.
By the beginning of the 2007 regular season, players were presented with a pamphlet called “What is a concussion?” which stated that if managed properly, multiple concussions did not cause permanent brain damage (Keating). In 2009, Goodell appeared before Congress and refused to acknowledge a link between concussions sustained in football and long-term brain disease, leading Democratic representative
Lisa Sanchez of California to compare the NFL to the tobacco industry ("Roger
Goodell Grilled by Congress on Head Injuries").
Rules changes and NFL player safety initiatives
Since 2010, the NFL has adopted several rule changes with the aim of reducing injuries and improving player safety. These rules prohibit leading with the head and initiating helmet-to-helmet contact with an opponent in order to bring them to the ground. Kickoffs were moved up to the 35-yard line, with the hope of having more touchbacks and fewer returns, based upon statistics that show that special teams plays present the most significant risk for injury. While most rule changes have been implemented to protect defenseless receivers and limit defensive players, the crown of the helmet rule, which was approved in 2013, restricts a running back from using his head in order to ward off would-be tacklers. In the past few seasons the NFL has developed a web site called NFL Evolution, dedicated to providing updated medical research, promoting NFL partnerships with research groups, youth safety clinics, and Brogley Webb 30
highlighting the most recent concussion testing protocol. In 2010, once Boston
University researcher Dr. Ann McKee had discovered chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) in 19 of the 20 brains of former players she had studied,
Commissioner Roger Goodell designated Boston University as the NFL’s preferred brain bank and offered a $1 million donation. Goodell went on to redact this designation and instead provided funds and began a partnership with the National
Institutes of Health. League spokesman Greg Aiello said that football could cause long-term brain damage, representing the first publicly made admission from the league (Fainaru-Wada, Fainaru).
Prominent brain injury research groups
Boston University’s research team has been one of the most oft cited in the media over the past several years. Featuring a team of researchers including Dr.
Robert Cantu, Dr. Ann McKee, Dr. Robert Stern, and former WWE wrestler Chris
Nowinski, Boston University’s primary work has been examining the brains of deceased former football players for chronic traumatic encephalopathy. Chris
Nowinski first approached Ann McKee believing that he might have suffered brain damage during his football and wrestling careers, and went on to become Boston
University’s “brain-chaser,” calling families of deceased former players to request their brains for study. Nowinski and McKee traveled to the Super Bowl in 2009 to present their findings at a news conference, but it was poorly attended. In May 2009,
McKee was called to meet with the NFL’s mTBI committee where her results were met with skepticism, after the committee questioned whether she could prove that Brogley Webb 31
football had conclusively caused CTE and how prevalent the disease was considering the relatively small sample size. As of October 2013, McKee and Boston University have identified CTE in 45 of the 46 brains they have examined (Fainaru-Wada,
Fainaru).
Dr. Bennett Omalu is a pathologist working in the UC Davis health system and the chief medical examiner in San Joaquin County, California. He was the first person to identify CTE when he did the autopsy of former Steelers’ great Mike Webster in
2002. He submitted a paper to the journal Neurosurgery and was pressured to retract it by members of the NFL’s mTBI committee, who even attempted to public discredit his work and destroy his reputation among the scientific community (Fainaru-Wada,
Fainaru). His colleague, Dr. Julian Bailes, former team physician for the Pittsburgh
Steelers, and current co-director of the NorthShore Neurological Institute in Evanston,
Illinois, offered to present Omalu’s work in the 2007 NFL mandated concussion conference. Most recently, Bailes and Omalu were co-authors of a study at UCLA that found CTE for the first time in living people (Fainaru-Wada, Fainaru).
Dr. Kevin Guskiewicz is one of the most well-known and universally respected concussions researchers at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill. His research focuses on measuring balance and neuropsychological function in high school and college football players who have suffered concussions. He also has investigated the use of helmet sensors to measure the force of the impacts sustained while playing football. Guskiewicz also has served on the NFL’s head, neck, and spine committee and the NCAA’s concussion committee since 2010 ("Kevin Guskiewicz bio," ). Brogley Webb 32
Health benefits under the new Collective Bargaining Agreement
The 2011 Collective Bargaining agreement included a number of new health benefits for current and retired players, with the goal of improving player safety and wellbeing after a player’s career had ended. The Legacy Fund was created to increase pensions of players who retired before 1993. Current players are now permitted to remain on the player medical plan for the rest of their lives. There is additional financial compensation for injured players and the NFL and NFLPA agreed on a joint donation of $50 million per year for medical research. For current players, the number of organized team activities, offseason workouts, contact practices, and amount of on- field practice time were reduced, while the number of rest days was increased (“NFL
Collective Bargaining Agreement”).
Lawsuit filed by NFL players against the league and settlement
In July 2011, ESPN reported that 75 former NFL players were suing the NFL for brain damage they suffered as a result of playing football. By January 2012, both the NFL and retired players sought to consolidate all of the lawsuits in Philadelphia.
With wrongful death suits filed against the NFL by the families of Junior Seau and
Dave Duerson, who both committed suicide and were found to have CTE, litigation against the NFL dramatically increased by February of 2013. In its entirety, 4,500 players sued the NFL, with 1/3 of them alleging the NFL had withheld knowledge of the risks of brain damage (Fainaru-Wada, Fainaru). In a 2012 scholarly article, Amy
L. Bernstein argued that based upon theories of comparative negligence, players could expect to recover significantly less in damages due to the known risks they assumed Brogley Webb 33
by playing in the NFL (Bernstein). In August 2013, the NFL and its former players reached a settlement for $765 million, allocating the largest awards, $5 million and $4 million, for players diagnosed with Lou Gehrig’s disease before age 45 and players diagnosed with CTE (Munson). With the agreement, the NFL admitted no guilt in causing the players’ brain damage and did not have to surrender the information it had on concussions and when that information became known. In January 2014, Judge
Anita Brody denied the preliminary approval of the concussion settlement details, stating the proposed amount would not be sufficient in covering current, former, and future NFL players (Weinreich).
CHAPTER V: CONCUSSIONS, CTE, AND BRAIN SCIENCE
Definitions of concussions, mTBI, and CTE
Many have asserted that the average collision between adult football players is equivalent to a 25 mile per hour car accident (Falk, 26). This thesis largely relies upon the understanding of several key terms, including concussion, mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), and chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). A. Mckinlay, A. Bishop and T. Mcclellan argue that public knowledge is usually lacking when it comes to these terms. They found that 56 percent of people they surveyed claimed to have suffered a concussion, but not a brain or head injury. They also found that people more likely had negative associations with the term ‘brain injury’ compared to ‘head injury’
(Mckinlay, Bishop, and Mcclellan). A concussion is defined as “a complex pathophysiological process affecting the brain induced by traumatic biomechanical forces” or as Gerhard Falk calls it “an alteration of consciousness ranging from Brogley Webb 34
amnesia to unconsciousness,” (Saffary, Chin) and (Falk, 57). According to the 2012
Consensus Statement in Sports, symptoms include headache, irritability, potential loss of consciousness, amnesia, dizziness, insomnia, and reduced reaction time. Typically,
80-90 percent of concussions resolve within 7-10 days (McCrory, Meeuwisse, Aubry, et all).
Football-related brain trauma is typically classified into two types. According to Blennow et all, “acute brain injury comprises mild TBI or concussion and catastrophic brain injury that may lead to death, most commonly due to subdural hematoma,” (Blennow, Hardy, and Zetterberg). A few basic laws of physics can be used to describe the collisions between football players that usually result in concussions. Particularly, Newton’s Second Law, force= mass* acceleration can be applied, and it is useful to calculate the overall kinetic energy of a player by using the formula, KE= ½ mass*velocity (Bryan, Clemens, Hernandez, et all).
Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), also called dementia pugilistica, is
“a neurodegenerative disorder due to repeated head trauma,” (Blennow, Hardy and
Zetterberg). Scientists have recently begun to explore the difference between CTE and
Alzheimer’s disease. Most notably, the have found that there are distinct differences in the distribution of neurofibrillary tangles (tau protein), between the two diseases and
CTE lacks the senile plaques that are indicative of a progressing Alzheimer’s condition (Costanza, Weber, Gandy, et all). In a 2010 study by Omalu and Bailes, they note the appearance of the ApoE4 gene in individuals with CTE. Notably they found that there is a significant correlation between the being homozygous, having Brogley Webb 35
two copies as opposed to one, for this trait and developing CTE and dementia later in life (Omalu, Bailes, et all). It has also been discovered that most of the professional football players and boxers developed CTE generally within a decade of their retirement. A Boston University research team led by Dr. Ann McKee also found that most of the athletes died less than 20 years after originally diagnosed (McKee, Cantu, et all).
Injuries among high school, college, and NFL football players
According to data collected over a 70-year period, as of 2001, 616 high school football players died playing football either due to head and brain injuries or heat stroke (Falk, 26). Falk defines a concussion as “the delicate brain slamming against the bony skull, ripping nerve fibers and blood vessels, leading to memory loss, confusion, headaches and nausea,” and asserts that 63,000 concussions occur annually across all sports with football accounting for 63 percent of those injuries (Falk, 57,
120). Concussions represent 6 percent of the total number of football injuries and occur significantly more frequently during competition as opposed to practice settings
(Gurriero, Proctor, Mannix, et all).
Deaths from football related injuries are largely associated with a recently named disease called Second Impact Syndrome, in which a player sustains a second concussion before his or her brain has recovered from the first concussion, causing
“rapid irreversible brain damage,” (Falk, 58). Even more disturbing, have been the findings of CTE in young people, first in 21-year old Owen Thomas, a former football player at the University of Pennsylvania, who had no prior history of concussions. Brogley Webb 36
Boston University researchers, who analyzed Thomas’s brain, have speculated as to whether or not sub-concussive hits could have caused his cumulative brain damage.
College football players can sustain an estimated 1400 collisions per season, with linebackers and offensive lineman engaging in the greatest number of hits (Crisco,
Fiore, and Beckwith). Their second finding was further shocked them, as they discovered CTE in the brain of 18-year old high school football Eric Pelley, who died after sustaining his fourth concussion. According to leading Boston University researcher, Dr. Robert Cantu, no one under the age of 14 should play youth football because the young brain has more inertia when contacted (Fainaru-Wada, Fainaru).
Results supporting such a claim are still pending.
By 1986, Sports Illustrated declared an injury plague in the NFL and two years later, a study by the Los Angeles Times found that 78 percent of 440 retired NFL players suffered from football-related disabilities and their average lifespan was between 55-61 years. It also found that 54 percent of players surveyed suffered from emotional distress, ranging from brief feelings of despair to suicidal thoughts (Oriard,
121). Researcher Lisa Henderson argues that the NFL’s revamped injury surveillance system, which was first implemented in the 1980’s by five teams, and by 2012 expanded to all current NFL teams, has made significant advances in monitoring injuries in NFL players. By moving up kickoffs by five yards, there were 43 percent fewer concussions during the 2011 NFL season. She says that by the 2014 season, the
NFL hopes to incorporate its injury monitoring system into a player’s electronic medical records to keep track of a player’s entire injury history (Henderson). Brogley Webb 37
Injury prevention
As mentioned earlier enactment of rules aimed at protecting player safety is one of the most direct approaches the NFL has taken to curb dangerous hits. In the late
1970’s the NFL enacted rules to protect quarterbacks and banned techniques such as spearing and clotheslining. In 1978, the league endeavored to open up the passing game and improve safety by limiting how a defensive back could contact a receiver and altered rules regarding pass blocking (Oriard, 123). As of 1993, the NFL and
NFLPA formed a safety and welfare committee, which was designed to set the pace for innovation in sports medicine (Falk, 121).
Due to the violent nature of football, many injury experts concede that preventing all concussions will never be possible. No matter how many rule changes are made or how technology advances, when a human being is involved in a collision, there is no way of preventing the brain from smashing against the skull. Some argue that the best course of action is through educational programs, clinics designed to enhance the awareness of concussion symptoms. Before the start of the 2010 season, the NFL began putting strongly worded concussion posters in NFL locker rooms, detailing the dangers and protocol of dealing with concussions (“Poster warns players on concussions”). NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has conducted clinics for parents of youth football players highlighting the newest recommended techniques for tackling an opponent. In 2012, the NFL and USA Football collaboration Head’s Up began its youth safety program, highlighting what it called safe football by teaching players to not lead with their heads. Most recently, by January 2014, an ESPN Brogley Webb 38
investigative report reported that former football players and coaches were questioning the efficacy of the program (Fainaru, Fainaru-Wada). Other researchers claim that engineering a football helmet that could better withstand significant rotational acceleration and deceleration forces would be within reach of manufacturers (Tator).
Diagnosis of mTBI in athletes
According to a 2003 study by the American Academy of Neurology, 60 percent of NFL players suffer at least one concussion in their careers and 25 percent have three or more concussions (Falk, 105). Moreover, 32 percent of NFL players retire due to injuries (Falk, 101). Despite these figures, it is believed that many concussions go undiagnosed due to the prevalent attitude that one should suffer through pain and continue playing in a game and due to the unreliability of self-report diagnostic systems. Medical experts have argued that baseline tests should not be administered until outside factors have been reduced, including illness and fatigue.
Baseline tests have also been skewed as a result of players, most notably Denver
Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning, trying to intentionally perform poorly on an initial test, so that a concussion test appears to be normal.
To determine the types of diagnostic tools best suited to the league’s demands, the NFL collaborated with the US military and Department of Defense in the testing of such methods as the imPACT system and the Automated Neurocognitive Assessment tool. Much like the NFL has a return to play policy, the military has a return to combat policy, and contrary to popular belief, more than 70 percent of military brain injures are of the mild variety (Marshall, Holland, and Meyer). Recently the imPACT system, Brogley Webb 39
which sells its tests to more than 7,000 professional, college, and high school teams, has come under fire, as it results in false negatives or false positives up to 30 percent of the time (Keating, “Neuropsychological testing for concussions may not be panacea”). According to Ohio University concussion researcher, Dr. Brian Ragan, there should not even be a controversy because the imPACT method simply doesn’t work (Ragan). Cripp and Livingston argue that a potential method of improving the imPACT system would be to improve existing balance-assessment measurements. A physician can get a better idea of the extent of an athlete’s injury by having them close their eyes and stand on an uneven surface with their eyes closed. The authors assert that there is a greater need for a more uniform standard of balance values and a comprehensive database (Cripp, Livingston).
Treatment of mTBI in athletes
Treatment of concussions in football players requires a multifaceted approach, including the management of mental illness in former players. According to Falk, for many former NFL players, their retirement becomes synonymous with social withdrawal once they are no longer in the spotlight, a decline in one’s physical skills and prowess, and feelings of uselessness. Specifically Falk says, “Many retired football players who leave the game cite feelings of abandonment, loneliness, paranoia, despair, and a loss of self-esteem…many are forced into psychiatric counseling,” (Falk, 104).
Psychiatrist and author Dr. Norman Doidge that many treatment options for such brain trauma may lie within the concept of neuroplasticity, which “allows the Brogley Webb 40
neurons in the brain to compensate for injury and adjust their activity in response to new situations or changes in their environment,” (Hammond). According to Doidge, the discovery of what is called the critical period, in which systems of the brain require environmental stimuli in order to develop during a specific period of time
(usually during childhood), was one of the most revolutionary biological discoveries in the second half of the 20th century (Doidge, 52). An experiment by Dr. Michael
Merzenich and Bill Jenkins found an artificial method to reopen the critical period in adults, by stimulating a part of the brain called the nucleus basalis, which works by secreting acetylcholine to help the brain focus and form sharp memories (Doidge, 89).
Doidge argues that activating the nucleus basalis may help brain-injured patients, many of whom are unable to learn basic functions such as speaking, walking, reading, and writing. Typically, age related memory loss occurs when the processing capabilities of the brain slow down. By re-opening the critical period, Doidge argues processing time in adults can be sped up (Doidge, 84).
In 1981, Dr. Arnold Mandell of the San Diego Chargers conducted a study of current players finding that two thirds of those surveyed were using amphetamines, largely to treat chronic pain (Falk, 121). Chronic pain coupled with brain damage and drug use has plagued the NFL for the past 30 years. A 2011 study, attempted to reduce the effects of substance abuse in 100 former NFL players while also improving brain function by giving the players antioxidants and acetylcholine. After measuring brain activity using SPECT imaging, which uses a radioisotope to map blood flow in certain areas of the brain, and a neuropsychological tool called MACF, the researchers Brogley Webb 41
discovered treatment resulted in a noticeable positive impact on improving cognitive functions (Amen, Wu, Taylor, et all).
Advances are also being made in the ways in which athletes are monitored post-concussion. A 2012 study found by measuring event related potentials, which are the brain’s response to a particular stimulus, test subjects showed a significant degree of cognitive delay. Specifically, these particular subjects performed poorly on memory tests even after they had suffered a concussion 7-8 months earlier. This study is clinically significant, because current monitoring systems were not able to detect any form of “cerebral dysfunction” in patients with lingering symptoms, lasting months after their initial injury (Gosselin, Bottari, Chen, et all). The study opens future avenues into why post-concussion patients have long-term symptoms and how they can be alleviated.
The use of team doctors for treating NFL players has been a contentious subject in recent years. Some question how objective these physicians can be when the teams and owners who employ them provide financial incentive. These observers question whether a player’s best interest will be taken into account when there is great pressure to keep him on the field. A study by Arthur Lazarus attempts to qualify these assumptions through examining an incident in which Philadelphia Eagles quarterback
Kevin Kolb sustained a concussion and was allowed to re-enter the game despite his noticeable injury. Lazarus asserts that there were four key problems that led to mismanagement of Kolb’s injury, “lack common sense and unreasonably strict adherence to concussion protocol, miscommunication between coaching and medical Brogley Webb 42
staffs, lack of proper equipment, and pressure for the medical staff to clear Kolb,”
(Lazarus). As the NFL faced greater pressure for this issue, in early 2013 it mandated that independent neurologists be on the sidelines for all NFL games during the upcoming regular season.
PART 2: RESEARCH AND CONCLUSIONS
CHAPTER VI: METHODOLOGY
Metaphor Theory
The study of metaphor becomes critically important when evaluating journalistic work because it helps to measure independence and detect bias. While it is impossible for any journalist to be completely free of bias, as we all have had different life experiences to shape our point of view, the goal is still to be as objective as possible. Metaphors act far beyond serving a decorative purpose or elaborating an idea, they can alter meaning of a particular word or phrase and fundamentally change the way we think about words. Metaphors serve two important functions for journalists, in terms of both how they use them their own writing and how they evaluate metaphor usage by public figures and others that they cover.
Public figures and politicians, who frequently use metaphors and do so effectively, have the ability to shape public opinion (Steuter, Wills, 3). Political power is acquired and sustained through building trust, which can often lead to manipulation. Political figures can use rhetoric to prey on their audience’s needs, desires, and emotions, and to make themselves sound more correct than they really are. When metaphors are used in political rhetoric, they aim to give a political figure greater authority and legitimacy Brogley Webb 43
by discrediting all other viewpoints (Charteris-Black, 32). Political figures also may seek to advance their agenda by manipulating the media. Repeated use of these same metaphors by the media then allows them to be further ingrained into culture.
According to Charteris-Black, “When metaphors displace other ways of talking about the same thing, language has acted upon the world by colonizing rival ways of thinking about it, and in doing so frames our understanding of the political world,”
(Charteris-Black, 35).
Research Questions
To determine the most appropriate system of analysis for both ESPN’s and
Sports Illustrated’s coverage of the concussion crisis, I employed the methods used by
Alexander Menrisky in Le voile du journalisme: Metaphorical and analytical inquiry into press coverage of a national French debate (Menrisky). I selected metaphor analysis, valence analysis, and frame analysis, on the basis of how to best compare the strengths and potential shortcomings of both publications. The three aforementioned analytical tools helped to shape my primary research questions in the following ways:
Research Question 1: Which metaphors are used in the articles and how often?
– This breaks down into the following sub-questions: Do Sports Illustrated and ESPN use similar types of metaphors with about the same frequency? What subjects are most frequently described with metaphorical language? How do the metaphors fit within the greater context of concussion debate? How do the types of metaphors used impact the valence ratings of the articles? Brogley Webb 44
Research Question 2: What are the trends in topic valence for this set of articles? – Sub-questions: Are the articles written about football’s future describing its potential demise or ways to save it? What kinds of articles are written about the lawsuits that players and their families have filed against the NFL and NCAA? Are there more stories written about rules that have been implemented and research being conducted to improve player safety or about the dangers of playing football and cautionary tales of former players?
Research Question 3: In examining both the authors’ opinions and quotations from sources, what is the prevailing tone valence? – Sub-questions: Does the tone view professional players as sympathetic figures or multi-millionaires who play football out of their own free will and understood that there were inherent risks in playing a violent game? Does the tone change in discussions about the safety of youth and college players? Are the NFL settlement and other pending concussions lawsuits viewed largely as a victory for the leagues, for the players, both or neither? Does the tone change based on the affiliation, race, or gender of a particular scientific researcher or medical expert? Is the future of the game of football seen as dark and grim or bright and hopeful?
Research Question 4: What frames are used in the discussion of the concussion crisis? – Sub-questions: Do Sports Illustrated and ESPN use similar or different frames? How do they stratify and divide the debate into more easily comprehended and digestible levels? Which frames aid in making the debate more robust and clarified and which frames murky the discussion or even mislead the public? Brogley Webb 45
Research Question 5: What sources are used in the articles? – Sub-questions:
How is testimony from players and their families used? What credence is given to leaders, scientific researchers, medical experts, and spokespeople from the NFL,
NCAA, and youth football organizations such as Pop Warner? Are there particular independent research groups that are covered more than others? Are the source’s credentials and qualifications listed in the article if they are cited as an expert? How does the author use his or her own opinion to add to the debate and what is its validity?
Research Question 6: Using descriptive statistics, how does ESPN’s coverage of the concussion crisis differ from Sports Illustrated’s coverage? – Sub-questions:
Which organization covered the topic with greater consistency and detail? What subtopics did each organization cover the most? Which years received the most coverage? Did both organizations dedicated more coverage to the NFL, college, or youth football? Are there particularly significant events in the timeline of the concussion debate that were covered by both ESPN and Sports Illustrated?
By endeavoring to answer these questions, I was able to better understand how and why mainstream sports media have covered the concussion crisis in this way. As I went forward in my research, I began to appreciate better just how complex an issue this is. There are so many facets and layers to this debate that each one could merit its own thesis. The metaphor, valence, and frame analyses allowed me to perform better one of the most basic goals of journalism: to synthesize information and then present it in an informative and easily understood manner. Due to the fact that this is still a Brogley Webb 46
prominent and ever changing topic of discussion in the medical, legal, and journalistic fields, I am limited by my place in time as to what conclusions I can draw and to what extent I may draw them.
Through conducting a metaphor analysis I was able to see how journalists use metaphors to better explain scientific research and medical issues to a lay audience.
Additionally, I gained a better understanding of how the types of metaphors used and the connotative meanings they engender have seemingly influenced public opinion surrounding the debate. The frame analysis allowed me to draw conclusions about what aspects of the concussion crisis the sports media found most compelling and how they used those frames to improve or detract from the discourse surrounding head trauma in football. The study of both tone valence and topic valence enabled me to make conclusions and predictions about the direction of media coverage in coming years, potential new topics that could emerge, and which of the involved parties were providing the most accurate and widely supported version of the truth to date.
Sample
Before beginning my data collection, I selected both ESPN and Sports
Illustrated as the media organizations I wanted to analyze. I chose to examine sports media sources exclusively, even though a source like The New York Times has thoroughly covered football related head trauma in the past decade. It was my assumption that sports media and the general news media would cover the issue differently, which led me to not include any non-sports sources. This is an assumption that I will discuss further in the future research section. Brogley Webb 47
The sports media have walked a fine line between maintaining close and amicable relationships with those they cover while still providing independent and objective coverage. With technological innovations including HD televisions, new camera angles, players and coaches wearing microphones during games, and social media, the barrier between fans and their favorite teams is the smallest it has ever been. Sports journalists have seen their roles change drastically in the past decade and they no longer serve the same gatekeeper role that they had previously. In a rapidly changing media landscape, sports journalists have seen their most important function remain intact: providing access to players, coaches, owners, athletic directors, and the like. To maintain a level of access necessary to effectively execute their jobs, members of the sports media are sometimes deterred from stories that may present a particular team, coach, or player in an unflattering or embarrassing manner. Sports information directors and team public relations personnel may withhold access from investigative reporters they view as looking to expose wrongdoing, and may use the promise of access as a bargaining tool.
It is important to note the appearance of a mutually beneficial business relationship between the leagues and the networks that cover them. According to a
2011 New York Times article by Richard Sandomir, the NFL reached an agreement with ESPN to extend their broadcast partnership of “Monday Night Football” through
2021 for a reported $15.2 billion (Sandomir). While it can be argued that ESPN will profit from broadcasting an ever-popular show, it is paying exorbitant amounts of money to the NFL to essentially provide them free publicity. Brogley Webb 48
Due to the perceived “cozy” nature of the relationship between the sports media and those they cover and the fact that networks have a vested business interests in the leagues, I was particularly intrigued to see how coverage of a controversial topic like head trauma in football has changed over time. Given their popularity, readership, and reputation among sports and non-sports media, I selected to analyze the coverage of both ESPN and Sports Illustrated. I had originally intended to examine stories from
HBO’s Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel, due to its focus on investigative and comprehensive stories and the fact that it represents strictly a broadcast medium, while
Sports Illustrated is largely print and online, and ESPN is broadcast, print, and online.
I elected not to after having considerable difficulty gaining access to stories broadcast in previous seasons. HBO only provides access to video from the current season, even with a subscription. As of April 2014, HBO offered access to 52 clips from the show available as Podcasts on iTunes. Although the inclusion of Real Sports with Bryant
Gumbel would have provided a valuable additional perspective, overall it was determined that its exclusion would not adversely affect or diminish the findings of this thesis.
I searched for articles on the online archives for both ESPN and Sports
Illustrated and ended up with 489 relevant results. I used search terms that included
“football” and “concussions” and followed up with a second search that included
“football” and “CTE.” Sports Illustrated’s archives for concussion related stories extended back as early as 1954, while the earliest ESPN story that I located was from
2003. These findings are not necessarily meant to imply that ESPN did not cover this Brogley Webb 49
topic prior to 2003, but if so, the archive did not extend back far enough to include them in the search. Out of the 273 Sports Illustrated and 216 ESPN stories that I examined, the articles were predominantly in an online format, although some were print stories that were originally published in each organization’s magazine and repurposed for the web. Each publication also had several video stories, although these constituted a small percentage of the total. It is important to know that both ESPN and
Sports Illustrated occasionally reported on the same story and both used material from the Associated Press to do so. Several of ESPN’s more in-depth features were published on the sports blog Grantland, which was started in 2011 by sports journalists and frequent ESPN contributor Bill Simmons. The website has an indirect connection to ESPN and its stories are often linked to and saved in the archives of
ESPN’s website.
Once I gathered my 489 articles I began to categorize and order them into an
Excel spreadsheet. The first category I sorted them into was by publication and then I proceeded from there. I went on to sort each article by day, month, and year, with the earliest article in 1954, and the most recent articles in January 2014. I chose to include the January 2014 articles in order to include the story about Judge Anita Brody’s rejection of the proposed settlement between the NFL and former players. I also sorted each article based on the level of football discussed. By level I mean youth football was at the lowest level, NCAA football was intermediate, and the NFL was the highest and professional level. I also included a category “ALL,” which included stories that Brogley Webb 50
were applicable to every level of football, and there were three stories about either the
Arena Football League or the Canadian Football League.
Perhaps the most important category I used was breaking down the articles into subtopic or frame. The following subtopics were used as part of my data collection and analysis: Education, equipment, law, media, medical, opinion, rules, and research.
I also divided a larger subtopic into “general feature,” feature stories about concussions or CTE but that did not highlight a specific person, “player feature,” which provided an in depth look at a particular athlete’s story, and “player,” which included brief reports that merely noted that a certain athlete had sustained a concussion. The player category was not analyzed beyond the level of basic descriptive statistics, because it did not contribute any significant or noteworthy information about metaphors, valence, or framing. The twelfth and final subtopic category was a combination of business, branding, and culture stories due to the similarity between the three.
Descriptive Statistical Analysis
Once my Excel spreadsheet was complete with all 489 articles, I began to gather basic statistics describing various aspects of the sample. Within each subtopic or frame, for both Sports Illustrated and ESPN I looked at the following parameters: the earliest story for each organization, the year with the most stories, which particular storylines were focused on, common stories, and specific time frames which showed an unusually high volume of articles, which were usually the result of a particularly significant occurrence, such as a player suicide or the NFL concussion lawsuit Brogley Webb 51
settlement. For both ESPN and Sports Illustrated I performed counts and calculated percentages regarding which organization reported more on a particular subtopic and which level of football was reported on most frequently. From a chronological standpoint I counted the number of articles per year and reduced it further to look at the number of articles per year for each subtopic.
Source Analysis
As the project included sifting through a significant volume of scientific information and data, I deemed it important to understand from which sources ESPN and Sports Illustrated were getting their information. A significant part of this thesis included understanding that politics and competition may often spill over into the realm of scientific research. This is especially relevant in a media organization’s choice to include medical information and scientific research from NFL sources, the three most publicized independent research groups, or less publicized independent research groups. By choosing any one or combination of these groups, public knowledge and familiarity among the scientific and medical communities often dictate what connotations are associated with particular sources. The conscious choice by the sports media to give certain groups a platform to disseminate their ideas creates important frames within the concussion debate.
To conduct an analysis of the sources used, I took what I determined to be representative samples from each subtopic. To determine the best representations I considered both the subject matter of a particular story and the length of the story. In all cases I preferred to include longer and more in depth stories in my smaller sample Brogley Webb 52
group. The number of stories I chose depended largely on the newsworthiness and significance of the event or subject and on the number of articles within each subgroup, where I selected more examples from larger subgroups. I chose to analyze all 95 of the opinion stories because I felt, in combination, they would provide a rich data set for metaphor, valence, and framing analysis. From the 10 remaining subtopics
I chose 93 stories to have a comparable sample size to the opinion sample. I counted not the number of times within each article a particular source was mentioned, but instead, noted the number of articles that source appeared in within the selected sample. While I considered all sources listed, including players, coaches, fans, family members, etc., I focused largely on the sources used to substantiate scientific claims. I considered NFL associated sources on the whole, but also divided them into non- scientific sources, including Commissioner Roger Goodell, spokesman Greg Aiello, and chief legal counsel Jeff Pash, and scientific sources like Dr. Elliot Pellman and Dr.
Ira Casson. I also looked at the three most publicized independent research groups both together and separately. This group constituted the Boston University researchers, the UCLA research team with Dr. Bennett Omalu and Dr. Julian Bailes, and Dr. Kevin Guskiewicz and the University of North Carolina. All other researchers were included in the lesser-publicized independent researchers group.
Metaphor Analysis
Drawing on metaphor analysis as described above, metaphors are useful in evaluating the rhetoric used by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell. Goodell’s repeated denial of football causing brain damage in former players and his ferocity in protecting Brogley Webb 53
the “NFL shield,” represent they exact kind of manipulation and agenda setting mentioned above. Given the NFL’s vested interest in concealing what they knew and when about the long-term health effects of brain trauma, sports journalists have had to exercise additional scrutiny and care when covering this issue.
My study of metaphor included looking at a smaller sample of 188 articles within the larger sample. 95 of those stories were opinion stories and 93 other stories constituted representative samples taken from the 11 other subtopics and were categorized as non-opinion. I then divided these two groups by ESPN and Sports
Illustrated stories. Within these four categories I labeled each metaphor by subject and by metaphor family. The subjects included the NFL, players, football, collisions, researchers, for example. The metaphor families included groups such as war, crime, and violence, sickness, death, and chaos, and nature. I anticipated throughout my study that based upon trends in other sports media, metaphors of war and violence would be typical, especially for a sport like football.
The linguists Lakoff and Johnson were some of the first researchers to significantly discuss war metaphors. According to Lakoff and Johnson, metaphors of war do not simply affect the way we speak; they also influence our behavior. War promotes clarity and simplification, framing issues unequivocally and leaving no room for opposing views (Steuter, Wills, 9). In establishing a pattern of systemic denial, the
NFL endeavored to silence anyone who dared to challenge the medical acumen of its experts. To triumph in war, “singleness of vision and voice” are necessary and in this case, the Commissioner was the lead authority and everyone else was expected to Brogley Webb 54
follow his example (Steuter, Wills, 11). According to the book, At War with
Metaphor, the frame of race and specifically the use of debasing language to strip the racially “Other” and strip them of their dignity, was the most prominent framing device used to discuss the War on Terror (Steuter, Wills, 15).
Racially charged language is especially prevalent in the discussion of the
NFL’s attempt to discredit the research of Dr. Bennet Omalu, who is from Africa, and is also prominent is the discussion of current and former African-American NFL players who have criticized the NFL’s handling of the concussion crisis. According to
Steuter and Wills, the war metaphor has “inherent self-justification,” (12). For years the NFL has continued to highlight material in NFL Films that glorifies violence, justifying its inclusion by claiming it is what the fans want to see. ESPN finally removed a segment called “Jacked Up,” which featured each week’s most bone crushing hits during the NFL season, after concern about head injuries began to rise.
Valence Analysis
Once I had completed the metaphor collection phase, I continued a similar procedure as prescribed in Menrisky 2012 and conducted a valence analysis, which he describes as “measuring the degree to which news reporting is positive, neutral, or negative toward the subject matter it covers” (Menrisky, 67). Much like in metaphor analysis, valence analysis is a useful tool in helping to detect bias in journalistic work, which theoretically is supposed to be independent. Due to the fact that the concussion debate is highly complex and multi-faceted, I deemed it necessary to conduct the analysis not only for topic valence, but also for tone valence. I began by reading Brogley Webb 55
through both the opinion and non-opinion samples again, this time looking for word choice, sentence structure and syntax, rhetoric, generalization, and the narrative as a whole (Menrisky, 68). I then assigned each article numerical values for both topic valence and tone valence, based on a five-point scale, with 1 = very positive, 2 = somewhat positive, 3 = neutral, 4 = somewhat negative, and 5 = very negative. I compiled all of these values into four separate tables, one each for ESPN opinion stories, ESPN non-opinion stories, Sports Illustrated opinion stories, and Sports
Illustrated non-opinion stories. I each table I listed the title of the article, the date it was published, the topic valence, and the tone valence.
I assigned values for topic valence according to two differing sets of criteria. In the first method, I looked at articles for each subtopic and considered whether the article was concerned with initiatives and research for protecting and improving player safety, or if it was concerned with the violent and destructive nature of football and focused on some sort of tragic event. For example, stories discussing the suicide of
All-Pro linebacker Junior Seau or the economic end of football would have received a very negative rating of 5, while an ESPN article focusing on rule changes or significant advances being made in concussion research nationwide would receive a very positive rating of 1. Stories focusing on the negative impacts of CTE received a negative rating of 5, while stories that discussed the ill effects of concussions received a somewhat negative rating of 4, due to the decrease in severity. Stories about researchers being inundated with requests to test the brains of former living players or Brogley Webb 56
neuropsychological testing received topic valence ratings of 2 because they are focused on diagnostics and not direct intervention to help prevent concussions.
In the second method, I also looked at which person or groups of people were the focus of the article. Depending on what lens one chooses to view the issue it can either be seen that the NFL and NCAA concealed information about head trauma intentionally, the players are victims, and the independent researchers are trying to save football, or it can be seen that the NFL and NCAA have taken great strides to protect player safety in recent years, the players are to blame for violent collisions and knew that their chosen profession carried certain risks, and the independent researchers are trying to ruin the game by placing limits on the way it can be played.
For example, an article discussing a new rule change implemented by the NFL,
NCAA, or youth football league would be given a positive valence rating of a 1 or 2, because it demonstrates that the leagues are acting to have a positive impact on long- term player health. On the other hand, discussion of findings from the Boston
University research team would have received a negative topic valence rating of a 4 or
5 because they are linking the neurodegenerative disease CTE to football related brain trauma.
Tone valence was measured in a manner similar to topic valence, but instead of considering the importance of events in the concussion debate and weather they have helped or hindered awareness, public knowledge, and improvement of player safety, I considered the apparent attitude of the author if I was examining an opinion piece, or of the subject or dominant sources of a non-opinion piece. A story supporting the Brogley Webb 57
claims made by the authors of League of Denial or a story reporting that football related head trauma contributed to a player’s death would receive a very negative rating of 5. On the other hand a story praising Roger Goodell’s commitment to helping players during and after their careers would receive a very positive rating of 1. A story acknowledging the dangers of football related head trauma but questioning whether or not conclusions can be made about the cause of a player’s suicide are classified as slightly positive, or 2. If an article discusses how players face a daunting challenge in suing the NFL, but doesn’t provide an explicit value judgment that the players deserve to win in a case against the league, it is assigned only a slightly negative value of 4. If it discussed how the NFL concealed evidence and argued for why the players deserved a victory in court, it would have received a 5. In some cases, even if a story received a very negative or very positive value for topic valence, if the author remained neutral and gave the story balance by including all perspectives, it was given a neutral value of 3 for tone valence.
Framing Analysis
As I assessed the articles for both metaphors and valence, I also categorized them into various frames. Anthropologist Gregory Bateson and sociologist Erving
Goffman were the first to elucidate the idea of frames, which “define how we perceive and interpret specific situations and reality in general” (Debatin, 1). According to the
Menrisky paper, frames are essentially “packages of stories that allow them to be readily understood by readers” (Menrisky 70). Framing represents a universally used tool of communication and allows journalists to quickly deliver complex information Brogley Webb 58
to an audience. Frames are important, according to Bernhard Debatin, because they
“determine whether most people notice and how they understand and remember a problem, as well as how they evaluate and choose to act upon it” (Debatin, 1).
Journalists employ a particular framing technique to distill complicated issues; they view them through a single aspect of their reality, while “filtering” out others
(Debatin, 1).
In indentifying frames, I looked only in my sample of articles and did not consider prominent frames in football coverage or coverage of medical and health related issues. I first divided my sample into twelve themes that I saw were the most prevalent. The concussion debate extends far beyond its impact on the players and the leagues they play in. Discussion of this topic has resulted in state governments becoming involved in passing laws guiding how and when a concussed athlete may return to play. There has been a nationwide scramble to conduct scientific and medical research, in an attempt to better diagnose, treat, and prevent head trauma in athletes.
Identification of themes and further categorizing the articles into subtopics such as research, law, and rule changes, was then fairly straightforward. Most categories covered a variety of events, although the law theme focused on one event, the NFL settlement with former players, in particular. The largest subtopic, which included opinion stories, did not feature event coverage at all, but rather the way in which concussions and CTE were discussed. I analyzed the twelve subtopics in a quantitative manner by using basic descriptive statistics. Unlike the metaphor and valence analysis, the rest of my framing analysis was largely qualitative. Brogley Webb 59
After I identified the subtopics, I consolidated them into even smaller categories, and these smaller groups I considered to be my predominant frames. While most of the subtopics fit neatly into one particular frame, other categories such as players and research belonged under multiple frames. At the end of my analysis I ended up having five frames: Labor/Management, Race/Gender, Public Perception,
Scientific Debate, and Opinion.
CHAPTER VII: DISCUSSION OF FINDINGS AND RESULTS
Metaphor Analysis
As mentioned in the methodology section, I looked at the use of metaphors in my sample of articles, to better understand how the concussion crisis is being framed by two of the most dominant and well-recognized names in mainstream sports media.
I took 188 articles from the entire 489-article sample and divided them into two categories: opinion and non-opinion. The opinion sample included every opinion article from the larger sample, with 61 Sports Illustrated stories and 34 ESPN stories.
The non-opinion sample included 93 stories, 41 from Sports Illustrated and 52 from
ESPN, and was composed of the most in-depth as well as representative examples from each of the 10 remaining subtopics. I examined not only what types of metaphors were being used, but also what metaphors were being used to discuss particular subjects. Overall, there were 406 metaphors used, 179 (44 percent) in opinion stories, and 227 (56 percent) in non-opinion stories. ESPN had 206 of the metaphors used, with 94 appearing in opinion pieces, and 112 identified in non-opinion stories. Sports Brogley Webb 60
Illustrated accounted for 200 of the total metaphors, having 85 of those designated in the opinion section, and 115 included in the non-opinion sample.
For the ESPN non-opinion section, I identified 9 distinct metaphor categories.
The most prevalent were metaphors of disorder, sickness, and death, combining to account for 41.5% of the total metaphors in this section (see fig. 1a). These included metaphors such as “The NFL has immunity,” “Player litigation is like a death march,” and “Concussion researchers are like circling buzzards.” The most prevalent metaphor in this category was comparing the NFL to big tobacco and football to smoking, because until now we did not fully understand the true risks of playing football and like the tobacco companies, the NFL attempted to conceals the dangers it knew.
Metaphors of war, crime, and violence were the second most populous category, accounting for 26.4 percent. These metaphors included comparing players to weapons like spears and sledgehammers as well as calling them soldiers and warriors. In scientific explanations of tau protein, which the accumulation of in the brain is associated with CTE, it is described as “strangling” brain cells.
Other interesting, but lesser metaphor types included food (4.5 percent), sports/competition (2.7 percent), and metaphors of support (5.4 percent). Food metaphors were almost exclusively used to talk about the brain and brain injuries, saying a damaged brain looked like “cottage cheese,” the brain sits delicately suspended in the skull and when a collision occurs it shakes like Jell-O, and the coloring of a CTE damaged brain studied by Boston University resembled, “a potato too long exposed to air.” Sports and competition metaphors consisted of researchers Brogley Webb 61
chasing brains to study as being in a horse race, players needing to have their amount of contact restricted like baseball pitchers having pitch counts, and Dr. Ann McKee’s face “falling like a pocket collapsing around a quarterback,” when she received bad news. Metaphors of support, which directly seemed to contradict metaphors of violence, war, death, and sickness included calling the NFL and Roger Goodell a
“savior” and “guardian,” or describing a particular protein in the brain as
“scaffolding.”
Figure 1a
For the ESPN opinion sample, the war, violence, crime metaphor category and the sickness, death, disorder category represented the most commonly used metaphor types, accounting for 25.5 percent and 31.0 percent respectively (see fig. 1b). The violence metaphors were similar to the non-opinion sample, but also included metaphors such as, litigation is like a “ticking time bomb,” a particular player was like Brogley Webb 62
a “runaway fire truck.” Collisions between two players were often described as car accidents and playing football was likened to sky-diving, race car driving, and other risky behaviors. A player describing a concussion as a badge of honor was one of the few instances in which a war metaphor was used positively. Tobacco references were again prevalent in the sickness category (black lung, secondhand smoke, chain smokers), but there were also examples of football fans being compared to drug addicts, football atrophying and dying as if it were a living being, and the concussion crisis being described as a plague.
Food metaphors (7.4 percent) again represented a noteworthy category, being used not only to describe brain injuries, but also people. Retired former players, like those the author of a particular piece saw at the Pro Football Hall of Fame induction ceremony, are described as being “bent over like jumbo shrimp” as a result of their injuries. In the discussion of rule changes and the increase in fines for vicious hits, the
NFL is personified as “handing out fines like Halloween candy.” Much like in the non-opinion sample, metaphors of support constituted about 5 percent of the sample.
Two different metaphor categories appearing in this sample were metaphors of gender
(4.3 percent) and metaphors of power, wealth, and authority (10.6 percent). Gender metaphors were often related to power, for example describing football as a rite of passage into manhood. Metaphors of power and authority included players being depicted as “Greek gods” and NFL owners and college coaches characterized as
“kings and lords.” The NFL administration being as exclusive as “the penthouse at the Brogley Webb 63
Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas” and football’s popularity and lucrative television contracts labeled as a “gold rush,” constituted metaphors of wealth in this category.
Figure 1b
Compared to the ESPN opinion category, the Sports Illustrated opinion category featured a nearly perfect reverse in the trend observed for war, violence, and crime metaphors (42.9 percent), as well as sickness, death, and disorder metaphors
(26.0 percent, see fig. 1c). I found it especially interesting to see how many sickness metaphors were used to describe a medically driven problem, for example calling the concussion crisis an “epidemic” and “one big headache,” that required “a prescription to fix the problem,” which was perpetuated by the “sanitization” of violence in the Brogley Webb 64
“decaying” football culture. Metaphors that highlighted risky and dangerous behavior were also widespread in this sample, likening football players to astronauts, bullfighters, crash test dummies, or drivers driving without insurance, in the
Indianapolis 500, and participating in a demolition derby. Portraying the game of football as chaos and mayhem was commonplace for metaphors in the disorder category. Additionally, this metaphor category also incorporated an element of guilt, labeling defensive players who had accrued multiple fines for illegal and dangerous hits as “unrepentant sinners.”
Sports Illustrated further illuminated the discussion of football-related brain trauma through its use of business and money metaphors, as well as music and entertainment metaphors. Money metaphors were used especially frequently in regards to older players dealing with the after-effects of brain trauma they suffered during their playing careers, saying they had “paid a price.” Money was also used to relate to manhood, comparing it to an exclusive club that had a required “price of admission.”
Journalists also illuminated the NFL’s indifference to the concussion crisis, calling it
“the cost of doing business.” Entertainment metaphors were also incorporated to show both the awe and disdain for the NFL’s glamorous and ostentatious showmanship. The
NFL is described as having the glitz of Hollywood and NFL games are likened to having the drama and climatic build up of Lord of the Rings. Music metaphors are used to convey meaning of the “steady drumbeat” of concussion litigation and CTE findings, and are most commonly used to describe the feeling of being concussed as
“having your bell rung.” This ubiquitous phrase has come to represent the general Brogley Webb 65
opinion of concussions before player safety issues came to the forefront of football discussions; that they were of minor concern and were not a serious enough injury to merit significant attention.
Figure 1.c
Representing 35.9 percent and 25.7 percent respectively, the sickness, death, and disorder category, along with the war, violence, and crime category again dominated the final group, Sports Illustrated non-opinion stories (see fig. 1.d). Some of the more intriguing violence metaphors in this category included a player describing his skull as “feeling like a crushed beer can, tossed onto the garbage heap,” and youth players whose helmets resembled “chipped and gouged bowling balls.” The use of death metaphors in this sample was particularly strong, calling the crown of the Brogley Webb 66
helmet rule, a “death-knell” for running backs, a collision between two players a potential “death sentence,” the NFL’s mishandling of the situation a “death spiral” and giving October 16, 2010, when a number of NFL defensive players were fined for dangerous hits, the undesirable moniker of “Black Sunday.” The violence and war metaphors used were similar to those included in the previous three samples, but one that stood out in particular involved the NFL being compared to someone using a bazooka to kill a muskrat. This metaphor highlighted how the NFL used its power and influence to try and bully scientists and others it viewed as dissenters.
Nature metaphors (15.5 percent) represented the third largest metaphor type, which constituted a significant category in each of the other three samples, but was most prominent for Sports Illustrated opinion pieces. Nature metaphors were used to described players as being big like “Sequoia trees,” and concussed players as being dazed and “in a cloud.” The NFL’s introduction of new rules was called “a sea of change” and the present scientific and medical knowledge of concussions and CTE is referred to as “the tip of the iceberg.” The most prevalent kind of nature metaphors are cloud metaphors, labeling the concussion crisis as being a “black cloud” over the NFL and pending litigation by players against leagues as a “storm cloud.”
Brogley Webb 67
Figure 1.d
In every category metaphors of war, violence, crime, sickness, death, and disorder were the dominant metaphor types, representing at least 56.4 percent of the total metaphors for a particular sample (ESPN opinion), and as much as 68.8 percent of the total (Sports Illustrated opinion). Overall, metaphors of war and violence were most likely to be used to describe football players, while metaphors of disorder and sickness were most commonly associated with football as a sport and football games.
The brain, brain injuries, and injured players were most frequently discussed using nature and food metaphors, and helmets were often portrayed as weaponry.
Surprisingly the theme of death, violence, disorder, and sickness was also a defining characteristic of metaphors about researchers and scientific research. In a couple of the Brogley Webb 68
samples, the NFL had the largest number of metaphors used to describe it, but the most commonly used types included metaphors of violence, sickness, wealth, power, authority, and money (see fig. 1.e and fig. 1.f).
Figure 1.e
Brogley Webb 69
Figure 1.f
Valence Analysis
Valence analysis is performed in order to better assess how positively, negatively, or neutrally a topic was covered. Going beyond these basic designations, it is designed to quantify gray areas as well, articles that are not radically positive or negative, but perhaps somewhat or moderately positive or negative. I assessed each of the 188 articles in the sample for both topic and tone valence. Topic valence was the more difficult of the two to differentiate, as most of the discussion surrounds a definitively negative topic, football-related brain trauma. I assessed both topic and tone valence using the same five point scale, 1 = very positive, 2 = somewhat positive,
3 = neutral, 4 = somewhat negative, and 5 = somewhat negative.
Brogley Webb 70
Topic Valence
Topic valence for opinion stories was measured by assessing the 95 stories in the category, 61 from Sports Illustrated and 34 from ESPN. Looking at the distribution for the 95 total articles, negative scores of both kinds were the most plentiful, with scores of 4 comprising the largest category at 37.4 percent and 5’s the second largest at 30.7 percent (see fig. 2.a). Positive scores of 1 and 2 were the least common, representing 16.6 percent combined of the total. Neutral topic valences were directly in the middle of the distribution with 15.4 percent. When comparing Sports
Illustrated and ESPN, SI led or tied each of the five valence categories, which was expected considering there were nearly twice as many opinion articles for Sports
Illustrated. There were some differences however, in the margin by which Sports
Illustrated led these categories, for example, SI had only 8 percent more scores of 1 than ESPN. Very negative scores of 5 represented the only category in which the two media organizations were split even. Sports Illustrated had significantly more of the middle values, 2, 3, and 4 than ESPN, dominating each category by at least 42 percent
(for values of 3) and by as much as 60 percent (scores of 2).
Brogley Webb 71
Figure 2.a
For the ESPN opinion section, the values that constituted the highest percentage of the total were scores of 5 (44.8 percent) and 4 (24.1 percent). The Sports
Illustrated trends for negative valence ratings were almost perfectly reversed, with scores of 4 comprising 43.3 percent of the total, and scores of 5 representing 23.3 percent. ESPN had the same amount of ratings of 1 and 3 (13.8 percent), while Sports
Illustrated exceeded ESPN in its number of neutral ratings (16.7 percent) and had fewer very positive scores (8.33 percent). Valence ratings of 2 (somewhat positive), constituted the smallest of the 5 categories overall, with Sports Illustrated leading the category with 8.33 percent of its total, while somewhat positive ratings comprised a meager 3.4 percent of ESPN’s opinion total. Brogley Webb 72
Topic valence was also measured for the 93 non-opinion stories, 41 from
Sports Illustrated and 52 from ESPN. The results for the overall trends showed ESPN leading Sports Illustrated in all categories except for the neutral category, in which
Sports Illustrated edged ESPN 63.6 percent to 36.4 percent. Sports Illustrated had no articles receiving a valence rating of 1 (very positive), so ESPN articles comprised the total for 1’s overall, at 3.2 percent, the smallest of the five categories (see fig 2.b).
ESPN held the smallest margin over Sports Illustrated for somewhat positive values, receiving 54.2 percent of the total ratings, but extended a greater lead for negative values of 4 and 5, with 60 percent and 56.7 percent respectively. Overall, very negative values of 5 constituted the greatest percentage of the total (32.2 percent), while the moderate values of 4 (26.9 percent) and 2 (25.8 percent) were more evenly divided.
When comparing the topic valences for each publication, I found that values of
5 (very negative) were the most common for both ESPN and Sports Illustrated, representing nearly one third of their total valence ratings. The moderate values for both ESPN and Sports Illustrated were nearly identical, with ESPN having slightly more scores of 4 (28.8 percent) than 2 (25.0 percent), and Sports Illustrated receiving just one more valence rating of 2 (26.8 percent) than ratings of 4 (25.0 percent). Even though ESPN received all of the very positive valence ratings (scores of 1), these scores only represented 5.8 percent of ESPN’s total. Sports Illustrated and ESPN differed the most significantly when it came to neutral ratings, where Sports
Illustrated’s total (17.1 percent) exceeded ESPN’s by nearly 10 percent. Brogley Webb 73
Figure 2.b
In comparing both non-opinion and opinion stories, a score of 1 (very positive), was uncommon for both categories (non-opinion: 3.2 percent, opinion: 9.9 percent). ESPN articles that received a valence rating of 1 included stories about rule changes with the direct implication that such changes would improve the safety of the game, as well as a profile of Boston Univerisity’s Ann McKee titled, “The Woman
Who Would Save Football.” The only Sports Illustrated stories that received this rating were in the opinion section, and included topics ranging from concussions and violence being a part of football esssence, to Commissioner Goodell heralding the safety of the game.
Articles receiving a score of 2 (somewhat positive), were significantly more prevalent for non-opinion stories (25.8 percent) compared to opinion stories (6.7 Brogley Webb 74
percent). Due to the nature of opinion stories, generally favoring views at one end of the spectrum or the other, I expected the opinion category to not present a significant number of moderate scores. Examples of stories receiving ratings of 2 include former
NFL player Warren Moon calling the concussion settlement a fair deal, this did not receive a 1 because Moon was not ecstactic about the deal, and a story about the potential of the NFL expanding its Thursday night schedule. This story did not receive a rating of 1 because the topic does not suggest the possibility of improving player safety.
Somewhat surprisingly, the opinion category exceeded the non-opinion category in the number of articles with neutral topic valence ratings by nearly 4 percent. It was difficult to define stories as having a neutral topic due to the naturally polarizing character of the concussion debate. To define neutral topics I focused at the base level of what the article was discussing, and in many cases this included stories about helmets and tackling. The author then had the choice to attach a positive or negative judgment to both of those topics, but I leave that discussion for the analysis of tone valence.
The results for the negative valence ratings again did not quite fall within my expectations, in particular the leading category for the opinion section was the somewhat negative raitng (37.4 percent) while the leader for the non-opinion section was the mostly negative rating (32.2 percent). Despite the non-opinion section appearing far more balanced in terms of its overall numbers of moderate scores (52 percent of the total for non-opinion), this supposedly more objective set of articles Brogley Webb 75
seemingly produced the most slanted results. I also anticipated the opinion section to be led by a more radical score, but it was instead led by a moderate designation. In determining which topics constituted mostly negative and somewhat negative, the most logical distinction came when assigning all stories about CTE a value of 5, while many stories about concussions, due to their decreased severity, received a value of 4.
A concussion story was upgraded to a rating of 5 if it included metaphorical language strongly dealing with war, violence, sickness, or death or if it dicussed someone being intentionally deceptive, such as the NFL’s denial of what knowledge it possessed relating to brain trauma.
Tone Valence
Tone valence was significantly easier to address compared with topic valence, considering slightly more than half of the 188 article sample was opinion based. For the 95 opinion stories, overall negative valence ratings, a score of 4 or 5, consituted more than 72 percent of sample. Somewhat negative valence ratings were the most frequently designated score (37.1 percent), while mostly negative valence ratings followed (35.1 percent). Very positive valence ratings were more common than somewhat positive ratings by more than 10 percent (see fig 2.c). Neutral valence ratings were recorded just 8.5 percent of the time, not a surprising finding considering most commentators do not provide a view that gives equal attention to both sides of the argument. Sports Illustrated had a higher percentage of that category’s valence ratings than ESPN in every category except for somewhat positive, in which the two tied. Sports Illustrated exceeded ESPN’s total the most in the neutral category, by 50 Brogley Webb 76
percent, and the least for the very positive category, by 14.2 percent, which is still substantial. ESPN was dwarfed by Sports Illustrated for both of the negative valence ratings by an average of 32.6 percent.
Figure 2.c
The individual trends for both the Sports Illustrated opinion sample and ESPN opinion sample were nearly identical to the overall trends. ESPN had slightly more ratings of 4 than 5 and exceeded Sports Illustrated’s ratings of 4, while Sports
Illustrated followed the opposite trend. Overall ESPN’s somewhat negative scores and
Sports Illustrated’s mostly negative scores represented nearly 40 percent of each indiviudal sample. Nearly 20 percent of ESPN’s scores fell within the mostly positive range, while scores of 2 and 3 constituted the smallest portions, with 6.1 percent each.
Sports Illustrated surpassed ESPN in its number of neutral opinion pieces by nearly 4 percent. It’s valence ratings of 2 stood out at 3.3 percent, making somewhat positive Brogley Webb 77
ratings more than 10 times less common than their moderate counterpart, somewhat negative ratings.
The method for assigning tone valence ratings for non-opinion pieces was far less apparent and obvious, yet the results provided intriguing and less formulaic than their opinion counterparts. Overall, negative ratings for tone valence comprised 52.7 percent of the total 188 articles. Positive ratings for tone valence were even split with
5.4 percent apiece, combining for nearly 11 percent of the total (see fig. 2.d). In this case, despite the perceived sense of neutrality, valence ratings other than neutral represented slightly less than 64 percent of the total, and negative valence ratings appeared almost five times as often as positive ratings. Although the results of the tone valence analysis appear to shift heavily to the negative side, the neutral ratings constituted 36.6 percent of the total, the largest of any of the five categories. Sports
Illustrated presented all of the stories that received mostly positive scores and tied
ESPN in number of somewhat negative ratings. ESPN eclipsed Sports Illustrated regarding somewhat positive, neutral, and mostly negative scores by an average of
25.7 percent.
Brogley Webb 78
Figure 2.d
Within the samples for each organization, both ESPN and Sports Illustrated parallel the overall trends in terms of neutrality. ESPN (40.4 percent) received the largest number of neutral ratings in its sample, having nearly ten percent more than
Sports Illustrated (31.7 percent). Somewhat negative tone valence was Sports
Illustrated’s leading category with 34.1 percent, making it roughly 7 times larger than its moderate equivalent, somewhat positive. ESPN followed a similar trend, having nearly five times as many somewhat negative ratings than somewhat positive ratings.
The ESPN sample also yielded identical results for number of somewhat negative ratings and very negative ratings (26.9 percent). While Sports Illustrated’s sample accounted for all of the very positive ratings, it only constituted 12.2 percent of Sports
Illustrated’s non-opinion sample. Brogley Webb 79
In comparing the tone valences for both opinion and non-opinion pieces, both categories had a relatively smaller number of very positive ratings, with opinion exceeding non-opinion by nearly 10 percent. Stories that received the most positive ratings discussed a variety of topics, including former New York Giants’ offensive lineman Shaun O’Hara calling out President Obama, believing that safety was not a top concern of many of his fellow players and arguing that Obama did not know what it was like to be an NFL player. An example of an opinion story from Sports
Illustrated includes an NFL defensive player speaking in a 1957 issue of Sports
Illustrated, claiming he did not believe football could be dirty because it was a naturally violent sport. Non-opinion stories that were included in this story featured
Commissioner Goodell and his efforts to help players during and after their careers.
Somewhat postive values were similar for opinion (4.3 percent) and non- opinion stories (5.4 percent), constituting the smallest percentage of the total in both instances. Few articles received this designation, but those that did often were not out right claiming that concussions and brain trauma were of little concern, but instead argued that their was not enough evidence at this point to ascertain that players developed brain disease due to their football careers.
Neutral valence ratings represented the most common category for non-opinion articles, but comprised the second smallest category for opinion pieces. Neutral ratings for opinion pieces were often the result of the author or a featured player giving a balanced view the issue and conceding that both sides of the argument presented valid points. For example, Ed Reed has criticized the NFL, arguing needs to do more to Brogley Webb 80
protect its players both during and after their playing careers, but at the same time acknowledging that the now deceased Junior Seau understood and accepted the risks when he chose to play football. Neutral valence ratings for non-opinion stories looked more at whether or not the reporter presented both sides of the story in a fair and even- keeled manner, regardless of whether the subject matter was positive or negative.
Negative ratings of 4 and 5 comprised the majority of all ratings for both opinion and non-opinion stories. Tone valence for opinion stories was more strongly negative, more than 70 percent of the total, than non-opinion stories, representing more than 50 percent of the total. Non-opinion stories were given the mostly negative valence rating when they discussed the potentiall end of football or when they argued that football should be banned for children, just to name a couple of examples. Stories about the lack of transparency about concussion dangers in college football and the criticism of USA football’s popular tackling program Head’s Up, merited ratings of only somewhat negative. For opinion stories, articles lauding the work done in League of Denial and attempting to further its cause, as well as those that claim the rash of player deaths and suicides were the direct result of football-related brain trauma earned a score of 5. Opinion stories that were given a lesser negative rating of 4, for example, proclaimed the frustration of concussion testing and treatment still being a murky area in which little is still understood.
Framing Analysis
I began my framing analysis by dividing the larger sample of 489 articles into subtopics based upon what angle or lens the author was looking at the concussion Brogley Webb 81
debate. These 12 subtopics guided my first level of analysis and the second level of analysis involved grouping the stories from the 12 subtopics into five larger frames.
Of the more notable results, for the 21 stories in the education subtopic, 3 were framed to discuss players, coaches, and advocacy groups who were championing greater concussion awareness. Additionally, 4 more stories were discussed new technology that can be used to better educated athletes and coaches, and another 4 represented harsh criticism of educational tactics and proper tackling techniques. The largest frame within the education subtopic was educational programming (47.6 percent), which discussed clinics, forums, and safety initiatives around the country. Within the equipment category (18 stories), there were 2 stories each about rules that involved using the helmet to tackle an opponent and lawsuits involving the largest helmet manufacturer, Riddell. The dominant frames within the equipment category were stories about helmet innovation (38.8 percent) and stories about the negative impact of football helmets (33.3 percent).
The general feature subtopic included 3 dominant frames, violence in football
(28 percent), prominent figures that aren’t football players (20 percent), and the future of football (16 percent). The violence in football frame included stories about measuring the force of collisions, examining the violent nature and glorification of violence in professional football, and a story about fans that cheered injured players.
The prominent figures category included a variety of people including Commissioner
Roger Goodell, former WWE wrestler Chris Nowinski who now is a recognizable face of Boston University CTE research, and the wives and widows of former football Brogley Webb 82
players who suffered head trauma throughout their careers. The future of football category was fairly evenly split between arguing how the game could be made safer, how football will suffer in popularity and become the next boxing, and speculating how the next generation of football talent will play the game. The player feature category was more easily quantified, with the largest frame representing retired NFL players who suffered from mental and physical impairments as a result of their playing careers (24 percent). The next leading frame included stories about current NFL players who had suffered concussions (22 percent); 11 of those stories portrayed negative reactions toward brain injuries, and 2 featured players who wanted to either play through concussions or not change their approach when it came to making tackles and playing defense. Other prominent frames included suicides and deaths of players where concussions or CTE were believed to be a significant contributing factor (21 percent), and football players who quit playing amid health and safety concerns (12 percent).
The media subtopic was largely composed about books, documentaries or movies done about the concussion crisis. Three stories were about the documentary
Head Games, five were about League of Denial, and one was about an upcoming drama directed by Ridley Scott. Of greater interest were the stories actually concerning journalists and journalism; two were written questioning ESPN’s decision to disassociate itself from Frontline and League of Denial, another two discussed how broadcasters cover the issue especially when their networks are profiting from Brogley Webb 83
broadcasting NFL games, and one presented the results of an ESPN survey about concussion coverage.
The dementia and chronic traumatic encephalopathy frame was the most prevalent within the research subtopic, accounting for 37.3 percent of the total for that group. This included players who had been diagnosed with CTE posthumously as well as during their lifetime, and I chose to include players who have not been yet diagnoses but have stated they would like their brains donated to scientific research
(usually at Boston University, the leader in CTE diagnosis), upon their deaths. There were three other frames that stood out, including diagnostics (14.9 percent), risk (10.4 percent, and forces (9.0 percent). The diagnostic frame largely discussed neuropsychological testing, while the risk category featured studies that measured how likely and in what situations players were most likely to sustain a concussion, and the forces frame involve research done to quantify the force of a collision using sensors as a method of detection.
The law subtopic also proved to be straightforward in the identification of frames. Out of the 80 articles within this group, 38 articles were about the NFL concussion lawsuit and settlement, constituting 47.5 percent. The next two largest frames, lawsuits involving college players, and lawsuits involving individual NFL players, were significantly smaller, making up 16.3 percent and 18.8 percent respectively of the total. Early articles in the fall of 2010 discussed laws passed by various states mandating return to play protocol for a concussed high school athlete and the earliest article within the subtopic discussed a lawsuit filed by the family of a Brogley Webb 84
youth football player, the only known published example of a youth concussion lawsuit.
Finally, of all of the subtopics, the medical category was the most balanced, including four prominent frames that were equally distributed, instead of one prevalent frame followed by a significant disparity between the next largest frames. Of the 77 medical articles, 13 percent fell within the concussion prevention frame, 16 percent were written about concussion diagnosis, 22 percent framed the issue around treatment of concussion symptoms, and 23 percent viewed the crisis through the lens of CTE and its impact. The prevention frame most notably included stories about reducing the number of games the NFL plays, neck strengthening exercises, and the adoption of an improved tackling technique. Diagnosis stories featured the NFL’s proposed implementation of a new concussion iPad app, neuropsychological testing, and independent neurologists being added to NFL sidelines for the 2013 season. Treatment options discussed how physicians advise concussed athletes based on a myriad of factors and also included the healthcare plan for current and retired NFL players.
After my first level of analysis was complete, I grouped articles from each of the subtopics, and in some cases entire subtopics, into five larger frames. Through these frames, I found it easier to navigate the complex landscape of concussion science and debate. Unlike the first level of analysis, the second portion was largely qualitative in nature. The first larger frame I identified was a labor/management frame.
This frame was used to portray NFL players as laborers, who have struggled to gain fairness and equality in their negotiation with their employers, NFL management. The Brogley Webb 85
players have been framed like construction laborers who were lied to by their superiors and now suffer from lung cancer due to asbestos exposure. Quite a few NFL players have also been publically critical of the NFL and owners, claiming that they don’t really care about protecting player safety, and they instead want to vilify defensive players and appear as though they are the driving forced behind safety initiatives, all for the sake of promoting and protecting their brand.
This framing has been useful in assessing the likelihood that a player is successful in a lawsuit against a particular league. The policies for worker’s compensation benefits for professional football players over the years have been murky at best, considering it took the investigative reporting on the part of the League of Denial team to discover that the NFL retirement board was quietly handing out disability payments to former Steelers great Mike Webster, after it was determined the trauma he suffered as a football player resulted in dementia. This frame has been crucial in the discussion of injured college players, who have not been permitted to collect worker’s compensation due to their amateur status and because they are not considered employees of a university. The labor/management debate has been ever relevant with the recent filing of Northwestern football players to join a labor union.
The second frame that became apparent to me was that of race and gender.
Gender and football is an issue I addressed earlier in the literature review as a facet of the game that has been pervasive since its beginning. Football has long been considered the essence of the male domain, a justification used to support its violence and warrior mentality. Players are taught that real men inflict pain upon others and Brogley Webb 86
suffer through pain without showing emotion. Allowing anyone, especially your opponent, to see that you are hurt is a sign of weakness unbecoming of a “masculine” man, and this weakness is often characterized as feminine. The gender frame plays out in the most tangible and visible way regarding Boston University pathologist, Dr. Ann
McKee. In an ESPN feature story, published in August of 2012, Dr. McKee is labeled
“The woman who would save football.” The title is quite obviously a play on what the author sees as the sheer novelty of a woman dedicated to protecting and reinforcing something that has proven to be a sexist and testosterone inundated domain. The title itself is a clear reflection of the hegemonic masculinity that has permeated society and culture beyond just sports, considering the headline could have been much different if
McKee was a man. I believe that the title is meant to be empowering to women, given the general tone of the article, but the title of the piece, perhaps unknowingly casts
McKee’s gender as her primary identifying characteristic, ignoring her outstanding credentials. McKee’s gender is also the topic of discussion in League of Denial, when
McKee discusses meeting with the all-male and all white NFL mTBI committee.
McKee and the producers of Frontline assert that McKee and her work were dismissed because she was seen only as a woman, an outsider who didn’t belong.
Much like Ann McKee, the sports media have depicted pathologist Dr. Bennet
Omalu, who was born in Nigeria, using charged language, although in his case it was racially based. A particularly noticeable example occurred in a 2011 ESPN article describing how Dr. Omalu was “blackballed” by the NFL, who attempted to discredit Brogley Webb 87
his findings about CTE. Omalu’s story coupled with McKee’s highlights a disturbing trend of the NFL trying to silence female researchers and minority researchers.
The frame of race was most evident in the discussion of researchers, but players as well. I found that overall, there were more stories in which African-
American players were critical of the NFL, calling-out the league’s unfair meting out of harsh penalties for dangerous hits, and what they perceived to be a feigned concern for player safety, for example, Ed Reed, Arian Foster, Bernard Pollard, and Richard
Sherman. White players, such as New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees and
Atlanta Falcons kicker Matt Bryant, on the other hand were more frequently portrayed as the NFL’s efforts and champion concussion testing for players. This frame is also apparent in the stories about players whose deaths have been related to brain trauma they suffered during their careers. For Dave Duerson, who is African-American, and
Junior Seau, who is of Samoan descent, a number of stories about their suicides have pushed the consideration of other factors besides CTE as causing their deaths. It is usually mentioned that Duerson had filed for personal bankruptcy as a result of a failed business venture, and for Seau, some journalists argue that many former NFL players suffer from depression, changes in health, chronic pain, and loss of identity once their careers are over. For white players like Mike Webster and former
University of Pennsylvania football player Owen Thomas, who committed suicide, they are largely portrayed as victims whose lives spiraled out of control as a result of brain trauma. Brogley Webb 88
Some journalists have argued that the race hasn’t been a big enough part of the discussion of football-related brain trauma. In one ESPN article, the author argues that the end of football is highly exaggerated in urban communities, who often rely on sports such as football to provide a way out of poverty. Many parents of players in these communities believe football gives their children discipline and keeps them out of trouble. Certain journalists have argued that asking retired NFL players, “Knowing what you know now, would you play football again?” is an offensive question to certain players, because it asks them to reconsider the hard work, struggles, and sacrifices they made to rise out of poverty and provide for themselves and their families. One particular ESPN reporter ascertains that the concussion debate is happening at the intersection of “Pleasant Road and Academia Boulevard” and completely ignores these communities. Many articles speak of families for whom it is easy to have their sons quit playing football and pursue another sport or career and at sophisticated sounding research done at high-brow universities, yet little is mentioned of how this crisis will directly affect young minority players in urban areas.
Public perception was the third frame that I identified upon further analysis of my sample. Public knowledge and attention to this issue in recent years has been a direct effect of enhanced media coverage. This phenomenon has played an important role in the labor and management discussion as well. On one hand, it has made the public more sympathetic to the plight of the players who they see has being mistreated and taken advantage of by owners, leagues, and universities they play for. On the other hand, when players are framed as laborers it can have the opposite fans; fans might Brogley Webb 89
instead see them as greedy millionaires who chose to play football despite the risks.
Some concussions researchers worry that public perception of the issue can lead to premature determination and beliefs of scientific accuracy, even for information that has not fully been proven or accepted by the scientific community. Ohio University concussions researcher Dr. Brian Ragan argues that while it is good to raise awareness of the issue, when certain medical research is constantly repeated by the media and portrayed is truth, it become ingrained in the public psyche, even though such information may not have been fully verified (Ragan). Finally, public perception has been the most important regarding parents of young football players. A fall 2013 report by ESPN demonstrated that participation in Pop Warner football was down by nearly 10 percent and the concussion crisis was cited as the primary contributing factor. The NFL understands that parents are consumers of football and control the success of their future product, the next generation of talented players. To combat this perception the NFL has partnered with USA football to teach what it calls proper and safe tackling techniques, and Commissioner Goodell has even held safety clinics for mothers of youth football players. Public perception and reaction of parents is key to the future and continued success of the NFL and football as a whole.
The fourth dominant frame I came across was that of the scientific debate over concussions and CTE. Since many leading researchers argue that we are really just at the tip of the iceberg in terms of our knowledge of brain injuries, it is difficult to know which scientific research that has been published is the most true and accurate. The task of deciphering scientific accuracy for concussions and CTE has largely been Brogley Webb 90
placed on journalists, who interview researchers and then present their findings to the public. This has led to two predominant sub-frames within the framing of scientific debate: either one can take the position that the NFL has concealed information about concussion science and doesn’t care about the players, the players are victims of the league and owner’s greed and deliberate negligence, and the independent researchers are trying to save football, or one can believe that the NFL is trying its best to protect its players and act as the leader in player safety, current players are too vicious and retired players should accept the consequences of their chosen profession, and independent researchers are trying to destroy the game. Due to the changing climate of this issue it is impossible to discern which perspective is the most right at this point in time, however it is not out of the realm of possibility to say that both sides have their merits and flaws and that the truth is found somewhere in the middle.
In the frame of scientific debate, journalists have also introduced the notion of the politics and competition between researchers. League of Denial chronicles how the
NFL’s medical researchers and doctors attempted to discredit the work of pathologist
Dr. Bennet Omalu, who first discovered CTE in the Steelers Mike Webster’s brain, and permanently damage his reputation in the scientific community. It also details the league’s well documented disagreement with the Boston University researchers, first attempting to discredit them and then once they had discovered CTE in a number of retired players pledged millions of dollars to the university and designated Boston
University as the NFL’s preferred brain bank (Fainaru). ESPN also elucidated what they refer to as a “scientific backroom brawl,” in which a number of groups battled for Brogley Webb 91
the rights to study Junior Seau’s brain, including Boston University, Dr. Omalu, and the NFL. The NFL went on to remove its designation from Boston University and
Seau’s family elected to have his brain be studied by the NFL’s newest partner, the
National Institutes of Health.
The fifth and final frame I examined were opinion stories, from both ESPN and Sports Illustrated. Although this category was a crucial part of the metaphor, valence, descriptive statistics, and source analysis, it also represented an important frame. As with the other types of analysis I chose to look at the opinion category as a whole, noting each story based on its own merits. As was mentioned in the valence analysis section, regarding tone valence for the 95 opinion stories, nearly 74 percent of
Sports Illustrated stories reflected a negative opinion, while more than 70 percent of
ESPN’s opinion pieces were negatively slanted. On the other hand, 24 percent of
ESPN’s stories highlighted a positive opinion, while only 16 percent of Sports
Illustrated presented a positive view of concussions. These figures are critical to determining the effects that the mainstream sports media have on public perception of the concussion crisis. Even the labeling of this issue as a “crisis” has tremendous consequences; it implies both a sense of urgency and a sense of drama.
The abundance of negative opinions demonstrate the mainstream sports media’s attempt to fulfill its watchdog role and has led many sports journalists to be more transparent in their reporting of this issue. Many reporters have acknowledged that while they hate seeing the injuries, they still love and will continue to cover the game. Others admit that the medical information available now has made it impossible Brogley Webb 92
for them to watch a game with as much enjoyment or without a profound sense of guilt. As mentioned above, the dissemination of such opinions have cumulative effects, most notably the drop in participation in Pop Warner football. As we move forward it will be interesting to see if this new wave of socially and morally responsible sports journalism will persist, or if it will be a passing trend.
Source Analysis
In the reporting of a topic where relatively speaking, very little is known, it is important to note what resources journalists are using to obtain their information.
Many concussion scientists agree that we are at the outermost edge of our understanding of football related brain trauma, and we still have many gaps to fill in our knowledge of the brain itself. If there is uncertainty in the scientific community, the difficulty is then compounded for a journalist seeking to sift through all of the research and provide a coherent and accurate representation of the facts for the public.
For my analysis I looked at the sources used for each of the four categories, ESPN and
Sports Illustrated for opinion and non-opinion and put them into a table. It is important to note that when players were used as sources I did not necessarily count individual players, but rather just an instance or story in which players were used. This is especially relevant when looking at articles that included player sources only or represented a survey of many players. In these cases I counted them as a single entity, while in stories that included, for example two players and medical experts or NFL officials, I counted both players separately. Brogley Webb 93
For 61 articles in the Sports Illustrated opinion category I noted 160 sources. I expected a lower number of sources for opinion compared with non-opinion stories because often the author’s arguments are used as the primary or only source. Due to the nature of an opinion story I was not surprised to find medical experts or scientific researchers of any kind, NFL, independent, or otherwise, only accounted for 6.9 percent of the sources. On five occasions, the author invoked his or her own authority as a justification for a particular opinion. These instances included lawyers and medical experts who were using their expert testimony to provide insight into the concussion crisis, as well as journalists who asserted that their position as a member of the sports media made the qualified to make certain judgments. Sports Illustrated opinion writers also used blatantly unattributed scientific evidence or statistics, for information that would not be widely known, as justification for their opinions on eight occasions. Both current and former players were the sources used most frequently, representing 45 percent of the sample. This figure is an entire 35 percent larger than the next most frequently used source type. Other journalists or articles written by competing media organizations were used most frequently behind player sources, accounting for nearly 11 percent of the total. NFL personnel and administrators, including Commissioner Goodell, chief legal counsel Jeff Pash, and spokesman Greg Aiello, also appeared as frequently as media sources.
Although I only looked at 34 stories for the ESPN opinion section, I found 167 sources, 7 more than the Sports Illustrated opinion section. I attribute this difference to the fact that Sports Illustrated in general included stories that only featured the Brogley Webb 94
author’s point of view, while ESPN more frequently reported the viewpoints of others and included reactions to those comments from even more people. Much like Sports
Illustrated, ESPN had a similar number of instances of an author using his or her journalistic authority for justification (7 appearances) or supported an opinion using unattributed scientific evidence or statistics (7 appearances). ESPN also mirrored
Sports Illustrated fairly well regarding the number of times it used and leading NFL figure (9 percent) or another member of the media (8 percent). ESPN used medical experts or scientific researchers as sources slightly more frequently than Sports
Illustrated (9 percent) and used current and former players as sources with lesser frequency (42 percent). Regardless of the Sports Illustrated comparison, ESPN used players as sources 33 percent more than the next most often cited type of source.
This Sports Illustrated non-opinion sample included 167 sources from 41 articles, all taken from the 10 remaining subtopics, and the sources were selected proportionally from the larger 489 article sample. As anticipated, the non-opinion sample included far more medical experts and scientific researchers used as sources and cited fewer players than the opinion sample. Independent medical experts and scientific researchers were used 28.8 percent of the time, exceeding the opinion sample by almost 23 percent. At the same time, players and their families and friends were used as sources 30.6 percent of the time, nearly 17 percent less than in the opinion category. Leading NFL figures and NFL associated medical experts had similar numbers for both opinion and non-opinion, hovering around 10 percent. When further broken down, leading NFL figures (5.4 percent), NFL medical experts (4.2 Brogley Webb 95
percent), and leading independent researchers and teams such as Boston University
(4.8 percent) and Dr. Kevin Guskiewicz, from North Carolina, (4.8 percent), were cited with relatively the same frequency. The other most prominently discussed pair of researchers, Dr. Bennet Omalu and Dr. Julian Bailes, who have contributed to research at UCLA, were referenced only 1.8 percent of the time. Other independent researchers from around the country that are not part of the Boston University, UNC Chapel Hill, or UCLA teams accounted for 17.4 percent of the total. Despite that I had designated this category as non-opinion, I still found that the author of an article invoked his or her own authority almost as often as in the opinion sample, with 4.2 percent. The usage of unattributed scientific evidence or statistics did drop however, constituting less than 1 percent. It was surprising to see that the non-opinion articles used other media as sources more than the opinion articles, at 12.6 percent, a 2 percent increase over the opinion sample.
I additionally examined the research sources with increased scrutiny than the other sources. While a personal anecdote from a player who has battled the ill-effects of brain trauma might inspire compassion and perhaps sway a young athlete to pursue a different sport, the accurate and unbiased reporting of medical and scientific research has far greater consequences for the public as a whole. Arguably there could be a significant impact on public knowledge and opinion if journalists were to portray the ideas of the NFL’s medical experts over those of independent researchers. Also there could be repercussions for highlighting only a few voices in the scientific community and championing their work over lesser-publicized groups. To examine this effect, I Brogley Webb 96
created the following groups: First, the NFL associated group, which included NFL medical experts, as well as leading NFL figures, and the NFLPA. I chose to include
NFL figures like Roger Goodell and the NFLPA because in the articles they were being asked to comment on medical information. The second group included the three most prominently profiled and featured research teams, Boston University, University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, and Dr. Omalu and Dr. Bailes, who have most recently collaborated with UCLA. The third and final group included independent research teams, usually from hospitals or universities that were not associated with the aforementioned primary three teams. For the Sports Illustrated non-opinion sample I found that the largest group was the lesser-publicized independent researchers group, with 43.9 percent of the total research sources (see fig. 3.a). The three most prominent independent research groups (28.6 percent) and the NFL associated sources (27.2 percent) were almost equal in the number of times they were cited in the non-opinion sample.
Brogley Webb 97
Figure 3.a
The ESPN non-opinion sample included 52 stories and 269 sources, the greatest number of sources for any of the four samples. Much like in the Sports
Illustrated non-opinion category, ESPN used players and their families and friends as sources far less than in the opinion category, 18.9 percent compared to 44.4 percent.
ESPN also used player and family sources nearly 12 percent less frequently than the
Sports Illustrated non-opinion category. ESPN was more likely to use coaches and team athletic trainers, and government sources than Sports Illustrated, but was less likely to incorporate legal experts and promote their own opinion as the truth. These patterns also followed when comparing ESPN non-opinion with opinion, except the
ESPN opinion category featured a higher percentage of government sources. The Brogley Webb 98
ESPN non-opinion sample referenced other journalists and articles the least out of the four samples, comprising only 3.0 percent of the sources.
Regarding the research and medical information sources, the ESPN non- opinion sample discussed the Boston University group the most (7.8 percent), followed by Dr. Omalu and Dr. Bailes (5.6 percent), and featured Dr. Guskiewicz the least out of the three most prominent groups (3.3 percent). Virginia Tech also emerged as a featured group in the ESPN non-opinion sample, appearing 2.2 percent of the time. Individually, all of these groups were mentioned less often than NFL medical experts (11.5 percent) and leading NFL figures (8.6 percent). These patterns are evident in the ESPN opinion sample as well, except leading NFL figures is the largest category and lesser publicized independent researchers is the second greatest,
Compared with the Sports Illustrated non-opinion sample, lesser-publicized independent researchers were featured slightly more frequently in the ESPN non- opinion sample (19.7 percent). In my closer examination of the sources ESPN used as research authorities, I found that in contrast to Sports Illustrated, ESPN cited each of the three groups, prominent independent research groups, NFL associated, and lesser- publicized independent research groups, with almost identical frequencies (see fig
3.b).
Brogley Webb 99
Figure 3.b
Descriptive Statistics
As mentioned in the methodology section, I examined 489 articles from both publications and divided them into groups based on subtopic. While there were 12 total subtopics I examined only the 10 most useful categories in gathering descriptive statistics. I first looked at the overall trend for number of articles written per year. The first article written about head injuries and football injuries in general appeared in
Sports Illustrated in 1954. For the subsequent years, leading up to 2007, there were no more than four stories per year. 2007 saw a rise in publication with 14 stories, or 3 percent of the total, before 2008 showed a reduced total of 5. 2009 produced a count similar to 2007, with 17 stories, or 3.5 percent of the total. Both 2010 and 2011 showed a significant increase in volume of articles with 64 (13 percent) and 56 (11 Brogley Webb100
percent). 2012 and 2013 were by far the most dominant in terms of number of stories, totaling 157 and 184 stories respectively, combining for 70 percent of the total coverage. Overall, the years 2009-2013 represented 97 percent of the total coverage of concussions and CTE.
I also noted which level of football was covered the most, whether it was NFL, college, youth and high school, or otherwise. The NFL had the most coverage with
337 articles, or 69 percent of the sample (see fig. 4.a). College football was second with 64 stories or 13 percent. Youth and high school football appeared in 30 articles (6 percent) and the Arena Football League, Canadian Football League, and stories with no affiliation combined for 1 percent of the total. The category that included information that was applicable to all levels of football was also significant, constituting 59 stories, or 12 percent.
Fig. 4.a
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When considering both ESPN and Sports Illustrated I looked at what level of football they were most likely to cover. In general, Sports Illustrated had 273 stories
(56 percent of the sample) and ESPN had 216 stories (44%). 78 percent of SI’s coverage was devoted to the NFL, while college (26 stories) and high school/youth football (13 stories) combined to make up about 14 percent of Sports Illustrated’s total
(see fig. 4.b). ESPN, on the other hand, still had a majority of NFL focused stories, but it constituted a significantly smaller portion of the total, 56.5 percent. ESPN had double the amount of college-focused stories (17.6 percent) and stories applicable to all levels of football (18 percent) compared to SI. ESPN also bested Sports Illustrated regarding youth and high school based articles with 7.8 percent of the total compared to 4.8 percent.
Fig. 4.b
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After observing trends regarding year of publication, level of football covered, and level of football by publication, I applied similar parameters for analysis of each of the 12 identified subtopics. There were 21 total stories about concussion prevention through educational programs, comprising 4.3 of the total. ESPN had the greatest number of education stories and the earliest story written was in 2004 (see fig. 4.c).
The branding, business, and culture category was the smallest making up just 1.6 percent (8 stories). Sports Illustrated had the most number of stories and the first story was published in 2004. The equipment category included 19 stories (3.9 percent) about how a player’s equipment, such as pads and helmet, have improved or threatened player safety. ESPN featured the highest volume of stories and the earliest story was published in Sports Illustrated in 1955.
The media category was designated based on articles that discussed survey conducted by media organizations, the media’s impact on public opinion in terms of concussion safety, documentaries or books that have been written about the concussion crisis, or commentary on how the sports media has covered the topic. The media category was also relatively small (3.0 percent), Sports Illustrated had the most stories, and the earliest story appeared in 2011. The subtopic designated as general feature included feature stories that were not about specific players and didn’t uniformly fit into any of the other categories. These most likely included stories discussing the future of football, violence in football, and figures associated with the concussion crisis that were not players, such as Commissioner Goodell. ESPN led the general feature category, representing 5.5 percent of the total, and the earliest Brogley Webb103
published story of the subtopic was in 1987, when Sports Illustrated published its oft- referenced piece, “Good Old Violence.” The category labeled rules, which discussed rule changes in NFL, NCAA, Pop Warner, and high school football implemented to protect player safety, was another small category with 37 stories (7.6 percent). Sports
Illustrated reported on rule changes the most, and the topic was first covered by the two media organizations in 2007.
Articles about specific players, player features, research stories, opinion pieces, and stories about medical and legal issues, represented the largest categories in the sample. While the subcategory featuring stories about players who had sustained a concussion during a game or practice was included in the initial phases of descriptive statistical analysis, it was excluded in further testing because it lacked meaningful substance that could have contributed to and enhanced this report. Sports Illustrated reported more of the 55 instances of a player getting injured than ESPN and the first published story appeared in 2005. The player feature category was slightly larger than the player category, with 58 stories or 11.9 percent, and included more in depth portrayals of athletes ranging from a UCLA linebacker who quit his senior season after suffering a series of concussion playing high school and college football to a middle aged former NFL player suffering from memory loss and a condition known as water on the brain. Sports Illustrated led the coverage of player features and the first story was published in 1954.
The research category featured stories written about current or proposed concussion and CTE experiments and published research from around the country. Brogley Webb104
ESPN dominated coverage of the 68 research stories and research topics were first covered in 1986. The 75 articles (15.3 percent) in the medical category included stories about the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of concussions and CTE. The medical side of head injuries was first covered in 1954 and Sports Illustrated reported it most frequently. Law articles represented the second most numerous subcategory with 80 articles or 16.4 percent of the total. The majority of the law articles discussed the lawsuit against the NFL filed by former players, the coverage of the topic did not begin until 2009, and it was reported most heavily by ESPN. The opinion category included commentary from the journalist, a source, or the subject of the article. There were 95 opinion articles, the majority from Sports Illustrated, making up 19.4 percent of the total. This was the largest subtopic of the 12 taken into account and stories were published as early as 1992. For all of the 12 subtopics, the NFL was the level of football most frequently covered, except for the equipment category, in which the applicable to all levels designation was most prevalent. Both 2012 and 2013 represented the years with the greatest volume of published articles for every subtopic.
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Fig. 4.c
As stated earlier in this section, more than 97 percent of the coverage of the concussion crisis has taken place in the previous seven years. 2012 and 2013 were the two years with the most coverage, 157 and 184 stories respectively. In 2013, law (47 stories), opinion (29 stories), medical (21 stories), player feature (20 stories) and research (20 stories), represented the subtopics covered most frequently, accounting for nearly 75 percent of the coverage. Alone, the law category comprised almost 26 percent of the total coverage during 2013. In 2012 research (27 stories), opinion (25 stories), and medical (25 stories), were the most popularly reported topics, constituting
49 percent of the total stories in that year. The greatest number of stories for any year was the 47 law stories published in 2013 and the 29 opinion stories also published in
2013. 2012 and 2013 are also the only years in which at least one story from each of Brogley Webb106
the 12 subtopics was published. Early on, the 1950’s included 5 stories from the equipment, medical, opinion, and player feature categories. The 1980’s spotlighted a mere two articles, one was a general feature and the other was about research. Four articles about medical issues, opinions, and equipment were the only stories from the sample written in the 1990’s. The time frame spanning 2001-2006 saw a slight increase in level of coverage, with 11 stories. 73 percent of the articles in that span were either player features or basic reporting of a player who had suffered a concussion. The other 27 percent included medical, education, and general feature stories.
By looking at a timeline of when certain stories were reported, I was able to gain a better sense of when particular topics were popular and when journalists began to have a greater knowledge of certain areas. It was interesting to compare my timelines of when stories were published, with a timeline compiled by the website
Deadspin, detailing scientific breakthroughs and the consistent pattern of NFL denial of the dangers of concussions. Surprisingly enough, none of the items listed by
Deadspin were covered or mentioned by either ESPN or Sports Illustrated until Dr.
Benett Omalu’s 2002 finding of CTE in the brain of Hall of Fame center Mike
Webster, and even then it was not reported in a meaningful way until League of
Denial. The timeline can be seen below including numerous pieces of evidence over the years showing that brain trauma in football was of real and legitimate concern, and how studies were published long before the mainstream sports media began taking notice (Petchesky). Brogley Webb107
1933: The NCAA's medical handbook is distributed to all member schools. It warns that concussions are treated too lightly, and recommends that concussed players receive rest and constant supervision, and not be allowed to play or practice until symptoms have been gone for 48 hours. For symptoms lasting longer than 48 hours, it recommends players "not be permitted to compete for 21 days or longer, if at all."
1937: At its annual meeting, the American Football Coaches Association declares that concussed players should immediately be taken out of a game. "Sports demanding personal contact should be eliminated after an individual has suffered a concussion."
1952: A study appearing in the New England Journal of Medicine urges players who suffer three concussions to leave football forever for their own safety.
1973: The condition later named Second Impact Syndrome is first identified. It occurs when an athlete receives a concussion while still suffering the effects of a previous one, and according to a 2013 study in the Journal of Neurosurgery it carries a 90 percent mortality rate. "Those who do survive second impact syndrome are neurologically devastated," reports the director of the Sports Concussion Clinic at Children's Hospital Boston.
1991: The Colorado Medical Society publishes a grading system for concussion severity and establishes strict guidelines for allowing players back into the game. It is quickly incorporated by the NCAA and high school football.
1994: The NFL acknowledges the danger of concussions for the first time, forming the Mild Traumatic Brain Injury Committee. It is co-chaired by Elliot Pellman, a rheumatologist who claimed to have a degree from Stony Brook. (He didn't. He attended medical school in Guadalajara, Mexico.) Pellman is the Jets' team doctor. He's also commissioner Paul Tagliabue's personal doctor. The MTBI committee begins an ongoing study of brain trauma, but mysteriously discards results from hundreds of NFL players. The director of the Sports Medicine Research Laboratory says "the data that hasn't shown up makes their work questionable industry-funded research." Pellman reportedly tells one doctor on his team, "Don't talk to the press." He also tells Sports Illustrated, "Concussions are part of the profession, an occupational risk" and says a football player is "like a steelworker who goes up 100 stories, or a soldier."
1995: Pellman tries to speed up Boomer Esiason's return from a concussion. He uses an unproven system that involves the QB sitting in front of a computer screen and concentrating. Says Pellman: "Imagine the equivalent of having a head filled with marbles knocked around after a hit. The biofeedback is trying to put them back in the same order. But we haven't had control studies to show whether the improvement is measurable."
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1997: The American Academy of Neurology publishes its own guidelines for players returning to action after being concussed. It recommends removing players knocked unconscious from a game. The NFL later rejects the guidelines, with one of its consultants saying, "We see people all the time that get knocked out briefly and have no symptoms."
1999: The NFL's retirement board quietly begins giving out millions in disability payments to former players suffering cognitive decline, finding that they had become "totally disabled" due to "league football activities."
2000: A study presented at the American Academy of Neurology's annual meeting finds that 61 percent of former NFL players sustained concussions, with 79 percent of those injured saying they had not been forced to leave the game. Furthermore: 49% of the former players had numbness or tingling; 28% had neck or cervical spine arthritis; 31% had difficulty with memory; 16% were unable to dress themselves; and 11% were unable to feed themselves; Cowboys owner Jerry Jones tells ESPN he'd push Troy Aikman to play through concussions "since all data that we have so far don’t point to any lasting effects, long- term effects from the head trauma." Aikman's career will be shortened by concussions.
2002: Dr. Bennet Omalu examines the brain of Mike Webster and sees a splotchy accumulation of tau protein, evidence of a brain disease that Omalu calls Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy. CTE is a neurological degenerative disease most often found in the brains of boxers, and provides a direct link between head trauma and dementia later in life. (A 2013 paper in the Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society will dispute that CTE is a unique disease.)
2003: A study of retired football players finds that having multiple concussions doubled their risk of developing depression later in life. Meanwhile, the MTBI committee releases the first results of its study. It finds that concussions have no long-term health effects. Wayne Chrebet is concussed during a game and examined by Pellman, the Jets physician and MTBI committee co-chair. Pellman reportedly tells Chrebet, "This is a very important for your career" and sends him back into the game. Chrebet's symptoms persist after the game, and he is placed on season-ending injured reserve.
2004: Justin Strzelczyk drives his car at 90 mph into a tractor-trailer. Just 36, he had been exhibiting erratic behavior for months. Omalu examines his brain and finds evidence of CTE.
2005: The MTBI committee releases more findings. Among the conclusions: "Return to play does not involve a significant risk of a second injury either in the same game or during the season." A study by the UNC Center for the Study of Retired Athletes finds a connection between concussions and Alzheimer's disease, dementia, and depression Brogley Webb109
in former NFL players. More, it finds a correlation between the long-term effects on the number of concussions the player suffered.
2005: A survey of retired NFLers finds a history of concussions makes a player five times as likely to suffer cognitive impairment.
2005: Omalu publishes the results of his examination of Webster's brain in the journal Neurosurgery. The MTBI committee attacks his report and demands that Neurosurgery retract the article.
2005: Terry Long commits suicide by drinking antifreeze. He is found to have CTE, and the medical examiner rules brain trauma a contributing factor in his death. "The trauma, according to the death certificate, was a result of his injuries during his tenure as a football player. I think it is the same as what was on Mike Webster's death certificate."
2006: Andre Waters shoots himself in the head. Omalu examines his brain and says Waters had the brain tissue of an 85-year-old man.
2006: ESPN discontinues its "Jacked Up!" segment highlighting the hardest and most spectacular hits of the weekend's games.
2007: The UNC Center for the Study of Retired Athletes publishes a study linking concussions and depression in former NFL players. One member of the MTBI committee, a consultant for the Colts, calls the study "virtually worthless."
2007: Dr. Ira Casson, co-chairman of the MTBI, says in an interview on HBO Real Sports that there is no link between head injuries and depression, dementia, early onset Alzheimer's, or "any long term problems." A pamphlet is distributed to the players and reads in part, "Current research with professional athletes has not shown that having more than one or two concussions leads to permanent problems if each injury is managed properly."
2008: An NFL-commissioned survey finds former players suffer Alzheimer's and dementia at a rate 19 times higher than for non-players between the ages of 30-49. The NFL calls the study inconclusive.
2009: For the first time, the NFL acknowledges the effects of head trauma. League spokesman Greg Aiello says, "It's quite obvious from the medical research that's been done that concussions can lead to long-term problems." The first lawsuits against the league are filed. Over the next few years, they will balloon to nearly 250 cases and 5,000 plaintiffs, including former players from the 1940s.
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2009: Chris Henry dies after either falling or jumping from a moving truck. His mother says he had been having headaches and mood swings. He is later diagnosed with CTE.
2010: Casson appears before Congress. He says CTE "has never been linked to athletics or head trauma." The MTBI is disbanded and a new committee formed. The co-chair of the new committee has strong words for Pellman, Casson, and the MTBI's studies: "We all had issues with some of the methodologies described, the inherent conflict of interest that was there in many areas, that was not acceptable by any modern standards or not acceptable to us. I wouldn’t put up with that, our universities wouldn’t put up with that, and we don’t want our professional reputations damaged by conflicts that were put upon us." The NFL puts up posters in every locker room warning players of the effects of concussions, and announces penalties and fines for tackles that target the head.
2011: The NFL pressures Toyota to edit a commercial that cites new technology involved in lessening the risk of concussions. Concussed players are still regularly sent back into games. One, San Diego's Kris Dielman, suffers a seizure on the team flight home.
2012: Junior Seau shoots himself in the chest. The National Institutes of Health finds that his brain had CTE.
2012: Of 35 brains of former NFL players donated to the Boston University Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy, 34 are found to have CTE.
2013: The lawsuits from former players suing the NFL are consolidated and settled, with the NFL paying out $765 million without admitting liability. "Commissioner Goodell and every owner gave the legal team the same direction," NFL counsel Jeff Pash said. "'Do the right thing for the game and for the men who played it.'"
Regarding trends of subtopic by level of football, it was found that in 11 of the
12 subtopics, the NFL was the most frequently covered level. Law (57 stories), medical (60 stories), and opinion (77 stories) were the most prominently covered subtopics for stories written about the NFL, making up nearly 58 percent of the total
NFL stories (see fig. 4.d). These totals also represented the three highest totals for any subtopic of any level. At least one story was written about each subtopic for each of Brogley Webb111
the three primary levels (NFL, college, and youth/high school), except there were no stories published about the media or equipment regarding high school players, general features about college football, or business, branding, and culture stories for college and youth/high school football. Player and law stories were the most prevalent for college football, constituting 56 percent of the total number of college stories. Player feature and equipment stories together made up 18 of the 30 stories written about high school and youth football players.
In looking at trends for subtopic by publication, Sports Illustrated had more stories than ESPN for the media, opinion, medical, player, rules, player feature, and branding, business, and culture categories. ESPN covered stories about law, education, equipment, research, and general features more frequently than Sports Illustrated.
Coverage of equipment, general feature, and law stories were nearly equal between the two publications, with no more than 53 percent of the total number of stories for each subtopic. Media (80 percent of the total number of media stories), rules (70 percent), and opinion (66 percent), were the subtopics most dominantly reported by Sports
Illustrated. Education (67 percent) and research (66 percent) were the two topics
ESPN covered more prevalently.
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Fig. 4.d
For more in depth analysis I created a timeline of the stories for each subtopic, but this time excluding the player category. The individual timelines helped me to better observe trends in coverage for each category. Sports Illustrated had earlier stories than ESPN in every category except for law, when they both first began reporting in 2009. The gap in between each organization’s first article for each subtopic was relatively small (three years or less), for law, rules, media, and business, branding, and culture stories. Sports Illustrated exceeded ESPN by six years or more in the equipment, general feature, medical, research, player feature, and opinion categories. The peak years for both ESPN and Sports Illustrated were 2012 and 2013 for every subtopic, except 2010 had most rules stories from ESPN and general feature stories from Sports Illustrated, and 2011 was tied for the greatest number of equipment focused stories for ESPN. Brogley Webb113
I considered which stories both ESPN and Sports Illustrated focused on as an additional portion of my analysis. Many of the subtopics included overlap in the discussion of former living and deceased players, whose lives had been severely affected by long-term football-related brain trauma. These players included former
Chicago Bears quarterback Jim McMahon, Chargers linebacker Junior Seau, Bears defensive back Dave Duerson, Steelers center Mike Webster, Cowboys running back
Tony Dorsett, and Packers quarterback Brett Favre. Both organizations also mentioned non-player figures that are either directly or in-directly associated with the concussion crisis, such as Commissioner Roger Goodell and President Barack Obama.
I also looked at specific time frames that showed an unusually high volume of coverage for a particular subtopic. I categorized these appearances as “hot spots” and labeled them as such in my charts and tables. October through December 2010 represented a hot spot for education, rules, research, player feature, medical, and opinion stories. January and February of 2011 highlighted a significant number of equipment stories, while August and September of the same year included a prevalence of legal stories. January through March of 2012 also saw a notable increase in the number of law articles. May 2012 was a significant month for a number of categories including, branding, business, and culture, player feature, medical, law, and opinion. The numbers for these categories, plus general feature, remained high until
October of 2012. Research, player feature, law, medical, and opinion stories all rose in number during January 2013. August through November of 2013 represented a peak time for all categories except education, branding, business, and culture, general Brogley Webb114
feature, and rules. Finally, January 2014 again experienced an increase in the coverage of legal stories.
CHAPTER VIII: CONCLUSIONS AND FUTURE QUESTIONS
Metaphor Analysis
The metaphor analysis revealed a high prevalence for war, violence, and crime metaphors, representing anywhere from 25-43 percent of the total metaphors for each of the four samples. The number of war metaphors was not unforeseen, considering the widely documented comparisons of football to combat and battle in the sports media and football’s relationship to masculinity. I associated the war metaphors with violence and crime, because the war metaphors used in the ESPN and Sports
Illustrated articles were implemented with clear negative connotations. Authors like
Dave Zirin have argued that the NFL has used war and militarization to insidiously infiltrate America’s pastime with political propaganda (“Game Over”). Sports writers of more distant eras have used war metaphors to further glorify the violence of football, comparing those who play it as the heroes courageously battling in the trenches. War metaphors appearing in concussion related articles have assumed a starkly different purpose, instead attempting to associate the horrors of violence and the intentional and sometimes malicious infliction of pain on your opponent with long- term brain damage. For this reason, I grouped the violence and crime metaphors, which included actions like killing, trespassing, and crushing skulls like a beer can, along with the war metaphors. War metaphors were most commonly used regarding players and equipment, specifically helmets, often referring to them as weapons, Brogley Webb115
battering rams, missiles, spears, etc. They were also prevalent in the discussion of the
NFL, describing the league as engaging in battle or combat, a clear ploy at establishing the NFL as an adversary and enemy of the players.
Nearly as prominent among the entire sample were metaphors of sickness, death, and disorder, comprising anywhere from 26-42 percent of each of the four samples. Considering I was analyzing the metaphors used to discuss a medical topic, it was still surprising to see a significant number of pathogenic metaphors. The vibrancy and strength of the NFL, as mentioned in the literature review, has been steadily growing since the 1970’s. Today the NFL is a multi-billion dollar a year operation, constantly seeking new avenues to build its brand. Over time, the NFL has come to rather inconspicuously build an empire that remains relevant year round (whether through build up to the Super Bowl, draft coverage, and off-season workouts), despite the regular season only lasting from September through December. Despite the apparent invincibility of the NFL, the metaphors used to describe it, largely hint at its ability to atrophy and die. Big Tobacco is used as a frequent comparison to the NFL, due to its denial of the risks of brain trauma, and football itself is often compared to smoking, in that society used to be ignorant of the dangers, but now we know better.
The repetitive use of this comparison, used by public figures and journalists alike, arguably has made a lasting impression with the greater public, perhaps supporting some parents’ increased reservations and fears of allowing their children to play football.
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Topic Valence
Regarding topic valence, my results largely fell along the lines of my predictions; there would be the greatest number of negative rated stories, since concussions and brain trauma, are highly negative topics alone, and considering this same fact, there would be the fewest number of neutrally rated stories. Significance within valence ratings can readily be seen when comparing neutral, moderate, and radical scores. Surprisingly in the non-opinion category, the majority of stories received moderate valence ratings (2 and 4) while the opinion category was nearly split between moderate ratings and radical ratings (1 and 5). Both opinion and non- opinion had the greatest number of negative scores (4 and 5), between 60-70 percent, and the fewest number of neutral scores. Neutrality was not something I expected to find much of regarding topics, as they are almost all either negative or positive, and I anticipated having a significant number of negative ratings for opinion stories. For the opinion category, ESPN had more radically negative and positive scores than Sports
Illustrated, while Sports Illustrated boasted more moderate ratings for topic valence.
This finding could be explained partly by the fact that ESPN had a greater focus on
CTE and the potential end of football, both that would have received very negative valence ratings. ESPN also having a primary focus on the best ways to preserve and better the game, including rule changes, improvement in medical care, and technological innovation, which would result in very positive valence ratings, provides an additional explanation.
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Tone Valence
The results of the tone valence analysis were perhaps easier to find, but provided more interesting results than topic valence. For opinion stories, over 50 percent of the stories received radical ratings, and more than 72 percent earned negative scores. This finding highlights a clear propensity for condemning the NFL’s handling of the concussion crisis and the prevalence of brain diseases among current and former football players. For the non-opinion category, the most numerous category was that of neutral valence ratings, an expected result considering the non- opinion stories are supposed to be reported objectively and not be colored by the journalist’s views or prejudices. Surprisingly though, negative scores were nearly five times more common than positive ones, demonstrating a clear belief by the mainstream media that their needs to be significant efforts to reform the game of football and provide the necessary and deserved medical care for retired players struggling with memory loss and other adverse after-effects of their playing careers.
ESPN was more likely to report stories receiving radically positive ratings than Sports
Illustrated and Sports Illustrated more often covered stories earning a radically negative score for tone valence.
I was very interested in the results of the opinion category for tone valence, especially in light of the accusations that ESPN was pressured by the NFL to drop out of the Frontline documentary League of Denial, allegedly because of their cozy business relationship with the NFL. Despite this association, both ESPN and Sports
Illustrated had 70 percent or more of their opinion stories receive valence ratings, with Brogley Webb118
Sports Illustrated receiving more scores of strongly negative and ESPN earning more moderately negative scores. Perhaps any suggestion of bias would be found in ESPN’s greater propensity for neutral reporting than Sports Illustrated and the fact that it exceeded Sports Illustrated in many categories for positive valence ratings. It is also noteworthy that the majority of ESPN’s best in-depth reporting of the issue comes from the Fainaru brothers, the authors of the League of Denial book and lead contributors to the documentary and Peter Keating, who was also profiled in League of
Denial. Each of these reporters has demonstrated a clearly negative view of the NFL, so it is possible that their reporting could be negatively skewing ESPN’s data.
Framing Analysis
The framing analysis was most useful in understanding journalistic tendencies, when comparing the five major frames I identified upon the second level of analysis: labor/management, race/gender, public perception, scientific debate, and opinion. The framing of race and gender was particularly enlightening, because while some of the coverage identified and criticized gender and racial injustice within this issue, some articles inadvertently reinforced these notions. This was particularly true in the race discussion, especially in media reports of the vilification of Dr. Omalu, the only
African, and the only minority researcher of any of the prominent concussion researchers. Discussion of Omalu’s ethnic heritage, his accent, and being
“blackballed” by the NFL, all further perpetuated race as a theme and the stigmas associated with it. Brogley Webb119
Of late, the gender issue and attitudes within the football community and sports media seem to be improving. It was important in League of Denial, to document Dr.
Ann McKee’s struggles in her dealings with the NFL’s mTBI committee, and how the challenges she faced, in part, were due to her gender. This helped illuminate the NFL for what it truly was, a “boys club” of sorts where if someone didn’t fit the prescribed type of masculinity, they were not allowed to join. Reports of players taking a more cautious approach regarding their health and members of the media being less likely to glorify violence and vicious hits supports what scholars such as Kian and Anderson have called a “softening masculinity,” (Kian, Anderson). Combined with the achievements of Dr. McKee and the softening of masculinity, journalists also have tried to emphasize the importance of NFL player’s wives and girlfriends, and how living and caring for someone with brain trauma has affected their lives as well. It has been not only medical innovation and journalistic coverage, but also the testimony before Congress by these women about the dangerous effects of concussions that has brought this issue to national prominence.
The scientific debate frame will also be key in determining how this issue will be reported in the future. The potential for new medical discoveries and pioneering research in the fields of concussion science and CTE is almost endless and as we gain more insight into the causes, mechanisms, and effects of trauma, journalists will be able to provide more accurate, concise, and proven information to the public. Perhaps one of the three primary research groups will establish itself as a clear leader over the others. Maybe the NFL will enter a new of era into transparency and positive Brogley Webb120
collaboration with independent researcher. It’s possible that the work of lesser- publicized independent groups will gain more and well-deserved national media attention. As of now it remains to be seen how a researcher or medical expert’s affiliation with the NFL will affect their professional reputation and the public perception of them. In this time of great skepticism about the NFL’s motives and disparaging of the league’s years of denial of the dangers of football-related head trauma, it is still impossible to tell how the NFL’s panicked effort to re-brand itself will affect future football research and its funding. It will also be discovered in the coming years how emerging medical research resonates with football fans and whether or not they will continue to pay for a product that’s linked to brain damage of its players.
Despite these differing frames, I have identified that one theme remains constant throughout: the NFL attempting to protect the shield. It does not matter who the current commissioner of the NFL is, the league has always sought to fight for and protect its own business interests. A great deal of criticism has come from current players, questioning why the NFL acts as though it cares about the health and well- being of players now after it was just as happy to develop bigger, faster players to produce more violent collisions and elicit a more enthusiastic response from spectators. The handing down of fines for illegal hits and adopting a new role as moral arbiter, the NFL has found a way to avoid blame and use the players as scapegoats. By making hollow pledges to fund important scientific research, the NFL continues with its public relations strategy to appear that they are the leaders and pioneers of medical Brogley Webb121
innovations. Perhaps most importantly, it will be interesting to see how the concussion settlement plays out, and which side will end up getting the better deal. The NFL again in this case sought to protect the shield, reporting what it called a “generous” $765 million settlement offer, which appears to be a significant amount of money. Judge
Anita Brody in January 2014 shed doubt however, on whether the proposed sum would be enough to take care of current and future retirees. Despite Judge Brody’s denial, the NFL has as of now, succeeded in not having to admit guilt or what information they had regarding the dangers of head trauma and when they knew it.
Source Analysis
Above all, the source analysis illuminated the fact that just a few prominent research groups are receiving the most media exposure to discuss their work and promote their ideas about concussions and CTE. For the Sports Illustrated non- opinion section there was a distinct preference for using Boston University researchers and Dr. Kevin Guskiewicz’s team over Dr. Omalu and Dr. Bailes, with Omalu and
Bailes being cited nearly three times less frequently. ESPN’s non-opinion section favored Boston University over all groups and cited them more than twice as frequently as Dr. Kevin Guskiewicz. Overall, concerning the research authority category for ESPN, there was almost a perfect distribution between the three categories, NFL Associated, Prominent Independent Researchers, and Lesser
Publicized Independent Researchers, all between 32.7 and 33.7 percent.
Upon first glance, it appears as though ESPN has met the journalistic axiom of fair and balanced reporting. It is important to note however, that one third of the total Brogley Webb122
research coverage is dedicated to just three groups. For both ESPN and Sports
Illustrated, there were more than 80 researchers, groups, or studies, outside of the three most prominently mentioned groups, yet they combine to form less than one third of ESPN’s research sources. Additionally, more than one third of ESPN’s resources are NFL associated, sources in which have a now well-documented history of deception and denial. These sources were named in articles condemning the actions of the NFL, objectively reporting the NFL’s research, and occasionally praising the league. The most startling example of an unreliable NFL source came in an ESPN article about a moms’ football safety clinic in Chicago hosted by Roger Goodell and his wife. The author reported that Mrs. Goodell claimed football was safe and a child was more likely to be injured riding a bike to practice, even though she has no medical background. This statement speaks to the issue of sports journalism being largely driven by event coverage; journalists report things that happen, but don’t always consider the implications of such inclusions.
Sports Illustrated, on the other hand, included NFL associated and prominent research groups evenly (between 27.2-28.6 percent) and more interestingly, had almost 44 percent of its sources coming from lesser-publicized research groups. It is possible that the disparity between ESPN and Sports Illustrated arises from ESPN having three primary investigative reporters for the concussion crisis, the Fainaru brothers, and Peter Keating, all of whom are associated with League of Denial, which heavily profiled the three prominent research groups. These reporters were undoubtedly familiar with these sources and their reputations, giving them greater Brogley Webb123
chance to cite them as authorities and not actively pursuing lesser-publicized researchers, a source of conflict not readily apparent in the Sports Illustrated sample.
There are obvious concerns with media organizations featuring the work of only a few research groups more often than others. It limits other viewpoints and leaves the potential for the truth to be skewed by featuring those who may have the loudest voices. Reputation and the politics of scientific research have been significant themes in this project and it is important to note that all of the prominently featured researchers are described as having a strong reputation among the scientific community. There is some variation however; Dr. Guskiewicz and Dr. Bailes have both worked with the NFL, but have also been whistleblowers, and while some argue
Boston University has some of the loudest voices in the research community, others regard them as leaders and pioneers of CTE research. It is without question that all of these groups have good standing, but it is not an absolute that they should collectively receive the most media attention.
Descriptive Statistics
The descriptive statistics section provided many noteworthy items regarding the trends of concussion coverage. Beginning with the coverage by year, I found that despite there being legitimate and well-documented concern about football-related brain trauma from numerous medical journals and athletic associations as early as
1933, according to the Deadspin timeline, coverage of the topic did not really begin to take root until 2007 and even then it was not a highly publicized issue until 2010. It is Brogley Webb124
troubling that in the timeframe from 2009 until February 2014, more than 97 percent of the total coverage of this issue has occurred.
Regarding level of football, although I had predicted the results would indicate that the NFL had the most coverage I did not expect the disparity between the NFL, college, and youth football to be so significant. Sports Illustrated has distinguished itself as having a greater preference for NFL coverage than ESPN, so seeing NFL stories constitute more than 20 percent of Sports Illustrated’s sample than ESPN was not surprising. While the coverage of high school and youth sports is usually the function of local newspapers and television stations, young athletes are unarguably the most vulnerable when it comes to injuries, and therefore deserve a significantly greater amount of coverage, than six percent of the total stories. Despite ESPN’s great propensity for college football coverage, the reporting of concussion related stories for college players was a mere 17.6 percent of their total, and less than 10 percent for
Sports Illustrated. In many ways, college players are often still treated like children, and are also regarded as a group deserving of protection. As demonstrated in earlier sections, college players are often entitled to the least legal recourse, especially when it comes to health benefits. Meanwhile, NFL players, who have the greatest financial power and have chosen football as their profession, are the group that receives the most coverage.
It was additionally noteworthy to see which media organization favored reporting of a particular subtopic. In general, ESPN favored the reporting of topics that were less political, less controversial, and more objective, such as law, equipment, and Brogley Webb125
research. Legal stories were frequently reported as updates and new occurrences in the
NFL concussion lawsuit and settlement, while research stories were reported largely with mentioning the experimental procedure, results, and future work, but without delving much into the potential flaws or greater meaning of certain research. ESPN also dominated positively spun categories like education, which largely discussed events that promoted safety and proper technique. Sports Illustrated led many of the categories that were more controversial and politically charged including, opinion, player feature, rule changes, and business, branding, and culture. Sports Illustrated also featured more stories about the media, including upcoming books and documentaries about the concussion crisis, as well as evaluations and criticisms of media coverage of the issue.
Summary of Major Findings
This study represents the first of its kind, and has demonstrated a number of key findings and insights into the coverage of concussions and chronic traumatic encephalopathy. Concerning general trends, more than 97 percent of the coverage has been in the past five years, despite well-documented concern of the dangers of head trauma from decades earlier. The NFL was covered by a significant margin more often than both college and youth football, despite college and youth players being the most vulnerable group regarding the risk for brain damage. Both ESPN and Sports
Illustrated described the concussion crisis using metaphors of war, violence, and crime, as well as those relating to sickness, death, and disorder. The traditions motifs in sports journalism of using war metaphors to glorify the violence of football and of Brogley Webb126
praising the NFL’s prospering and ever expanding empire, are almost completely reversed in the coverage of this issue. The valence analysis achieved markedly similar results as the metaphor analysis, featuring a majority of negatively rated articles for each of the four samples, both opinion and non-opinion for 188 ESPN and Sports
Illustrated stories. The frequency of negative ratings of similar for both valence of topic, negatively slanted topics including the end of football and suicides of former players, and for valence of tone, stories that presented a negative attitude toward a particular topic.
The framing analysis revealed five prominent frames, most notably one of race and gender and a second of scientific debate. The frame of gender highlighted the culture of hegemonic masculinity that has been ingrained in the culture of football and how players were less likely to report injuries before the rise of coverage of the concussion crisis. The frame of race is apparent in the attempted discrediting by the
NFL of a minority pathologist and in the coverage of minority players who have died presumably as a result of football-related brain trauma. The scientific debate frame demonstrated how quickly and dangerously politics can infiltrate the world of scientific research, affecting how funding is allocated and the quality of public information. The scientific debate frame was also important when considering research sources. It was discovered that only the three most prominent research groups, Boston University, University of North Carolina, and UCLA received the majority of coverage.
Brogley Webb127
Limitations
Due to the nature of this project, I encountered several limitations along the
path to completion. The first limitation I found was within my sample, particularly through the gathering of articles. I chose to include only articles from two of the most recognizable names in sports media, although I acknowledge that a study done using a variety of sports media organizations as well as general news organizations may have yielded different results. I planned to include HBO’s Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel as a third broadcast driven source, but was unable to do so after encountering barriers to access in terms of their archives. I would also stress that the articles I examined may
not be an entirely exhaustive list of stories published by both ESPN and Sports
Illustrated. ESPN’s archives extended far less into past than Sports Illustrated’s did, and ESPN has the added limitation of existing 25 fewer years than Sports Illustrated. I attempted to use the most comprehensive search terms possible for both archives, but I encountered on one occasion, an ESPN story that was referenced only through the text
of another story, and it was not readily located through basic and even advanced searches into the ESPN archives. I was additionally limited in the number of experts I
could interview for the project. I chose to keep my interviews local, within the Ohio
University community, and understand that the views of these people may not be
entirely representative of a larger group.
Finally, I did not use an intercoder reliability test for my metaphor, valence, and framing analyses, as I was the only person reading the articles. While I cannot guarantee that another coder would have achieved the same results, as often is a Brogley Webb128
problem of work that is qualitative in nature, I did achieve consistent results among the four samples. The consistent results that I obtained at the very least suggest that I assessed each of the four samples in a similar fashion and I did not deviate significantly from my prescribed methods.
Questions for Further Research
This project has elucidated a great deal about the coverage of concussions and
CTE in the mainstream sports media. Although it has provided insight into the prevalence of war metaphors, the generally negative tone toward the subject, the frames of race, gender, and scientific debate, and the kinds of research groups used as sources, there is still much left to answer. There are a number of questions that need to be answered from the medical side of things, such as how many players need to be diagnosed with CTE before a definitive statement can be made about the cause of their brain trauma? How do other factors such as mental illness, family history, and genetics contribute to a player developing CTE? Will still do not fully understand the best methods to treat and prevent concussions or why they affect each individual differently. More importantly, will we discover a way to stop the progression and treat people with early onset CTE? I am also curious as to how this disease has affected, if at all, the older generation of players. It is hard to believe that even when football has been played for decades, concussion risks have not been a concern until recently.
From a media standpoint, it would be interesting to expand a study of a similar nature to a greater number of sports media, and to non-sports media, such as The New
York Times or The Washington Post. Especially in reviewing articles from the general Brogley Webb129
news media, it is possible that they would not possess the same biases as the sports media. Considering the well-documented business alliances between football leagues and major networks, it would be beneficial to monitor the coverage going forward and to take note if the coverage becomes less controversial and watered-down. A longitudinal study could be done to gauge how the media has affected public opinion and what consequences that may have.
It will take years to know what effects the concussion coverage and emerging medical science will have on the future of football. What will the game look like 30 years from now? What other new rule changes will be implemented? How will the
NFL settlement affect current and future players? Will it result in a flood of damaging lawsuits at the college and youth levels? How will the danger of life altering brain trauma affect a parent’s decision to let their child player football, and will this cause the NFL talent pool to dry up while instead producing growth of talent in Major
League Baseball, the National Basketball Association, and the National Hockey
League? Will football be as popular as ever, or will it become the new boxing, a relic of a bygone era, which held an unhealthy tolerance for barbarism and violence. The answers to these questions largely rely on support of the fans, a group whose opinion I did not give much consideration in this study. So far there have been no protests outside of NFL headquarters or stadiums demanding transparency from the league and chiding them for unfair treatment of their workers. There has not been a reduction in the number of people who watch NFL games or purchase NFL merchandise. The fans Brogley Webb130
will ultimately have the power to pressure the league going forward and will play a significant role in determining the league’s future.
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APPENDIX- TABLES AND CHARTS
APPENDIX A
Bibliography of articles from sample
Note: ESPN articles can be found in the archives at espn.go.com, and Sports
Illustrated archives can be searched at sportsillustrated.cnn.com
SPORTS ILLUSTRATED
Sports Illustrated
“Arguments in NFL concussion case slated for April.” Associated Press. 29 Jan.
2013.
“ASU starting QB retires after concussions.” FanNation. 24 Feb. 2011.
Axson, Scooby. “83 more former NFL players add names to concussion lawsuit.” 14
Aug. 2013.
Axson, Scooby.” Bengals owner: linking concussions and dementia is speculation.” 23
July 2013. Brogley Webb137
Axson, Scooby. “Brett Favre: I'd be leery of son playing football.” 15 Nov. 2013.
Axson, Scooby. “Drew Brees: Concussions are still a major issue.” 27 Feb. 2013.
Axson, Scooby. “Ex-NFL star Herschel Walker: NFL concussions aren't always to
blame.” 12 March 2013.
Axson, Scooby. “Judge tells NFL, retired players in concussions case to negotiate.” 18
July 2013.
Axson, Scooby. “More former NFL players want in on CTE study.” 14 Nov. 2013.
Axson, Scooby. “NFL donates $30 million for medical research, player safety.” 5
Sept. 2012.
Axson, Scooby. “NFL expanding concussion efforts with use of iPads.” 26 Feb. 2013.
Axson, Scooby. “NFL offering $10 million for helmet innovation.” 4 Sept. 2013.
Axson, Scooby. “Ravens safety Ed Reed on health risks: I signed up for it.” 29 Jan.
2013.
Ballard, Chris. “Former 49er John Frank, now a doctor, tries to reconcile with the
game.” 30 Jan. 2013.
Ballard, Chris. “When a Hit Hits Home.” 7 Oct. 2009.
Banks, Don. “Don't try to read the future is unpredictable NFL.” 2 March 2012.
Banks, Don. “Former Players: Devil in the details with NFL concussion settlement.”
29 Aug. 2013.
Banks, Don. “As proven in week 10, concussion recognition still an inexact science.”
13 Nov. 2012. Brogley Webb138
Banks, Don. “Collie determined not to let concussion stigma cloud his NFL feature.” 6
March 2013.
Banks, Don. “New issue, same misguided fight between league and union.” 4 May
2012.
Banks, Don. “Outrage over new helmet rule much ado about nothing.” 2 April 2013.
Banks, Don. “Refs won't overreact on big hit ejections.” 19 Oct. 2010.
Banks, Don. “Stop Talking and Use your head.” 30 July 2013.
Banks, Don. “What price football?” 23 Oct. 2013.
Brandt, Andrew. “Moving on from 'Denial.’” 9 Oct. 2013.
Brandt, Andrew. “The Other Lawsuit.” 25 Oct. 2013.
Bunyasaranand, Kimie. “Calvin Johnson: It's part of football, you get concussed, you
gotta keep playing.” 11 Oct. 2012.
Burke, Chris. “Brutality: The Crisis in Football: Revisiting the SI archives, 35 years
later.” 15 Aug. 2013.
Burke, Chris. “Jon Bostic of Chicago Bears fined for hit on San Diego Chargers' Matt
Willie.” 21 Aug. 2013.
Burke, Chris. “NFL concussion lawsuit settlement: players, agents react to the news.”
29 Aug. 2013.
Carey, Bill. “NFL Hall of Fame RB Tony Dorsett talks about concussions syndrome.”
6 June 2012. Brogley Webb139
Carey, Bill. “Terry Bradshaw: If I had a son…I would not let him play football.” 14
June 2012.
Carroll, Will. “Concussions at the forefront of this week's games.” 23 Oct. 2010.
Carroll, Will. “Depth charts reveal limits of talent base.” 7 Oct. 2010.
Carroll, Will. “Hit on Vick again raises questions about concussion policy.” 17 Oct.
2011.
Carroll, Will. “Injury comebacks as much about motivation as time.” 27 Oct. 2010.
Carroll, Will. “Injury stacks tax NFL depth charts.” 14 Oct. 2010.
Carroll, Will. “It took the racing world to innovate a new safer football helmet.” 29
Aug. 2012.
Carroll, Will. “Older helmets are playing starring role in concussions incidents.” 13
Jan. 2011.
Carroll, Will. “Real refs or not, injuries just part of the game.” 27 Sept. 2012.
Carroll, Will. “Teams still learning how to deal with head injuries.” 10 Nov. 2011.
Casale, Thomas. “Fire sale: NFL's concussion fix a knee-jerk reaction to long-running
problem.” 26 Oct. 2010.
“Charges dismissed vs. Utah coach who gave kid a concussion.” Associated Press. 8
June 2013.
“Concussion problem could doom football.” FanNation. 7 May 2012.
“Concussion steals HS player's memory.” 23 Nov. 2010.
“Concussion suit vs. NCAA seeks class-action status.” Associated Press. 19 July
2013. Brogley Webb140
“Crown of head rule will be difficult for defenders.” 5 Sept. 2013.
Daugherty, Paul. “Cutler case proves perception of injuries hasn't evolved with game.”
24 Jan. 2011.
Daugherty, Paul. “In urban areas, it's clear death of football is widely exaggerated.” 29
June 2012.
Daugherty, Paul. “NFL's stance on head shots hypocritical.” 22 Oct. 2010.
Deford, Frank. “Has football become too dangerous for growing boys?” 13 Oct. 2010.
Deford, Frank. “How much longer will we put young men in jeopardy to play a game
for our amusement?” 9 May 2012.
DeGory, Andy. “You'll think twice.” 22 Oct. 2013.
Deitsch, Richard. “Did the NFL put pressure on ESPN to divorce frontline?” 26 Aug.
2013.
Deitsch, Richard. “Football's taboo TV topic.” 23 Oct. 2013.
Deitsch, Richard. “How the Next Generation Watches Football.” 9 Oct. 2013.
Deitsch, Richard. “Jim McMahon.”10 Sept. 2012.
Dillon, Dennis. “Loss of wonderful man the only sure thing in Murdock suicide. 26
Sept. 2012.
Dursiag, Melvin. “Pro football is plenty rough.” 28 Nov. 1955.
Easterling, Mary Ann. “The Price Paid.” 9 Sept. 2013.
“Ed Reed: Junior Seau knew what he was signing up for.” FanNation. 30 Jan. 2013.
Ellis, Zac. “Pac-12 launches new student athlete safety initiative” 3 June 2013. Brogley Webb141
Ellis, Zac. “UCLA's Alberto Cid leaving football amidst concussion struggles.” 25
April 2013.
Epstein, David. “Brain Teaser.” 1 Nov. 2010.
Epstein, David. “The Damage Done.” 1 Nov. 2010.
Epstein, David. “Conclusions? Too Early?” 21 Jan. 2013.
Epstein, David. “Football's big headache.” 27 Oct. 2008.
Epstein, David. “Study: blood test could detect brain damage in active athletes.” 7
March 2013.
Epstein, David. “Taking it on the chin.” 31 Jan. 2011.
Epstein, David. “Uncertain connections.” 14 May 2012.
Epstein, David. “Unique study explores cumulative effect of hits in high school
football.” 13 April 2011.
Epstein, David. “Whiplash Effect.” 1 Nov. 2010.
Epstein, David and George Dohrmann. “Special Report: The NFL, college football
and two self ordained sports science entrepreneurs.” 28 Jan. 2013.
Epstein, David and Kevin Armstrong. “NJ parents file lawsuit for son being cleared
after concussion.” 9 Oct. 2009.
Evan, Farrell. “Early Warning.” 1 Nov. 2010.
“Ex-Bear Duerson's family sues NFL over his suicide.” Associated Press. 23 Feb.
2012.
“Ex-players call NFL brain injury panel a sham.” Associated Press. 9 April 2013. Brogley Webb142
Farrar, Doug. “NFL concussion lawsuits: League, retired players reach $765 million
settlement.” 29 Aug. 2013.
Farrar, Doug. “NFL concussion story becomes personal for FOX Sports' Pam Oliver.”
1 Sept. 2013.
Fainaru-Wada, Mark and Steve Fainaru. “Abnormal brain proteins discovered in
living ex-NFL players.” 22 Jan. 2013.
Fainaru-Wada, Mark and Steve Fainaru. “An exclusive excerpt from League of
Denial.” 2 Oct. 2013.
Fainaru-Wada, Mark and Steve Fainaru.“NFL retirement board linked ex-players brain
damage to football.” 16 Nov. 2012.
Fainaru-Wada, Mark and Steve Fainaru. “Older players may be cut from NFL
concussion lawsuit settlement.” 20 Sept. 2013.
Fainaru-Wada, Mark and Steve Fainaru. “Youth football participation drops by 9.5
percent.” 13 Nov. 2013.
“Family of Junior Seau objects to NFL's $765 million concussion deal.” Associated
Press. 27 Jan. 2014.
Farrar, Doug. “Kyle Turley, on country music, concussions, and the future.” 5 Aug.
2013.
Farrar, Doug. “NFL concussion lawsuit settlement: Judge Anita Brody denies
preliminary approval.” 14 Jan. 2014.
Farrar, Doug. “Pressure from NFL led to ESPN's disassociation from concussion
project with PBS.” 23 Aug. 2013. Brogley Webb143
Flegenheimer, Matt. “A year after suicide of Penn football player, questions remain.”
10 May 2011.
“Football injuries.” 18 Oct. 1954.
“Former football players sue NCAA over concussions.” Associated Press. 4 Sept.
2013.
Gagne, Matt. “Lives in the balance.” 12 Dec. 2011.
“Gale Sayers dropping concussion lawsuit.” FanNation. 22 Sept. 2013.
Glasspiegel, Ryan. “BYU student creates "smart foam" helmet technology that
measure impact in real-time.” 6 Nov. 2013.
Glicksman, Ben. “A Q&A in HS football with Sanjay Gupta.” 27 Jan. 2012.
Goldberg, Jamie. “Multiple concussions have changed the life of one California teen.”
6 June 2013.
“Goodell: absolutely would let son play football.” Associated Press. 3 Feb. 2013.
“Goodell: Settlement significant amount of money.” Associated Press. 4 Sept. 2013.
Graham, Otto. “Football is getting too vicious.” 11 Oct. 1954.
Greene, Dan. “Trauma Induced.” 8 Oct. 2012.
Hack, Damon. “Learning to play nice.” 24 Oct. 2011.
Hackel, Stu. “NHL vulnerable to NFL concussion lawsuit.” 23 Aug. 2011.
“Hasselbeck tired of whining ex-players.” FanNation. 3 Oct. 2010.
“I don't believe there is dirty football.” 21 Jan. 1957.
“Is there a hidden cost to concussions?” 27 Dec. 2013 Brogley Webb144
Jackson, Nate. “Life After Concussions.” 25 Oct. 2013.
“Junior Seau's family sues NFL over brain injuries.” Associated Press. 23 Jan. 2013.
“Junior Seau had brain disease CTE.” Associated Press. 10 Jan. 2013.
Killion, Ann. “NFL needs help in policy to deal with dangerous concussions.” 24 Nov.
2009.
King, Peter. “Concussions.” 1 Nov. 2010.
King, Peter. “Concussion lawsuit settlement a win for the NFL.” 29 Aug. 2013.
King, Peter. “Fighting for themselves, fighting for the game.” 2 Sept. 2013.
King, Peter. “Goodell focused on helping players during and after their careers.” 10
June 2012.
King, Peter. “Halt the head hunting.” 19 Dec. 1994.
King, Peter. “A league at the crossroads.” 30 July 2012.
King, Peter. “Seau's suicide could be turning point in player safety mission.” 6 May
2012.
King, Peter. “Ten storylines that will have my attention during my camp tour.” 24 July
2012.
King, Peter. “Time for NFL to get serious after weekend of vicious hits.” 17 Oct.
2010.
King, Peter. “Week 6 may have changed how defense gets played.” 19 Oct. 2010.
Kirkpatrick, Curry. “Good Old Violence.” 5 Jan. 1987.
Klemko, Robert. “A way of life.” 22 Oct. 2013.
Klemko, Robert. “You can't Please everybody.” 24 Oct. 2013. Brogley Webb145
Kotloff, Brian. “Report: Internal NCAA emails could prove key in concussion
lawsuit.” 20 July 2013.
Lawrence, Andrew. “League focusing on mental health, but players must buy in.” 11
May 2012.
Layden, Tim. “Austin Collie Clears his head.” 2 May 2011.
Layden, Tim. “The Big Hit.” 30 July 2007.
Layden, Tim. “Culture must change in NFL regarding violent hits.” 19 Oct. 2010.
Layden, Tim. “The inside story on how Redskins LB London Fletcher opened up to
SI.” 20 Aug. 2013.
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APPENDIX B
Descriptive Statistics
Table 1- Major trends for each subtopic Topic SI ESPN SI ESPN SI focus ESPN Common Hot earliest earliest peak peak focus stories Spots story story year year Education 2010 2004 2013 2012 NFL USA Jim Dec. concussion football McMahon, 2010 protocol Research at universities
Branding, 2010 2012 2012 2012 NFL Funds, None May- Business, hierarchy, worker’s Aug. Culture urban areas comp, 2012 future of football Equipment 1955, 2009 2012 2011 Negative Riddell None Jan- 1992 and aspects of lawsuit Feb 2013 helmets Protection 2011 Sept- Oct 2013 Feature 1987 2010 2010 2012 Varied Varied None Jul- Oct. 2012 Media 2011 2012 2013 2012 More in In-house Head Aug- depth survey Games Oct. documenta 2013 ry, League of Denial Rules 2007 2010 2013 2010 Fines, College Pac-12, Oct.- Safety Targeting Dec. Initiatives, fouls 2010 Analysis Research 1986 2007 2013 2012 Varied Junior UCLA Nov Seau, research, 2010, university youth Jan studies participatio 2013, n drop, Aug- more NFL Sept. Brogley Webb168
players 2013 wanting to participate in CTE study Player 1954 2003 2013 2012 Depression Players at Jim Nov- Feature and and mental all levels, McMahon, Dec 2013 illness shift in Tony 2010, attitude Dorsett, May Junior 2012. Seau Jan 2013, Aug- Oct. 2013 Medical 1954, 2007 2012 2012 Mental CTE, Junior Nov. 2004 and health, Boston Seau, Dave 2010, 2013 prevention, University Duerson, May- diagnosis, , NFL’s Tony Oct. treatment response Dorsett 2012, Jan 2013, Nov. 2013 Law 2009 2009 2013 2013 Analysis, Congress NFL Aug- Reaction, and settlement, Sept. Potential response NCAA 2011, challenges of state lawsuits, Jan- legislature Junior Marc s Seau, Dave h Duerson 2012, May 2012, Jan 2013, Aug- Sept. 2013, Jan 2014 Opinion 1957 2009 2013 2013 Compariso Future of Junior Oct. n with football, Seau, 2010, other critical but Roger May sports, not as Goodell, 2012, Brogley Webb169
violence, severely Barack Jan heavily Obama, 2013, critical Lem Oct- Barney, Nov Brett Favre 2013
Table 2- Stories by year Year Number of Stories Percentage of the whole 1954 2 .4 1955 2 .4 1957 1 .2 1986 1 .2 1987 1 .2 1992 1 .2 1994 1 .2 1995 1 .2 2001 1 .2 2003 2 .4 2004 3 .6 2005 1 .2 2006 4 .8 2007 14 3 2008 5 1 2009 17 3.5 2010 64 13 2011 56 11 2012 157 32 2013 184 38 2014 (until 1/31/14) 6 1.2
Table 3: Stories by level of football Level Number of Stories Percentage of the whole Arena Football League 2 .4 Canadian Football League 2 .4 No affiliation 1 .2 Applicable to all levels 59 12 National Football League 337 69 NCAA football 64 13 High School/ Youth 30 6 football
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Table 4: Stories by publication Sports Illustrated ESPN National Football League 215 (78% of SI stories) 122 (56.5% of ESPN stories) Arena Football League 1 1 Applicable to all levels 20 39 Canadian Football League None 2 High School/Youth 13 17 No affiliation 0 1 College 26 (9.52% of SI stories) 38 (17.6% of ESPN stories) Total (489 stories) 273 (56%) 216 (44%)
Table 5: Topic by publication (percentages reflect quantity within the topic group, not the entire collection of stories) Sports Illustrated ESPN Education 7 stories, 33% 14 stories, 67% Branding, Business, and 5 stories, 63% 3 stories, 37% Culture Equipment 9 stories, 47% 10 stories, 53% General Feature 13 stories, 48% 14 stories, 52% Law 39 stories, 49% 41 stories, 51% Media 12 stories, 80% 3 stories, 20% Medical 46 stories, 61% 29 stories, 39% Opinion 63 stories, 66% 32 stories, 44% Player 33 stories, 60% 20 stories, 40% Player Feature 35 stories, 60% 23 stories, 40% Research 23 stories, 34% 45 stories, 66% Rules 26 stories, 70% 11 stories, 30%
Table 6: Topic by level of football NFL College High All CFL AFL No School/ affiliation Youth Branding, 6 0 0 2 0 0 0 Business, and Culture Equipment 5 3 0 10 0 0 0 General 8 0 3 5 0 0 1 Feature Law 57 16 2 5 0 1 0 Media 11 1 0 4 0 0 0 Brogley Webb171
Medical 60 2 4 8 1 0 0 Opinion 77 3 1 14 0 0 0 Player 32 20 1 0 0 0 0 Player 41 7 9 1 0 0 0 Feature Research 38 9 9 12 2 1 0 Rules 26 8 2 1 0 0 0 Education 9 3 5 4 0 0 0
Table 7: Breakdown by topic Total Percentage Organization Level with Year Year of Total with the the most with with the most stories stories the earliest most story stories Education 21 4.3 ESPN NFL 2012, 2004 2013 Branding, 8 1.6 Sports NFL 2012 2010 Business, Illustrated and Culture Equipment 19 3.9 ESPN Applicable 2013 1955 to All and Levels 1992 General 27 5.5 ESPN NFL 2012 1987 Feature Law 80 16.4 ESPN NFL 2013 2009 Media 15 3.0 Sports NFL 2013 2011 Illustrated Medical 75 15.3 Sports NFL 2012 1954, Illustrated 1995. 2004 Opinion 96 19.4 Sports NFL 2013 1992 Illustrated Player 55 10.8 Sports NFL 2013 2005 Illustrated Player 58 11.9 Sports NFL 2013 1954, Feature Illustrated 2003 Research 68 13.9 ESPN NFL 2012 1986, 2007 Rules 37 7.6 Sports NFL 2013 2007 Illustrated
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Table 8: Topic breakdown by number of stories per year(s) Topic 1950 1980 1990 200 200 200 200 201 201 201 201 201 ’s ’s ’s 1- 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 200 6 Educati 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 6 0 7 7 1 on Brandin 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 6 1 0 g, Busines s, and Culture Equipm 1 0 1 0 0 0 1 2 4 4 5 0 ent General 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 4 1 15 4 0 Feature Law 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 6 6 13 47 5 Media 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 3 11 0 Medical 1 0 1 1 3 8 2 10 7 25 21 0 Opinion 1 0 2 0 4 0 5 8 11 25 29 0 Player 0 0 0 4 4 0 4 2 9 14 17 0 Player 2 0 0 4 0 0 1 7 9 15 20 0 Feature Researc 0 1 0 0 2 1 1 10 7 27 20 0 h Rules 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 10 4 7 14 0
Item 9: Timeline for each subtopic
Branding, Business and Culture Articles 1. 10/8/10 Sports Illustrated's most powerful people in the NFL (SI) 2. 2/9/12 CTE, the concussion crisis, and an economic look at the end of football (ESPN) 3. 2/13/12 The Power of the Game (SI) 4. 5/4/12 New issue, same misguided fight between league and union (SI) 5. 6/29/12 In urban areas, it's clear death of football is widely exaggerated (SI) 6. 8/28/12 NFL youth football fund faces crisis (ESPN) 7. 8/30/12 Teams face workers' comp threat (ESPN) 8. 10/13/13 Roger Goodell emails ten million fans about player safety (SI)
Education Articles 1. 6/15/04 Lack of knowledge puts college athletes at risk (ESPN) Brogley Webb173
2. 2/11/10 Redskins invite coaches to concussion forum (ESPN) 3. 4/28/10 USA football strengthens concussions education (ESPN) 4. 11/1/10 Early Warning (SI) 5. 11/10/10 Former Chicago Bears quarterback Jim McMahon involved in the… (ESPN) 6. 11/23/10 Southern California high schools look for ways to protect concussed athletes (ESPN) 7. 11/27/10 IMIS' youth safety conference looks to raise awareness in entry- level series (SI) 8. 1/27/12 Former Chicago Bears, other NFL players help raise concussion awareness (ESPN) 9. 2/8/12 Atlanta Falcons' Matt Bryant pushes for youth concussion changes (ESPN) 10. 5/15/12 NFL, NFLPA, NCAA donating to youth helmet initiative (ESPN) 11. 5/22/12 High school freshman Braeden Benedict is at the leading edge of the battle against concussions (ESPN) 12. 7/10/12 USA Football, 4 teams starting health clinics focusing on… (ESPN) 13. 8/15/12 Heads Up Football- USA Football begins safety program (ESPN) 14. 2/1/13 Sports Legacy Group encourages youth football to curb hits in practices (ESPN) 15. 2/23/13 NFL's new concussion protocol includes iPad app (SI) 16. 2/26/13 NFL expanding concussion efforts with use of iPads (SI) 17. 4/9/13 Ex-players call NFL brain injury panel a sham (SI) 18. 6/3/13 Pac-12 launches new student athlete safety initiative (SI) 19. 8/18/13 Big Ten, USA Football start safety promotion (ESPN) 20. 11/19/13 Roger Goodell and Chiefs CEO to host safety clinic for moms of youth football players (SI) 21. 1/9/14 OTL: Heads Up (ESPN)
Equipment Articles 1. 10/31/55 Armor that does as much harm as good (SI) 2. 12/7/92 Helmets are not weapons (SI) 3. 8/11/09 With concussions being a primary concern, football helmet technology (ESPN) 4. 1/3/10 NFL considering rule changes amid helmet study (ESPN) 5. 11/1/10 Whiplash Effect (SI) 6. 1/13/11 Older helmets play large role in concussions (SI) 7. 1/13/11 Bulwark football helmets aim to improve concussion without compromising style (ESPN) 8. 2/1/11 Aaron Rodgers says his new helmet is safer, so why won't the Packers… (ESPN) 9. 6/20/11 Experts: Helmets can help, but won't end concussions (ESPN) 10. 5/15/12 NFL, NFLPA, NCAA donating to youth helmet initiative (ESPN) Brogley Webb174
11. 8/29/12 It took the racing world to innovate a new safer football helmet (SI) 12. 9/5/12 NCAA's controversial new helmet rule deserves a chance (SI) 13. 12/19/12 Helmets alone won't save football from concussions (SI) 14. 4/14/13 Colorado jury finds Riddell negligent in helmet lawsuit (ESPN) 15. 4/30/13 Report warned Riddell that no helmet could prevent concussions… (ESPN) 16. 9/4/13 NFL offering $10 million for helmet innovation (SI) 17. 9/25/13 Front Rowe: Week 5 (ESPN) 18. 10/22/13 The first line of defense (SI) (helmets)
General Feature Articles 1. 1/5/87 Good Old Violence (SI) 2. 5/7/01 The Wrecking Yard (SI) 3. 7/30/07 The Big Hit (SI) 4. 3/18/10 Kris Kristofferson pines away for playing football (ESPN) 5. 8/23/10 Part 1: Crash Course (SI) (injured running backs) 6. 9/6/10 The NFL's Growing Pains (SI) (healthcare for NFL alumni) 7. 11/10/10 Former WWE wrestler Chris Nowinski becomes leading figure in head trauma research (SI) 8. 2/4/11 Future of football (ESPN) 9. 1/10/12 Jonah Lehrer on concussions in adolescents and the future of football (ESPN) 10. 1/23/12 Giants' concussion tactics vs. Kyle Williams (ESPN) 11. 7/24/12 Ten storylines that will have my attention during my camp tour (SI) 12. 7/30/12 A league at the crossroads (SI) 13. 8/23/12 Keeping in Toon (ESPN) 14. 8/27/12 The price of football fame (ESPN) 15. 8/27/12 Safe youth football? (ESPN) 16. 8/27/12 Jon Butler (ESPN) 17. 8/28/12 Semi-Pro football (ESPN) 18. 8/29/12 Neither saint nor sinner (ESPN) (Scott Fujita’s role as safety advocate) 19. 8/30/12 Ten Steps to Make the Game Safer (ESPN) 20. 9/10/12 The Other Half of the Story (SI) 21. 10/9/12 Ravens fans once cheered a injured QB (ESPN) 22. 12/19/12 Game of chance (ESPN) (risks of playing semi pro football) 23. 3/1/13 His game, his rules (ESPN) (Roger Goodell) 24. 10/21/13 Brain traumatic (SI) 25. 10/22/13 You'll think twice (SI) (football in Western PA)
Media Articles 1. 5/16/11 Head Games (SI) Brogley Webb175
2. 8/23/12 ESPN survey finds news coverage of concussions leads majority of… (ESPN) 3. 9/20/12 'Head Games' doc explores concussions (ESPN) 4. 10/8/12 Trauma Induced (SI) 5. 8/23/13 Pressure from NFL led to ESPN's disassociation from concussion project with PBS (SI) 6. 8/26/13 Did the NFL put pressure on ESPN to divorce frontline? (SI) 7. 9/1/13 NFL concussion story becomes personal for FOX Sports' Pam Oliver (SI) 8. 9/29/13 New book League of Denial says NFL used its resources and power… (ESPN) 9. 10/2/13 An exclusive excerpt from League of Denial (SI) 10. 10/7/13 League of Denial (SI) 11. 10/7/13 PBS documentary League of Denial on NFL Concussions (SI) 12. 10/9/13 Moving on from 'Denial' (SI) 13. 10/9/13 How the Next Generation Watches Football (SI) 14. 10/23/13 Football's taboo TV topic (SI) 15. 11/7/13 Ridley Scott to direct drama about football's concussion crisis (SI)
Rules Articles 1. 7/23/07 NFL's enormous challenge to make sport safer (SI) 2. 11/24/09 NFL needs help in policy to deal with dangerous concussions (SI) 3. 1/3/10 NFL considering rule changes amid helmet study (ESPN) 4. 1/4/10 NCAA could change concussion rules to allow officials to remove players… (ESPN) 5. 2/11/10 NCAA Football Rules Committee tackles taunting, concussions in preseason meeting (ESPN) 6. 10/17/10 Time for NFL to get serious after weekend of vicious hits (SI) 7. 10/19/10 Culture must change in NFL regarding violent hits (SI) 8. 10/19/10 NFL has no choice but to protect defenseless players (SI) 9. 10/19/10 Refs won't overreact on big hit ejections (SI) 10. 10/19/10 Week 6 may have changed how defense gets played (SI) 11. 10/22/10 NFL's stance on head shots hypocritical (SI) 12. 12/16/10 ESPN the Magazine Rules Issue (ESPN) 13. 7/20/11 Ivy League to limit full-contact football workouts (ESPN) 14. 9/5/11 What ever happened to tackling? (SI) 15. 10/17/11 Hit on Vick again raises questions about concussion policy (SI) 16. 10/24/11 Learning to play nice (SI) 17. 2/8/12 Atlanta Falcons' Matt Bryant pushes for youth concussion changes (ESPN) 18. 3/22/12 NFL concussion issue explains Roger Goodell's harsh Saints punishment (ESPN) 19. 5/6/12 Seau's suicide could be turning point in player safety mission (SI) 20. 5/9/12 Safety, exploitation at center of debate on college football ban (SI) Brogley Webb176
21. 6/13/12 Pop Warner toughens safety measures by limiting contact in practice (ESPN) 22. 9/5/12 NCAA's controversial new helmet rule deserves a chance (SI) 23. 9/26/12 Steelers' Mundy fined for hit (SI) 24. 1/10/13 NFL players don't want kickoffs to get the boot (SI) 25. 2/1/13 Roger Goodell addresses tackling, HGH, Rooney rule, more (SI) 26. 2/1/13 Sports Legacy Group encourages youth football to curb hits in practices (ESPN) 27. 2/10/13 Will NFL widen field to reduce concussions? (SI) 28. 2/12/13 NHL should consider NFL concussions safety (SI) 29. 2/13/13 New rule to add ejection for intentional high hits (SI) 30. 2/13/13 Targeting fouls could soon lead to ejections (ESPN) 31. 4/2/13 Outrage over new helmet rule much ado about nothing (SI) 32. 6/3/13 Pac-12 to limit hits, contact in football practice (ESPN) 33. 6/3/13 Pac-12 launches new student athlete safety initiative (SI) 34. 8/21/13 Jon Bostic of Chicago Bears fined for hit on San Diego Chargers' Matt Willie (SI) 35. 9/5/13 Crown of head rule will be difficult for defenders (SI) 36. 9/18/13 Bernard Pollard, Kareem Jackson fined $42K each for hits in Texans-Titans game (SI) 37. 10/4/13 The Touchback Era is Ruining the NFL (SI)
Research Articles 1. 11/10/86 The Agony must end (SI) 2. 1/20/07 NFL retools approach to concussion research (ESPN) 3. 4/23/07 Doctors show link between concussion and dementia (SI) 4. 3/24/08 Caution lights (SI) (AFL players) 5. 10/9/09 Concussion information has improved but isn't exact science (SI) 6. 2/1/10 More NFL players donate brains after death (ESPN) 7. 2/1/10 Zach Thomas donating brain to research (ESPN) 8. 2/24/10 College football concussions level off in 2004-08 (ESPN) 9. 10/12/10 Athlete brain donations for concussion study reach 300 (ESPN) 10. 11/1/10 Brain Teaser (SI) (Concussion diagnosis) 11. 11/1/10 The Damage Done (SI) (subconcussive hits) 12. 11/10/10 Former Chicago Bears quarterback Jim McMahon involved in the… (ESPN) 13. 11/23/10 Southern California high schools look for ways to protect concussed athletes (ESPN) 14. 11/27/10 IMIS' youth safety conference looks to raise awareness in entry- level series (SI) 15. 12/27/10 Illinois athletes partake in concussion survey (ESPN) 16. 2/23/11 Dave Duerson's death adds to impetus for NFL reaction to hits (ESPN) Brogley Webb177
17. 4/13/11 Unique study explores cumulative effect of hits in high school football (SI) 18. 6/9/11 Brains of San Francisco 49ers greats… (ESPN) 19. 7/9/11 Virginia Tech research provides much needed data, system for rating… (ESPN) 20. 7/26/11 Tests show two of four former CFL players suffered from neurological disease (ESPN) 21. 11/17/11 New study on brain injuries to test 100 former NFL players (ESPN) 22. 12/8/11 Evidence of CTE found in Lew Carpenter's brain (ESPN) 23. 1/27/12 a Q&A in HS football with Sanjay Gupta (SI) 24. 2/20/12 Using his head (SI) (detection using helmet technology) 25. 2/21/12 Study- Impact of kids' football head hits as severe as college… (ESPN) 26. 5/3/12 Report- Boston University seeking to study Junior Seau's brain (ESPN) 27. 5/3/12 Sources- forensic pathologist credited with identifying CTE involved in… (ESPN) 28. 5/4/12 Junior Seau family to allow concussion study of brain (ESPN) 29. 5/22/12 High school freshman Braeden Benedict is at the leading edge of the battle against concussions (ESPN) 30. 6/3/12 SEC meetings wrap: Concussions panel (ESPN) 31. 6/22/12 The Hit System (ESPN) 32. 6/25/12 Drew Brees of New Orleans Saints champions concussion testing for… (ESPN) 33. 7/10/12 USA Football, 4 teams starting health clinks focusing on… (ESPN) 34. 8/15/12 Heads Up Football- USA Football begins safety program (ESPN) 35. 8/16/12 Differences between NFL, CFL also show up in… (ESPN) 36. 8/23/12 Neuropsychological testing for concussions might not be panacea (ESPN) 37. 8/30/12 Significant advances being made in concussion research at universities nationwide (ESPN) 38. 8/30/12 Game changers off the field (ESPN) 39. NFL donates $30 million for medical research, player safety (SI) 40. 9/5/12 Study finds former NFL players unusually prone to dying from degenerative brain disease (ESPN) 41. 9/22/12 NCAA reports rate of football-related concussions has remained steady (ESPN) 42. 9/28/12 UCLA study examining long-term effects of athletic contact (SI) 43. 11/16/12 NFL retirement board linked ex-players brain damage to football (SI) 44. 11/27/12 Rushing to Find a Connection (ESPN) Brogley Webb178
45. 12/1/12 Boston University researchers discover 28 new cases of chronic brain disease (ESPN) 46. 12/3/12 Study- New cases of CTE (ESPN) 47. 12/13/12 NFL reports remain inconsistent (ESPN) 48. 1/9/13 Study-- Junior Seau's brain shows chronic brain damage found in… (ESPN) 49. 1/15/13 Thomas Jones elects to donate his brain to science when he dies (ESPN) 50. 1/22/13 UCLA study finds signs of CTE in living former NFL players (ESPN) 51. 1/22/13 Abnormal brain proteins discovered in living ex-NFL players (SI) 52. 1/28/13 Special Report: The NFL, college football and two self ordained sports science entrepreneurs (SI) 53. 2/23/13 NFL's new concussion protocol includes iPad app (SI) 54. 2/26/13 NFL expanding concussion efforts with use of iPads (SI) 55. 3/7/13 Study: blood test could detect brain damage in active athletes (SI) 56. 4/4/13 Two prominent concussion researchers including NFL adviser serve… (ESPN) 57. 4/9/13 Ex-players call NFL brain injury panel a sham (SI) 58. 4/28/13 How multiple research groups and the NFL battled over Junior Seau's brain to lead the science of concussions (ESPN) 59. 6/6/13 Pittsburgh study shows youth concussion risk less in practice than in games (ESPN) 60. 8/29/13 Mind Control (ESPN) 61. 10/30/13 Report details concussion risks for high school athletes (ESPN) 62. 11/6/13 BYU student creates "smart foam" helmet technology that measure impact in real-time (SI) 63. 11/13/13 Youth football participation drops by 9.5 percent (SI) 64. 11/13/13 Pop Warner youth football participation drops, NFL concussion crisis… (ESPN) 65. 11/14/13 More former NFL players want in on CTE study (SI) 66. Researchers inundated with requests from former college, pro football players (ESPN) 67. 12/14/13 Jovan Belcher's body exhumed for brain examination (SI)
Player Feature Articles 1. 10/11/54 Football is getting too vicious (SI) (Browns QB Otto Graham) 2. 11/28/55 Pro football is plenty rough (SI) (LB Don Paul of LA Rams) 3. 9/8/03 Prisoners of depression (SI) (Terry Bradshaw and Ricky Williams) 4. 9/12/03 Playing hurt is part of the game (ESPN) (By Steve Young about Kurt Warner) 5. 1/25/04 QB learned how to protect himself (ESPN) (Joe Thiesmann) 6. 10/12/06 After six concussions Morgan faces life altering decision (SI) Brogley Webb179
7. 12/14/09 Don't be surprised if this is Kurt Warner's final season in the NFL (ESPN) 8. 9/21/10 McKinley's apparent suicide stark reminder of athletes' higher risk of depression (SI) 9. 11/1/10 Staggered By the Impact (SI) (We love the game, hate the injuries) 10. 11/10/10 Former Chicago Bears quarterback Jim McMahon involved in the… (ESPN) 11. 11/17/10 Did concussion contribute to Nathan Stiles death? (ESPN) 12. 11/23/10 Concussion steals HS player's memory (SI) 13. 12/2/10 Kansas high school football player suffered bleeding on brain... (ESPN) 14. 12/16/10 ESPN the Magazine Rules Issue (ESPN) (Esp. Concussion confidential and 21 rules to shakeup sports) 15. 1/31/11 Taking it on the chin (SI) (strap on chin sensors) 16. 2/24/11 ASU starting QB retires after concussions (SI) 17. 5/2/11 Austin Collie Clears his head (SI) 18. 5/10/11 A year after suicide of Penn football player, questions remain (SI) 19. 7/7/11 Fred McNeil (ESPN) 20. 10/8/11 Ventura 42, Oxnard 7 (ESPN) 21. 11/2/11 Bailey on his concussion(s) (ESPN) 22. 12/4/11 Polamalu: Can't change my approach (ESPN) 23. 12/12/11 Lives in the balance (SI) (An NFL alum weighs the pros and cons of his son playing) 24. 2/8/12 Atlanta Falcons' Matt Bryant pushes for youth concussion changes (ESPN) 25. 4/25/12 Draft prospect Owusu embodies mystery of concussions in football (SI) 26. 5/2/12 Seau's legacy extends well beyond his play on the field (SI) 27. 5/5/12 Health concerns for Cards QB (ESPN) 28. 5/10/12 Retired Jacob Bell picks health over paycheck (ESPN) 29. 5/14/12 Uncertain connections (SI) (Other factors that can contribute to suicide) 30. 5/14/12 The Toughest Question of All (SI) (Seau) 31. 6/6/12 NFL Hall of Fame RB Tony Dorsett talks about concussions syndrome (SI) 32. 8/13/12 Minnesota Golden Gophers' Jimmy Gjere calls it a career due to concussions (ESPN) 33. 8/22/12 Brad Millice and Chris Coyne discuss quitting football in high school due to concussions (ESPN) 34. 9/10/12 Jim McMahon (SI) 35. 9/26/12 Loss of wonderful man the only sure thing in Murdock suicide (SI) 36. 10/30/12 Patrick Larimore on E: 60 (ESPN) 37. 12/1/12 Those who knew Belcher react with shock, sadness (SI) Brogley Webb180
38. 1/10/13 Former Junior Seau teammate not surprised by linebacker's CTE findings (SI) 39. 1/21/13 Conclusions? Too Early? (SI) 40. 1/27/13 Three to remember (ESPN) 41. 1/29/13 George Visger, The Damage Done (ESPN) 42. 1/30/13 Former 49er John Frank, now a doctor, tries to reconcile with the game (SI) 43. 1/31/13 George Visger feature (ESPN) 44. 3/6/13 Collie determined not to let concussion stigma cloud his NFL feature (SI) 45. 4/25/13 UCLA's Alberto Cid leaving football amidst concussion struggles (SI) 46. 6/6/13 Multiple concussions have changed the life of one California teen (SI) 47. 8/5/13 Kyle Turley, on country music, concussions, and the future (SI) 48. 8/20/13 The inside story on how Redskins LB London Fletcher opened up to SI (SI) 49. 8/22/13 Redskins' Fletcher: Hits cause me to see stars (SI) 50. 8/23/13 Former NFL pro Derrick Mason struggles with retirement (ESPN) 51. 9/9/13 The Price Paid (SI) 52. 10/24/13 Father time ain't on my side (SI) 53. 10/24/13 A moral dilemma (SI) 54. 10/24/13 A clear mission (SI) 55. 10/25/13 Life After Concussions (SI) 56. 10/25/13 Brett Favre fears football has caused his memory loss (SI) 57. 11/7/13 Dallas Cowboys legend Tony Dorsett's issues with CTE hit home (ESPN) 58. 12/12/13 Leonard Marshall leads the concussion charge against the NFL (ESPN)
Medical Articles 1. 10/18/54 Football injuries (SI) 2. 11/6/95 Bitter Medicine (SI) 3. 11/11/04 Charting all the hits (SI) 4. 4/23/07 Doctors show link between concussion and dementia (SI) 5. 5/1/07 All 32 teams must send doctors, trainers to meeting (ESPN) 6. 9/20/07 Morgan's concussions put him at center of debate (SI) 7. 10/27/08 Football's big headache (SI) 8. 11/3/08 Rx for a medical dilemma (SI) 9. 12/4/08 Stretch run tests player's pain thresholds (SI) 10. 12/18/08 Pressure to win still trumps smart health management in NFL (SI) 11. 7/2/09 Medical reports will be telling factor in how 2009 season shakes out (SI) 12. 10/9/09 Concussion information has improved but isn't exact science (SI) Brogley Webb181
13. 1/26/10 NFL brain injury committee meets for the first time (ESPN) 14. 2/4/10 Concussions: Common sense and a conservative approach are the wise… (ESPN) 15. 5/21/10 NFL to post sternly worded concussion warning poster in locker rooms (ESPN) 16. 9/21/10 McKinley's apparent suicide stark reminder of athletes' higher risk of depression (SI) 17. 10/7/10 Depth charts reveal limits of talent base (SI) 18. 10/14/10 Injury stacks tax NFL depth charts (SI) 19. 10/23/10 Concussions at the forefront of this week's games (SI) 20. 10/27/10 Injury comebacks as much about motivation as time (SI) 21. 11/1/10 Brain Teaser (SI) 22. 11/17/10 Did concussion contribute to Nathan Stiles death? (ESPN) 23. 4/3/11 Madden 12 will emphasize concussions, safety (ESPN) 24. 5/2/11 Dave Duerson has brain damage at time of suicide (ESPN) 25. 5/6/11 Head Games (SI) 26. 7/25/11 Name That Pain (SI) 27. 7/26/11 Tests show two of four former CFL players suffered from neurological disease (ESPN) 28. 10/17/11 Hit on Vick again raises questions about concussion policy (SI) 29. 11/10/11 Teams still learning how to deal with head injuries (SI) 30. 12/8/11 Evidence of CTE found in Lew Carpenter's brain (ESPN) 31. 1/27/12 a Q&A in HS football with Sanjay Gupta (SI) 32. 3/6/12 Goodell's mission to make NFL safe an impossible one (SI) 33. 4/2/12 Dave Duerson fund set up to help athletes with head injuries (ESPN) 34. 4/9/12 NFL doing players a disservice by expanding Thursday night schedule (SI) 35. 4/21/12 Police say Ray Easterling, former Atlanta Falcon committed suicide (ESPN) 36. 5/2/12 Justified or not, Seau's death puts football under question again (SI) 37. 5/3/12 Report- Boston University seeking to study Junior Seau's brain (ESPN) 38. 5/3/12 Sources- forensic pathologist credited with identifying CTE involved in… (ESPN) 39. 5/4/12 Junior Seau family to allow concussion study of brain (ESPN) 40. 5/6/12 Seau's suicide could be turning point in player safety mission (SI) 41. 5/11/12 League focusing on mental health, but players must buy in (SI) 42. 6/6/12 NFL Hall of Fame RB Tony Dorsett talks about concussions syndrome (SI) 43. 6/10/12 Goodell focused on helping players during and after their careers (SI) 44. 6/25/12 Drew Brees of New Orleans Saints champions concussion testing for… (ESPN) Brogley Webb182
45. 6/29/12 Preventing injuries a matter of smarts, willingness (SI) 46. 7/2/12 Why did Junior Seau kill himself? Exploring athletes and depression (SI) 47. 8/17/12 Mere mortals (ESPN) 48. 8/17/12 The woman who would save football (ESPN) 49. 8/23/12 Neuropsychological testing for concussions might not be panacea (ESPN) 50. 8/27/12 Players quitting (ESPN) 51. 9/5/12 NFL donates $30 million for medical research, player safety (SI) 52. 9/20/12 'Head Games' doc explores concussions (ESPN) 53. 9/28/12 Neck strengthening exercises could help less risk of concussions (SI) 54. 11/13/12 As proven in week 10, concussion recognition still an inexact science (SI) 55. 11/27/12 Rushing to Find a Connection (ESPN) 56. 12/13/12 NFL reports remain inconsistent (ESPN) 57. 1/10/13 Junior Seau had brain disease CTE (SI) 58. 1/17/13 Today's pro player overscheduled, overstretched (ESPN) 59. 1/21/13 Conclusions? Too Early? (SI) 60. 1/22/13 Abnormal brain proteins discovered in living ex-NFL players (SI) 61. 1/30/13 Former 49er John Frank, now a doctor, tries to reconcile with the game (SI) 62. 1/31/13 NFLPA takes a swing at league over lack of trust in doctors (SI) 63. 1/31/13 NFL expects to have neurologists on sidelines in 2013 (SI) 64. 1/31/13 NFL to add independent neurological consultant to sidelines in 2013 (SI) 65. 2/23/13 NFL's new concussion protocol includes iPad app (SI) 66. 2/26/13 NFL expanding concussion efforts with use of iPads (SI) 67. 4/28/13 How multiple research groups and the NFL battled over Junior Seau's brain to lead the science of concussions (ESPN) 68. 7/11/13 Hurry Up offenses may put players at greater risk (SI) 69. 8/22/13 Central figure in NFL's concussion crisis appointed years ago… (ESPN) 70. 8/29/13 Mind Control (ESPN) 71. 10/10/13 College football concussions (ESPN) 72. 10/22/13 A way of life (SI) 73. 11/5/13 Former NFL stars Tony Dorsett, Leonard Marshall, Joe DeLameilleure… (ESPN) 74. 11/8/13 Ex-Miami Dolphins star Mark Duper shows signs of CTE (ESPN) 75. 11/9/13 Mark Duper latest to test positive for CTE (SI) 76. 11/19/13 Steelers orthopedic surgeon Robin West tackling concussions (ESPN) 77. 1/29/14 Permanently disabled Harrison fighting for benefits NFL took away (SI) Brogley Webb183
Law Articles 1. 10/9/09 NJ parents file lawsuit for son being cleared after concussion (SI) 2. 10/28/09 Roger Goodell grilled by Congress on head injuries (ESPN) 3. 11/30/09 La Salle Explorers to pay $7.5M to former player's family (ESPN) 4. 1/4/10 Former leader of NFL concussion committee tells Congress… (ESPN) 5. 1/28/10 Concussions in football get attention of state governments (ESPN) 6. 2/1/10 House Judiciary Committee member rips college conferences… (ESPN) 7. 3/17/10 Former AFL player Clay Rush files lawsuit over head injury (ESPN) 8. 9/21/10 House committee hears testimony regarding concussion from doctors… (ESPN) 9. 9/29/10 House OK's bill to protect student athletes from perils of concussions (ESPN) 10. 7/19/11 75 ex-players sue NFL over concussions (ESPN) 11. 8/19/11 Concussion lawsuit could cost NFL, whether settled in or out of court (SI) 12. 8/23/11 NHL vulnerable to NFL concussion lawsuit (SI) 13. 9/16/11 Former Eastern Illinois Panther Adrian Arrington suing NCAA over… (ESPN) 14. 9/28/11 Two former college football players sue NCAA over concussion (ESPN) 15. 12/5/11 New lawsuit by retired players vs. NFL focuses on painkillers (ESPN) 16. 1/9/12 NFL, ex-players seek to consolidate concussion suits in Philadelphia (ESPN) 17. 1/12/12 NFL, NCAA urge states to pass concussion laws (ESPN) 18. 1/19/12 More retired players bring concussion lawsuit vs. NFL in Pa (ESPN) 19. 2/3/12 Two more NFL concussion lawsuits filed in Philadelphia (ESPN) 20. 2/23/12 Ex-Bear Duerson's family sues NFL over his suicide (SI) 21. 3/2/12 Dave Duerson concussion lawsuit should put NFL on defensive (ESPN) 22. 5/3/12 New concussion lawsuit filed by 100 ex-players (ESPN) 23. 5/10/12 Over 60 more retirees sue NFL for concussions (ESPN) 24. 5/11/12 Player litigation ramps up after Seau's death, but is an uphill climb (SI) 25. 6/18/12 All Together Now (SI) 26. 9/19/12 Lawsuit filed in Mississippi over concussion (ESPN) 27. 10/31/12 Ex-players reply to NFL motion to dismiss concussion lawsuits (ESPN) Brogley Webb184
28. 11/15/12 NFL retirement board ruling seems like slam dunk for players but… (ESPN) 29. 1/23/13 Junior Seau's family sues NFL over brain injuries (SI) 30. 1/23/13 Junior Seau's family files wrongful death suit vs. NFL (ESPN) 31. 1/29/13 Arguments in NFL concussion case slated for April (SI) 32. 3/4/13 Roger Goodell at the 2009 Congressional Hearings on Concussions (ESPN) 33. 4/9/13 Seau lawsuits merged with Pa. NFL concussion case (SI) 34. 4/14/13/ Colorado jury finds Riddell negligent in helmet lawsuit (ESPN) 35. 4/30/13 Report warned Riddell that no helmet could prevent concussions… (ESPN) 36. 5/11/13 OJ Simpson chucks concussions as a reason for a new trial… (ESPN) 37. 6/8/13 Charges dismissed vs. Utah coach who gave kid a concussion (SI) 38. 6/10/13 Ruling expected next month in NFL concussions lawsuit (SI) 39. 6/10/13 Jury ruling expect in NFL concussions lawsuit (ESPN) 40. 7/18/13 Judge tells NFL, retired players in concussions case to negotiate (SI) 41. 7/19/13 Concussion suit vs. NCAA seeks class-action status (SI) 42. 7/20/13 NCAA rejects claims in concussion lawsuit (SI) 43. 7/20/13 Report: Internal NCAA emails could prove key in concussion lawsuit (SI) 44. 7/31/13 Seventeen Hall of Famers ask Goodell for help with Medical Care (SI) 45. 8/14/13 83 more former NFL players add names to concussion lawsuit (SI) 46. 8/26/13 Maryland Family sues over Frostberg State football death (SI) 47. 8/26/13 Family sues over Frostburg St. football player death (SI) 48. 8/29/13 Warren Moon calls settlement 'fair deal' (ESPN) 49. 8/29/13 Former Players: Devil in the details with NFL concussion settlement (SI) 50. 8/29/13 Concussion lawsuit settlement a win for the NFL (SI) 51. 8/29/13 Here’s what happens in the next concussion lawsuit settlement (SI) 52. 8/29/13 NFL concussion lawsuit settlement: players, agents react to the news (SI) 53. 8/29/13 NFL concussion plaintiffs attorney calls Jerry Jones a hard ass (SI) 54. 8/29/13 NFL concussion lawsuits: League, retired players reach $765 million settlement (SI) 55. 8/29/13 NFL, retired players reach settlement on concussion lawsuits (SI) 56. 8/30/13 Concussion Settlement: resettling the debate (SI) 57. 8/30/13 Herd on ESPN Radio: Show in Review (ESPN) 58. 8/31/13 Players initially sought $2 billion-plus from NFL in concussion suit (ESPN) 59. 9/2/13 Fighting for themselves, fighting for the game (SI) Brogley Webb185
60. 9/3/13 Litigation on health issues is the nuclear ticking time bomb in football (ESPN) 61. 9/4/13 Former football players sue NCAA over concussions (SI) 62. 9/4/13 Goodell: Settlement significant amount of money (SI) 63. 9/4/13 Former football players sue NCAA over concussions (ESPN) 64. 9/6/13 Thousands ready to sue NCAA (SI) 65. 9/9/13 The Price Paid (SI) 66. 9/18/13 Older players may be cut from NFL concussion lawsuit settlement (ESPN) 67. 9/20/13 Older players may be cut from NFL concussion lawsuit settlement (SI) 68. 9/22/13 Gale Sayers dropping concussion lawsuit (SI) 69. 10/2/13 NCAA facing another concussion lawsuit (ESPN) 70. 10/14/13 The price of head injuries (SI) 71. 10/25/13 The Other Lawsuit (SI) 72. 11/19/13 Three former football players sue NCAA over concussions (ESPN) 73. 12/3/13 Five ex-Kansas City Chiefs sue team over head injuries (ESPN) 74. 12/16/13 NFL settlement awaits preliminary approval as concern arises over… (ESPN) 75. 12/31/13 Mother of Jovan Belcher sues Chiefs for Wrongful Death (SI) 76. 1/7/14 Settlement details in NFL concussion lawsuit may concern players (ESPN) 77. 1/14/14 What rejection of settlement means to concussion case against the NFL (SI) 78. 1/14/14 Judge rejects $765M settlement in NFL concussion case, claims it’s not enough (SI) 79. 1/14/14 NFL concussion lawsuit settlement: Judge Anita Brody denies preliminary approval (SI) 80. 1/27/14 Family of Junior Seau objects to NFL's $765 million concussion deal (SI)
Opinion Articles 1. 1/21/57 I don't believe there is dirty football (SI) 2. 12/7/92 Helmets are not weapons (SI) 3. 12/19/94 Halt the head hunting (SI) 4. 2/6/07 One Big Headache (SI) 5. 2/8/07 Concussions part of NFL's essence (SI) 6. 9/20/07 Morgan's concussions put him at center of debate (SI) 7. 9/27/07 Trying to figure out the meaning of today's NFL (SI) 8. 3/27/09 New rule changes won't happen overnight (SI) 9. 10/7/09 When a Hit Hits Home (SI) 10. 11/29/09 Concussions in focus (ESPN) 11. 12/23/09 NFL season is very "Madden"-like (ESPN) Brogley Webb186
12. 12/29/09 Long-term risks may mean less kids playing football (SI) 13. 7/27/10 Concussions are the most significant problem facing the sport (ESPN) 14. 10/3/10 Hasselbeck tired of whining ex-players (SI) 15. 10/13/10 Has football become too dangerous for growing boys? (SI) 16. 10/17/10 Time for NFL to get serious after weekend of vicious hits (SI) 17. 10/19/10 Culture must change in NFL regarding violent hits (SI) 18. 10/19/10 NFL has no choice but to protect defenseless players (SI) 19. 10/19/10 Refs won't overreact on big hit ejections (SI) 20. 10/19/10 Week 6 may have changed how defense gets played (SI) 21. 10/22/10 NFL's stance on head shots hypocritical (SI) 22. 10/22/10 The issue of concussions and other brain damage in football could… (ESPN) 23. 10/26/10 Fire sale: NFL's concussion fix a knee-jerk reaction to long- running problem (SI) 24. 10/26/10 Concussions are a huge issue in football, outer padded helmets… (ESPN) 25. 11/1/10 Concussions (SI) 26. 12/30/10 Concussions are still plaguing sports… (ESPN) 27. 1/24/11 Cutler case proves perception of injuries hasn't evolved with game (SI) 28. 2/23/11 Duerson's death is a warning (ESPN) 29. 3/1/11 NFL playing dangerous game with fans (SI) 30. 10/28/11 Oklahoma State Cowboys' Justin Blackmon calls concussion tests… (ESPN) 31. 12/15/11 NFL still has plenty to learn about dealing with concussions (SI) 32. 2/23/12 End of the NFL? (ESPN) 33. 3/2/12 Don't try to read the future is unpredictable NFL (SI) 34. 3/4/12 Warner, Hoge and concussion discussion (ESPN) 35. 3/6/12 Goodell's mission to make NFL safe an impossible one (SI) 36. 4/19/12 NFL doing players a disservice by expanding Thursday night schedule (SI) 37. 5/5/12 Rex Ryan OK with son playing football despite concussion (ESPN) 38. 5/7/12 Concussion problem could doom football (SI) 39. 5/9/12 How much longer will we put young men in jeopardy to play a game for our amusement? (SI) 40. 5/14/12 For Parents, a Junior moment (SI) 41. 5/14/12 Junior Seau's suicide raises more questions about the NFL's… (ESPN) 42. 5/23/12 NFL's defenders in political fight for future of football (ESPN) 43. 6/14/12 Terry Bradshaw: If I had a son…I would not let him play football (SI) 44. 8/24/12 Concussions connections (ESPN) Brogley Webb187
45. 8/28/12 De Smith: NFL cares more about money than using regular refs for player safety (SI) 46. 8/30/12 NFL Confidential (ESPN) 47. 9/5/12 NCAA's controversial new helmet rule deserves a chance (SI) 48. 9/27/12 Real refs or not, injuries just part of the game (SI) 49. 10/8/12 NFL You have a problem (SI) 50. 10/11/12 Calvin Johnson: It's part of football, you get concussed, you gotta keep playing (SI) 51. 10/25/12 It's not macho to let kids get injured (ESPN) 52. 11/13/12 As proven in week 10, concussion recognition still an inexact science (SI) 53. 11/20/12 Questions about concussions will linger (ESPN) 54. 12/2/12 Reed's criticism of NFL again reflects football's safety dilemma (SI) 55. 12/10/12 Trying Times (SI) 56. 12/16/12 Mixed messages on brain injuries (ESPN) 57. 1/10/13 NFL players don't want kickoffs to get the boot (SI) 58. 1/11/13 We can and should learn from Junior Seau (ESPN) 59. 1/26/13 President Barack Obama not sure he'd allow son to play football (ESPN) 60. 1/27/13 Obama not sure he'd allow a son to play football (SI) 61. 1/27/13 Bernard Pollard: In 30 years, the NFL won't exist (SI) 62. 1/29/13 Ravens safety Ed Reed on health risks: I signed up for it (SI) 63. 1/30/13 Shaun O'Hara calls Obama's football comments irresponsible (SI) 64. 1/30/13 Ed Reed: Junior Seau knew what he was signing up for (SI) 65. 1/31/13 Smith chastises NFL for lack of player safety (SI) 66. 1/31/13 NFLPA takes a swing at league over lack of trust in doctors (SI) 67. 2/3/13 Obama: Safety a concern for young football players (SI) 68. 2/3/13 Goodell: absolutely would let son play football (SI) 69. 2/3/13 Roger Goodell absolutely would let son play football (ESPN) 70. 2/3/13 President Barack Obama reiterates concerns over football safety (ESPN) 71. 2/27/13 Drew Brees: Concussions are still a major issue (SI) 72. 3/12/13 Ex-NFL star Herschel Walker: NFL concussions aren't always to blame (SI) 73. 3/18/13 Morality players (SI) 74. 4/9/13 Ex-players call NFL brain injury panel a sham (SI) 75. 4/13/13 Football is dead (ESPN) 76. 6/9/13 Jim Brown" NFL way behind NASCAR on safety (SI) 77. 6/14/13 Hall of Famer Lem Barney: football becoming too deadly (SI) 78. 6/16/13 Lem Barney apologizes for comments in Michigan (ESPN) 79. 7/23/13 Bengals owner: linking concussions and dementia is speculation (SI) 80. 7/30/13 Stop Talking and Use your head (SI) Brogley Webb188
81. 8/15/13 Brutality: The Crisis in Football: Revisiting the SI archives, 35 years later (SI) 82. 8/29/13 Warren Moon calls settlement 'fair deal' (ESPN) 83. 10/3/13 Ed Reed, Arian Foster of Houston Texans criticize shady NFL (ESPN) 84. 10/9/13 League of Denial and the Crisis that Never Ends (ESPN) 85. 10/23/13 We chose this profession (SI) 86. 10/23/13 What price football? (SI) 87. 10/24/13 You can't Please everybody (SI) 88. 10/31/13 Brett Favre adds fodder to head injury concerns (ESPN) 89. 11/7/13 Pierce concerned over concussions (ESPN) 90. 11/12/13 Might golf be a safer suggestion than pushing kids to play football (ESPN) 91. 11/15/13 Poll: 40 percent of Americans support ban on tackle football before high school (SI) 92. 11/15/13 Brett Favre: I'd be leery of son playing football (SI) 93. 11/18/13 Tony Dorsett and CTE in hockey and football (ESPN) 94. 11/19/13 Dickerson worried about NFL safety (ESPN) 95. 12/27/13 Is there a hidden cost to concussions? (SI)
Player Articles Draft 1. 4/30/12 Heading for Trouble (SI) 2. 4/4/13 Two prominent concussion researchers including NFL adviser serve… (ESPN)
APPENDIX C:
Metaphor Tables
ESPN metaphors by type combined- Non-Opinion Metaphor type Example War, Disorder, Sickness, Death, Violence, Spears, soldiers, warriors, carnage, Crime, Evil, Loss warriors, war-painted denizens of the upper deck, guerilla forces, IED, spear, head as weapon, Beating, devouring will, quick trigger, villain, weapon, grilled, stealing lives, sledgehammer, knife, juggernaut, strangle brain cells, build a better mouse trap, witch hunt, backroom Brogley Webb189
brawl, stabbed in the heart, strangle brain cells, kills, Immunity, contagion effect, smoking, death march, smoking, drug abuse, eating disorder, big tobacco, big tobacco, big tobacco, big tobacco, PTSD, circling buzzards, cigarettes, Doomsday, unraveling, drunken sailor, mayhem, unraveling yarn, bull in a china shop, in the dark, track team blaming Nike for shoes, hysteria, hysteria, hazy, detached, spinning, dinged, in the hole, propaganda, Driving without a seatbelt, airbag, car accident, bulldozer, train, helicopter crashes, car crashes, Caribbean port losing cruise ships, never never land, whitewashed, crushed beer can, Pandora’s box, throwing towel in, Made and unmade a man, Business/Money Fortune 500 company, cost of doing business Sports/Competition Pitch counts, pocket collapsing around a quarterback, horse race Nature Dry up, slugs, fog, hunter, barking like a dog, glacial pace, seeing stars, walking on egg shells, shaking off cobwebs, perfect storm, stone cold, hummingbird flapping its wings, bogged down, shell, organic Food Cottage cheese, candy cane, grilled, peeled potato too long exposed to air, Jell-o Object Nails, tin ear, Easter egg, canvas, sacred ritual, sandbag Body/Person Has legs, Head of cartoon space aliens Suppor Bridge, holy grail, savior, guardian, AA sponsor, scaffolding,
ESPN Metaphors By Type- Frequency- Non-Opinion Metaphor Type Examples Percentage War, Disorder, Sickness, Death, 72 64.3% Violence, Crime, Evil, Loss Business/Money 2 1.8% Sports 3 2.7% Nature 15 13.4% Food 5 4.5% Brogley Webb190
Object 6 5.4% Body/Person 3 2.7% Support 6 5.4%
War, Crime, Violence 28 26.4% Disorder, Sickness, Death, 44 41.5% Evil, Loss
ESPN Metaphors By Subject-- Non-Opinion Metaphor subject Example NFL Immunity, Fortune 500 company, sick, dying, tough as nails, barking like a dog, quick-trigger temper, guardian, big tobacco, whitewashed, cost of doing business, big tobacco, grilled, grilled, big tobacco, bogged down with politics, propaganda, bull in a china shop, Football Doomsday, smoking, driving without a seatbelt, dry up, death march, drug abuse, eating disorders, mayhem, carnage, made and unmade a man, kills and saves, organic Parents/ Family Contagion effect, PTSD, walking on eggshells, in the dark Insurers Take a beating Lawsuit Has legs College Town Caribbean port losing cruise ships Sports Universe Unravel Safety Initiatives Smoking Equipment Airbag, anti-lock breaks, skiers, weapons, Pandora’s box, car crashes, helicopter crashes, heads of cartoon space aliens Players Slugs, spears, savages, carnage, devouring will, AA sponsor, hunter, boxer, soldiers, warriors, carnage, in the dark, spear, head as weapon
Injured Players Fog, fog, gate opening and closing, crumbling, drunken sailor, shaking cob webs off, pitch count, never never land, sandbag tests, perfect storm, stone cold, in a hole Collisions Car accidents, hit by a bulldozer, train, cigarettes, throwing the towel in Brogley Webb191
Brain/Injury Jell-o, meat, cushion, glazed, crushed beer can, seeing stars, Easter egg, cottage cheese, candy cane, stealing lives, unraveling yarn, IED, scaffolding, peeled potato exposed too long to the air, canvas, strangle brain cells, horse race, track team blaming Nike for shoes, strangle brain cells, holy grail, shell, spinning, hazy, detached, dinged, hit with a sledgehammer, noise cuts through like a knife Hall of Fame Shrine, relic Fans War-painted denizens of the upper deck Research and Researchers Juggernaut, sacred ritual, face fell like pocket collapsing around a QB, better mousetrap, buzzards circling, backroom brawl, witch hunt, slowed down footage like a hummingbird flapping its wings, bridge between game and science, criticism like being stabbed in the heart, hysteria, hysteria
ESPN Metaphors By Subject- Frequency-- Non-Opinion Subject Examples Percentage NFL 19 15.4% Football 13 10.6% Parents/ Family 4 3.3% Insurers 1 0.81% Lawsuit 1 0.81% College Town 1 0.81% Sports Universe 1 0.81% Safety Initiatives 1 0.81% Equipment 8 6.5% Players 14 11.4% Injured Players 12 9.8% Collisions 5 4.1% Brain/Injury 2 22.0% Hall of Fame 2 1.6% Fans 1 0.81% Research and Researchers 13 10.6%
Brogley Webb192
ESPN Opinion Metaphors By Type Combined Type Example War, Disorder, Sickness, Death, Violence, Drugs, drug addicts, disease, disorder, Crime, Evil, Loss atrophy, and death, plague, black lung, big tobacco, Weapons, time bomb, missile, weapon, sledgehammer, weapon, spear, weapon, Chaos, mayhem, Runaway fire truck, car accident, car wreck, Murder, Sky divers, race car drivers, Smoking, tobacco industry, smoking, tobacco companies, chain smokers, secondhand smoke, Combat, generals, barbarians, war, Romans, gladiators, battle, combat, Cold War, Conrad Murray, Hannibal Lector, Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown, whistling past its future graveyard, circus, Ikea assembly guide, snow globe, swept under the rug, blackballed, Darwinsim, badge of honor, cement bag swung from a crane Journey Long and winding road Other getting bell rung, bell rung, redecorating, dominoes, coming out of the closet, jockey Gender Manhood, rite of passage, masculinity, feminine Nature Bad dog, animal, oyster, rhino, butterfly, Cliff, snowflake, water Food Jelly, bubblegum, Halloween candy, jumbo shrimp, meat sauce, egg yolk, Jell- o Power/Authority/ Wealth Greek gods, Kings, lords, king, paternal, chess, Bellagio Hotel, gold rush, The Gap, machine Support/ Innocence Religion, newborn, friend, bubble, patty- cake
ESPN Opinion Metaphors By Type- Frequency Type Frequency Percentage War, Disorder, Sickness, Death, 53 56.4% Violence, Crime, Evil, Loss Journey 1 1.1% Other 6 6.4% Brogley Webb193
Gender 4 4.3% Nature 8 8.5% Food 7 7.4% Power/Authority/ Wealth 10 10.6% Support/ Innocence 5 5.3%
War, Crime, Violence 24 25.5% Disorder, Sickness, Death, Evil, 29 31.0% Loss
ESPN Metaphors By Subject Opinion Type Examples NFL Machine, combat, swept under the rug, circus, drug, penthouse at Bellagio hotel, tobacco industry, falling off a cliff, handing out Halloween candy, tobacco industry, patty-cake, coming out of the closet, big tobacco, redecorating Players Race car drivers, sky-divers, chain smokers, animals, barbarians, spears, rhinos, gladiators, jumbo shrimp, soft, missiles, runaway fire trucks, ticking time bombs, jelly Football Manhood, king, rite of passage, bad dog, poetry, narrative, can atrophy and die, newborn, meat sauce, masculinity, water, the Gap, war, Cold war, Darwinism, paternal, religion, friend, cigarettes, gold rush, smoking, whistling past its future grave, mayhem, in a bubble, can’t become bubblegum, miners with black lung Fans Drug addicts, generals, Romans Game Car accidents, combat NFL Doctors Conrad Murray and Hannibal Lecter Brain Injuries/ Brain Second hand smoke, egg yolk, snow globe, oyster, Jell-o, snowflakes, having your bell rung, bell rung badge of honor, bell rung Tackling/ Collisions Murder, cement bag being swung from a crane, butterflies, car wreck, car accident Culture Sickness, beast, disease, disorder, Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown Brogley Webb194
Helmets Weapon, biodegradable bag, electric car, weapon, missile, weapon Coaches Lords and kings Research/Researchers Jockeys, blackballed, dominoes, long and winding road, Ikea assembly guide
ESPN Opinion Metaphors By Subject- Frequency Subject Frequency Percentage NFL 14 14.9% Players 14 14.9% Football 26 27.7% Fans 3 3.2% Game 2 2.1% NFL Doctors 2 2.1% Brain Injuries/ Brain 10 10.6% Tackling/ Collisions 5 5.3% Culture 5 5.3% Helmets 6 6.4% Coaches 2 2.1% Research/Researchers 5 5.3%
SPORTS ILLUSTRATED Opinion Metaphors By Type Combined Type Examples War, Disorder, Sickness, Death, Violence, Knee jerk reaction, choking, rearing its Crime, Evil, Loss, Danger ugly head, knee jerk reaction, Villain, drunk, tin man, lab rats, delusional, handicapping, betrayal, wrestling, In the shadows, One big headache, epidemic, sanitized, prescription to fix the problem, Weapons, rock hard, spears, battering rams, missiles, Football culture is decaying, Chaotic, mayhem, Crash test dummy, Indy 500, demolition derby, driving without insurance, Trespassing, guilty, killing, Hunters, hunting, Threw a punch, Bull fighting, astronauts, Smoking, smoking cigarettes, Tanks, humvees, draw a line in the sand, shots, carnage, missiles, battle, carnage, combat, unrepentant sinners, getting the boot, swept under the rug, dripping faucet Business/Money Paying a price, cost of doing business, Brogley Webb195
price of admission, paying a price Nature Dirt, storm, white-hot, can of worms, storm, drying up Other Art, cocktail, king Gender Women, manhood Support Fraternity, Teflon-coated, getting religion, ladder Music/Entertainment Hollywood, Lord of the Rings, Getting bell rung, steady drumbeat
SPORTS ILLUSTRATED Opinion Metaphors By Type- Frequency Type Examples Percentage War, Disorder, Sickness, Death, 53 68.8% Violence, Crime, Evil, Loss, Danger Business/Money 5 6.5% Nature 6 7.8% Other 3 3.9% Gender 2 2.6% Support 4 5.2% Music/Entertainment 4 5.2%
War, Crime, Violence 33 42.9% Disorder, Sickness, Death, Evil, 20 26.0% Loss, Danger
SPORTS ILLUSTRATED Metaphors By Subject- Opinion NFL Shadows, drawing line in the sand, Hollywood, fraternity, can of worms, knee jerk reaction, fire sale, women, knee jerk reaction, Indy 500, guilt, getting religion, demolition derby, Teflon-coated, free range meat, king, threw a punch, drunk, combat, swept under the rug Players Hunters, gladiators, talent pool drying up, tin man, villain, missiles, carnage, pawns, battering rams, spears, hunters, astronauts, lab rats, humvees, tanks, crash test dummies, sinners, hunters, carnage, heat seeking missiles Football Dirty, mayhem, smoking, has a price of admission, test of manhood, killing, paying a price, needs to be sanitized, cost of doing business, delusional, cocktail, Brogley Webb196
wrestling, driving without insurance, bull fighting, paying a price, smoking, has a cost Rules Getting the boot, handicapping, betrayal, ladder Brain Injuries/ Brain Getting bell rung, dripping faucet, choking cellular life, chaotic Tackling/ Collisions Epidemic, art, car accident, shot, Crisis Steady drum beat, rears its ugly head, white hot, one big headache, prescription Helmets Weapons Games Combat, Lord of the Rings, perfect storm Other Storm, decay, rock hard
SPORTS ILLUSTRATED Opinion Metaphors By Subject- Frequency Subject Examples Percentage NFL 20 24.4% Players 21 25.6% Football 17 20.7% Rules 4 4.9% Brain Injuries/ Brain 4 4.9% Tackling/ Collisions 4 4.9% Crisis 5 6.1% Helmets 1 1.2% Games 3 3.7% Other 3 3.7%
SPORTS ILLUSTRATED Metaphors By Type Combined- Non-Opinion Type Examples War, Disorder, Sickness, Death, Killing, knives, arrow, kill shot, Violence, Crime, Evil, Loss, Weakness, sledgehammer, barbaric, robbing muscles, Immaturity hanging the NFL, committed sins, smoking gun, crushing claims, take the bully behind the shed, Helicopter spins, bulldozer, train, Battling in the trenches, hand-to-hand combat, general, soldiers, trench warfare, battle in the trenches, gladiator, shot, bazooka to kill a muskrat, troops, missiles, warriors, battering ram, nuclear winter, invader, Exorcist, monster, endless loop, Black Sunday, monster under the bed, specter hanging over, nuclear cloud, junk science, specter Brogley Webb197
hanging, devil in details, buzzed, Death spiral, death sentence, pill stuck in the throat, Big tobacco, death knell, drug, big tobacco, big tobacco, Small-child, science in infancy, closed Gold’s Gym, brick wall, glassy eyed, pin cushion, chipped and gouged bowling balls, forklift arms, Frisbee sized mitts, clock-cleaning, Beer can, fuzzy, crushed beer can, whitewashing Nature Maryland crabs, big tree falling, T-rex, aftershock, sequoia trees, tree root, animal, in a cloud, pack of wild dogs, squawking like birds, sea of change, tailwind, tip of the iceberg, storm cloud, black cloud, storm cloud, drop in the bucket, uphill climb Business/ Money Price to pay, Paying a price, chump change, sitting in the cheap seats Food Pieces of meat, piece of meat, cottage cheese, candy cane, walking on egg shells Support Backbone, Lifeblood, Corner of Pleasant road and Academia blvd., nice hedge- rowed suburban box, umbrella of changing culture Other Memory, Easter egg, not going for the last yard, Pokemon card, pitch counts, Wile E. Coyote, Music Bell rung, bell rung, bell rung, instrument, bell rung, bell dinged, bell rung, bell dinged
SPORTS ILLUSTRATED Metaphors By Type- Frequency- Non-Opinion Type Examples Percentage War, Disorder, Sickness, Death, 65 59.1% Violence, Crime, Evil, Loss, Weakness, Immaturity Nature 17 15.5% Business/ Money 4 3.6% Food 5 4.5% Support 5 4.5% Other 6 5.5% Music 8 7.3% Brogley Webb198
War, Crime, Violence 27 25.7% Disorder, Sickness, Death, Evil, 44 35.9% Loss
SPORTS ILLUSTRATED Metaphors By Subject- Non-Opinion Subject Examples NFL Nice hedge-rowed suburban box, death spiral, machine, bazooka to kill a muskrat, big tobacco, big tobacco, big tobacco, specter hanging over, committed sins, hanging the NFL, big tobacco, crushing claims, nuclear winter, storm cloud of bad publicity Debate Corner of pleasant road and academia boulevard, under umbrella of changing culture, storm cloud, nuclear cloud, specter hanging Equipment Chipped and gouged bowling balls Head/Brain Injury Exorcist, bell rung, bell dinged, tip of the iceberg, monster under the bed, crushed beer can, seeing stars, hit by a bulldozer, hit by a train, black cloud, robbing muscles, time bomb, fuzzy, Pokemon card, invader Collision Death sentence, lifeblood, Wile E. Coyote being smashed by a huge boulder, paying a price, monsters, helicopter spins, killing, memory, clock-cleaning Players Maryland crabs, big tree falling, T-rex, pieces of meat, battling in the trenches, general, sequoia trees, pin cushion, gladiator, battle in the trenches, pieces of meet, taking a shot, crawling like a small child, barbarians, animals, brick walls, endless loop, troops, knives, arrow through the snow, pack of wild dogs, kill shots, missiles, warriors, squawking like birds, sledgehammer, piece of meat, sitting in the cheap seats, battering ram, uphill climb, smoking gun, take the bully behind the shed, collateral damage, forklift arms, Frisbee sized mitts Brogley Webb199
The game Hand-to-hand combat, strands of gold Football Aftershock, fabric of the game, sea of change, price to pay, drug, barbaric, prime suspect, cloud hanging over, lost innocence, pitch counts Injured player Tree root, pill stuck in the throat, playing in a cloud, glassy eyed, buzzed Other Black Sunday, Black Sunday, closed Gold’s Gym Research/Researchers Instruments, junk science, backbone, research pipeline, science in infancy Law Glacial pace, chump change, drop in the bucket, devil in the details, not going for the last yard Rules Death knell
SPORTS ILLUSTRATED metaphors by subject- frequency Non-Opinion Subject Examples Percentage NFL 14 12.2% Debate 5 4.3% Equipment 1 0.9% Head/Brain injury 15 13.0% Collision 10 8.7% Players 36 31.3% The game 2 1.7% Football 12 10.4%
Injured player 5 4.3% Other 4 3.5% Research/Researchers 5 4.3% Law 5 4.3% Rule 1 0.9%
Combined Metaphors ESPN Sports Illustrated Opinion 94 85 Non-Opinion 112 115 Total 206 200
Count Percentage Opinion 179 44.0% Non-Opinion 227 56.0% Brogley Webb200
406 100.0%
APPENDIX D
Source Tables
ESPN Sources- Non-Opinion Source Number of Appearances Boston University Research 21 Dr. Bennett Omalu/ Dr. Julian Bailes/ 15 UCLA research Dr. Kevin Guskiewicz 9 Virginia Tech research 6 NFL associated research/ medical expert 31 NFL personnel- ex: Roger Goodell, Jeff 23 Pash, Greg Aiello NFLPA 1 Independent Research/Medical Expert 53
NCAA Research 3 Players (Current and Former) 30 Player’s families 21 Coaches, team athletic training and staff 17 Author’s authority 5 Other 8 Lawsuit/ Legal Expert 6 Unattributed scientific evidence/ statistics 2 Media 8 Congress/Government source 10 TOTAL 269
ESPN- Research Authority- Non-Opinion Source Percentage Boston University Research 13.0% Dr. Bennett Omalu/ Dr. Julian Bailes/ 9.3% UCLA research Dr. Kevin Guskiewicz 5.6% Virginia Tech research 3.7% NFL associated research/ medical expert 19.1% NFL personnel- ex: Roger Goodell, Jeff 14.2% Brogley Webb201
Pash, Greg Aiello NFLPA 0.6% Independent Research/Medical Expert 32.7%
NCAA Research 1.9%
ESPN Research Authority 2- Non-Opinion Source Percentage Prominent Research Groups 33.6% Lesser Publicized Independent Research 32.7% NFL Associated 33.7%
ESPN Sources as percentage of the total- Non-Opinion Source Percentage Boston University Research 7.8% Dr. Bennett Omalu/ Dr. Julian Bailes/ 5.6% UCLA research Dr. Kevin Guskiewicz 3.3% Virginia Tech research 2.2% NFL associated research/ medical expert 11.5% NFL personnel- ex: Roger Goodell, Jeff 8.6% Pash, Greg Aiello NFLPA .37% Independent Research/Medical Expert 19.7%
NCAA Research 1.1% Players (Current and Former) 11.1% Player’s families 7.8% Coaches, team athletic training and staff 6.3% Author’s authority 1.9% Other 3.0% Lawsuit/ Legal Expert 2.2% Unattributed scientific evidence/ statistics .74% Media 3.0% Congress/Government source 3.7% TOTAL 269
ESPN Opinion Sources Source Number of Appearances BU Research 4 Dr. Bennett Omalu/ Dr. Julian Bailes/ 3 UCLA research Dr. Kevin Guskiewicz 0 Brogley Webb202
NFL associated research/ medical expert 1 NFL personnel- ex: Roger Goodell, Jeff 15 Pash, Greg Aiello NFLPA 2 Independent Research/Medical Expert 8 NCAA Research 0 Players (Current and Former) 70 Player’s families 4 Coaches, team athletic training and staff 2 Author’s authority 7 Other 15 Lawsuit/ Legal Expert 6 Unattributed scientific evidence/ statistics 7 Media 13 Congress/Government source 10 TOTAL 167
ESPN Opinion Sources- as percentage of the total Source Percentage BU Research 2.4% Dr. Bennett Omalu/ Dr. Julian Bailes/ 1.8% UCLA research Dr. Kevin Guskiewicz 0.0% NFL associated research/ medical expert 0.59% NFL personnel- ex: Roger Goodell, Jeff 9.0% Pash, Greg Aiello NFLPA 1.2% Independent Research/Medical Expert 4.8% NCAA Research 0.0% Players (Current and Former) 42.0% Player’s families 2.4% Coaches, team athletic training and staff 1.2% Author’s authority 4.2% Other 9.0% Lawsuit/ Legal Expert 3.6% Unattributed scientific evidence/ statistics 4.2% Media 7.8% Congress/Government source 6.0% TOTAL 167
SPORTS ILLUSTRATED Sources Brogley Webb203
Source Number of Appearances Boston University Research 8 Dr. Bennett Omalu/ Dr. Julian Bailes/ 3 UCLA Dr. Kevin Guskiewicz 8 NFL associated research/ medical experts 7 NFL figures- ex: Roger Goodell, Jeff 9 Pash, Greg Aiello NFLPA 2 Independent Research/ Medical Expert 29 Players (Current and Former) 41 Player’s families/friends 10 Coaches, team athletic training and staff 6 Author’s authority 7 Other 6 Media 21 Unattributed scientific evidence 1 Lawsuit/ Legal Expert 9 TOTAL 167
SPORTS ILLUSTRATED- research authority Source Percentage Boston University Research 12.2% Dr. Bennett Omalu/ Dr. Julian Bailes/ 4.5% UCLA Dr. Kevin Guskiewicz 12.1% NFL associated research/ medical experts 10.6% NFL figures- ex: Roger Goodell, Jeff 13.6% Pash, Greg Aiello NFLPA 3.0% Independent Research/ Medical Expert 43.9%
SPORTS ILLUSTRATED research authority 2 Source Percentage Prominent Research Groups 28.6% Lesser publicized independent research 43.9% groups NFL Associated 27.2%
SPORTS ILLUSTRATED Sources- as percentage of the total Source Percentage Boston University Research 4.8% Brogley Webb204
Dr. Bennett Omalu/ Dr. Julian Bailes/ 1.8% UCLA Dr. Kevin Guskiewicz 4.8% NFL associated research/ medical experts 4.2% NFL figures- ex: Roger Goodell, Jeff 5.4% Pash, Greg Aiello NFLPA 1.1% Independent Research/ Medical Expert 17.4% Players (Current and Former) 24.6% Player’s families/friends 6.0% Coaches, team athletic training and staff 3.6% Author’s authority 4.2% Other 3.6% Media 12.6% Unattributed scientific evidence .5% Lawsuit/ Legal Expert 5.4% TOTAL 167
SPORTS ILLUSTRATED Opinion Sources Source Number of Appearances BU Research 2 Dr. Bennett Omalu/ Dr. Julian Bailes/ 0 UCLA research Dr. Kevin Guskiewicz 0 NFL associated research/ medical expert 1 NFL personnel- ex: Roger Goodell, Jeff 17 Pash, Greg Aiello NFLPA 4 Independent Research/Medical Expert 8 NCAA Research 0 Players (Current and Former) 72 Player’s families 3 Coaches, team athletic training and staff 5 Author’s authority 5 Other 16 Lawsuit 2 Unattributed scientific evidence/ statistics 8 Media 17 TOTAL 160
SPORTS ILLUSTRATED Opinion Sources- as a percentage of the total Source Percentage BU Research 1.25% Brogley Webb205
Dr. Bennett Omalu/ Dr. Julian Bailes/ 0.0% UCLA research Dr. Kevin Guskiewicz 0.0% NFL associated research/ medical expert 0.6% NFL personnel- ex: Roger Goodell, Jeff 10.6% Pash, Greg Aiello NFLPA 2.5% Independent Research/Medical Expert 5.0% NCAA Research 0.0% Players (Current and Former) 45.0% Player’s families 1.9% Coaches, team athletic training and staff 3.1% Author’s authority 3.1% Other 10.0% Lawsuit 1.2% Unattributed scientific evidence/ statistics 5.0% Media 10.6% TOTAL 160
APPENDIX E:
VALENCE RATINGS
SPORTS ILLUSTRATED Valence Rating Chart- Opinion Article Date Topic Tone Valence Valence Is there a hidden cost to concussions? 12/27/13 4 3 Brett Favre: I'd be leery of son playing football 11/15/13 5 5 Poll: 40 percent of Americans support ban on 11/15/13 4 5 tackle football before high school You can't please everybody 10/24/13 3 3 What price football? 10/23/13 5 5 We chose this profession 10/23/13 2 4 Brutality: The Crisis in Football: Revisiting the 8/15/13 5 3 SI archives, 35 years later Stop talking and use your head 7/30/13 5 5 Bengals owner: linking concussions and 7/23/13 5 1 dementia is speculation Hall of Famer Lem Barney: football becoming 6/14/13 5 5 too deadly Jim Brown" NFL way behind NASCAR on 6/9/13 4 5 Brogley Webb206
safety Ex-players call NFL brain injury panel a sham 4/9/13 2 5 Morality players 3/18/13 4 4 Ex-NFL star Herschel Walker: NFL 3/12/13 2 1 concussions aren't always to blame Drew Brees: Concussions are still a major issue 2/27/13 4 4 Goodell: absolutely would let son play football 2/3/13 1 4 Obama: Safety a concern for young football 2/3/13 4 4 players NFLPA takes a swing at league over lack of 1/31/13 4 5 trust in doctors Smith chastises NFL for lack of player safety 1/31/13 4 4 Ed Reed: Junior Seau knew what he was 1/30/13 1 3 signing up for Shaun O'Hara calls Obama's football comments 1/30/13 1 4 irresponsible Ravens safety Ed Reed on health risks: I signed 1/29/13 4 1 up for it Bernard Pollard: In 30 years, the NFL won't 1/27/13 5 5 exist Obama not sure he'd allow a son to play 1/27/13 1 4 football NFL players don't want kickoffs to get the boot 1/10/13 4 1 Trying Times 12/10/12 4 4 Reed's criticism of NFL again reflects football's 12/2/12 5 4 safety dilemma As proven in week 10, concussion recognition 11/13/12 3 4 still an inexact science Calvin Johnson: It's part of football, you get 10/11/12 4 1 concussed, you gotta keep playing NFL You have a problem 10/8/12 5 5 Real refs or not, injuries just part of the game 9/27/12 3 2 NCAA's controversial new helmet rule 9/5/12 4 4 deserves a chance De Smith: NFL cares more about money than 8/28/12 4 5 using regular refs for player safety Terry Bradshaw: If I had a son…I would not let 6/14/12 2 5 him play football For Parents, a Junior moment 5/14/12 5 4 How much longer will we put young men in 5/9/12 5 5 jeopardy to play football? Concussion problem could doom football 5/7/12 4 5 NFL doing players a disservice by expanding 4/19/12 2 5 Brogley Webb207
Thursday night schedule Goodell's mission to make NFL safe an 3/6/12 5 1 impossible one Will Carroll: NFL still has plenty to learn about 12/15/11 4 5 dealing with concussions Cutler case proves perception of injuries hasn't 1/24/11 4 5 evolved with game The hits that are changing football 11/1/10 3 4 Concussions are a huge issue in football, outer 10/26/10 4 2 padded helmets could go a long way toward solving it The issue of concussions and other brain 10/22/10 4 5 damage in football could marginalize the game out of American mainstream NFL's stance on head shots hypocritical 10/22/10 4 5 Week 6 may have changed how defense gets 10/19/10 3 5 played Refs won't overreact on big hit ejections 10/19/10 4 4 NFL has no choice but to protect defenseless 10/19/10 5 4 players Culture must change in NFL regarding violent 10/19/10 4 4 hits Time for NFL to get serious after weekend of 10/17/10 5 5 vicious hits Has football become too dangerous for growing 10/13/10 3 4 boys? Hasselbeck tired of whining ex-players 10/3/10 3 1 Frank Deford: Long-term risks may mean less 12/29/09 5 4 kids playing football When a Hit Hits Home 10/7/09 4 4 New rule changes won't happen overnight 3/27/09 3 3 Morgan's concussions put him at center of 9/20/07 3 4 debate Concussions part of NFL's essence 2/8/07 1 3 One Big Headache 2/6/07 4 4 Halt the head hunting 12/19/94 4 5 Helmets are not weapons 12/7/92 3 5 I don't believe there is dirty football 1/21/57 4 1
ESPN Valence Rating Chart- Opinion Article Date Topic Tone Valence Valence Dickerson worried about NFL safety 11/19/13 4 5 Brogley Webb208
Tony Dorsett and CTE in hockey and football 11/18/13 5 4 Might golf be a safer suggestion than pushing 11/12/13 5 4 kids to play football Pierce concerned over concussions 11/7/13 4 4 Brett Favre adds fodder to head injury concerns 10/31/13 5 5 League of Denial and the Crisis that Never Ends 10/9/13 5 5 Ed Reed, Arian Foster of Houston Texans 10/3/13 5 5 criticize shady NFL Warren Moon calls settlement 'fair deal' 8/29/13 2 1 Lem Barney apologizes for comments in 6/16/13 5 5 Michigan Football is dead. Long live football 4/13/13 1 2 President Barack Obama reiterates concerns over 2/3/13 4 4 football safety Roger Goodell absolutely would let son play 2/3/13 1 4 football Ed Reed: Junior Seau knew what he was signing 1/30/13 1 3 up for Shaun O'Hara calls Obama's football comments 1/30/13 4 1 irresponsible Bernard Pollard: In 30 years, the NFL won't exist 1/27/13 5 5 President Barack Obama not sure he'd allow a son 1/26/13 1 4 to play football We can and should learn from Junior Seau 1/11/13 5 4 Mixed messages on brain injuries 12/16/12 Questions about concussions will linger 11/20/12 3 4 It's not macho to let kids get injured 10/25/12 5 5 NFL Confidential 8/30/12 3 3 Concussions connections 8/24/12 NFL's defenders in political fight for future of 5/23/12 5 4 football Junior Seau's suicide raises more questions about 5/14/12 5 4 the NFL' handling of concussions Rex Ryan OK with son playing football despite 5/5/12 4 1 concussion Warner, Hoge and concussion discussion 3/4/12 3 4,1 Oklahoma State Cowboys' Justin Blackmon calls 10/28/11 3 1 concussion tests annoying Duerson's death is a warning 2/23/11 5 5 Concussions are still plaguing sports across MLB, 12/30/10 4 4 NHL, MLB Fire sale: NFL's concussion fix a knee-jerk 10/26/10 4 1 reaction to long-running problem Brogley Webb209
Concussions are the most significant problem 7/27/10 5 5 facing the sport of football Concussions in focus 11/29/09 3 4 Mixed messages on brain injuries 12/16/12 5 5 Concussion connections 8/24/12 4 2
Topic Valance- Story Count 1 2 3 4 5 Sports 5 5 10 26 14 Illustrated ESPN 4 1 4 8 14
Total 9 6 14 34 28
Topic Valence 2- percentage of total for BOTH publications 1 2 3 4 5 Sports 56% 80% 71% 79% 50% Illustrated ESPN 44% 20% 29% 21% 50% Total 9.9% 6.7% 15.4% 37.4% 30.7%
Topic Valence 3- percentage of total for each publication 1 2 3 4 5 Sports 8.33% 8.33% 16.7% 43.3% 23.3% Illustrated ESPN 13.8% 3.4% 13.8% 24.1% 44.8% Total 9.9% 6.7% 15.4% 37.4% 30.7%
Tone Valance- story count 1 2 3 4 5 Sports 8 2 6 22 23 Illustrated ESPN 6 2 2 13 10
Total 14 4 8 35 33
Tone Valance 2- percentage of total for both publications 1 2 3 4 5 Brogley Webb210
Sports 57.1%, 50.0% 75%, 62.9% 69.7% Illustrated ESPN 42.9% 50.0% 25%, 37.1% 30.3% Total 14.9% 4.3% 8.5% 37.2% 35.1%
Tone Valance 3- percentage of total for each publication 1 2 3 4 5 Sports 13.1%, 3.3% 9.8% 36.1% 37.7% Illustrated ESPN 18.2% 6.1% 6.1% 39.4% 30.3% Total 14.9% 4.3% 8.5% 37.2% 35.1%
SPORTS ILLUSTRATED Valence- Non-Opinion Article Date Topic Tone Valence Valence In urban areas, it's clear death of football is 6/9/12 5 2 widely exaggerated Pac-12 launches new student athlete safety 6/3/13 3 3 initiative Roger Goodell and Chiefs CEO to host safety 11/19/13 2 3 clinic for moms of youth football players The first line of defense 10/22/13 3 3 Helmets alone won't save football from 12/19/12 3 4 concussions The Wrecking Yard 5/7/01 5 4 The Big Hit 7/30/07 3 3 A league at the crossroads 7/30/12 3 4 The Other Half of the Story 9/10/12 5 5 You'll think twice 10/22/13 3 5 Did the NFL put pressure on ESPN to divorce 8/26/13 4 5 frontline? Moving on from 'Denial' 10/9/13 5 4 Football's taboo TV topic 10/23/13 4 4 NFL's enormous challenge to make sport safer 7/23/07 4 1 NFL needs help in policy to deal with 11/24/09 4 5 dangerous concussions What ever happened to tackling? 9/5/11 3 1 Learning to play nice 10/24/11 2 4 Outrage over new helmet rule much ado about 4/2/13 2 4 nothing Staggered By the Impact 11/1/10 5 4 Brogley Webb211
A year after suicide of Penn football player, 5/10/11 5 5 questions remain Lives in the balance 12/12/11 4 1 Uncertain connections 5/14/12 5 3 Former 49er John Frank, now a doctor, tries to 1/30/13 5 4 reconcile with the game What rejection of settlement means to 1/14/14 4 3 concussion case against the NFL Fighting for themselves, fighting for the game 9/2/13 5 4 Concussion Settlement: resettling the debate 8/30/13 2 3 Former Players: Devil in the details with NFL 8/29/13 4 5 concussion settlement Concussion lawsuit settlement a win for the 8/29/13 4 4 NFL Player litigation ramps up after Seau's death, 5/11/12 2 4 but is an uphill climb Concussion lawsuit could cost NFL, whether 8/19/11 4 5 settled in or out of court Doctors show link between concussion and 4/23/07 5 3 dementia Head Games 5/6/11 5 1 Justified or not, Seau's death puts football under 5/2/12 5 4 question again Goodell focused on helping players during and 6/10/12 2 1 after their careers Neck strengthening exercises could help less 9/28/12 2 3 risk of concussions Conclusions? Too Early? 1/21/13 5 2 Abnormal brain proteins discovered in living 1/22/13 2 4 ex-NFL players Brain Teasers 11/1/10 2 3 The Damage Done 11/1/10 4 3 UCLA study examining long-term effects of 9/28/12 2 3 athletic contact Study: blood test could detect brain damage in 3/7/13 2 3 active athletes
ESPN Valence- Non-Opinion Article Date Topic Tone Valence Valence CTE, the concussion crisis, and an economic look at the 2/9/12 5 5 end of football Brogley Webb2 12
Lack of knowledge puts college athletes at risk 6/15/04 4 4 Southern California high schools look for ways to 11/23/10 3 4 protect concussed athletes OTL: Heads Up 1/9/14 2 4 With concussions being a primary concern, football 8/11/09 2 3 helmet technology Experts: Helmets can help, but won't end concussions 6/20/11 3 3 Jonah Lehrer on concussions in adolescents and the 1/10/12 4 5 future of football Ten Steps to Make the Game Safer 8/30/12 4 2 Safe youth football? 8/20/12 5 5 The price of football fame 8/27/12 5 4 His game, his rules 3/1/13 3 4 ESPN survey finds news coverage of concussions leads 8/23/12 5 5 majority of… New book League of Denial says NFL used its 9/29/13 5 4 resources and power… NFL considering rule changes amid helmet study 1/3/10 2 4 ESPN the Magazine Rules Issue 12/16/10 1 3 Ivy League to limit full-contact football workouts 7/20/11 2 3 NFL concussion issue explains Roger Goodell's harsh 3/22/12 4 2 Saints punishment Pop Warner toughens safety measures by limiting 6/13/12 2 3 contact in practice Did concussion contribute to Nathan Stiles death? 11/17/10 5 5 Patrick Larimore on E: 60 10/30/12 4 3 Three to remember 1/27/13 5 4 George Visger, The Damage Done 1/29/13 5 5 Dallas Cowboys legend Tony Dorsett's issues with 11/7/13 5 4 CTE hit home Settlement details in NFL concussion lawsuit may 1/7/14 4 5 concern players Older players may be cut from NFL concussion lawsuit 9/18/13 4 5 settlement Litigation on health issues is the nuclear ticking time 9/3/13 4 5 bomb in football Players initially sought $2 billion-plus from NFL in 8/31/13 4 5 concussion suit Concussions in football get attention of state 1/28/10 2 3 governments Roger Goodell grilled by Congress on head injuries 10/28/09 5 3 All 32 teams must send doctors, trainers to meeting 5/1/07 5 4 NFL to post sternly worded concussion warning poster 5/21/10 4 3 Brogley Webb213
in locker rooms Dave Duerson has brain damage at time of suicide 5/2/11 5 3 The woman who would save football 8/17/12 1 2 Neuropsychological testing for concussions might not 8/23/12 2 5 be panacea NFL reports remain inconsistent 12/13/12 2 5 How multiple research groups and the NFL battled over 4/28/13 5 4 Junior Seau's brain to lead the science of concussions Central figure in NFL's concussion crisis appointed 8/22/13 3 5 years ago to league position by commissioner Paul Tagliabue, his patient College football concussions 10/10/13 4 4 Report: Study Shows higher dementia risk for NFL 9/30/09 5 3 players Junior Seau had brain disease CTE 1/10/13 5 4 Doctor Yes 11/6/06 5 5 Virginia Tech research provides much needed data, 7/9/11 2 4 system for rating sports equipment Study- Impact of kids' football head hits as severe as 2/21/12 4 3 college game’s The Hit System 6/22/12 2 3 Significant advances being made in concussion 8/30/12 1 3 research at universities nationwide Study finds former NFL players unusually prone to 9/5/12 4 3 dying from degenerative brain disease Boston University researchers discover 28 new cases 12/1/12 2 3 of chronic brain disease UCLA study finds signs of CTE in living former NFL 1/22/13 2 3 players Two prominent concussion researchers including NFL 4/4/13 4 3 adviser served as paid consultants to law firms suing the NFL on behalf of players Report details concussion risks for high school athletes 10/30/13 4 3 Researchers inundated with requests from former 11/14/13 2 3 college, pro football players Pop Warner youth football participation drops, NFL 11/13/13 5 3 concussion crisis seen as a causal factor
Valence tables for Non-Opinion stories
Topic Valance- Story Count Brogley Webb214
1 2 3 4 5 Sports 0 11 7 10 13 Illustrated ESPN 3 13 4 15 17 Total 3 24 11 25 30
Topic Valence 2- percentage of total for both publications 1 2 3 4 5 Sports 0.0% 45.8% 63.6% 40.0% 43.3% Illustrated ESPN 100.0% 54.2% 36.4% 60.0% 56.7% Total 3.2% 25.8% 11.8% 26.9% 32.2%
Topic Valence 3- percentage of total for each publication 1 2 3 4 5 Sports 0.0% 26.8% 17.1% 25.0% 31.7% Illustrated ESPN 5.8% 25.0% 7.69% 28.8% 32.7% Total 3.2% 25.8% 11.8% 26.9% 32.2%
Tone Valance- story count 1 2 3 4 5 Sports 5 2 13 14 7 Illustrated ESPN 0 3 21 14 14
Total 5 5 34 28 21
Tone Valance 2- percentage of total for BOTH publications 1 2 3 4 5 Sports 100.0% 40.0% 38.2% 50.0% 33.3% Illustrated ESPN 0.0% 60.0% 61.8% 50.0% 66.7% Total 5.4% 5.4% 36.6% 30.1% 22.6%
Tone Valance 3- percentage of total for each publication 1 2 3 4 5 Sports 12.2% 4.9% 31.7% 34.1% 17.1% Brogley Webb215
Illustrated ESPN 0.0% 5.8% 40.4% 26.9% 26.9% Total 5.4% 5.4% 36.6% 30.1% 22.6%