From Jack Johnson to LeBron James: Sports, Media, and the Color Line

645 Pages·2016·4.442 MB·English

by  Chris Lamb

FROM JACK JOHNSON TO LEBRON JAMES

From J A C K J O H N S O N
to L E B R O N J A M E S
SPORTS, MEDIA, AND
THE COLOR LINE
Edited by Chris Lamb
UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA PRESS | LINCOLN AND LONDON
© 2016 by Chris Lamb
Source acknowledgments for the use of copyrighted
material appear on pages 603– 6, which
constitute an extension of the copyright page.
All rights reserved
Manufactured in the United States of America
Library of Congress Cataloging- in- Publication Data
From Jack Johnson to Lebron James: sports, media,
and the color line / edited by Chris Lamb.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978- 0- 8032-7 680- 2 (paperback: alk. paper)
ISBN 978- 0- 8032- 8524- 8 (epub)
ISBN 978- 0- 8032- 8525- 5 (mobi)
ISBN 978- 0- 8032- 8526- 2 (pdf)
1. Mass media and sports— United States. 2. Sports—
Social aspects— United States. 3. African American
athletes. 4. Discrimination in sports— United States.
5. Racism in sports— United States. 6. Racism in
mass media— United States. I. Lamb, Chris, 1958–
GV742.F76 2016
070.4'49796— dc23
2015028762
Set in Lyon by M. Scheer.
Designed by N. Putens.
CONTENTS
List of Tables .............................................................ix
Introduction .............................................................. 1
CHRIS LAMB
1. Framing White Hopes: The Press, Social Drama,
and the Era of Jack Johnson, 1908– 1915 ...............................19
PHILLIP J. HUTCHISON
2. Jesse Owens, a Black Pearl amidst an Ocean of Fury: A Case
Study of Press Coverage of the 1936 Berlin Olympic Games ........52
PAMELA C. LAUCELLA
3. Multifarious Hero: Joe Louis, American Society, and
Race Relations during World Crisis, 1935–1 945 ..................... 86
DOMINIC J. CAPECI JR. AND MARTHA WILKERSON
4. Outside the Pale: The Exclusion of Blacks from the
National Football League, 1934– 1946 ................................117
THOMAS G. SMITH
5. Democracy on the Field: The Black Press
Takes On White Baseball ............................................. 148
CHRIS LAMB AND GLEN L. BLESKE
6. A Nod from Destiny: How Sportswriters for White and
African American Newspapers Covered Kenny Washington’s
Entry into the National Football League ............................170
RONALD BISHOP
7. Jackie Robinson and the American Mind:
Journalistic Perceptions of the Reintegration of Baseball .........199
WILLIAM SIMONS
8. “ This Is It!” The Public Relations Campaign Waged by
Wendell Smith and Jackie Robinson to Cast Robinson’s
First Season as an Unqualified Success ...............................237
BRIAN CARROLL
9. Integrating New Year’s Day: The Racial Politics of
College Bowl Games in the American South .......................267
CHARLES H. MARTIN
10. Main Bout, Inc., Black Economic Power, and Professional
Boxing: The Canceled Muhammad Ali–E rnie Terrell Fight ........293
MICHAEL EZRA
11. A “Race” for Equality: Print Media Coverage of the 1968
Olympic Protest by Tommie Smith and John Carlos ................332
JASON PETERSON
12. Sports Illustrated’s African American Athlete
Series as Socially Responsible Journalism ...........................357
REED SMITH
13. Rebellion in the Kingdom of Swat: Sportswriters,
African American Athletes, and Coverage of Curt Flood’s
Lawsuit against Major League Baseball ..............................383
WILLIAM GILLIS
14. Chasing Babe Ruth: An Analysis of Newspaper Coverage of
Hank Aaron’s Pursuit of the Career Home Run Record ........... 417
MAUREEN SMITH
15. Arthur Ashe: An Analysis of Newspaper Journalists’
Coverage of USA Today’s Outing .....................................442
PAMELA C. LAUCELLA
16. Michael Jordan’s Family Values: Marketing, Meaning,
and Post- Reagan America ............................................468
MARY G. MCDONALD
17. Rush Limbaugh, Donovan McNabb, and “a Little Social
Concern”: Reflections on the Problems of Whiteness in
Contemporary American Sport ...................................... 501
DOUGLAS HARTMANN
18. I’m the King of the World: Barry Bonds
and the Race for the Record ...........................................522
LISA DORIS ALEXANDER
19. Redemption on the Field: Framing, Narrative, and
Race in Media Coverage of Michael Vick ............................534
BRYAN CARR
20. Weighing In on the Coaching Decision:
Discussing Sports and Race Online ..................................555
JIMMY SANDERSON
21. The LeBron James Decision in the Age of Obama ..................582
JAMAL L. RATCHFORD
Source Acknowledgments ............................................603
Contributors ...........................................................607
Index .....................................................................613

TABLES
1. Positive, Negative, and Neutral Frames in Vick Coverage ........544
2. Narrative Frame Types in Media Coverage of Michael Vick .......545
3. Sources of Redemption in Vick Coverage ............................545
4. Positive and Negative Frames across Time .........................546
5. Narrative Frames across Time ....................................... 547
6. Sources of Redemption in Vick Coverage ........................... 547
7. Commentary Frequencies in Participants
Responding to espn.com ...............................................563
8. Coding Elements for Participant Themes ..........................566