Portraying Tiger Woods: Characterizations of a "Black" Athlete in a "White" Sport

Abstract

Communication and sport scholars have built a large body of research concerning descriptions employed about White and Black athletes in the media, but Tiger Woods, being part Black, represents a new type of challenge when assessing stereotypes of athletes. This study employs a database of 2,989 descriptors and classifies these evaluations into 11 categories for analysis. Results indicate that Tiger Woods was portrayed as being more likely to succeed because of experience than were other golfers. Additionally, Woods was characterized as failing because of loss of concentration and composure, whereas other golfers were not described in these termsas frequently. There was also a decreased frequency of comments regarding Woods' body as compared to other golfers. As a result, the reasons for Woods' success do not fit traditional stereotypes of the Black athlete, but the explanations for failure did match previously studied Black stereotypes. When Woods won, he was not portrayed as Black, but when he was not as successful he was more likely to be characterized using traditional stereotypes of Black athletes. Implications are drawn at the methodological, pedagogical, and applied levels. sport Tiger Woods ethnicity media golf