Below is a final paper submitted and revised by Jonathan Safir for his Approaches to Media Studies class at Vassar College. Thought it was applicable enough to post.
Media and Technology Transforming Sports: The Statistical Revolution in Basketball and the Change in Spectatorship
The way in which humans view sporting events has changed drastically over the course of time. More specifically, Generation Y watches a game differently than the Baby Boomers. At its core, how we use the phrase “watching the game” means the same today as it did 50 years ago. However, as it is more critically analyzed, many different people can be watching for many different parts or subtleties of the game. As a diehard fan, one can watch hours on hours of games for pure entertainment. As a coach, one can break down each part of the game and create endless hours of film to watch and learn from. As more and more information becomes available, coaches can watch games to track various statistics that are used to create a more sophisticated and enhanced scouting report. This has created a rift in which watching games is no longer a necessity. With access to websites like www.kenpom.com and www.mysynergysports.com, basketball coaches have alternative ways of analyzing film, footage, and accessing statistical data. Advancements in media and technological capabilities have played a monumental role in how statistics are not only measured but also utilized in the game of basketball.
