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Writer's pictureSonic Writing
Nov 14, 201810 min read

Research Pieces

Occasionally, I do in-depth research pieces in sport. See below for what I mean:



Comparing press conference styles of sports managers

A press conference is a voluntary presentation or interview of information to the media. It is used to make announcement and answer questions. The person who is being interviewed in a press conference plays an important role in deciding how information is presented and to who it is presented. In soccer, the role of press conferences is used to get post and pre match information; such as team news, potential starting line-ups and reaction to games. This essay hopes to compare the press conference styles of Arsenal Manager Arsène Wenger and Chelsea manager José Mourinho (2014) by looking at their respective pre-game press conferences on 21 March 2014.


The press conference that took place on the 21 March 2014 was before an English Premiership League (EPL) home game for Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium vs. Chelsea. The occasion was special for Arsène Wenger as it was his 1000th game in charge of Arsenal. The game also had an extra bit to it as in a previous press conference José Mourinho called Wenger a “specialist in failure”.


There is often a perception that Mourinho uses press conferences to gain a tactical advantage before games or in the long run for a title. At a press conference on 7 February 2014, he said that “Everything I say and do are mind games. The only thing that is not minds games are the results” (Mourinho, 2014). It seems that he sees these press conferences as an opportunity to psychologically outwit destabilise opposition teams. On the contrary, Wenger does not believe press conferences can have any effect on the game.


In the pre-game press conference before the Chelsea vs. Arsenal game, Wenger was asked about the effect he believes these talks can have. He said he does not believe a team can gain a tactical advantage from press conferences and that it is only what the team does on the pitch that gives them the upper hand. He said that Mourinho might be more entertaining to listen to, but what he says does not give him the upper hand before a game. It can therefore be deduced that the two managers approaches press conferences with different styles. Wenger sees it as a place to answer question and provide the media with relevant information. Likewise Mourinho also shares important team information, however he also users it as a platform to play mind games with oppositions and perhaps gain an advantage before the referee blows the whistle.


Mourinho and Wenger also display different styles when responding to journalists at the press conference. Mourinho’s replies to questions seem to be short, and concise. He answered all the questions he was asked in two or three sentences. He also answered questions in a more aggressive fashion, and does not answer all questions asked by journalists. Mourinho was asked in the press conference whether he regrets comments he made about Wenger where he said “Wenger is a specialist in failure”. He angrily responded to the journalists by saying it is an isolated question and unrelated and refused the question. On the other hand, Wenger seems to provide lengthier explanations and more detailed answers. When Wenger was asked about the “specialist in failure” comment Mourinho had made, he replied to the journalist. He said he prefers to keep his personal feelings out of the game, and act according to the values of the club. It became apparent that when comparing these two managers, Mourinho seems to choose the questions he would like to respond to; whereas Wenger replies to most of the questions he is asked.


Despite Chelsea having approached the game against Arsenal on top of the EPL, Mourinho claimed in the press conference that Chelsea were not title favourites. He went as far to say that his team is not in the title race. He was asked about Arsenal’s title challenge, to which he said that he does not talk about other teams, only his own team. In contrast, Wenger still spoke of the possibility of Arsenal winning the title and possibility winning the double (FA Cup and EPL). This was despite Arsenal trailing Chelsea by 4 points. Wenger also replied to journalists asking him about Chelsea. He said that Chelsea were title favourites and that nobody could say that Chelsea were not in the race for the EPL title. It is clear that there are two different approaches from the managers. Mourinho played down EPL title challenge talks of Chelsea, and also chose to only focus on his own side. Wenger on the other hand openly spoke about the possibility of winning the EPL title and also spoke about the opposition team.


The game was a between two teams at the top of the Barclays Premier League table and also a London derby. When both managers were asked of the importance of the game, there were two very different answers. Wenger said that it was the “game of the season”; a very important match against their great rivals Chelsea. On the contrary, Mourinho said that it was just another game, and another opportunity to get 3 points. He said it was the same amount of significance as a previous game he played against Aston Villa. He did not see it as significant that he was going to play Arsenal.


Mourinho also seems to speak as a football analyst about his club, and not only as the coach when answering questions at the press conference. He was asked about an upcoming Chelsea draw, and was asked who he would prefer to face in the UEFA Champions League (UCL). He said all the sides are tough, and perhaps the other teams would like to face Chelsea. He said all the big teams with great history in the UCL are in the quarter-final draw. When asked if what he thinks of David Moyes’ (manager of Manchester United) comments that Manchester United could win the UCL, he said they should ask David. This shows consistency in his answering, where he chooses to only answer questions on Chelsea. Conversely, Wenger has a different approach. He spoke of Chelsea and possible fatigue they may have due to a UCL played against Galatasary. He also replied to comments of a different manager (Mourinho) and of a different team. Moreover, he spoke of other teams title challenge while also speaking of Arsenal’s title challenge.


By analysing the styles of press conferences of Mourinho and Wenger, clear differences have been established. Wenger seems to be more protective of his team, and also speaks of other teams. He also provides lengthier answers and answers most questions asked by journalists. Mourinho on the other hand, chooses to only focus on Chelsea in press conferences. He also seems to be more vocally self-critical of himself and his team’s performances, sometimes answering as a football analyst and not a coach. More research needs to be done on the psychological impact press conferences has on players and whether or not it can influence the outcome of matches.


References


  • Davis, T. 2014. Everything I say and do is mind games, says Mourinho. 7 February. Available: http://uk.reuters.com/article/2014/02/07/uk-soccer-england-chelsea-mourinho-idUKBREA160ZM20140207 [9 April 2014]

  • Mourinho, J. 2014. Jose Mourinho pre Arsenal - 21 3 2014. [Video file], Available: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qPJUaQ6uyUY [8 April 2014]

  • Wenger, A. 2014. Arsene Wenger Press Conference 1000th Game - Chelsea vs. Arsenal, [Video file]. Available: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kKP1FZ1CJME [8 April 2014 wQKO!>


 

The effect of Twitter on sports broadcasting


Twitter launched on March 21, 2006. Today (May, 2014), there are about 1 billion registered users, 300 billion tweets have been sent and the company is estimated to be worth 10 billion dollars. It has now developed to a tool which is not just a form of social media, but a powerful tool of mass communication. It has influenced the way in which sports broadcasting operates. This essay will look at the many ways in which Twitter has influenced sports broadcasting. The Indian Premier League will be used as an example to identify the positives and pitfalls of twitter and sports broadcasting.


Traditional sources of media include word of mouth, tip-offs, and media events. Twitter has emerged as a different source of news for sports broadcasters. There are literally thousands of sport stars and team twitter accounts. It has become necessary for sports broadcasters to constantly browse these twitter accounts to be the first to release news. If not, it becomes potentially problematic for broadcasters who aim to be the first to report news. A classic example of this is former Liverpool player Ryan Babel and how he used twitter.

On 31 August, 2010, (transfer deadline day for English Premier League clubs), Sky Sports News committed to report every transfer, every rumour, every club transaction in a minute-by-minute fashion on their dedicated sports channel. They reported at 2.10pm that Ryan Babel was helicopter bound to London to have talks with Tottenham Hotspur. Then at 2.50pm their presenters claimed he was spotted having talks with West Ham United. At about 4.40pm, Ryan Babel updated his twitter account with two successive tweets:

“I’m going no where (sic)”.
“#LFC all the way…#ynwa!!!”.

Then later on in the day he cheekily tweeted:


“My Helicopter pilot called me for permission to fly someone real quick today”.

The problem for Sky Sports News is that at the time they were not adapted to reading tweets and using it as a source of information. Only at 5.30pm had they reported Babel’s tweets and said he is staying at Liverpool. This information however became insignificant because the audience interested in the deadline day transfers knew long before Sky Sports News had reported it, as a result of receiving the information from twitter. This demonstrates how a news stations such as Sky Sports News had to adjust their broadcasting style to ensure that they are reporting the latest news.


This is clear in the broadcasting style in 2014, where they read tweets of players in almost every broadcast. Supersport, a sports broadcaster in South Africa, also regularly show tweets on its channel SuperSport Blitz. Tweets of fans and players are also being shown on shows such as Monday Night Football, Inside Edge and Boots & All. Broadcasters have realised that the most current information of players can be seen via tweets and thus have adapted their broadcasting techniques to accommodate this.


Not only has Twitter affected news broadcasters of sport such as SkySport News and SuperSport Blitz, it has also had an impact on live broadcasting of sport events. The hashtag (#) function is used by broadcasters to attract audiences on social media to the TV screens.

An example of how this has happened is if one looks at the broadcasting of the Indian Premier League (IPL). Broadcasters of the IPL has committed to a frenzied twitter campaign. The screen of an IPL match on television contains hundreds of tweets throughout its broadcasting. The screenshot of an IPL television broadcast contains the live pictures of cricket, the score, and a constant stream of tweets at the bottom of the screen.


Here are some tweets that have reached the screens of television during the 2014 IPL:





These were tweets in response to an altercation between Mitchell Starc and Kieron Pollard. Not all tweets are put on screen. Tweets are moderated and strategically chosen. There are four reasons why tweets possibly make it onto the television screen (in the IPL):


  1. The tweets were by someone famous i.e. a celebrity, former sport star (ex-cricket players), commentators, expert cricket analysts etc. The point is that tweets of famous stars get tweeted regularly on screens. The reasoning may be that fans are interested in seeing what famous stars have to say.

  2. The tweet contains something funny or humorous. Over 100 000 tweets are sent during an IPL match. There has to be something different about the tweet for it to appear on the TV screen, and often a sarcastic or funny comment does the trick.

  3. The tweet presents an interesting question or logical argument.

  4. Tweets are shown on screen to exhibit the passion of supporters across the globe.

Broadcasters want to create a culture of identification with IPL teams and therefore show the tweets of supporters on the TV screens. Its purpose is to create a global conversation and showing tweets on television is not the only way the IPL are strategically using twitter.

There are constant “twitter battles” going on, which measures how popular a team or player is by the amount of mentions they get on twitter. This is shown on the television screens.


Example:



IPL Twitter Battle: Left is Shakib Al Hasan with 56% of tweet popularity and right Ravindra Jadeja with 44%.

Tweets are integrated with TV during the IPL. An example of this is when a poll is run via twitter by commentators on television. These results are then put on TV as below:

Young Talent: Sanju Samson of Rajasthan Royals pictured with the votes via twitter coming in at the bottom of the screen for the best young prospect of the IPL.




Fans are able to vote via twitter for preferred camera shot, which the IPL broadcasters uses as data to adjust its production.

As seen above, IPL broadcasting has been influenced by twitter to the extent where fans determine how the cameraman has to do his job. The twitter-IPL initiative creates an atmosphere which gives fans more power in how the sport is presented on television. Typically, a normal televised cricket game would have the score at the bottom, how much runs are required, run-rate, overs bowled, and speed of the ball delivered. With the advent of twitter, the screen is much busier. There are constant tweets popping up of former cricketers, celebrities and fans across the globe. These tweets generally appear on the bottom right hand side of the screen. This may however distract viewers from the actual cricket on screen.


Ajit Mohan, the head of Starsports.com of the IPL has reported that traffic has gone up by 40 per cent as a result of twitter interaction. For television broadcasters, this poses a massive challenge. Consumers are turning to twitter to get live updates on the IPL, which results in a drop in viewership on television screens. Experts have found that viewers don’t have time to watch an entire IPL match, but rather prefer to see the best six or catch of a match. This is what twitter provides. It however steals the audience from television screens, and results in lower viewership and advertisers are less interested in making deals with sports broadcasters.


One way in which the IPL has tried to resolve this is by starting something called the “Twitter IPL calendar”. This is an initiative which allows fans to simply tweet to @IPL with the hashtag #Calendar to receive a reminder of when all IPL games will start. This is a strategic initiative to increase viewership by reminding audiences when the games will be screened – all via twitter. The broadcasters have also created “the IPL pulse” which reports on the most talked about players, trends and popular conversations of the IPL. There is also the #IPLSelfie hashtag which encourages fans to take selfies (an up-close picture of oneself) and have it featured on the IPL website.

Twitter is a powerful mass communication tool and when combined with sports broadcasting, creates a really exciting product. The IPL has in many ways used it effectively to increase viewership and to create an excitement around the tournament. On the other hand sports broadcasters may see a drop in television viewership due to its audience being on twitter and thus result in a drop in revenue. is The challenge then is to create a balance whereby Twitter and sports broadcasting are used in a symbiotic fashion.

References


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