Selling out (in) sport management: practically evaluating the state of the American (Sporting) Union

Abstract

When teaching in Sport Management programs professors are often forced to respond to the actions and teachings of professionals in the field. According to the study by Kincheloe & Steinberg many of these normalized and, indeed celebrated, behaviors are actions that are part and parcel of the 'recovery movement' which (re)inscribe new forms of colonization, sexism, racism, classism and so on. Given that these performances are often considered 'good business practice', it is now more important than ever to challenge these conventions in what has been termed the postneoliberal moment.This paper, therefore, analyzes and explains how the mundane recycling of borrowed thought has seeped into America's collegiate educational system*particularly in sport management programs. It does so through a critical examination of Amber's educational and pre-professional experience as an intern for various sporting constituencies. Further, we examine the disguised precedence and obligatory requisites of the sporting industry, which use exploitative and manipulative marketing tactics to fabricate a hyperreal milieu of sporting production and consumption. Given this context, the project at present seeks to (re)evaluate just what we, as teachers, owe our students as they venture into an economy facing 'hard times'.

Sport Without Management

“…On the supply side, however, we see that this expansion of low-wage labor "opportunities" has brought with it considerable consequences: creating a glut of skilled labor seekers in the sports industry, pulling down the average entry-level salaries, new forms of labor exploitation, and creating increased job instability for early-career practitioners (Wiest & King-White, 2013). Consider this cursory statistic: of the 266 jobs listed through the 132 professional sports franchises in the United States (NFL, MLB, NBA, WNBA, and NHL) in May of 2012, the vast majority, 188, were internships, part-time, and commission-based positions in sales and/ or (social media) marketing (approx.…”

Leveraging international partnerships for sport management programs and soccer Brand expansion

“…Overall, the program has developed strong relationships with internship partners in professional, amateur, intercollegiate, and community sport (Cunningham et al 2005;D' Abate, Youndt, and Wenzel 2009;Odio and Kerwin 2016. ) While Perlin (2012), Wiest and King-White (2013), and others have rightfully critiqued and noted the problematic and potentially exploitative nature of undergraduate internships, graduates have excellent employability and have formed a healthy alumni network. So Lock Haven students are well prepared to work with industry partners on wide range of activities.…”

Cruel Optimism in Sport Management: Fans, Affective Labor, and the Political Economy of Internships in the Sport Industry

“…Todd & Kent, 2009). Scholarship on sports internships has suggested ways to improve upon them in a way that is fair and catered to student needs (Peretto Stratta, 2004; Wiest and King-White, 2013), and examined how internships influence students’ later career decisions (Cunningham, Sagas, Dixon, Kent, & Turner, 2005; Odio, Sagas, & Kerwin, 2014). Scholars have not yet explored sports interns’ identification with, consumption of, or subjective feelings for employers in the sports industry.…”

“…Legal scholars have argued that internships often exist within ambiguous legal frameworks, leaving some interns without basic workers' rights, including legal recourse to remedy a variety of workplace events including sexual harassment, discrimination, and economic exploitation (Curiale, 2009;Ortner, 1998;Yamada, 2002). Other scholars and journalists have illuminated further structural problems with internships, calling into question the advantages that cheap, temporary, intern labor provides to private interests, while detailing the exploitation, poor working and living conditions, and anxieties about the future that many interns endure (Frenette, 2014;Perlin, 2011Perlin, , 2012Wiest & King-White, 2013).…”