Exploitation Of College Athletes Essay, Research Paper
Exploitation of College Athletes
John Paye was a star signal caller at Stanford University in the 1980s. In his senior season at Stanford, the football squad had a record of eight wins and three losingss. The twelvemonth after Paye graduated, the Cardinal s record fell to four wins and seven losingss. Economist Roger Noll of Stanford University estimates that Stanford s net operating grosss declined by $ 400,000 the twelvemonth after Paye departed, yet Paye merely received a scholarship valued at $ 17,000 ( Shropshire 72 ) . Through his athletic endowments at Stanford, he generated an tremendous sum of money for the school, yet he was non given anything besides a scholarship in return. Throughout his calling he was forced to execute so that his squad would hold a winning record. Pressures were put on him non merely from his college, but besides through the media. Because of contracts between college establishments and media personelle, college jocks are expected to execute good to obtain high evaluations for the media. The NCAA has a current seven twelvemonth $ 1.7 billion telecasting contract with CBS for the rights to telecast its work forces s hoops tourney ( Gerdy 114 ) . CBS pays this tremendous sum of money in hopes that the hoops games will pull high evaluations, therefore increasing its net income from corporations commerce. Given that both media and colleges benefit financially from their student-athletes, it seems merely just that the jocks be monetarily compensated for their athletic public presentations.
It is clear that college jocks are being exploited through the universities to which they belong. Many colleges merely look at the athletic potency of a high school pupil and non at the pupil s academic accomplishment. A survey done in 1996 showed that the mean jock on a top college football or work forces s hoops squad enters college in the bottom one-fourth of his category ( Sack and Staurowsky 96 ) . Included are jocks who can non read or complete simple mathematical jobs. They so exploit these pupils until they are injured or utilize up their four old ages of eligibility ( Student-athletes ) . Many colleges do non adequately fix their jocks for the
hereafter. They are merely concerned with the present, and how the jocks are executing on the athletic field.
Walter Byers, the executive manager of the NCAA from 1952 to 1987, says that college admittances offices and module feat jocks by taking on board ill prepared pupils and supplying them with low quality class work so that jocks can run into minimal eligibility criterions ( 299 ) . The athletic section s chief precedence is to maintain their jocks eligible for their athletic season instead than forcing them to win academically. In 1994, Clifford Adelman, a Senior Research Associate for the U.S. Department of Education, compared the academic public presentations of varsity jocks to the remainder of the pupil organic structure. He concluded that varsity football and hoops participants took longer to graduate, earned lower classs, and pursued less demanding
classs ( Byers 301 ) . By supplying them with lower degree class work, colleges are truly non comprehending these jocks as pupils. The primary focal point of these colleges seems to be the gross generated by the student-athletes.
There are many illustrations of jocks who have been pushed through college without having a proper instruction from their chosen college. Dexter Manley, a football participant from Oklahoma State University, and Kevin Ross, a hoops participant from Creighton University, both graduated without larning how to read ( Byers 298-299 ) . Both of these work forces are illustrations of hapless, academically unqualified pupils who were used and victimized by their athletic
sections. The day-to-day actions of universities should demo clearly that educating student-athletes is the primary intent of their athletic sections, and that the true step of success flexible joints upon jocks obtaining grades ( Gerdy 137 ) . In world, this is non how many universities operate. Brian Rahilly, a hoops participant for the University of Tulsa, aimed at playing in the National Basketball Association ( NBA ) and so going a sports announcer. He left school without a grade, and was quoted as stating ; I was shortchanged. There are times I feel that I was nil more than a piece of equipment, like a football or a pattern New Jersey that the Tulsa Athletic Department owned ( Byers 298 ) . Numerous jocks portion Rahilly s thoughts about the thought of going a professional jock, and the elect 1s do go professionals. Many of these jocks are go forthing school before their eligibility is up and before they earn their grade. This is one ground why the NCAA is looking into giving intercollegiate jocks some fiscal alleviation beyond scholarships ( Wulf ) . This fiscal alleviation would at least show that universities appreciate the attempts put away by their jocks. Along with the thought of going a professional, assorted pupil jocks feel like they were simply belongings of the athletic section, used to financially help their
college.
College jocks are clearly non treated as normal college pupils. John Gerdy, a member of the college athletic community for many old ages, states that athletic sections view scholarship pupil jocks as belongings, bought and paid for with an athletic scholarship ( 139 ) . Because they are paying for the athlete s instruction, they feel they have the right to command his or her activities. The athletic scholarship besides contributes to the disaffection of student-athletes from the general pupil organic structure ( Gerdy 139 ) . The general pupil organic structure positions pupil athletes with scholarships like paid employees brought to the college to increase their school s visibleness. Coaches besides look at student-athletes as their employees whom they can command. They feel like they can restrict their jocks activities to merely those they believe to be of import. The NCAA s mission is to protect jocks from development by professional and commercial endeavors, yet the colleges and athletic conferences exploit their immature participants ( Byers 346 ) . Coachs are able to command what indorsements are used by their squad, whereas the participants have no say. Because of these ties
between colleges and commercial endeavors, student-athletes feel force per unit area to execute to the best of their ability in order to adequately stand for their subscribers.
Student-athletes are under a enormous sum of force per unit area while in college. They have to beguile their school assignment, pattern agendas, going committednesss, and public dealingss responsibilities. But most significantly, they are chiefly used by the universities to increase gross and addition exposure for the school. The force per unit area of doing schools look good to foreigners is an accent to jocks. Universities benefit straight in the signifier of immense gate grosss, contributions to university plans, telecasting grosss and national visibleness from jocks public presentations ( Hart-Nibbrig and Cottingham 27-28 ) . For this ground, jocks are greatly pressured to convey in every bit much money for their school as possible. Because of the thrust for a successful athleticss squad to convey in the most money possible for their college, student-athletes are faced with more force per unit areas than the mean college pupil.
Aside from force per unit areas placed on student-athletes from their university, there are changeless force per unit areas inflicted by the media. The enlargement of major college athleticss events to the point where they have become of import subscribers to public amusement is partly due to the development of the media in mass society ( Hart-Nibbrig and Cottingham 17 ) . Television has in fact replaced universities and colleges as the manufacturer of intercollegiate athleticss. Crucial to this latest athleticss detonation was the outgrowth of telecasting as the most powerful medi
um of mass communicating ( Hart-Nibbrig and Cottingham 26 ) . It is because of telecasting that colleges exploit their participants to increase gross. When telecasting foremost broadcasted games, it increased attending at the bowls by 5 % ( Lawrence 97 ) . Not merely are the schools gaining money through the indorsements and telecasting contracts, but besides the exposure increases their ticket gross revenues. The success of the telecasting scheduling is due to the public presentation of the jocks. If the games are non exciting, evaluations go down. If evaluations go down, featuring events will be pulled from the telecasting scheduling. But today, with its turning audience entreaty, telecasting is increasing the size of the markets for amusement merchandises of universities, and therefore is straight lending to the enlisting and development of the jocks signed under scholarships to make one thing: perform ( Hart-Nibbrig and Cottingham 28 ) . Colleges and universities do non desire to lose the exposure
that they receive through the mass media, so jocks are instructed to do the events entertaining. Although the jocks ever try their best to win, the market value of a given college jock is due to the effects of observers and the media concentrating attending on that single s accomplishments. So in portion, the media controls the hereafter of many college jocks.
Aside from the media placing added emphasis on jocks to execute, the media exploits the jock s value as a individual. American television/entertainment civilization has as its foundation a form of production, ingestion, and selling of beginnings ( Gerdy 32 ) . By utilizing jocks as hoardings, companies use the media in college athleticss to advance their merchandises. Corporations such as Nike and Reebok have contracts with college squads so that the participants wear the company s logo on their New Jerseies. While colleges and managers receive money for these contracts, the jocks merely receive the apparels they wear. It merely seems just that the jock, who is being
used as a hoarding, receive some of the money for which he or she is bring forthing for the company, school, and manager.
The greatest negative facet of the media impacting college jocks today is telecasting. Television is the mobilising force that has shaped the foundations for the development of athleticss to a new phase of corporate organisation, for the presentation of athleticss on telecasting helps to incorporate
more to the full the net income motivation into the organisation of intercollegiate athleticss ( Hart-Nibbrig and Cottingham 39 ) . College athleticss are no longer merely about holding merriment, but about which squad can hold the most games televised. Merely the most naif person would believe that attempts to increase national rankings and telecasting exposure, despite the cost of acquiring there are non the primary motivation forces in big-time college athleticss ( Hart-Nibbrig and Cottingham 26 ) .
Presents, overseas telegram telecasting offers smaller schools opportunities to be seen on telecasting and to have money for their engagement. Some such overseas telegram webs are Entertainment, Sports Programming Network, and ESPN. These Stationss have led the manner in developing more specialised plans covering a wide scope of featuring events. Because overseas telegram telecasting allows recruiters to place athleticss endowment at smaller, non-Division I schools, the added exposure increases motion of college stars into the professional ranks. How can we maintain these jocks in college so that they can have the instruction they need for their hereafter?
The reply to the old inquiry is to pay jocks beyond the bound of a full drive scholarship. Some college decision makers and athleticss functionaries feel strongly that an athletic scholarship is more than adequate compensation for the services that athletes provide. On the other manus, college jocks frequently require more money than they receive under the regulations ( Shropshire 79 ) . The NCAA does non let jocks to gain any money if they are having a full tuition, room and board scholarship. All other pupils can sell their accomplishments, or work portion clip, but non jocks. Student-athletes can non prosecute in the same sort of activities and are specifically out to capitalise on the accomplishments that 1000000s of people volitionally pay to see ( Lawrence 143 ) . This hinders the ability for jocks to hold money for twenty-four hours to twenty-four hours disbursals. Archie Manning, male parent of the University of Tennessee quarterback Peyton manning stated, I ve been outside dressing suites, and I m ready to travel to dinner with my household, and I see jocks traveling back to the residence halls who can t afford to make anything ( Wulf ) . Back when Archie played, they received $ 15 for wash, and nowadays they don t even acquire that. Now, television-rights fees have increased exponentially, and
some shoe money has pushed the income of some managers into seven figures ( Wulf ) . The managers net income from indorsements and telecasting contracts, so why shouldn t the jocks? Some managers wages are over one million dollars a twelvemonth while the participants net incomes haven t changed appreciably above that of 39 old ages ago ( Byers 10 ) . Many people might reason that jocks should play merely for
the love of the game and should non put such an accent on money. However, it is wilfully naif to anticipate jocks non to care about money visual perception as though many of them lack the fiscal resources for a comfy life style.
A major ground why paying college jocks is non presently implementd is because many think that universities would lose a batch of money in the procedure. However, this is clearly non true. When looking at how much telecasting wages for college featuring events, the sum of money required to pay jocks adequately is instead little. If you were to multiply $ 100 a month times
nine months times the 130,000 Division I work forces and adult females who juggle athleticss and faculty members, the consequence is $ 117 million. That is about what a web would pay to telecast the college Super Bowl ( Wulf ) . That is merely one featuring event covering the possible wages of all the Division I athletes. It is a fact that 90 % of elect college jocks have had contacts with agents ( Kirwan ) . This would non be the instance if the jocks were paid a wage, for so they would no longer necessitate the aid of an agent. Some of the money given to these jocks could be put in a trust fund, collectible after graduation. This would extinguish jocks turning professional excessively early in their calling and non having the instruction they need to acquire in front in life. As shown by the illustrations
above of jocks being exploited by their several colleges and the mass media, jocks should be given a pecuniary amount above a scholarship for their engagement in college sports.
Plants Cited
Byers, Walter. Unsportsmanlike Behavior: Exploiting College Athletes. Ann Arbor: Uracil of Michigan P, 1995.
Gerdy, John R. The Successful College Athletic Program. Phoenix, AZ: Onyx Press, 1997.
Hart-Nibbrig, Nand E. , and Clement Cottingham. The Political Economy of College Sports. Lexington, MA: Lexington Books, 1986.
Kirwan, William E. Protecting college jocks from unscrupulous agents. The Chronicle of Higher Education. 43 ( 1996 ) . 17 Nov. 1999.
Lawrence, Paul R. Unsportsmanlike Conduct: the National Collegiate Athletic Association and the Business of College Football. New York: Praeger, 1987.
Sack, Allen L. , and Ellen J. Staurowsky. College Athletes For Hire. Westport, CT: Praeger, 1998.
Shropshire, Kenneth L. Agents of Opportunity: Sports Agents and Corruption in Collegiate Sports. Philadelphia: Uracil of Pennsylvania P, 1990.
Student-athletes cut back to athletes. Commentary. The Atlanta Journal the Atlanta Constitution.14 Mar. 1999. 16 Nov. 1999
Wulf, Steve. Lug that ball, lift that gross. Time. 21 Oct. 1996. 16 Nov. 1999
