SPORT 305 : Sport Media and Marketing

Education and Social Work

2024 Semester Two (1245) (15 POINTS)

Course Prescription

Explores the roles and consequences of media representations of sport and physicality. Develops knowledge of the discourses that influence how sport, the body, and health are understood. Develops skills in marketing communications used to promote sport and physical wellbeing. Investigates issues emerging from the use of social media by sporting organisations, groups and individuals.

Course Overview

This course examines the relationship between sport and the media, including how sports organisations and athletes promote themselves. Topics include sports journalism, broadcasting practice, the live and mediated game event, sport celebrity and online fan communities, the production of commentary, mediation of race, gender, and nationalism, sports marketing and branding, the effects of AI, and sports media ethics.  It helps to be interested in sport but you do not have to be an expert, because the course engages with wider social, professional, and political debates such as national identity, gender, celebrity and media representation, placed within the context of sport. Students will learn about and produce a sports column, the best of which will be submitted to news outlets for consideration. The final assignment involves doing original research on sports media or sports marketing and producing a research report. There are weekly quizzes to encourage reading of required resources. Tutorials are focused on knowledge and practical skill development for course assignments. COMMS students interested in a career in sports journalism/broadcasting or sports communication/marketing may be able to use this course to secure a COMMS 307 internship in a sports media organisation.

Course Requirements

Restriction: COMMS 303, SPORT 203

Capabilities Developed in this Course

Capability 1: People and Place
Capability 2: Sustainability
Capability 3: Knowledge and Practice
Capability 4: Critical Thinking
Capability 5: Solution Seeking
Capability 6: Communication
Capability 7: Collaboration
Capability 8: Ethics and Professionalism

Learning Outcomes

By the end of this course, students will be able to:
  1. Understand and describe how media representation influences and is influenced by cultural discourses (Capability 1.2, 1.3, 3.1 and 6.1)
  2. Research, analyse and communicate information related to a current issue in mediated sport (Capability 2.1, 4.1, 6.1, 7.1 and 8.1)
  3. Demonstrate the ability to produce a range of effective media communications (Capability 1.3, 3.1 and 8.1)
  4. Develop an understanding of how sports media and marketing work as professions (Capability 1.2, 5.1, 6.2 and 8.1)

Assessments

Assessment Type Percentage Classification
Weekly Quiz 10% Individual Coursework
Sports Column 40% Individual Coursework
Research Project 50% Group & Individual Coursework
Assessment Type Learning Outcome Addressed
1 2 3 4
Weekly Quiz
Sports Column
Research Project

To pass this course, students must submit all assessments and achieve at least 50% for the overall course.

Workload Expectations

This course is a standard 15 point course and students are expected to spend 10 hours per week involved in each 15 point course that they are enrolled in.

For this course, each week you can expect a 2-hour lecture (24 hours across semester); a 1-hour tutorial (12 hours across semester); 2 hours of reading and taking the weekly quiz (24 hours across the semester); and 5 hours of preparing for and refining assignments (70-80 hours across the semester, often concentrated in the month before an assignment is due).

Delivery Mode

Campus Experience

Attendance is expected at lectures and tutorials. Although lectures will be available as recordings approximately 24 hours later, in-person attendance is important because technology does not always work and most lectures also involve in-class discussions which are difficult to capture online. Tutorials are not recorded.
The course may include 1 live online event with current sports journalists and sports marketing/communications staff.
The activities for the course are scheduled as a standard weekly timetable delivery.

Learning Resources

Course materials are made available in a learning and collaboration tool called Canvas which also includes reading lists and lecture recordings (where available).

Please remember that the recording of any class on a personal device requires the permission of the instructor.

Student Feedback

At the end of every semester students will be invited to give feedback on the course and teaching through a tool called SET or Qualtrics. The lecturers and course co-ordinators will consider all feedback and respond with summaries and actions.

Your feedback helps teachers to improve the course and its delivery for future students.

Class Representatives in each class can take feedback to the department and faculty staff-student consultative committees.

Feedback from 2022: Overall, students found the assignment-focused tutorials very useful, the quizzes a good motivation to complete the expected course readings, the taught content engaging and interesting, and enjoyed the chance to write like a 'real' sports journalist. Those who did not have a sport background found the course more challenging. Many students commented on the difficulty of attending a late-scheduled lecture time (4-6pm). 
Students wrote: 
  • "I liked how the lectures encouraged interaction between and contribution from the class; interacting with people next to you or answering questions in front of the class"
  • "Toni used the tutorials constructively, enabling both group discussion and 1–on–1 teaching time during these classes to ensure students would excel in their assignments"
  • "when we submit quiz answers, the lecturer writes these small 'comments' if we choose the right answer, which explains the answer in more detail. This is super helpful and I also appreciate the time taken to do this. :)"
Following student feedback, for 2023, I will:
  • Focus the unmarked weekly tutorial worksheets to focus on practical skill development
  • Review the Canvas page content for clarity and effective navigation
  • Ensure that all course content is available on Canvas at the start of semester

Other Information

We know that students often go through tough times during the semester or see their friends struggling. There is a lot of help out there. Don't hesitate to approach your lecturer or tutor. 
If your mental health and ability to cope is being impacted, look at this page, https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/students/student-support/personal-support/student-health-counselling/talking-about-mental-health.html

A Faculty of Arts Canvas page also has links to various support services in the University and wider community: https://canvas.auckland.ac.nz/courses/33894

Academic Integrity

The University of Auckland will not tolerate cheating, or assisting others to cheat, and views cheating in coursework as a serious academic offence. The work that a student submits for grading must be the student's own work, reflecting their learning. Where work from other sources is used, it must be properly acknowledged and referenced. This requirement also applies to sources on the internet. A student's assessed work may be reviewed for potential plagiarism or other forms of academic misconduct, using computerised detection mechanisms.

Class Representatives

Class representatives are students tasked with representing student issues to departments, faculties, and the wider university. If you have a complaint about this course, please contact your class rep who will know how to raise it in the right channels. See your departmental noticeboard for contact details for your class reps.

Inclusive Learning

All students are asked to discuss any impairment related requirements privately, face to face and/or in written form with the course coordinator, lecturer or tutor.

Student Disability Services also provides support for students with a wide range of impairments, both visible and invisible, to succeed and excel at the University. For more information and contact details, please visit the Student Disability Services’ website http://disability.auckland.ac.nz

Special Circumstances

If your ability to complete assessed coursework is affected by illness or other personal circumstances outside of your control, contact a member of teaching staff as soon as possible before the assessment is due.

If your personal circumstances significantly affect your performance, or preparation, for an exam or eligible written test, refer to the University’s aegrotat or compassionate consideration page https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/students/academic-information/exams-and-final-results/during-exams/aegrotat-and-compassionate-consideration.html.

This should be done as soon as possible and no later than seven days after the affected test or exam date.

Learning Continuity

In the event of an unexpected disruption, we undertake to maintain the continuity and standard of teaching and learning in all your courses throughout the year. If there are unexpected disruptions the University has contingency plans to ensure that access to your course continues and course assessment continues to meet the principles of the University’s assessment policy. Some adjustments may need to be made in emergencies. You will be kept fully informed by your course co-ordinator/director, and if disruption occurs you should refer to the university website for information about how to proceed.

Student Charter and Responsibilities

The Student Charter assumes and acknowledges that students are active participants in the learning process and that they have responsibilities to the institution and the international community of scholars. The University expects that students will act at all times in a way that demonstrates respect for the rights of other students and staff so that the learning environment is both safe and productive. For further information visit Student Charter https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/students/forms-policies-and-guidelines/student-policies-and-guidelines/student-charter.html.

Disclaimer

Elements of this outline may be subject to change. The latest information about the course will be available for enrolled students in Canvas.

In this course students may be asked to submit coursework assessments digitally. The University reserves the right to conduct scheduled tests and examinations for this course online or through the use of computers or other electronic devices. Where tests or examinations are conducted online remote invigilation arrangements may be used. In exceptional circumstances changes to elements of this course may be necessary at short notice. Students enrolled in this course will be informed of any such changes and the reasons for them, as soon as possible, through Canvas.

Published on 31/10/2023 08:33 p.m.