Hypermasculinity and racist discourses in the Spanish media: the spectacularisation of radio sport programming

Abstract

Over the last few decades, while the media industry went through deep structural changes, the sporting spectacle has grown in importance as media content. At the same time, journalistic practices have been transformed by the increasing spectacularisation of sport. In the case of Spain, the use of emotional and epic language, and the exaltation of one team against the other, appear as dominant practices of the sporting media. The polarisation between two teams (FC Barcelona and Real Madrid CF) mirrors political tensions and it is embraced by all media. However, such a trend also creates an environment which favours and engenders racist, xenophobic, and sexist discourses. This chapter focuses on radio sport programming in light of the growing intersection of different media in responding to the demand of sport-related content. It points to the risk of journalism of losing credibility and to the role of mass media in disseminating hatespeech.