Race Ideology Perpetuated: Media Representations of Newly Hired Football Coaches

The purpose of the study was to examine the media coverage of newly hired NCAA Division I-FBS football coaches through the investigation of media releases (n = 191) related to their hires. Results indicate that (a) African Americans were under-represented in the hiring process, when compared to the proportion of African American athletes on the team; (b) African Americans were most likely to be hired to coach positions with a high concentration of African American athletes, while Whites were most likely to be hired as a coordinator; and (c) Whites were more likely than African Americans to be depicted as helping the team through their knowledge and experience, while African Americans were more likely than were Whites to help the team through their recruiting efforts and relationships with the players. Results suggest that the media perpetuate the dominant racial ideology in the U.S. and are discussed accordingly.