• To examine the multifaceted relationship between screen industries and sports, paying particular attention to questions of how the industrial organisation and logic of legacy and digital media companies shape and are shaped by professional sports

• To provide a critical understanding of the ways in which sports are produced and packaged for screen media and how they are disseminated by them

• To provide critical frameworks within which major sporting events such as the Olympics, the Super Bowl, the Champions League and the Premier League can be analysed and understood

• To investigate how questions of diversity and cultural differences can influence sports as an industry and a business

(LO1) Students will critically evaluate the relationship between screen industries and professional sports, focusing primarily on the ways the former have conceptualised the latter as a commercial media product

(LO2) Students will develop a critical understanding of the various issues that are in play when sports are produced, packaged and disseminated by legacy and digital screen media

(LO3) Students will apply a variety of frameworks (industrial, cultural, political, legal, etc.) to understand key issues related to the success and visibility of major sporting events

(LO4) Students will appraise how questions of diversity and cultural difference impact professional sports on screen media, with a focus on issues related to gender and geopolitics.

(S1) Demonstrate an ability to source, manage and synthesise a diverse range of literature, media texts and other information resources.

(S2) Demonstrate advance written and verbal communication skills

(S3) Demonstrate efficient time-management skills and an ability to plan and organise workload, work independently and work collaboratively in small groups.

(S4) Demonstrate commercial awareness and global citizenship as they understand how industrial and economic issues shape the media globally

The syllabus of the module will revolve around four blocks

A) The Business of Sports on Television – this block will survey the ways in which television as a mass communication medium helped commercialise and globalise sports, infinitely increasing their organisation as an industry that is intricately linked with the screen industries as the latter continue to evolve within a converged global media landscape. Session in this block may include:

- The Sports Media Business Complex
- Public Service Broadcasting and Screening Sports
- Pay TV and Screening Sports
- Premier League TV rights case study
- Champions League TV rights case study

B) From Legacy to Digital Media – this block will examine the ways in which the internet and digital technology have helped screen industries reconfigure their relationship to commercial sports. Sessions in this block may include:

- From Cable to Digital sports coverage: the case of ESPN
- Sports beyond legacy media
- FIFA, FIBA and the Video Games industry

C) Global Mega Sports Events on Screen – this block will provide some case studies of mega sports events and the ways they have shaped and have been shaped by global screen industries. Sessions may include:

- The Olympics
- The Super Bowl
- The World Cup

D) Finally, the module will end by examining questions of diversity and inclusivity in the screen industries and their engagement with sports. Sessions may include:

- Screen Industries, Sports and Diversity: The Rise of Women’s football
- Screen Industries, Sports and Diversity: Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods and Screen Industries
- Beyond the Western World: Screen Industries and Sports in the Global South

In delivering this syllabus, the teaching team will invite LFC executives to discuss issues related to screen and sports.

Teaching Method – Workshop.
Description: weekly 2-hour sessions that combine lectures and seminar-type group discussions.
Attendance Recorded: Yes

Self-directed learning - Reading, researching and preparing for assignments.