Technology in Professional Sports: Advances Changing Sports (Reader Response)

As I walk into Disneyworld, I am ready to enjoy a perfect weekend. The weather is nice in Orlando, I can smell the churros, and my favorite childhood memories surround me every step of the way. No matter what day or time of year, I can guarantee Disneyworld always looks this packed. There are people inches away from me. They are to my left, to my right, in front of me, and I can feel the people behind me. The place is so congested, so my family and I decide to stop in gift shop for some cool air and shop for some souvenirs. The moment I walk into the gift shop, I see a man. This man seems to be about 7ft tall, many tattoos, and looks to weigh beyond 300 pounds. As a basketball enthusiast, I just have to get a closer look so I can see who this could possibly me. As I get closer, I realize this man is none other than, Shaquille O’Neal. I am shocked and I cannot believe I have run into arguably the best center in the NBA history. So the questions will arise. Did you ask for a picture and an autograph? Bingo, I absolutely, positively asked for both. I say, “Shaq, may I have a picture with you and can you sign my shirt?” After, I ask, he whispers something to my father and after he gives me a handshake and proceeds to walk away. After he leaves, I instantly ask my father, “Dad, what he did say? Did I say something wrong? Is it my fault? My dad, as cool as a cucumber, says, “Shaq said, ‘How you doing sir? I just want to spend the weekend here with my kids and if I sign one autograph and take one picture, I will have to sign thousands and take thousands of photos and it will take time away from my son’s birthday weekend.’” Although this is written in the present tense, this happened to me about 11 years ago, so I was 8 years old. Back then, I didn’t understand and I was upset I didn’t get a picture or an autograph. But, even though I was a child, I didn’t make a scene or didn’t think poorly of Shaquille O’Neal. Now, I fully understand what he comes from and it if it happened again, I may even understand more and be more respectful of his decision. Ultimately, what we do in public when we see a professional athlete is up to our discretion, how will you act if you a professional athlete in person? As the advancement of technology is growing rapidly, there are endless possibilities of how you can act. You can tweet, post on Facebook, upload a picture on Instagram or Snapchat. One thing has to be in mind, be respectful to their privacy.

I agree we need protect at athlete’s safety and remember at the end of the day, they’re just people. We have to put ourselves in their shoes and understand we want space and want to enjoy time out in public without cameras in our face the whole time. But before my reasoning is revealed, I will first analyze four other articles, while one shows how technology can be abused in professional sports. Second, I will respond with my argument. I will provide insight of my reasoning based off the articles I have read and my own encounter with professional athletes. Third, the naysayer will provide their argument and towards the end of the argument, I will repeat my position from their counter argument and respond to the naysayer. After that, the future of the topic will be discussed and where I believe the advancement of technology in professional sports will play out. Lastly, I will conclude the writing by summarizing my argument and my call to action.

Every day is there a possibility, slim or big, that we may run into professional athletes and the way and we should respect their private life. I agree with the author completely. Professional athletes are constantly under the microscope and are scrutinized and/or praised for every/any thing they do. My input on the topic would tell an athlete to be smart when you go out in public. I would advise an athlete that they must imagine everything they do to be the headline of every newspaper. I understand it may not be fair and it is tough to live such a low-key life, but that’s what comes with the “price of fame.” An athlete must act as a professional on the court, field, ring, etc but most importantly in life. It is pivotal a professional athlete realizes that people, whom are fans, idolize and closely watch their every move. Ultimately, I have complete faith in an athlete and my reasoning will have everyone understanding my opinion; as meticulous as a professional athlete is in their profession, they should emulate that into their private life. In that case, the progression of technology, the advancement of social media, and the possibility of fans working as non-laborers, will have zero or little effect on a professional athlete; those three factors will only elevate a professional athlete and help people feel more connected to their idol.

While my research has shown that, technology is changing our world every day in every way imaginable; therefore, it is time for to start getting acclimated with the advancement so that we may use technology and technology may not use us.

some people believe that technology is an item and using it for the wrong reasons. Stephanie N. Horner wrote an article, “"Dmca: Professional Sports Leagues' Answer to Protecting Their Broadcasting Rights Against Illegal Streaming." The article explains how someone can use technology the wrong way for illegal streaming and abuse it. While there were no articles describing people that didn’t like technology in professional sports; I would imagine the people’s whom hack for illegal usage counter argument. The hackers would describe how hacking will give people who can’t afford pay-per-view a chance to watch some professional events. Also, they would describe the harassment on social media to their least favorite player by being a “true fan.” There is no question that technology in professional sports is as relevant as it’s ever been in today’s society. Technology as a whole is growing at a rapid pace. But, I would challenge the people who stream online for free, that their hurting professional sports. For example, fighters receive a lot of their money from pay-per-view, but if one takes away possible revenue, you are costing fighters/boxers thousands and possibly millions of dollars. Let alone, you’re probably taking near 5 million away from the company, such as the UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship). I understand the prices may be expensive and everyone can’t afford them, but have a fundraiser or watch a mutual friend’s house. There is always a way around it because if not, you are being a cheater. And, everyone knows how cheating is frowned upon in professional sports.

When it comes harassing and using social media for the wrong reasons, it is a simple answer. If you are not a fan of a player, you should not tweet them. If you have so much dislike for one player or a team, you should act as if they don’t even exist. Too often, I see fans tweeting their least favorite player “you suck” or “you’re terrible,” which is fans just being passionate about their team. But, we must draw a line and preach sportsmanship on technology/social media. We should cheer our team on and congratulate players from our favorite team, rather than bashing our least favorite player. The main point is we should use technology, as a platform to promote and help athletes, not hurt them. It’s too often; we see illegal streaming and people cheating to have events online for free. It’s not fair to the athlete, who continues to work hard so his/her pay-per-view numbers should thrive and break records, rather them be depleted due to online streaming. Let’s get better and continue to remember, we should use technology and technology should not use us. It is time to evolve to the advancement of technology, not abuse it for personal selfishness.

In the future, researchers should find out how many professional athletes jobs were jeopardized due to bad tweets or bad posts. Researchers should check how many photos were surfaced from fans that didn’t like certain players and ended with them getting fined or fired. There is a possibility that will be a new social media website/app that gives you a closer personal look to the players and could cost them even more. There is no telling how much better or more revealing technology will get, but the end all be all app is on the way.

It is important to remember that technology should help enhance professional sports and build a platform to for athlete’s to succeed and be positive contributors in society. Although, all four articles expose different ways technology is used, people should take note from each and help create new opportunities. Quite frankly, it is inevitable that technology will always be a common denominator in professional sports. Ultimately, the way technology is used to the user’s discretion, but make no mistake about it, technology will keep being associated with professional sports in our lifetime and it’s inevitable there will be pros and cons. Thomas Edison said, “It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has exceeded our humanity.” I also read, Bubba Watson said, “Golf is just an avenue for Jesus to use me so I can reach as many people as I can.” This is my whole argument. Let’s put these athletes on a platform to reach and make people better. Let’s promote athletes to tell the kids not to give up and if your mind to it, you can be anything you want to be in life.

Works Cited

Horner, Stephanie N. "Dmca: Professional Sports Leagues' Answer to Protecting Their Broadcasting Rights Against Illegal Streaming." Marquette Sports Law Review 24.2 (2014): 435-462. SPORTDiscus with Full Text. Web. 23 Jul 2015.

Horvath, Helen L. "The Intersection of Technology and OD Consulting in Professional Sports." Organization Development Journal 33.1 (2015): 27-39. Business Source Complete. Web. 23 Jul 2015.

Mason, Daniel S. "Moneyball as a Supervening Necessity for the Adoption of Player Tracking Technology in Professional Hockey." International Journal Of Sports Marketing & Sponsorship 8.1 (2006): 47-61. Entrepreneurial Studies Source. Web. 23 Jul 2015.

Mondello, Michael, and Christopher Kamke. "The Introduction and Application of Sports Analytics in Professional Sport Organizations." Journal of Applied Sport Management 6.2 (2014): 1-12. SPORTDiscus with Full Text. Web. 23 Jul 2015.

"15 Powerful Quotes From Christian Sports Stars | News | Hear It First on HearItFirst.com." Hear It First. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 Aug. 2015.

Sanderson, Jimmy. "Professional Athletes' Shrinking Privacy Boundaries: Fans, Information and Communication Technologies, and Athlete Monitoring." International Journal of Sport Communication 2.2 (2009): 240-256. SPORTDiscus with Full Text. Web. 22 Jul 2015.

"Technology Quotes." BrainyQuote. Xplore, n.d. Web. 08 Aug. 2015.

Wyld, David C. "The Chips Are in: Enhancing Sports Through RFID Technology." International Journal of Sports Marketing & Sponsorship 9.2 (2008): 135-150. Entrepreneurial Studies Source. Web. 23 Jul 2015.