Perceptions of East Asian and Asian North American Athletics (East Asian Popular Culture)

This book highlights inconsistencies within the field of sports scholarship and provides an opportunity to open up and extend conversations about the intersection of sports media and race ― particularly surrounding athletes of East Asian descent. Despite the growing influence of East Asian and Asian American/Canadian athletes, they are still underrepresented in Western media and in scholarship. This anthology adds much-needed literature to sports, popular culture, East Asian, and Asian American studies. The prominence of sports in global popular culture makes the intersections explored in this collection a crucial addition to existing conversations about both sports and East Asian/Asian American/Canadian studies. Preface/Introduction References Contents Notes on Contributors List of Figures List of Tables Part I: The Power of “Chinese” in Global Sports Culture Chapter 1: “Big Does Not Even Begin to Describe Her Enduring Impact”: The Career of Li Na, Global Sports Development, and China as Sporting Superpower Introduction Global Sports and State Policy since Beijing 2008 From Wuhan to Beijing: A New Star Is Emerging Within the System Challenge the Policy and Push the Boundaries Sport Policy and Flying Solo Confronting Traditions and Norms Conclusion—A Role Model for a New China References Chapter 2: “Good Morning, Good Afternoon, and Good Evening”: U.S. Views on the Chinese Professional Baseball League in the Wake of COVID-19 Baseball, Taiwan, and the CPBL COVID-19 and the CPBL 2020 Season Sports Communication, COVID-19, and the CPBL The Player Experience The Fandom Experience The Media Experience Sports Communication and Coverage Frames CPBL Background Information CPBL Live Experience CPBL Broadcast Information Taiwan and CPBL Governance in the Face of COVID-19 Conclusion References Chapter 3: Country-of-Origin Bias in Portrayal of East Asian and Asian American Athletes: The NBA-Hong Kong Episode Introduction Literature Review Basketball and Sino-American Relations Methods Findings China Daily: Sports and International Affairs China Daily: Athlete Voices The New York Times: Sports and International Affairs The New York Times: Athlete Voices Discussion Conclusion References Part II: Sports Media Portrayals of East Asian Athletes and Leagues Chapter 4: “No Attack, No Chance”: Takuma Sato’s Servant-Led Race Against the Trope of “Bad Asian Drivers” Introduction “No Attack, No Chance”: A Brief Biography about the Man Behind the Motto Media Characterizations of Takuma Sato’s Competence as a Driver “Nothing Specifically Personal”: An Anti-Asian Tweet Goes Viral after the 2017 Indy 500 Grace, Gratitude, and Guts: Takuma Sato’s Servant-Led Responses Servant Leadership What Servant-Leadership Characteristics Has Takuma Sato Embodied? Conclusion References Chapter 5: Intersecting Race, Gender, and Sports: How Japanese News Media Depict Tennis Stars Naomi Osaka and Kei Nishikori Literature Review Framing Gender and Sport Gender and Japan Race and Japan Why Osaka and Nishikori? Method Results Successes Japanese, But Different Conclusion & Discussion References Chapter 6: Making Sense of Korean Baseball: Articulating Race, Gender, and Cultural Hegemony in the North American Media Coverage of Korea Baseball Organization During2020 Baseball Season Introduction Baseball in Korea: A Brief Cultural History Sport and Asian American Masculinity KBO on ESPN: Making it on the “Worldwide Leader in Sports” Chasing the American Dream: MLB as the Ultimate Challenge for Korean Players The KBO as MLB’s “Farm System” KBO’s Foreign Players: “Remember These Guys”? Bat-Flip Culture, Wackiness, and Negotiated Asian Masculinity “That’s Not Just Distracting, It’s Also Obnoxious and Insulting” Conclusion References Chapter 7: “Framing KBO: ESPN, Media Discourse, and the Cultural Identity of Korean Baseball” Literature Review Framing Media Discourse and Cultural Resonance Korean Baseball Identity Method Data Collection Protocol Development Coding Process Data Analysis Discussion “This Is Small Ball. I Love This Part” “Liken Him to the Yadier Molina of the KBO” “MLB-ization of KBO” “Just Doesn’t Feel Normal” Korean Media Response Conclusion References Part III: Sports Media Portrayals of North American Athletes of Asian Descent Chapter 8: Professional Sport, Settler Multiculturalism, and Exalted Chinese Arrivants: Re-Remembering the “China Clippers” Introduction Who Were the China Clippers? Early Coverage Attention to the “First,” Exotic Chinese Chinese, Not Yet Canadian Recent Coverage As (Chinese) Canadian: Individual Qualities of Perseverance Settler Recognitions Discussion Chinese Arrivants Conclusion References Chapter 9: Linsanity and its Aftermath: Sports Journalism Framing of Jeremy Lin Background Information Literature Review Media Sociology Framing Research Questions Methodology Results Discussion Conclusion References Chapter 10: Portrayals of East Asian Athletes Within NBC’s Primetime Broadcast of the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics Mediated Renderings of Asian Athletes Olympic Television Studies Mentions Descriptors Method Results Discussion Conclusion References Part IV: Finding Oneself among Multiple Identities Chapter 11: What Makes Chloe Kim’s Return Glorious? Korean News Coverage of Chloe Kim During PyeongChang Winter Olympics Introduction Transnationalism, Return Migration, and Sport Korean American Immigration Returning Diaspora of Korean Americans and Korean Nationalism Method: Critical Discourse Analysis Findings and Discussion Kim as a Superb Korean-Heritage Female Athlete Kim’s Family as Good Korean Immigrants Kim as a Successful Case of Korean Parenting Style Korea as a Land of Compensation Conclusion References Chapter 12: Contesting “Lin”inality: The Evolution of Jeremy Lin’s Racial Subjectivity Introduction Lin in the Academy Findings Linsanity (2012) After Linsanity (2013–2019) Addressing Anti-Asian Racism during the Covid-19 Pandemic (2020–) Making Sense of Lin’s Evolving Racial Subjectivity Conclusion Appendix References Primary Sources Secondary Sources Chapter 13: Naomi Osaka, Racial Hybridity, and Black Femininity in Tennis A Tale of Two Black Women in Tennis The Black-Asian Sports Brand Mixed Race, Hybridity, and Black and Asian Women Stereotypes Mixed Race and Hybridity: Camouflaging to the White Gaze Branding Black Femininity and Asian Femininity Branding Naomi Osaka as a Japanese, Asian Athlete Phase 1: 2011 to 2015: Start of Professional Career Branding Naomi Osaka as a Global, Multiethnic Athlete Phase 2: 2016 to 2018: Globalizing Osaka’s Professional Career Reframing Identity after Economic and Professional Success Phase 3: 2018 to 2021: Osaka Tops Earnings Rankings References Index