Sports were once simply a competitive activity rooted in heroism and romance. Sports activities today, however, have no such innocence or simplicity. Currently in America, the activities that make up our sports culture are not just the competitive events themselves, but the processes and issues that underlie and surround them. Intertwined in our sporting culture is the gigantic business of mass broadcasting. Indeed, sports and media go together like peanut butter and jelly, like Mickey and Minnie Mouse, Darth Vader and Luke. They are intertwined and depend on each other to continue growing. Sports media includes television, radio, magazines, newspapers, books, films, and most importantly, the social media devices provided by the Internet. Sports media has had advantages and disadvantages, truth and falsehood in the world of sports culture. Sports and media have benefited each other in the market. While these benefits have had many positive effects, there have also been some negative or biased views. A negative connotation is felt when the media shapes their viewers' perceptions of athletes by portraying them negatively or unappreciated based on racial or gender stereotypes. This negativity can be seen when the media attempts to distort the truth or avoid comprehensive coverage. The broadcast industry has given a distorted view of athletes based on their gender or race. One such group that the media tends to misrepresent is female athletes. Female athletes tend to get less media coverage than men. Many times a comment about female athletes is demeaning or contains sexual overtures. Female athletes are given credit and are considered noteworthy only for their attractiveness... center of paper... Istake.Works CitedCashmore, Ellis. Sports Culture: An A to Z Guide. London: Routledge, 2000. Print.Jacobson, Robert. Sports in America: Recreation, business, education, and controversy. Detroit, Michigan: Gale, Cengage Learning, 2008. Print.Rein, Kotler I., and B. Shields. “The Future of Sports Media.” The Futurist 41.1: 40-43. ProQuest. Network. February 10, 2012. Remember the Titans. Director Boaz Yakin. 2000. Film.Sharma, Shailendra. “The Effect of the Media on Athletes' Perceptions of Gender and Race.” The Sports Digest. 2002. Network. February 15, 2012.Sharma, Shailendra. “The Effect of the Media on Athletes' Perceptions of Gender and Race.” Sports Digest 2.9 (2002). Press."Social media." Telephone interview. February 10, 2012.Toolen, Tim Toole. “Athlete hero worship rewinds the past.” The spiritual herald. Eastern Tsalagi Publishing Company, May 2011. Web. 15 February. 2012.