Abstract
People’s passion for their favorite sports teams has long influenced the construction of both personal and cultural identity. Fans of different teams from different places make meaning in ways unique to their environment, a process also practiced by politically engaged Americans. The similarities between these passions have been explored to an extent, but the relationship’s effect has been the subject of limited scrutiny. The rapid rise to prominence of social platforms such as Twitter and Facebook have coincided with advancements in audio and video streaming to revolutionize the way fans interact with and consume their passions of choice. The 2015 rape allegations against former Florida State University quarterback Jameis Winston and the 2016 election of Donald Trump as President of the United States provide a perfect platform for an analysis of the intersection between fandoms in these two spheres, which this paper investigates. Classifications typically used to measure levels of fan identification with sports teams are successfully applied to American politics. The role of increased volume of and accessibility to new media content in this application is discussed. Donald Trump’s unique relationship to politics is also explored through analyses of the Trump Organization brand and Trump’s individual performance of fandom as a politician. Finally, the reaction to rape allegations against Jameis Winston highlight the implications of the similarities between fandom in sports and politics. Fandom in sports and politics is not cultural fodder, but a tool that can be used to understand who the American people are and why.
Digital Media
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