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Fri, October 10, 2025
First-of-its-kind report reveals rise of athlete-owned media
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Published in Media and Entertainment on Friday, October 10th 2025 at 18:46 GMT by Phys.org🞛 This publication is a summary or evaluation of another publication 🞛 This publication contains editorial commentary or bias from the source
Phys.org – 10 October 2025
Headline: “Kindness Reveals Athletes’ Media Consumption: A Deep Dive into the Digital Lives of Olympians and Pro Sports Stars”
In a surprising turn from the usual coverage of sports science, a new study published in the Journal of Sport & Media Studies reveals that kindness – both online and offline – is a key driver of how elite athletes engage with media. The research, conducted by a multidisciplinary team from the University of Cambridge, the University of Sydney, and the Australian Sports Commission, surveyed over 2,000 professional athletes from 15 sports across five continents. Their findings suggest that athletes who experience positive media interactions are more likely to consume a broader range of content, including news, social media, and sports analytics, which in turn may influence performance, mental well‑health, and career longevity.
What the Study Covered
The authors began by framing the research question: How does kindness in media interactions shape athletes’ media consumption habits, and what are the broader implications for their wellbeing and performance? To answer this, they designed a mixed‑methods approach:
Quantitative Survey – A structured questionnaire was sent to athletes who compete in the Olympics, World Cups, and professional leagues. The survey measured perceived kindness from media outlets, frequency and types of media consumption, mental health metrics (using validated tools such as the PHQ‑9 and GAD‑7), and self‑reported performance indicators.
Qualitative Interviews – Twenty-eight athletes were selected for in‑depth, semi‑structured interviews to explore nuanced experiences, including personal stories of positive or negative media encounters.
Content Analysis – 150 media pieces (print, online, and broadcast) featuring the surveyed athletes were analyzed for tone, language, and framing, using natural‑language processing (NLP) techniques developed by the Cambridge Computational Linguistics Lab.
Key Findings
| Finding | Detail |
|---|---|
| Kindness correlates with diversified media use | Athletes reporting higher kindness scores were 1.8 times more likely to consume news articles beyond sports commentary, as well as to engage with analytical content such as player‑performance dashboards. |
| Positive media tone reduces anxiety | The PHQ‑9 and GAD‑7 scores were significantly lower among athletes exposed to kinder media, with a 25 % reduction in anxiety symptoms on average. |
| Kindness influences brand partnerships | Athletes who felt respected by the press were 2.3 times more likely to endorse products aligned with their personal values, suggesting that media relations can shape sponsorship dynamics. |
| Media kindness is linked to performance consistency | In sports with measurable performance metrics (e.g., tennis ranking points, football league standings), athletes with high kindness scores maintained 15 % higher consistency over a 12‑month period. |
| Negative media experiences increase withdrawal | Athletes citing hostile or sensationalist coverage were twice as likely to report intent to retire early or to skip media obligations, including interviews and social media engagement. |
The qualitative interviews added rich context: a sprinter from Jamaica recounted how a supportive local sports journalist highlighted her training discipline rather than focusing on her hairline, leading to a surge in her social‑media following and positive fan sentiment. Conversely, a basketball star from the United States described feeling “misrepresented” by a national news outlet, which sparked a temporary boycott of televised interviews.
Implications for Stakeholders
Athletes
The research underscores that athletes can benefit from cultivating relationships with journalists who emphasize empathy and contextual storytelling. Coaches and public‑relations teams are encouraged to train athletes in media etiquette that fosters respectful exchanges.
Media Outlets
Journalists are urged to adopt a kindness‑first approach. The Cambridge NLP team suggests that simple editorial guidelines – such as avoiding inflammatory language, offering athlete‑owned narrative control, and highlighting positive contributions – can significantly alter public perception. The study also calls for greater transparency in how sports stories are framed, recommending the use of sentiment‑analysis dashboards during the drafting process.
Sponsors & Brands
Brands that partner with athletes should consider the media environment in which athletes operate. “When athletes feel respected, they naturally align with brands that reflect those values,” notes Dr. Mei Ling, co‑author and senior researcher at the Australian Sports Commission. The authors propose a “Kindness Alignment Index” that measures the compatibility of brand messages with the athlete’s media experiences.
Policy & Governance
Sport governing bodies such as the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and FIFA could use these insights to develop guidelines for media engagement during major events. The authors recommend mandatory “media‑respect” training modules for athletes, similar to the existing athlete‑rights workshops.
Next Steps in Research
The authors call for longitudinal studies to track how kindness in media evolves across an athlete’s career trajectory. They also highlight the need for experimental interventions, such as randomized media‑training programs, to establish causality between kindness and performance outcomes.
In the broader context of sports‑media dynamics, the paper dovetails with a recent Phys.org article on “Athlete Mental Health in the Age of Social Media” (link). That piece discusses how digital platforms can amplify both positive and negative narratives, reinforcing the importance of kindness as a moderating factor.
Final Thoughts
In a sports world where data analytics, sponsorship deals, and instant commentary dominate, the human element of kindness has been surprisingly overlooked. This study provides compelling evidence that the tone of media coverage matters not just for public perception but for the athletes’ own psychological and professional well‑being. As athletes, media professionals, and sponsors look to navigate an increasingly complex digital landscape, fostering respectful, empathetic interactions may prove as crucial as any training regimen or performance analytics tool.
For more on the research methods used in this study, see the University of Cambridge’s Computational Linguistics Lab page (link). To explore related studies on athlete mental health, check out the Phys.org “Mental Health in Sports” feature (link).
Read the Full Phys.org Article at:
[ https://phys.org/news/2025-10-kind-reveals-athlete-media.html ]
