While the big Olympic headline in the United States is that American audiences are less than enthralled by the Sydney Games, a global ethnographic study under way has found that the reasons Americans used to love the Games are actually alive and well in other parts of the world. The research, conducted by Context-Based Research Group through its network of 1,700 anthropologists around the world, also uncovered some of the reasons – beyond the tape-delayed coverage – why Americans aren’t connecting with the Games like they have in the past.
"Particularly here in the U.S., there’s a growing sense of resignation that the Games, once laden with meaning and cultural significance, have been replaced by commercialism and the slick stories of sponsors," says Context Principal Anthropologist Robbie Blinkoff, Ph.D. "Fortunately, this is not the case in other parts of the world where citizens still attach plenty of meaning to the Olympics as a cultural event of the highest magnitude," Blinkoff adds.
Using the powers of observation and cultural description that are the hallmarks of anthropological research, Context’s ethnographers were asked to observe people and the media in their communities as a way to gather insight into the impact and perceptions of the Olympics in their area. Through this research, Context found a number of themes that help explain why the Olympics may not be resonating with Americans:
The Olympics are more critical to the national identities of smaller countries, as compared to the United States -- which does not need the Olympics to prove itself on the global stage.
The Olympics are no longer ‘markers of time,’ a trend found disturbing by older Americans, who remember when the Olympics were a critical event in world politics and a stage for communication between nations and cultures.
We don’t need the Olympics to experience multi-culturalism, with interactions with people from different countries commonplace, whether in the grocery store or at work. In the past, one of the appeals of the Olympics was the chance to see the "other" in the foreign faces and flags competing.
On the other side of the world in Japan, anthropologist Carol Hui points out that the Olympics "are a lens into what defines us as a culture; that is, countries attach meaning to certain events because they represent traits that define a country and its people. Marathons in Japan are nationally televised sporting events and they are also followed closely at the Olympics. The reason is because Japanese place high value on perseverance and effort."
Closer to home in Mexico, anthropologist Lara Tabac reported that the coverage of a weightlifter who became the first Mexican woman to ever win a gold medal in the Olympics was non-stop and that the country was in a patriotic frenzy of celebration. Commenting on this phenomenon, she wrote that "On the ground in Mexico City, people see Soraya Jimenez’ win as a lightning bolt of attention highlighting recent shifts in gender relations and the increasing power of Mexican women."
"The fact that we don’t seem to care as much in the States may be a defense mechanism," Blinkoff says. "It’s not that we don’t have our share of meaningful stories, but our attention may be diverted because, like the marathon representing Japanese endurance, our commercial approach to the Olympics says a little too much about who we are. We may simply have outgrown the innocence of the Games."
Context-Based Research Group is a global research company that uses a proprietary network of 1,700 anthropologists around the world to uncover cultural and consumer insights. Employing techniques such as participant observation, photo and video diaries, and structured interviews, these ethnographers put peoples' interactions with products and services in the proper context to help uncover their true needs. Context’s multi-disciplinary team of anthropologists, information architects, web developers, and marketing and communications specialists helps clients such as Procter & Gamble, RE/MAX, and Johns Hopkins University develop brands and products, build e-commerce and communications strategies, evaluate creative concepts, and redesign Web sites. Context is a subsidiary of Richardson, Myers & Donofrio. |
