Australia is known for its love affair with sports. While more men than women claim to enjoy sports, 20% of total respondents said that AFL was their favorite sport (the runners up were rugby and tennis). Nearly 40,000 people attend AFL games regularly in Australia. This does not include the TV audience of 116,612,478, 4000 more than the NRL. Sports are talked about, read about and watched in Aussie living rooms, pubs and school yards. However, this love affair is two-sided.
On the one side, sport has brought Australia global recognition; from the Sydney Olympic Games in 2000 to the unique €Australian Rules' football, sports fanaticism helps to keep the Nation fit. But on the other side, this popularity can lead to an admiration of professional athletes, who may or may not be positive role models.
Athletes are often looked upon as national heroes by adults and children alike, but recent news has posed the question of whether they are appropriate role models for youth. Over half of respondents in a recent poll suggest that many Australians believe that famous athletes are automatically held up as heroes and role models- whether they like it, or indeed whether they are even aware of it. Naturally, children want to emulate those they idolize. An athletic role model was the number one reason for taking part in sport for 83% of those surveyed. While athletic role models might be helping children get off the couch and onto the field, bad examples from sports stars can have devastating results.
Bad behavior, poor choices or inappropriate conduct by professional athletes makes a difference to the youth of the country. Only 11% of respondents claimed that athletes should not be held responsible as a role model, but with most of the youth in Australia looking up to them as heroes, it seems that it is not a choice, but rather a responsibility to be good role models for society.
In March 2012, new broadcasting laws were unveiled in Australia to determine how many AFL and NRL matches are broadcast weekly on free-to-air television. The new laws require the Communications Minister Stephen Conroy to specify the number of games broadcast, and the number cannot be higher than four matches for rounds of the AFL, and three matches for rounds of the NRL.
Reward surveys show that the new changes in broadcasting won't affect most viewers. Almost 30% of respondents said that the free-to-air coverage will be enough, compared to the just 1% who are planning to pay for access to more sports coverage. The agreement is reported to deliver to best of both worlds by allowing both free-to-air and pay networks to deliver much better coverage than in previous seasons.
On the one side, sport has brought Australia global recognition; from the Sydney Olympic Games in 2000 to the unique €Australian Rules' football, sports fanaticism helps to keep the Nation fit. But on the other side, this popularity can lead to an admiration of professional athletes, who may or may not be positive role models.
Athletes are often looked upon as national heroes by adults and children alike, but recent news has posed the question of whether they are appropriate role models for youth. Over half of respondents in a recent poll suggest that many Australians believe that famous athletes are automatically held up as heroes and role models- whether they like it, or indeed whether they are even aware of it. Naturally, children want to emulate those they idolize. An athletic role model was the number one reason for taking part in sport for 83% of those surveyed. While athletic role models might be helping children get off the couch and onto the field, bad examples from sports stars can have devastating results.
Bad behavior, poor choices or inappropriate conduct by professional athletes makes a difference to the youth of the country. Only 11% of respondents claimed that athletes should not be held responsible as a role model, but with most of the youth in Australia looking up to them as heroes, it seems that it is not a choice, but rather a responsibility to be good role models for society.
In March 2012, new broadcasting laws were unveiled in Australia to determine how many AFL and NRL matches are broadcast weekly on free-to-air television. The new laws require the Communications Minister Stephen Conroy to specify the number of games broadcast, and the number cannot be higher than four matches for rounds of the AFL, and three matches for rounds of the NRL.
Reward surveys show that the new changes in broadcasting won't affect most viewers. Almost 30% of respondents said that the free-to-air coverage will be enough, compared to the just 1% who are planning to pay for access to more sports coverage. The agreement is reported to deliver to best of both worlds by allowing both free-to-air and pay networks to deliver much better coverage than in previous seasons.
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