In the third instalment of swimming week here on the pod, Johanna and Derek are joined by Matt Hodler, Assistant Professor of Sports Media & Communications at the University of Rhode Island and former D1 swimmer at the University of Miami (Ohio), to discuss racialized nationalism in swimming, representations of hegemonic masculinity in cultural images and discourses surrounding Michael Phelps, and, as always, even a little bit of “amateurism” in college athletics. The first part of this wide-ranging interview focuses on Matt’s recent work on racialized nationalism within the sport before we shift our attention to his work on representations of Michael Phelps. Then we get Matt’s thoughts on amateurism in swimming and how the sport may be an important part of the brilliant labor mobilization taking place in the athletic world.
Matt Hodler is an Assistant Professor of Sports Media & Communications in the Harrington School of Communication and Media at the University of Rhode Island. As a sport scholar, his wide-ranging research interests include racialized nationalism, gender, the Olympics and international sport structures, mediated representations of sport, internet memes, and swimming. He was also a D1 swimmer at the University of Miami (Ohio).
You can follow Matt on Twitter and check out Matt’s work here:
“Real Men Stand for Our Nation”: Constructions of an American Nation and Anti-Kaepernick Memes in the Journal of Sport and Social Issues
The $100-Million Dollar Man: Michael Phelps, the Olympic System, and USA Swimming’s Shifts in “Eligibility” in Sports History Review
“The Mother of All Comebacks”: A Critical Analysis of the Fitspirational Comeback Narrative of Dara Torres in Communication & Sport
For a transcription of this episode, please click here. (Credit @punkademic)
After listening to the episode, check out our most recent pieces:
“Red-Scare Rhetoric Isn’t Gone From Histories of American Sport” in Jacobin Magazine
"Canceling the College-Football Season Isn't Enough" published in The Chronicle of Higher Education.
“'We are being gaslit': College football and Covid-19 are imperiling athletes” in The Guardian
“Canceling the college football season is about union busting, not health” also in The Guardian
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As always, please like, share, and rate us on your favorite podcast app, and give follow us on Twitter or Instagram.
@Derekcrim
@JohannaMellis
@Nkalamb
@EndofSportPod
Episode 42: Cheer, College Football, and Suffering as Virtue with Amanda Mull
Episode 41: “Loving Sports When They Don’t Love You Back” with Kavitha Davidson and Jessica Luther
Episode 40: On the Player Strikes
Episode 39: 'Everyone On Screen Has Tested Negative' by Hannah Ensor
Episode 38: Fascism, Coloniality, and Sport with Zoé Samudzi
Episode 37: Olympic Sport on the New Plantation with Tezira Abe
Episode 36: Solidarity Forever with Kain Colter
Episode 35: Reimagining College Sport with Ricky Volante
Episode 34: Athlete A and Gymnastics Culture with Jennifer Sey
Episode 33: The Sports Industrial Complex with Kevin Blackistone
Episode 32: College Revenue Athlete Special with Hunter Reynolds and Benjamin St-Juste of College Athlete Unity and Miles Lester
Episode 31: Maya Moore, the Activist Athlete with Kurt Streeter
Episode 30: Teaching Capitalism to Americans: The Karolyis Come Stateside with Geza Pozsar
Episode 29: “Their System was Much More Brutal…”: The Karolyi Way in Communist Romania with Geza Pozsar
Episode 28, Part II: History and Harm in Gymnastics with Georgia Cervin
Episode 28, Part I: History and Harm in Gymnastics with Georgia Cervin
Episode 27: The Language of Race and Sport with Kelly E. Wright
Episode 26: #NotYourMascot with Jacqueline Keeler
Episode 25: Race, Gender, and Youth Sport History with Samantha White
Episode 24: (Athletic) Labor Talk with Hamilton Nolan
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