Youth Culture and Sport

Youth Culture and Sport critically interrogates and challenges contemporary articulations of race, class, gender, and sexual relations circulating throughout popular iterations of youth sporting culture in late-capitalism. Written against the backdrop of important changes in social, cultural, political, and economic dynamics taking place in corporate culture’s war on kids, this exciting new volume marks the first anthology to critically examine the intersection of youth culture and sport in an age of global uncertainty. Bringing together leading scholars from cultural studies, gender studies, sociology, sport studies, and related fields, chapters range in scope from 'action' sport subcultures and community redevelopment programs to the cultural politics of white masculinity and Nike advertising. It is a must read for anyone interested in gaining a better understanding of the role sport plays in the construction of experiences, identities, practices, and social differences of contemporary youth culture.

"Giardina (advertising and cultural studies, U. of Illinois, Urbana- Champaign) and Donnelly, a doctoral candidate in sociology at McMaster U. in Canada, assemble 10 essays that critically examine the cultural aspects of youth and sport, challenging contemporary narratives of the topic. Contributors from the US and Canada address the interrelationship of the politics of culture, extreme/action sports and cultural branding, video games, and identity practices among its youth participants, and aspects of race, regarding African American and indigenous populations. Others consider Little League baseball, the politics of whiteness, America's icon of a suburban girl athlete during the Cold War, skater girls and gender identity, masculinity and skateboarding and snowboarding in Canada, and mothers who are athletes." -- Book News Inc., August 2008 , Jay Coakley, Professor Emeritus of Sociology, University of Colorado at Colorado Springs"This book is attractive across many courses, but it would be used as a supplement or as part of a set of books for a course. I would consider using in my upper division course on the sociology of sport or in my popular culture course.... The contributors for the volume are excellent – the ones I know are respected scholars that have been on the cutting edge of the cultural studies literature dealing with sports, physical activities, gender, race, class and the body. Collectively, they have done provocative and insightful textual analyses and discussions of representational issues and processes in US culture.... If [Giardina and Donnely] could present this type of work as the next step in the literature on youthful sporting practices, and use their introductions, discussion questions, and the final article by Shirley Steinberg to create some urgency among readers who might undertake such work in the future, the collection would make a significant contribution to our understanding of youth cultures and sports as sites of cultural production and contestation. This collection is crucial enough to deserve such editorial attention. I’d like it to be successful because the topic is an important one that has been understudied"Becky Beal, Professor of Sport Sciences and Director of Gender Studies, University of the Pacific"The name recognition of the contributors will help with marketing to Sport Studies Departments. I affirm the editors’ belief that there is a serious gap within the youth literature that focuses on sporting activities. I believe that the collection would provide solid critical research on sport to a larger audience interested in youth culture.... What struck me most about this book is that there are nine authors who are well received or "heavy-hitters" in the field of Sport Studies. Including Denzin and Steinberg as the bookends for this work helps situate the sport studies scholars in a larger context."

Author BiographyMichael D. Giardina, Ph.D., is Assistant Professor of Advertising & Cultural Studies at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. Michele K. Donnelly is a Doctoral Candidate in the Department of Sociology at McMaster University. Her research is focused on feminist and critical sociology of gender, power, and sport.