In Defence Of Tess... An update on 'Australian Sport And Professional Fan Cheer Squads...A fan responds.'

Although not the usual thing I write about I am writing an update to a post I wrote earlier this year called 'Australian Sport And Professional Fan Cheer Squads... A fan responds' published on 9 February, 2018 about professional fans cheer squads in Australian sports. I have copied the post below.

This post is going to be about the ongoing attacks by the media on a plus size model who was on the cover of Cosmopolitan magazine that has really got under my skin...

In Defence Of Tess Holliday...

Recently Cosmopolitan magazine placed an American plus size model Tess Holliday on the cover provoking all kinds of responses from the traditional media and on social media around the world.

Some of those who expressed opinions condoned the magazine saying that placing a plus size woman on the magazine was dangerous, stupid and irresponsible and promoted obesity and an unhealthy lifestyle. Others congratulated the magazine for being inclusive and promoting female body diversity and acceptance.

The Australian media and social media joined in the chorus of those discussing Cosmopolitan's choice of cover girl. The criticism (in particular by a journalist or opinion giver in my local newspaper) got under my skin and I decided to respond via this blog. I am a plus size woman who has struggled with my weight all of my life. While I weigh a lot less than Tess Holliday and have not put on any weight since my early twenties, and I am now well into being middle aged, I can relate to her many experiences that have been shared. Those Australian newspaper, magazine and online articles I read are referenced below.

"I put to you, that just as it was stupid and irresponsible to plaster magazine covers with dangerously thin women, it is equally so to put a clinically obese woman on the cover of a magazine that has influence and seeks to use it " (Tognini, 2018). Some journalists and opinion givers in the local and national media decided that Cosmopolitan's actions to put a plus size (or morbidly obese) woman on the cover was stupid and irresponsible. Just as their actions would be stupid and irresponsible to put an anorexic woman on the cover. These actions were considered stupid and irresponsible because putting a plus size woman on the cover of a magazine was influential and an unhealthy role model especially for young people and not what young women should be aspiring too (Tognini, 2018).

I don't see some Australian female journalists and opinion givers as having much faith in young women or the women of today in choosing appropriate role models for themselves. Today young women in Australia graduate high school at 18, drive a car at 17, vote in an election at 18, legally drink at 18, go on to further education, have jobs, buy property and participate successfully in the community and have positive and happy relationships with their family and friends. It seems with all the local, national and international discussion about female role models within Australian sport, entertainment, business, arts, academia and the community in the traditional media and on social media it seems some young women can not find and choose their own role models other than what they see on magazine covers like Cosmopolitan.

It still seems some Australian female journalists and opinion givers are so outraged on social media when men and other women tell women what their values should be especially for women like them, normal size women in which attractiveness is an employment and personal quality valued like surf lifesaver, models, grid girls, cheerleaders and television and media personalities. These women, all women should be allowed to use their bodies how they like and make their own choices. But it is alright for them to tell young women and others who and what they should be aspiring to be and that is not someone like plus size model and activist Tess Holliday (Tognini, 2018). Hypocrisy yes and outrageous! The quality of a role model should of course be more than superficial and that is what we should be highlighting, their personal and other qualities not just their physical appearance which the magazine does.

Some journalists and opinion givers quoted health statistics about the impact of obesity on the health system which had no source..."It has been declared a disease in the US since 2013 and there’s pressure in Australia to label it the same. The burden on the health system is upward of $12 billion year and it’s tipped to hit $21 billion by 2025." (Tognini, 2018). It seems some female journalists and opinion givers who are not qualified professional health professionals make decisions based purely on someone's physical appearance about whether a person is healthy or not. In this case Tess Holliday fits the definition of 'morbidly obese' and as a consequence unhealthy (Tognini, 2018).

I agree with Tess Holliday who pointed out her weight and health is no ones business but hers. And because someone who is plus size or defined as 'morbidly obese' doesn't mean they impact negatively on the health system. I certainly know plus size people who are healthy and don't impact on the health system including me.

Bokody (2018) makes several good points in her response "And her message is solid, given researchers have been highlighting the link between low body image and depression and suicide for decades now... But don’t worry about that. You can gloss right over your bullying and your bigotry by dressing the issue up in your “concern” for the health of women." It certainly would be interesting to look at the impact financially and emotionally on young people (both men and women) and their families and employers seeking professional help on the health system for bullying, eating disorders, body image, depression and suicide in particular fostered through the use of social media use.

While some Australian female journalists and opinion givers go on about the impact of obesity on the health system participate in social media with endless selfies contributing to the problems of low body image and depression among women. They continually promote themselves and their products through social media where they think there seems to be some connection between the way a woman looks and the validity of what they do and say and in particular when they appear on pay television programs (Tognini, 2018). Where there is none. There should be more female diversity in the Australia television media.

Brodnick (2018) hits the nail on the head in her article when she states that it is up to individual readers what will happen with this presentation... "But do you know who actually has the power to make my life more dangerous, more free or more valid?... You... Because no matter what kind of magazine covers sit on the stands there is no power in them unless we decide to take that message of body positivity and weave it into our own lives".

And she is right. Tess Holliday's appearance on the cover of Cosmopolitan won't make me eat more because 'morbid obesity' is seen as becoming 'the normal' nor will it rush me to going on a diet and to the gym. I am an adult and can control my impulses. Her shared experiences offer hope and empathy of what it is like to be a plus size woman, some of the struggles we go through and a bit more self-acceptance. A bit more self-acceptance is what I take from all of this. And maybe be inspired to post a selfie in the future.


Thanks Tess Holliday for your inspiration and courage...

References

Bammington, E. (2018). 'Tess Halliday: The size 24 model.' published on 21 September, 2018 at who.com.au

Bokody, N. (2018). 'OPINION: Think Tess is 'dangerously unhealthy'? Get over yourself ' published on 5 September, 2018 at newidea.com.au

Brodnick, L. (2018). 'When I say Tess Halliday's Cosmopolitan I was delighted. But that quickly turned to fear.' published on 31 August, 2018 at mamamia.com.au

Carey, A. (2018). 'Backlash grows over plus-size model Tess Holliday’s appearance in Cosmopolitan UK.' published on 31 August, 2018 at news.com.au

Matthews. R. (2018). 'Piers Morgan labels magazine editor as 'dangerous' after featuring a plus-size model on their cover.' published 4 September, 2018 at that'slife.com

Tognini, G. (2018 a). 'Opinion: Cosmopolitan front cover of Tess Holliday sends wrong message about obesity.' published on 13 October, 2018 at the thewest.com

Tognini, G. (2018 b). Twitter

Australian Sport And Professional Fan Cheer Squads...A fan responds. published on 9 February, 2018.

"We found it hard to work out a positive about it. There was a grey area to it. It makes women uncomfortable and it makes blokes who take their son to the football also uncomfortable..." Russell Crowe on South Sydney Rugby League Club's decision not use cheerleaders in 2009.

Recently traditional news sources and social media were alive with the story that the Formula One Grand Prix competition had axed their grid girls or the use of models. I have to say I don't know anything about Formula One or the tradition of grid girls except what I had seen on the sports news on television.

From the news articles I have read I gather grid girls were added to Formula One during the 1960's to add some glamour to the motor car sport. Being a grid girl involved walking around the stadium interacting with the fans, having their photograph taken with the drivers and being showered in campaign on the winner's podium. But obviously there was a bit more to it that included wearing the sponsor's clothes, appearing on the track before the event and lining the halls before the drivers got onto the podium (Wheatsone, 2018).

At the end of January, 2018 Formula One issued a statement "While the practise of employing grid girls has been a staple at Formula One Grand Prix for decades, we feel this custom is at odds with modern day societal norms...we don't believe the practise is appropriate or relevant to Formula One and its fans, old and new across the world." (News Corporation Australia, 2018).

As a female sport's fan in Australia (but not of Formula One) who is interested in the role and inclusion of women fans in Australian sport I welcomed the decision. And yes I agree with Formula One that the idea of grid girls 'are at odds with modern day societal norms'. As a sport's fan I don't really believe grid girls (like cheerleaders) added anything to an exciting sport where men are the stars. Women are often objectified and seem nothing more than eye candy for male supporters. Grid girls and cheerleaders definitely send the wrong message to those women wanting to participate in sport on equal terms with men including motor sport (Ormonde, 2012, Emery, 2018).

I doubt those journalists and columnists in the Australian media who supported grid girls have been to a Formula One Grand Prix event in Australia or overseas or any sporting event where young women perform to entertain the supporters and support men playing the game on the field. Many stated that the presence of grid girls (or cheerleaders) at events didn't bother them. It is easy to support a group of people you personally have no contact with and are not a regular feature of you or your families life such as going to a rugby league game. These women argue that young women have a right use their physical beauty to earn money, wear what they want and to engage in any employment of their choice to earn a living at what they love. Which is true in Australia. One journalist told me 'how dare I tell another woman what values they should have' when I expressed my objection.

I was 'told how dare you tell another woman what values they should have' at the same time they ignored me and my feelings and the right to express my opinion. In fact no where in anything I read did journalists or columnists talk to a female fan about how grid girls or cheerleaders made fans feel at games and events and that was uncomfortable. To be honest I didn't like cheerleader's routines and costumes. The only person I read interested in the position of the female fans and cheerleaders was Russell Crowe back in 2009 when he made the decision to axe cheerleaders at South Sydney.

American cheerleading and the role of women in this sport is different in America than Australia. I have read where many academics, people pro grid girls and cheerleaders argue that the girls are often using these experiences to put themselves through university (Back, 2017). I have also read about cheerleading as a sport in its own right not as an addition to a male game which is a completely different thing. "What I love about cheerleading is that it is for everyone. Just like other sports, cheerleading has positions (flyers, bases, back bases, tumblers, dancers) that require athletes of various shapes, sizes and skill sets to fill them. Tall, short, solid, skinny, blond, brunette -it takes them all to make a perfect routine..."(Mihalopolos, 2014). If this was true in Australian sport about cheerleaders as crowd entertainment then there would be more diversity in those selected to perform in the squads.

I am a female Australian rugby union fan. Australian rugby union has never had cheerleaders as a number of Australian sports. I have been interested in rugby union and women in sport for over thirteen years. During that time I have seen major sporting league teams in Australian actively encourage women to participate in all levels of sport from being a fan, member, player, referee, employed in teams in a range of positions through the media, as health professionals, in team management and on boards. Many rugby union clubs have had special memberships and events including 'Ladies Day' for women fans. The head of Australian rugby union is a woman.

During doing research for the post I read quite a few articles but not in one did I read where someone had asked a female fan of Formula One what they thought (they spoke to the grid girls, drivers and management of Formula One, female academics and females in the sport but not the fans). The only time I have seen cheerleading at an Australian sporting event was when I lived in Canberra and I went to watch Australian rugby league teams South Sydney v Canberra. To me the men were the stars of the show and showed great skills at playing the game. When I went to these games South Sydney had already axed their cheerleaders.

In 2009 Russell Crowe as the new owner of South Sydney decided not to use cheerleaders as they made fans feel uncomfortable. He stated that the focus should be on football and replaced them with other forms of entertainment that were later disbanded. The move was seen as progressive at the time. To be honest Russell Crowe's words rang true at the games in Canberra and I did feel uncomfortable with cheerleaders and their type of entertainment. Several years on from my experiences in Canberra, the rugby league team the Canberra Raiders have decided not to renew their female cheerleading squad. The reason given was that this would distinguish their team from other teams and to 'create more opportunities for women and men and children to get involved.' (Back, 2017).

In 2016 Australia provided the American college football season with a match in Sydney between the California Golden Bears and Hawaii Rainbow Warriors at ANZ stadium. This was the first American college football game ever played in Australia. Along with that game came all the razzle dazzle of American football including female cheerleading squads and marching bands. The social media section at ANZ stadium were sending out a large amount of tweets to promote the game using tweets with photographs of cheerleaders who seemed to be included in every promotional opportunity available rather than the players.

I don't have a problem with American college football or any American sports playing in Australia during their regular or off season but I do have a problem with cheerleaders who don't play the game in any capacity being used to promote the sport here. If Americans are going to promote their sport here I would rather see and hear from the players and administrators. When I complained to ANZ stadium on Twitter they blocked me for speaking up for what I considered sexist behaviour.

Many journalists and sports fans will probably believe the decision to axe grid girls comes in the wake of the #MeToo campaign in 'which has brought sexual harassment and objectification of women into the spotlight' (Emery, 2018). I believe it probably has influenced many professional sports and the role women play within them. But in Australian sport the decision to make sport more inclusive of women and for equal rights has been ongoing for many years. For example, late last year Australian sporting codes Australian Rugby Union, Australian Rugby League, Australian Football League and Australian Netball League joined forces to encourage Australian sport's fans to be more than a spectator and challenge sexist attitudes and behaviours, where ever and when they see them.

So what happens when women sport's fans speak up about sexist attitudes and behaviours in particular in sport around Australia. It seems grid girls, cheerleaders and their supporters are quick to shut those women down. I was told by one journalist on Twitter 'what right do men have to tell women what to do' as I tried to explain the role of women in sport including motor sport and their sponsors and this decision was perhaps not confined to men. Since then other articles have been written and the down fall of the grid girl has been blamed on the middle class well to do women telling working class women what they can and can't do. The grid girls blame women feminists for the lost of a job they loved (SBS, 2018, ABC, 2018).

Regardless of who made the decision to axe the grid girls it seems that those who run a business (either male or female) like the Formula One and their sponsors and fans can't make a decision about what is best for their business. Chan & Walters (2018) stated Formula One paid grid girls in the United Kingdom 300 pounds a day plus all their costs including food, hotels, makeup and travel. The total cost of grid girls ads up to a lot of money and savings if made redundant or replace with a more inclusive model. The axing of grid girls, cheerleaders and other walk on roles for models in professional darts and Australian cycling does reflect current societal norms but also to ensure the future of their sport as they compete for limited sponsorship funding. The money certainly can be used to promote more inclusive women's roles at all levels of the professional sport. What ever the reasons it is a move in the right direction.

References

Back, A. 2017. 'Canberra Raiders drop cheerleaders in 2017' published in The Canberra Times on 9 January, 2017.

Chan, E & Walters, I. 2018. 'It didn't feel sexist': Former grid girls have THEIR say on the controversial Formula One ban but Melinda Messenger says it's the right move' published in the DailyMail.co.uk on 1 February, 2018.

Emery, K. 2018. 'Grid girls are a notion that has had its day' published in The West Australian on 2 February, 2018.

McMahon, A. 2018. 'Formula One axes grid girls from races to keep up with 'modern day societal norms' published on abc.net.au on 1 February, 2018.

Mihalopoulos, S. 'Everything you know about cheerleading is wrong' published in mamamia.com.au on 10 August, 2014.

Musovic, S, (2017), 'Sports stars urge fans to challenge sexism by being #morethanaspectator' published in ourwatch.org.au on 24 November, 2017.

News Corporation Australia, 2018. 'Formula One axes 'grid girls' starting at the Australian Grand prix in March' published in news.com.au on 1 February, 2018.

Ormonde, L. 2018, 'Do you support woman's right to cheer?' published in mamamia.com.au on the 1 May, 2012.

Poulson, J, 2018. 'Broncos say cheerleaders here to stay after Formula One axes grid girls' published in The Courier Mail on February, 2018.

Ritchie, D. & Charnock, C. 2009, 'Cheerleaders axed at Souths' published in the Daily Telegraph on the 17 March, 2009.

SBS, 2018. 'F1 grid girls push back against 'well of women' telling others what to do'.SBS News published on 7 February, 2017.

Wheatstone, R. 2018. 'Grid Grief. What are grid girls, how much do they get paid and who are the grid kids to replace them' published in thesun.co.uk on 6 February, 2018.

Alan Doyle Plays Newfoundland 2018...Some highlights.

During the Canadian Summer of 2018 Alan Doyle and The Beautiful, Beautiful Band played some concerts that included the Lewisporte Mussel Bed Soiree Festival and the Iceberg Alley Performance Tent Festival in St. John's.

Alan also did solo events that included attending the Writer's At Woody Point Festival and a local charity concert at Garden Cove. I have included some highlights here for future visitors to my blog.

The Writer's At Woody Point Festival...

Alan attended the Writer's At Woody Point Festival on 16 August, 2018 to talk about his book 'A Newfoundlander in Canada' with CBC presenter Tom Power. I have included a photograph from the interview from the official Writer's At Woody Point Festival Facebook page. I was unable to find an official copy of the interview.

Garden Cove Charity Event...

For the past several years Alan has done a solo performance at Garden Cover to raise money for a playground in memory of a local boy who had died tragically.

There was not a lot shared on social media. As much as I love an Alan Doyle solo performance and this certainly would have been a ripper with family members included, I was not prepared to watch the usual collection of bootlegged videos from the usual fan sources who travelled from St. John's and other parts of Newfoundland for it.

Lewisporte...

This year Alan and The Beautiful Beautiful Band played the Lewisporte Mussel Bed Soiree in Newfoundland. Again not a lot was shared on social media outside the usual sources.

Iceberg Alley Performance Tent...

Alan Doyle and The Beautiful, Beautiful Band performed at the Iceberg Alley Performance Tent on 15 September, 2018 with other Newfoundland music acts Shanneyganock and Celtic Connection. 

Local Newfoundland photographer Alick Tsui took some fabulous photographs of all the acts who performed over the event including Alan Doyle and The Beautiful, Beautiful Band and the amazing crowd and shared them via his official social media site on Twitter. I have included three here. No copyright infringement intended. 











Prior to the performance Alan did an interview with the Newfoundland Herald. He talked about the Iceberg Alley Tent Performance event, breaking into the US and Great Big Sea. The article called  "Alan Doyle talks Iceberg Alley, Breaking into the U.S. and Great Big Sea" was published in the Newfoundland Herald and can be found at the online Newfoundland Herald site.

Earlier this summer Alan, Bob and Sean sent the Great Big Sea fan into a frenzy on social media when they met at a local park. Alan explained what happened there and the future of Great Big Sea. I have copied some what was said from the interview here. No copyright infringement intended. 

"...Never failing to raise fan expectations, and pulses, Doyle and Great Big Sea members Bob Hallett and Sean McCann sent folks into a fine frenzy in recent months by posting photos together, leading to rumour and innuendo of reunions and the like. We’d be negligent not to at least ask the status of the iconic trad trio.

“Nothing new, really, other than we had a couple of gatherings in the last few months,” Doyle admits. We’re musing about what we’ll be able to get up to in the coming years. Nothing more than that. We’ve talked about under what scenarios we’d be able to mount a reunion or anniversary gig or short run or something that fits in everybody’s lives. Luckily, everyone is quite happy doing what they’re doing.

“My notion, since Sean left the band, is I don’t want to fight about it,” he adds. “When everybody wants to do it again, lets do it. I didn’t want the last thing that me and Sean and Bob did together be fight over the spoils of it. I got so much respect for those two guys. I literally owe my career to those two guys and Daryl Power. In truth it was mostly their idea. They were doing it before I joined. My notion is that if we can find a happy way that we can do it and happily great, but if not that’s fine.

“I’m not one bit surprised about Sean and Bob,” he says of the continued individual success of the trio. “They’re two of the smartest, most hard working people I’ve ever met in my life. Not to mention, incredibly talented. They both have skillsets that were so enormous outside the band that we benefited from. It’s good times, is the short answer, and I’m grateful for it....”

Canadians And Illegal Downloading...Some new research.

Finding articles and research like this one about piracy is one of the reasons I love to write my blog...

While researching Bryan Adam's role in the new changes to copyright law in Canada I found this really interesting article 'Five per cent of digital consumers say they always access content illegally, says survey' by Dean Beeby published on 30 May, 2018 about Canadian trends in pirating digital content.

The article cites research which surveyed initially Canada (and then compared their results with Britain and Australia) who access online content including music, television, movies and other content online to find out how often and why they were illegally downloading content and the impact of copyright infringement notices. Most people who participate stated they only occasionally accessed content illegally, with the main reasons being because it was free and convenient.

What was also interesting in that this compared Canada with Britain and Australia. The article states "The research found Canada and Britain comparable, with about a quarter in each country acknowledging at least one act of digital piracy over the last three months, while 38 per cent of Australians admitted to doing so."

Although the article states 38 per cent of Australians acknowledged at least one act of digital piracy over the last three months which was slightly higher than either Canada or Britain it did not provide a reason why. For example, highlighting the way Australians receive television and other online content long after it was shown in North America including Canada.

The research also provided some other interesting information about who engages in illegal downloading. "The survey also found that digital copyright infringement crossed many demographic lines, including gender, region, rural/urban, language and employment status. But piracy did occur more frequently among the young and – perhaps paradoxically – among individuals with household incomes of $100,000 and more."

While I certainly understand that the young pirate engage in illegal downloading what I didn't know that these individuals have household incomes of $100 000. The cost of not being able to afford content has been one of the reasons people engage in illegal downloading.

I have copied the article here for those interested in reading it. No copyright infringement intended. 



'Five per cent of digital consumers say they always access content illegally, says survey' by Dean Beeby published on 30 May, 2018 on CBC.com

Polling for review of Copyright Act finds three-quarters of digital consumers say they respect copyright.

Three-quarters of Canadians who access music, TV, movies and other content online claim to only do so legally, while a solid five per cent claim they consume all of their online content illegally, a new survey on digital copyright infringement suggests.

The figures come from a federally-commissioned survey of 3,301 Canadians over the age of 12, carried out last November. Most of the remaining Canadians surveyed claim they only occasionally access content illegally.

Two federal departments – Innovation, Science and Economic Development (ISED) and Canadian Heritage – ordered the $95,000 research partly to inform a mandatory five-year review of the Copyright Act, now being carried out by a House of Commons committee.

The firm Kantar TNS polled its large online panel, supplemented by 253 telephone interviews of Canadians 65 years of age and older, to find out how often and why Canadians are pirating digital content. Results were posted on the web this week.

About half of the consumers surveyed who acknowledged getting some of their digital content illegally said they do it because it's free. Forty per cent said the convenience of illegal access is a big motivation.

Of those who claimed to pay for their digital content, only a third said they do so because they want to avoid illegal downloads and streaming. Convenience was cited by almost half as a primary motivation.

One quarter ignore copyright warnings.

One in 10 Canadians surveyed said they've received a notice of alleged copyright infringement from their internet service provider (ISP) through a government-implemented system that came into effect in 2015. The copyright owner who believes content has been stolen initiates the process.

The notices have rattled some consumers, especially when they come with the threat of penalties. The Kantar TNS survey found about a quarter of respondents who received such notices ignored them, while another quarter stopped their illegal downloading or streaming in response.

The broad-ranging survey also compared the behaviour of Canadian digital consumers to those in Australia and Great Britain. The research found Canada and Britain comparable, with about a quarter in each country acknowledging at least one act of digital piracy over the last three months, while 38 per cent of Australians admitted to doing so.

The survey also found that digital copyright infringement crossed many demographic lines, including gender, region, rural/urban, language and employment status. But piracy did occur more frequently among the young and – perhaps paradoxically – among individuals with household incomes of $100,000 and more.

Eleven per cent of those surveyed reported using "stream-ripping" — capturing streamed content from YouTube, Spotify and other web services as a digital file, which can then be stored on a hard drive or other device, an act that often violates copyright.

"Relative to total internet users, users of stream-ripping are more likely to be male (62%) and are predominantly 18 to 34 (52%) years of age," the study found.

The Agony And Estacy Of Being An Australian Sport's Fan... A reflection.

Today is game day for my sport, rugby union in Australia. My team, the Wallabies are playing the Pumas from Argentina in the Rugby Championships for 2018. In this tournament there is also the All Blacks from New Zealand and the Springboks from South Africa.

As I was waiting for this game to be played I often think back to this article below titled  'Sport's Fans...The agony and estacy.' published in The West Australian on 4 August, 2018 and the research it cites about sport's fans, their happiness and how that will be affected by the team they support and whether they win or lose.

The Wallabies were expected to win this game by a long shot. The Pumas have always been a gutsy rugby team that keep on trying. Fast forward to Saturday night. The Wallabies unexpectedly lost this game on home ground. Argentina had won their first game in Australia in 35 years and Australia's first loss to Argentina since 1983. So the loss or win was very significant indeed.

In the Rugby Championship tournament this year, the All Blacks beat the Wallabies at home in Australia and in New Zealand and won the Bledisloe Cup for something like the 17 th year in a row. They then went on to beat the Pumas in New Zealand. The Wallabies beat the Springboks at home maintaining the Mandela Plate. The Pumas beat the Springboks in Argentina and the Wallabies in Australia.

So how does all this make me feel ? I was certainly pissed last night that the Wallabies lost to the Pumas at the last home game in Australia for this year. We are currently on the bottom of the Rugby Championship table. These feelings will be exasperated as the next two Wallabies' games are away in South Africa and Argentina and the Wallabies don't have a great record on the road against South Africa. Why I am pissed is about the quality of the game and players and is beyond the scope of this post.

Yesterday, the most unbelievable thing happened in rugby and it was a day of underdogs. Before the telecast of the Wallabies and the Pumas game in Australia, the Springboks beat the All Blacks at home in New Zealand. For anyone who is a fan of southern hemisphere rugby and rugby in general know that was truly a great win indeed for the Springboks considering the All Blacks dominance in world rugby in recent years. This made the Wallabies' loss a little bit easier, knowing that the All Blacks' fans would be hurting perhaps more than us by this loss.

Although the research below is for soccer I agree with many of the findings based on my experiences of being a rugby fan and that the outcome of matches in which a fan is highly emotionally invested in their team do affect our happiness even if the loss is expected and only for a short time.

I agree with the researchers that the negative affects of losing a game are greater than the positive impact of winning a game. However, this article did not distinguish whether this positive impact was for a a weekly game, the finals or the grand final or an international match against long term rivals.

The researchers ask a valid question 'Is it all worth it?' Being a fan of rugby has brought many benefits to my life which have been discussed in other posts on this blog. I also agree with the researchers there are many benefits to being a sport's fan including inter generational family connections, making friends and sharing experiences with other like minded fans including travelling to watch games.

Being a sport's fan is accepting that things in life such as games of sport do not always go our way. The win by the Pumas against the Wallabies, their first in Australia in 35 years teaches us not to give up. Being a fan of a team is being able to pick yourself up, dust yourself off and move on to the next game with the team with grace. Yes, it is all worth it.



'Sport's Fans...The agony and estacy.' published in The West Australian on 4 August, 2018. (no copyright infringement intended)

Many people feel devastated after their favourite team loses. Sometimes they have trouble sleeping (yes, I speak from personal experience) and that raises some legitimate questions: Why suffer? Is it even rational to be a sports fan?

Recent research suggests that it might not be. On average, soccer — the most popular sport on the planet — makes people a lot less happy. The lesson is that if you’re strongly attached to your team, you might be better off if you decide to disengage — starting right now.

Peter Dolton and George MacKerron, of the University of Sussex in Britain, linked several large data sets. To measure people’s happiness, they used millions of reports from tens of thousands of people who recorded their levels of happiness at various times in the day and who also reported on what they were doing during those times.

They also used data on all English and Scottish soccer matches during the 2011, 2012 and 2013 seasons. The data included the date, the odds and the results.

By connecting the happiness data with the soccer data, they could see how people’s happiness was affected by the outcome of the match. They made reasonable assumptions about which team people were most likely to support, based on where they lived and which matches they had attended in the past.

The basic finding was clear. A victory by the local team had a positive effect on people’s happiness — but it was much smaller than the negative effect of a loss. In addition, the positive effect of a victory did not last as long as the negative effect of a loss. Because the misery of a loss is so much greater than the joy of a win, soccer matches made people a lot less happy on balance.

For those who actually attended matches, both wins and losses had a significantly larger impact on happiness (not surprisingly).

But the difference between the two persisted: if you took the trouble to go to the stadium, your suffering after a loss would be much greater than your pleasure after a win. Dolton and MacKerron also investigated the effects of expectations. Not surprisingly, they found that a loss had a more severe negative impact on people’s happiness when their team was expected to win than when it was expected to lose.

Importantly, however, they found that people really did suffer when their team lost, even if it was anticipated. So fans didn’t adapt to expectations.

If we put all of the data together, the negative emotional consequences of losing turn out to be far higher than the positive emotional consequences of winning.

That raises a question. Unless your team is bound to win most of the time, isn’t it a mistake to go to games, or to make an emotional investment in your side? Shouldn’t we all be finding better things to do?

To their credit, Dolton and MacKerron aren’t sure. They note that many people like having a sense of camaraderie; their data does not measure that, or the benefits of cheering for one’s team in conjunction with others. In addition, it can be a lot of fun to feel curiosity and anticipation.

There’s also the question of memories. Maybe the anguish of losses fades over time and what remains are positive recollections of the experience. (Croatian and British fans, take heart.)

Being a fan also provides a connection with children, parents, grandchildren and grandparents. That’s gratifying, even meaningful. True, the distress of a loss might be acute but perhaps it is outweighed by the overall benefits of fandom.

There’s also a question whether the study’s findings generalise to other sports such as baseball, football, hockey or tennis.

Maybe not. But in view of decades of work in behavioural science on the subject of “loss aversion”, it’s not exactly surprising to learn that for sports fans, the negative emotional impact of losses is a lot bigger than the positive emotional impact of wins.

For those whose spirits sometimes rise but mostly fall with the fortunes of their favourite team, it makes sense to ask: Is it really worth it?

In Memory Of Kim Hix...A Great Big Sea fan.

It was really sad to read the passing of Great Big Sea and Newfoundland music fan, American Kim Hix who died tragically while holidaying this summer in Newfoundland on the 25 August, 2018. Great Big Sea members Alan Doyle and Bob Hallett paid tribute to Kim as a Great Big Sea fan and promoter of Newfoundland music on social media and in the local traditional media.

I didn't know Kim nor did I ever meet her but I had seen her posts and contributions on social media throughout the years as a fan of Great Big Sea and Newfoundland music. The fans at the The Online Kitchen Party, A Great Big Sea fan community on Facebook came together and shared some really nice memories, photographs and videos of Kim at various concerts and events she had attended. 

Other music fans shared fond memories and photographs of Kim through social media. I hope that this brought some comfort to her family, friends and other fans. Condolences to Kim Hix's family and friends...

CBCNL, the local Newfoundland media wrote an article about Kim's death at Cape Spear in which Bob Hallett shared his memories of Kim. The article is titled 'Woman who fell to her death at Cape Spear remembered as one-of-a-kind music fan' and can be found at https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/kim-hix-cape-spear-fall-1.4800011

Alan Doyle also paid tribute to Kim at his recent performance at the Iceberg Festival Concert series on the 15 September 2018, in St. John's, Newfoundland. There are various recordings on YouTube. 

I have included posts Alan Doyle and Bob Hallett paying tribute to Kim are from their official Twitter accounts. Thank you to Bryan Kremkau, another fan for sharing a photograph of Kim enjoying a concert. No copyright infringement intended.

Alan Doyle and #aroundthebaycation... Summer 2018.

Alan Doyle and his fellow Great Big Sea band mates Bob Hallett and Sean McCann have been ambassadors and promoters for the Canadian province of Newfoundland for many years. Together the boys have promoted Newfoundland, it's history, culture, people and music through the traditional media such as newspapers, magazines and on television from their early Great Big Sea days to their current solo endeavours. They have graciously shared their adventures through posts and photos and answered tourist's questions about where to go and what to do in Newfoundland on their official social media sites.

Recently during some time off Alan and his family travelled around Newfoundland. He shared some of their adventures via his official social media accounts Twitter and Instagram. I thought I would post a couple of photographs/posts here for those interested fans going to Newfoundland in the future who would like a little bit of local knowledge about where to go and what to do beyond the capital city of St. John's. The photographs included posts about tourists sites to visit, great places to eat, camp, fish, hike and explore. 

More photographs can be found under the Twitter hashtag of #aroundthebaycation. Also included is a Twitter post of Alan on the bridge in Petty Harbour which I liked although not on the #aroundthebaycation and is a place all tourists should visit. This would be the trip of a life time. 

The photographs and posts are from the official Alanthomasdoyle Twitter and Instagram accounts. As always no copyright infringement intended.

The 'Alan Doyle Fan Club'... A fan response.

For those fans of Great Big Sea and their individual band members who don't participate in the fandom or any genuine onlookers, 'The Alan Doyle Fan Club' is a fan created online fan club that can be located primarily on Facebook and other social media sites such as Twitter and Instagram. While I stated on my last blog post that the last post would be my last post, I thought that writing and posting this post would help new members to the fandom navigate their way around the fandom. Mostly I wanted to help those fans who run fowl of the head administrator or the 'ownerKrista' and the other administrators of this fan page and let them know they are not alone.

The 'Alan Doyle Fan Club' has often been wrongly confused by fans and new fans entering the fandom as a kind of 'official' fan club. Several years ago the fan club included 'official' in the title but that has since been removed to avoid confusion after complaints were made over it's administration. Many new and old Great Big Sea fans and active social media participants over the past couple of years have run fowl of the head administrator or the 'ownerKrista ' and other administrators as they navigate their way through a complex collection of rules and regulations designed I guess to keep order and make sure the site runs smoothly. (And for reference no one 'owns' social media pages, for example on Facebook. Individuals and groups use them at the discretion of their legal owners as long as the users abide by the conditions of use.)

To begin with I have never seen the 'The Alan Doyle Fan Club' on Facebook which boosts to have over 3000 plus members. I have never seen the page because it has always been a 'closed group'. Over the years there have been attempts by head administrator or 'ownerKrista' to set up official pages on other social media including Twitter, Instagram and a blog post on Wordpress. Both the official 'Alan Doyle Fan Club' Twitter and Instagram accounts have between 50 and 100 followers. From those open social media accounts I can see there are very few active fans and the sites act as another extension of the head administrator or 'ownerKrista' to share the posts by Alan Doyle, to share her own posts from events she attends and to make on occasions anonymous comments. Despite the massive amount of fan material produced and shared by this fandom there is little or no sharing by 'The Alan Doyle Fan Club' on these sites. I imagine this extends to the official Facebook page.

Fans and in particular new fans participation in fan generated fan sites varies a lot. Their involvement can be from just receiving information distributed, to posting likes and shares, participating in fan related discussions and sharing information and personal experiences. Fans use these fan pages to meet other fans, share their love of the musicians and their music and experiences. The head administrator or the 'ownerKrista' has used these fan sites to share tweets, photos, autographs and personal stuff that she receives from her contact with Alan Doyle that has implied that she is more than a fan. She has used the fan sites and her personal sites to ask for money, accommodation, tickets and other benefits from unsuspecting fans to travel to concerts on mainland Canada and in St. John's, Newfoundland.

Fans and in particular new fans over the years have been involved in a number of arguments with the 'Alan Doyle Fan Club' mainly on Facebook for any number of reasons and are often blocked. Some fans for nothing more than sharing a post about another member of Alan Doyle's former band Great Big Sea, answering a question that the head administrator or 'ownerKrista' thought was meant for her and being kind and considerate to the 'ownerKrista' when she was having a 'bad day'. Me, I was recently blocked from the Alan Doyle Fan Club Twitter site for standing up for a fan that I believed was being used as an example by correcting a mistake about a song title and then laughing about it and for me bringing this to the attention of fan group and correcting the head administrator or 'ownerkrista's' grammar. The head administrator or the 'ownerKrista' is known for finding faults with people's knowledge about a range of topics and in particular their grammar on her own social media (despite the fact some people may have learning difficulties such as dyslexia) so I thought it appropriate for me to mention to her that she does not on many occasions write grammatically correct sentences using a capital letter and a full stop.

The Alan Doyle Fan Club Twitter site responded to me by asking me nicely to stop and then blocked me. The post was not signed. For a fan site with allegedly a number of administrators I would have thought the head administrator or the 'ownerKrista' would have written in her extensive list of rules that all administrators they would sign their posts. Although this does occasionally happen when head administrator or the 'ownerKrista' wants some recognition. The head administrator or the 'ownerKrista' went off at me on her personal sites (as she often does about the members of the fan page) and called me a bitch and troll and gleefully added that I had been blocked. 

The head administrator or 'ownerkrista' also accused me of harassing her despite the fact I have never contacted the official fan club site on Twitter in the three years it had been operating, or on the official Facebook page because it is a closed group or the Instagram page. I have never contacted her on any of the other Facebook fan pages she runs or her personal pages which there are many. I am blocked (and I blocked her) from her personal Twitter page after a dispute several years ago over the photographs and interview she was constructing for a hockey fan page about Alan Doyle. I have never written about the Alan Doyle Fan Club on my blog. She has tried to steal my ideas about writing about the fans for the fans on other created webpages like Wordpress. And some of her administrators following her liked her tweets. To be honest I have no interest in these fan pages as they have no genuine fan input and seem to me to be an extension of the head administrator or the 'ownerKrista's' personal pages to use as she pleases and often anonymously.

I certainly understand how the impact of the exclusion of fans from these types of fan pages can be quite devastating without a valid reason. Fans can lose their own social media online 'friendship' base and make life going to concerts difficult. Calling people names, exclusion through blocking and talking behind people's backs (the head administrator or the 'ownerKrista' tweets about people in the fan groups on her personal pages without using their names) is outright bullying and trolling. While some fans like me are happy to move on from this toxic environment that changes on a day to day basis depending on the mood of the head administrator or the 'ownerkrista', this bullying and confusion doesn't leave a good impression on some of the fans of the musicians they are trying to promote through social media. 

Other administrators involved in the fan pages have tried to make excuses to other fans for her, explaining that the head administrator or the 'ownerKrista' is on the Autism spectrum and has Asperger's syndrome. Personally from my experiences with children with autism and reading I don't believe this is an excuse for unregulated and unrelenting bullying and trolling on fans. The head administrator or the 'ownerKrista' and her fellow administrators circulate resources about Autism and Asperger's syndrome, some from a range of unreliable social media sites that while may explain part of her condition and behaviour, it can give a wrong impression of what the condition is about in particular involving social interaction. Most of all many children and adults with Autism and Asperger's syndrome can learn appropriate social interaction skills that make them successful participants in all aspects of life. 

In 2016 or 2017 the musician Alan Doyle fielded complaints about the 'Alan Doyle Fan Club' fan site after a fan was blocked for answering a question by the head administrator or the 'ownerKrista'. Alan stated clearly on his official Twitter account that while grateful for the support from fans he has no affiliation with any fan pages including the 'Alan Doyle Fan Club' page on Facebook. Alan also stated he doesn't have the time to monitor fan pages and he is willing to investigate complaints by fans that are referred through his management. Alan has also asked the head administrator or the 'ownerKrista' to be kind on these fan pages, a request that she has forgotten over time. 

From my personal experiences in these fandoms and in particular on social media, fans should enjoy the music and concert experiences any artist and musician brings to their life. Fans should be very wary about becoming too reliant on fan pages and fans such as the head administrator or the 'ownerkrista' and other administrators who while on the one hand can be generous and share selective information about the musicians and artists, they can also be exclusive about sharing other information that leave a fan feeling a little pissed off and often blocked. My advice is always to follow the musicians and artists themselves, regularly check their official webpages and social media sites for information and updates and meet and interact with other fans at concerts and outside of these online social media fan pages. Always maintain a happy and healthy life offline away from these fan pages.