The Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games aim to foster a more inclusive society for people with disabilities through para-sports. The public relations bureau of the Tokyo Organizing Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (TOCOG) has reached out to the mass media in order to promote this vision. However, according to the latest survey of media coverage on the Paralympic Games, the majority of participants think the Paralympics is not well-understood in Japanese society. Furthermore, the public relations practitioners of TOCOG have been struggling with how to depict and frame para-athletes, because the public seem to perceive the frames as not attractive enough, or socially inappropriate.
Framing is seen as a useful tool for public relations practitioners because it facilitates the active sense-making process of the targeted public, and enables journalists to process information quickly so that they are more likely to make use of it in the media. In the process of frame-building, defined as how frames are created and become apparent, various stakeholders in society, e.g. TOCOG and the Japanese government in this study, attempt to put forth their perspective on an issue for media exposure. In addition to external factors, this process can be affected by internal factors as well, such as news values and conventions. In consideration of these facts, the question arises: What are the factors challenging the public relations practitioners of TOCOG in depicting and framing para-athletes, with the aim of promoting an inclusive society in Japan? To answer this question within the larger context of the frame-building process on para-athletes in Japan, semi-structured expert interviews are conducted with the public relations practitioners of TOCOG and its subcontracting public relations company, from the angle of each level of the hierarchy of influences model consisting of “media workers’ socialization and attitudes, media organizations and routines, other social institutions and forces, and the status quo and the interests of those in power in society” (Lecheler & de Vreese, 2018; Shoemaker & Reese, 2014, pp. 7–8).
Until now, there has been no research on the factors influencing the frame-building process of para-athletes from the public relations perspective of the Organizing Committees of Olympic and Paralympic Games. The findings of this study will identify the external and internal factors that affect the creation of frames. Public relations practitioners and journalists can use these findings to improve their strategies for creating frames which will enable the public to better understand people and athletes with disabilities. This will contribute to future research on determining what frames are possible for para-athletes, and which frames promote a more inclusive society and satisfy the interests of each stakeholder to the greatest extent possible.
References
Lecheler, S., & de Vreese, C. H. (2019). News framing effects: Theory and practice. Routledge.
Shoemaker, P. J., & Reese, S. D. (2014). Mediating the message in the 21st century: A media sociology perspective (3rd ed.). Routledge.