Indiana University Professor Brandon Wallace

Brandon Wallace, a professor at Indiana University, is entrenched in the intersection of sports and social movements. In a lecture delivered to High School Journalism Institute students at Indiana University on the evening of July 8, Wallace detailed his concerns about the growing focus on advertising and consumerism within sporting events.

In today’s society, advertisements have become a staple of sporting events, which often serve as a conduit for advertisers to reach the public.

“There’s so many things constantly trying to capture our attention,” Wallace said. “The commercials, all these different things, [are all ways] to keep you engaged. And I’m kind of concerned about this.”

Wallace sees these advertisements as efforts to sway audience opinions. “They’re supposed to entertain us. But in the midst of that entertainment, it’s often these political messages—oftentimes subtly political messages,” he said.

He noted that many of these ads focus on promoting products and the idea that buying things is essential to participating in sports culture. Unlike news programming, where viewers expect to encounter bias or political messaging, Wallace argued that advertisements at sporting events have a more subtle and therefore powerful influence. “They’re almost more powerful, because we don’t recognize them,” he said.

The presence of advertising frustrates Wallace, as he believes it shifts the focus of sporting events away from the sport itself. He sees corporate involvement as a strategy to promote consumerism and frame spending in a positive light to increase profits.

“I think a lot of the issues [are] derived from this kind of incessant pursuit of a profit,” Wallace said. “It is shaping our sport in a way that is no longer about the sport—it’s about the kind of corporate prospects of it.”

Wallace, who is outspoken in his opposition to consumerism, added: “The consumer corporate system … low-key is responsible for everything that’s wrong with society.”

Wallace is also involved with Know Your Rights Camp, an organization founded by a former football player that strives to advance the liberation and well-being of Black and Brown communities. The organization has several sponsors that give away products to people who attend its seminars.

Wallace sees this sponsorship as a complicated issue and believes the organization would ultimately be better off without it.

“It has what’s called a moderating effect,” he said. “It kind of makes them pull punches, you know, about society.”

Although sponsor giveaways help attract youth to KYRC, Wallace believes this also plays into the same consumerist themes he opposes. “Somehow, social movements and capitalism, as usual, have merged,” he said.

Wallace concluded his lecture by discussing plans for a future book. He intends to expand on how sports have succumbed to advertising that competes for viewers’ attention, and the ways in which sports have changed to accommodate that logic. Wallace plans to explore what those changes could mean for the future of sports.