MAPACA

Mid-Atlantic Popular &
American Culture Association

Using Lance Armstrong and his fall from athletic grace, this paper sheds light on the various frames employed to discuss doping culture and professional athlete drug use by investigating the way different sources frame the issue. In order to examine the way that doping and drug use was framed by Lance Armstrong himself, the sport media, and sport physicians, articles from The New York Times, as well as the televised confession of Lance Armstrong to Oprah, were analyzed. Articles included in this study fell within January 1, 2013 – June 30, 2013. This date range was specifically chosen because of the events that occurred in late 2012 and early 2013 surrounding Lance Armstrong, namely his lifetime banning from professional sports, his public confession to Oprah, and the resulting backlash from sport enthusiasts, sponsors, his charity, and other organizations connected to him. This search yielded twenty six (n=26) viable articles in the final data set. In addition, Lance Armstrong’s publicized confession to Oprah took place in two 1-hour “special” segments and aired on her network, Harpo, in January 2013. These two segments were also part of this study.

Through the lens of Lance Armstrong himself, sport media critics, and also through the perspective of sport physicians who make millions by illegally supplying athletes with banned substances, this research uncovers how deeply seated drug culture is in professional sport and the way that big business is outpacing integrity, ethics, and fair play. This paper finds that doping and drug use are framed in vastly different ways depending on the source. This research finds 6 different ways doping is framed: as a necessity, as part of the culture of cycling, through the eyes of a loyal counselor, an enabler, as part of the loss of the spirit of sport, and as an act of deceitfulness.