‘The Sun’ vs Raheem Sterling
“The media, in all forms, have an important mediating role in creating public opinion. In ‘race’ and ethnic relations, the media provides information where public knowledge is fragmentary.” Hall (1978) and Van Dijk (1991) cited in Farrington, Kilvington, Price, & Saeed (2012).
Both ‘The Sun’ and ‘The Daily Mail’ have been accused of fuelling racial bias in the UK (Dearden, 2016). This also involves in the way they report on black footballers. Often, when these tabloids are writing about black footballers, negative and stereotypical
language can be found. The negative manner in which black footballers are reported on is not only unfair towards the player being targeted but can help to perpetuate racism within society. One player who has been subjected to such, is current Chelsea FC player Raheem Sterling. This case study looks to analyse the ways in which ‘The Sun’ newspaper has negatively portrayed Sterling and to examine whether it reflects racial bias within reporting and if so, how it perpetuates racism in society.
“PREM RAT OF THE CARIBBEAN”
‘The Sun’ newspaper labelled Raheem Sterling “Prem Rat of the Caribbean” in 2017 (Beal, 2017). The headline made the front page of an edition of the newspaper. This is an example of the way in which ‘The Sun’ use language and tone to negatively portray Sterling. The term “rat” is a derogatory word commonly used as an insult to describe someone who is unfaithful and dishonest. Associating such a disparaging term with Sterling, a high-profile black footballer, can reinforce negative stereotypes of black people being naturally untrustworthy and treacherous.
This is not the only time that Sterling has been labelled as a “rat” by ‘The Sun’ newspaper with another article doing so in 2018, “Love rat Raheem Sterling proposes to long-suffering girlfriend Paige Milian” (Moriarty, 2018). The term “love rat” insinuates that Sterling is disloyal to his girlfriend, which characterises him negatively in the public eye. The article’s tone takes a negative turn as the final few lines take shots
at Sterling’s personal life. The article took note of Sterling’s child from a past relationship, alongside his prior use of nitrous oxide, and his friendship with model Tabitha Brown, all of which have no relevance to the story the article is telling. A proposal is something that is meant to be gleeful, yet this article attempts to shame Sterling for things he has done previously. This appears to be an effort to paint Sterling as a deviant or “player,” reinforcing already established negative stereotypes about black people. “The idea that Black people steal or lie/cheat comes up in both film and in the media” (Boyd-Perry, 2016). The consequence of painting Sterling in this manner is the potential recirculation of the stereotypical view of black men being inherently promiscuous.
According to the Cultivation Theory, long-term media exposure makes it harder for people to differentiate media from reality (Wilder, 2020), therefore it is vital for writers to be more veridical when writing about black footballers.
“RAHEEM SHOOTS HIMSELF IN THE FOOT”
Another instance in which ‘The Sun’ newspaper negatively portrays Raheem Sterling was their coverage of his gun tattoo. The story made the front page of the publication reading, “Raheem shoots himself in foot” accompanied by a photo of Raheem’s right leg with the tattoo visible. The full story continued on page five where another story covering the deaths of two teenage boys were also covered. The article read “TWO more teenagers were killed over the weekend as Sterling revealed his controversial gun tattoo”. The statement portrays Raheem Sterling in a negative way by insinuating that his tattoo is somewhat linked to the deaths that occurred that weekend despite there being zero indication to suggest so.
By associating Sterling’s tattoo to the two deaths of teenagers, the article implies that Sterling’s gun tattoo may partly be responsible for the killings as guns have connotations towards acts of violence. This allusion is purely speculative and unjustified, painting Sterling in a negative manner. This article may also reflect racial prejudice by conveying Sterling, a black footballer as someone who incites violence due to having a tattoo of a gun. It is no secret that throughout history, black people have notoriously been stereotyped as aggressive, violent, and criminals. “The stereotyping of Blacks as criminals is so pervasive throughout society that “criminal predator” is used as a euphemism for “young Black male” (Welch, 2007).
Edwards (2019) also notes that the continual exposure of the stereotypical criminal black male has basically become an accepted normality when discussing the image of African American men and that other races are worried about falling victim to black perpetrators (Russel-Brown, 2006 cited in Edwards 2019). By portraying Sterling’s tattoo as a factor in the deaths of two teenagers, the article feeds into those stereotypical views.
Additionally, it is important to note the way in which Sterling’s tattoo was covered compared to white footballers with similar tattoos. Sterling’s England teammate Jordan Pickford has a tattoo of a knife on his left arm yet did not and has not yet received any scrutiny from tabloid newspapers. Chief football correspondent at ‘I Newspaper’ Sam Cunningham noted one tabloid website noticed Pickford’s knife tattoo and “didn’t even bat an eyelid” (Cunningham, 2018). Furthermore, white footballer Alberto Moreno has a tattoo on his thigh of a monkey bearing a gun. Moreno’s tattoo was picked up by tabloid papers, but unlike Sterling, Moreno’s was received in a much more positive light by multiple sources. (Brigstock-Barron, 2016). Rory Brigstock-Barron stated in his article for MailOnline, “Moreno will be hoping his new piece of body art continues to be a good omen ahead of Thursday night’s crucial Europa League tie with Dortmund” (Brigstock-Barron, 2016), and continued to praise the ex-Liverpool fullback throughout the article.
‘The Sun’ newspaper’s coverage of Raheem Sterling’s gun tattoo demonstrates how the newspaper has vilified him, embracing the racial stereotype of black people being associated with crime. The difference in the depiction and reception of similar tattoos on white footballers by other tabloids reflects racial bias within the media. Through a CRT lens, ‘The Sun’s portrayal of Sterling’s gun tattoo is emblematic of systemic racism due to the black criminal stereotype which has been deeply entrenched within society for decades.
“OBSCENE RAHEEM”
The final article I will look at in my case study of ‘The Sun’s treatment of Raheem Sterling is headlined “OBSCENE RAHEEM England failure steps off plane and insults fans by
showing off blinging house”. Immediately, Sterling is branded as a “failure” which has negative connotations, suggesting that he was subpar during the Euro 2016 tournament. Similarly, the online version of this article brands Sterling as “ENGLAND flop” (Moriarty, 2016). Secondly, the subheading labels Sterling as a “shamed winger” which although could be true from the public’s perspective, invites more criticism of Sterling before the body of the article is even read.
These negative terms used at Sterling also do not take into consideration the many variables that pertain to the performance of a football player. The article takes an interest in a video posted on Snapchat of Sterling and his friends touring a new house. The constant use of joyful words and phrases such as “Sterling smiled as his friends videoed”, and “a smiling Sterling” (Moriarty, 2016), juxtaposes the traditionally dejected feeling of losing in sport, therefore insinuating that Sterling did not care about England’s exit from the tournament.
The article later confirms the negative tone stating Sterling “was only interested in bragging about a fleet of luxury cars and the extravagant mansion” (Moriarty, 2016). Sterling touring an expensive house with his friends is not indicative of any feelings or attitudes towards England’s exit from Euro 2016. The article also depicts Sterling as a flashy individual as it describes the way in which he showed his friends around the house. Negative language such as “shows off”, and “flaunted” accompanied by the ostentatious nature of the terminology used to describe items in the house portrays Sterling as someone of a flamboyant nature. Sterling himself has recognised this issue in an interview with ‘The New York Times’ said “It is not just me. Whenever you see a report on a black player or a black entertainer it has to end up with money, or bling, or cars, or something flashy” (Smith, 2019).
Trevor Phillips backs up this claim as he notes that younger black people are portrayed as luxurious and chic and that these stereotypes have a discreditable history which has been amplified by the likes of Hollywood (Phillips, 2000). These depictions of black people being overly ostentatious coupled with the media’s undeniable influence on the public’s perception and the sensationalist nature of tabloid newspapers reinforces negative racial stereotypes within society.
Sources:
Beal, J. (2017). Prem Rat of the Caribbean. The Sun.
Boyd-Perry, J. (2016). ScholarWorks at UMass Boston Still Waiting: An analysis of the permeation of racial stereotypes in top-grossing Black Romance films from the 1960s to the 2000s. [online] Available at: https://scholarworks.umb.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1024&context=honors_theses
Brigstock-Barron, R. (2016). Liverpool defender Alberto Moreno shows off huge monkey tattoo. [online] Mail Online. Available at: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-3536354/Liverpool-defender-Alberto-Moreno-shows-huge-tattoo-monkey-holding-gun.html
Cunningham, S. (2018). Raheem Sterling’s squad mates show the media’s unfair treatment. [online] inews.co.uk. Available at: https://inews.co.uk/sport/football/world-cup/raheem-sterling-gun-tattoo-jordan-pickford-media-163757
Dearden, L. (2016). The Sun and Daily Mail accused of ‘fuelling prejudice’ in report on rising racist violence and hate speech in UK. The Independent. [online] 8 Oct. Available at: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/press/the-sun-and-daily-mail-fuelling-prejudice-racist-violence-hate-crime-speech-uk-ecri-report-a7351856.html
Edwards, B. (2019). The Aquila Digital Community Acting Black: an Analysis of Blackness and Criminality in Film. [online] Available at: https://aquila.usm.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1718&context=masters_theses
Farrington, N., Kilvington, D., Price, J., & Saeed, A. (2012) Race, Racism and Sports Journalism. Abingdon: Routledge
Moriarty, R. (2016). England flop Sterling enrages fans after Iceland humiliation by showing off blinging house and fleet of. [online] The Sun. Available at: https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/1363356/england-flop-sterling-steps-off-plane-after-humiliating-defeat-and-insults-fans-by-showing-off-blinging-house/
Moriarty, R. (2018). Love rat Raheem Sterling proposes to long-suffering girlfriend Paige Milian. [online] The Sun. Available at: https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/5838267/love-rat-raheem-sterling-proposes-to-long-suffering-girlfriend-paige-milian/
Phillips, T. (2000). The myth of gold chains and no brains. The Guardian. [online] 20 Aug. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2000/aug/20/race.uk1
Smith, R. (2019). Raheem Sterling Has Had Enough. The New York Times. [online] 11 Mar. Available at: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/11/sports/raheem-sterling-has-had-enough.html
Welch, K. (2007). Black Criminal Stereotypes and Racial Profiling. Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice, 23(3), pp.276–288. doi: https://doi.org/10.1177/1043986207306870
Wilder, S. (2020). Racism in Media: How Media Shapes our View of People of Color Racism in Media: How Media Shapes our View of People of Color in Society in Society SeMarial Wilder Part of the Communication Technology and New Media Commons, Gender, Race, Sexuality, and Ethnicity in Communication Commons, and the Mass Communication Commons. [online] Available at: https://scholarworks.merrimack.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1045&context=soe_student_ce.sys
