Sportivity, melancolia, nationalism and disability: the photographic coverage of the paralympic games through the lenses of Folha de São Paulo (1992 - 2016)

Abstract

This study aimed to characterize the image representation of sport and Paralympic athletes in the photographic coverage of the “Folha de São Paulo” newspaper during the Paralympic Games from 1992 to 2016. The study was quanti-qualitative, descriptive and exploratory and was based on the framework theory. There has been an increase in the number of photographs published over the years, and some of the main characteristics of the photos are: athletes' sportsmanship; melancholy associated with the deficiency; promotion of nationalism; and spectacularization of the grotesque, and the cyborg. The polysemous character of the representations propagated in the photographs reveals some of the complexities involved in conceiving disabled athletes and the need to better qualify the media for future coverage of Paralympic sport.

Keywords

• Jogos paraolímpicos
• Semiótica
• Enquadramento
• Mídia esportiva