Essay, Research Paper: Sports Entertainment ( Wrestling )

SPORTS-ENTERTAINMENT
Years ago sports-entertainment in the form of wrestling, was just another small business traveling
through small towns entertaining few crowds. Now sports-entertainment is a multi-billion dollar business
traveling all around the world and watched by billions of fans as the number one show on cable television.
During its rise to the wrestling has undergone many changes, these changes may also be the demise
of the World Wrestling Federation. The critics say that these changes are setting a very bad example to the
young fans.
Wrestling is not supposed to be real, it is not ment to be real. True fans know this and do not take
what they see on programs such as RAW. Younger fans, however who do not know that much about
wrestlings' true values may take wrestling more seriously, much may result in some problems, such as
increase in violence and other related issues.
According to High school teacher and wrestling fan Raymond Butler, some kids do copy the move,
but he say the don't go overboard , "I don't see
them jumping off tables or anything." According to the WWF ( World Wrestling Federation ) their target
audience is between the ages of 18 and 34, although much of the fans are teens.
With RAW's rating of 14+ I do not see why wrestling is such a problem. In the first place 10 year
olds are not supposed to be watching this, so why is their a problem. If their parents let them, that is their
choice, and if the see that the children are influenced by wrestling in a negative way then they should not let
them watch it anymore. Teens, at least most of them are mature enough to take wrestling as more of a soap
opera than a sport, which is exactly what it is supposed to be.
What I think professional wrestling to do, is to tone down, just a bit. In a recent study of 50
episodes of RAW by Indiana University and the TV program Inside Edition between January 1998 and
February 1999. Researchers found 1,658 instances of crotch grabbing, 128 simulated sexual activities, 157
flippings of the finger, 47 instances of simulated satanic activity, and 42 cases of simulated drug use.
Now I know this all may seem bad, but just go back to the ratings, it is number one. Obviously this
mix of sex and violence sells, and sells big. Now what about those 10 year olds? Well the WWF does
produce edited versions of RAW, these episodes are aired at earlier times and of most of the swearing and
other offensive scenes cut out. Which I think is great as the WWF reaches all of its fans.
You can't forget that the WWF is in a competion with rival wrestling business, WCW ( World
Championship Wrestling ) and that ratings count. Wrestling is no longer all wrestle business and with all of
its new and very controversial changes, the WWF is defiantly succeeding and will continue with the
controversial action, because not that they want to but because they have to.
In conclusion I think that professional wrestling should continue just the way it is right now.
Simply because it is better and more entertaining, its not just about wrestling their are storylines ( also called
angles ) which make it so much better, without these angles wrestling would be plain and boring and thats
not what it is cut out to be, so I think that wrestling should stick with its old motto of, " Uncooked, uncut
and uncensored."