Top Rated on Five Networks—and Nearly as Many Devices: The NFL, Social TV, Fantasy Sport, and the Ever-Present Second Screen
in International Journal of Sport CommunicationClick name to view affiliation
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A national sample of 393 NFL (National Football League [professional]) fans were surveyed about their use of ancillary devices when consuming NFL media products. Results indicate that male, younger, and highly educated participants were more likely to use second-screen options. Such second-screen activities were just as likely to be used for distraction (multitasking other content not related to the NFL) as for enhancement (bolstering NFL consumption with other NFL-related content). Moreover, the more participants used second screens for multitasking and distracting purposes, the more they felt that second-screening helped build, interact, and maintain vast social networks; advanced social interactions among their social groups for a shared purpose; and made them feel psychologically present among other people. Fantasy-sport participation was also found to be a relevant predictor of second-screen use.
Billings is with the Dept. of Journalism & Creative Media; Lewis, Sport Hospitality; and Brown, the Dept. of Advertising and Public Relations, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL. Xu is with the Dept. of Communication Studies, Eastern Washington University, Cheney, WA.
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