Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Final
Final
Corbett Davis
Professor Gonzalez
ENC1102
30th April 2024
We are your biggest fans; Parasocial relationships between the New England Patriots and the
Populace.
In recent years, the phenomenon of parasocial relationships between athletes and their
fans has attracted significant attention, and the advancement of technology has caused these
will be narrowing my research and focusing on these relations among fans and athletes,
specifically football players for the New England Patriots franchise. The New England Patriots,
under quarterback Tom Brady and coach Bill Belichick were one of the most accomplished
football dynasties the world has ever seen. Due to their massive success in the past, their fan base
has become incredibly rowdy and entitled. They are also known to yell derogatory slurs at
players on opposing teams and throw things at them on the field. Everyone who is not a Patriots
fan hates the Patriots franchise and loves nothing more than the struggle they are going through
right now, they recently lost both the coach and the quarterback that made them elite for two
decades and they have been on the decline ever since. Due to their massive success in the recent
pass, the current condition of the team (pathetic) seems to hit even harder to fans. Another reason
this has so much pull-on fans emotions is the evolution of media technology has enhanced
parasocial relationships, as the growth of personal social media profiles and the integration of
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sports news outlets like ESPN and CBS into players lives have enabled fans to access more
intimate details about athletes than ever before. The Patriots and their players are not immune to
the advances of the 21 st century, especially regarding personal brands, (Tom Brady is one of the
This literature review synthesizes key insights from my distinct sources, each shedding
light on various aspects of these relationships and their impact on fans. The selected sources
dimensions of sports fandom and how they interact. I will use these key sources to analyze the
New England fandom and its inner workings. I will also use these sources to aid my analyzation
of social media comments and help tie them to rhetorical elements and parasocial relations.
relationship in the context of sports. Schaik delves into the characteristics of these relationships,
emphasizing the need for a delicate balance to prevent them from becoming overly obsessive and
potentially dangerous or unhealthy for both parties. The article also explores the positive and
negative consequences associated with such connections, offering valuable insights into the
relationships manifest in everyday life. Thomas explores conflicts arising from allegiances to
different sports teams within families, shedding light on the intricacies of team-based fandom.
Additionally, the article acknowledges the evolving landscape of sports media and technology,
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illustrating how these advancements shape and redefine the dynamics of parasocial relationships.
StudyFinds' exploration of the emotional impact of sports fandom in "Hearing 'I Love
You' Doesn't Bring as Much Happiness - as Watching Your Favorite Team Win?" adds a unique
perspective. The study challenges conventional notions of happiness by revealing that the joy
derived from watching one's favorite sports team win surpasses hearing "I love you"
(StudyFinds). This source is pivotal in bridging the gap between sports enthusiasts and non-
sports watchers, offering a compelling argument for the significance of sports in people's lives. It
also shows the level at which sports fans put their team within their pyramid of priorities.
On the physiological front, the Cleveland Clinic's article, "How Rooting for Your Team
Can Hurt Your Heart," investigates the physical effects of intense sports-watching experiences.
The clinic highlights the correlation between heightened stress during intense sports games and
an increased risk of heart-related issues. I can relate this to the article, "Hearing 'I Love You'
Doesn't Bring as Much Happiness - as Watching Your Favorite Team Win?” in the sense that
they both fall under the category of physical symptoms from parasocial relations and being a
sports fan. This information adds a tangible dimension to the emotional and psychological
impact explored in other sources, illustrating that sports fandom is not merely a mental activity
Reinforcing the psychological corner, Wang, S’s article, “Sports Complex: The science
behind fanatic behavior,” brings forth the idea that a fans chosen team is an extension of
themselves. If the team wins the fan is happy, if they lose the fan is sad, however they still share
these emotions with the entire fan base. Being a fan brings forth a sense of family, for example
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seeing a random stranger sporting merchandise of your favorite team. Most of the time a chant of
the team in question will be yelled and now two random strangers have something in common
they can relate to. Loyalties to teams are also passed down through generations, most sports fans
are fans of their chosen team because their parents or family also root for that team.
The most impactful article for this research, “What do die-hard Tom Brady fans make of
Sunday? Once a Brady fan always a Brady Fan” by Rueb E. While my other articles venture into
defining parasocial relationships or speak on how being a sports fan has physical and mental
affects as a result, this article will strengthen my thesis far more directly. The other sources give
me a foundation and I will use this article to construct my thesis above it. This article speaks
more about Brady himself and his actual leaving of New England and is my only article that is
strictly football related (without any medical ventures.) It also highlights the impact Brady left
on the people of New England aside from the surplus of super bowl rings he brought them.
relationships. It also aims to prove fans' loyalty with Tom Brady and not the New England
franchise. The sources collectively highlight the emotional, psychological, and physiological
athletes have on their fans. As we delve into the complexities of these relationships, it becomes
evident that sports fandom is not a one-dimensional experience like many perceive it to be, but a
Methods
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posts and accounts that I could use for my research. I used key phrases such as “New England
Patriots propaganda” or “New England Patriots Fan page,” to find fan pages and fandoms that I
could follow and use as a base line for my research. Some of the accounts on Instagram I
followed were, @Tom Brady and the official @patriots account, and. On TikTok I followed the
verified @patriot account as well as various other dedicated fan pages. After following these
accounts, I scrolled through the videos of these accounts and looked through comment feed for
any comments that I believed flagged a potential parasocial relation. I also looked through Tom
Brady’s posts to see how changes in media have affected how he makes posts on Instagram.
Using my secondary research, I will analyze the data I find under the previously mentioned
accounts and tie them together using rhetorical themes to understand the parasocial relationships
that have been formed between fans, the players and the franchise of the New England Patriots.
Results
In my research, I have found that a prominent factor that sways the masses opinions and
beliefs about a player is “News sources” and their subdivision social media accounts that are
“validated” and “right.” Channels such as ESPN and the guests (typically ex pro football players)
and analysts they bring on the show carry heavy weight about their opinion of the game and
about players. Branding through social media has also increased drastically, each player has their
own brand and the better the brand the better sponsorships, shoe deals and commercials they can
land. The increase in personalized social media accounts has allowed personal brands to reach
new heights; the increase in media technology has allowed players to connect with fans in more
ways. For more qualitative data, I selected Tom Brady’s retirement post on Instagram (His first
one) as well as the post he made when he left the New England Patriots and went to play for the
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Tampa Bay Buccaneers. I also included a post from the New England Patriots Instagram page of
a video of Brady’s combine performance (The combine is a mixture of different football drills
that prospective draft picks participate in in hopes to raise their draft stock.)
Discussion:
During this year's NFL draft (where teams pick players from colleges to bring them to the
pro’s) many patriots fans wanted to take a generationally talented receiver, but the Patriots
decided to take an extremely talented quarterback instead (both categories were needed.)
However, on social media fans were complaining about the draft choice until analysts started
saying it was a good pick, fans started calming down after hearing what they perceive to be an
educated opinion. When no one knows who will do well and who will not in the NFL, the
common masses still take these professional opinions with a lot of weight. News sites such as
ESPN and CBS shape the perception of NFL teams in the eyes of fans. In the later days of his
career on the patriots, non-New England fans hated Tom Brady, and the news media was a key
reason for that, with news articles such as the following being published, the masses started to
resent Brady's success. However, Patriots fans were happier than ever.
When Tom Brady decided to leave New England and continue his career in Tampa, he
made a post on Instagram of a compilation of his highlights and his favorite moments on the
team. User @kevin.marshall.5454 commented under his post “You are a god here in
Massachusetts thank you for 20+ years of greatness!!!!” Assumedly the user is exaggerating,
however there is undoubtedly a parasocial relationship between the user and Brady. Brady has no
idea who this random user online is, but he has the user calling him a god among men online.
According to the article "Forging Athlete Fandom through Parasocial Relationships," (Schnaik 1)
social media has allowed for a more unfiltered access to human athletes (allowing for good and
bad information to be accessed) making these athletes even more approachable as opposed to the
past where the only information fans would receive from these athletes would be regulated. The
unfiltered access given to the user mentioned as well as the easily accessible platform (Brady’s
comment section) he was on gave him the opportunity to praise Brady like he did. Without
advances in media this interaction could never have happened, it has allowed for an online
Because of the evolution of sports media, Brady made his retirement announcement on
his own personal Instagram account. In the past players would typically announce their
retirement through their team then hold a press conference. Due to the nature of Brady's
retirement video, he allowed for a more personal connection to his audience. The video was very
informal, he was on the beach alone in casual attire and started crying. According to "On
are imagined connections between us and people who do not know we exist; they are, in essence,
our manifestations of the assumed intimacy between us and the people we see on our screens.”
(Thomas 1) His personal brand has allowed for these imaginary connections to be intensified,
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allowing for every single person watching the video (I included) to feel a personal connection to
Brady and really feel his emotions during his retirement. His use of elements of Pathos during
his video such as his crying and tearful reminiscing brought together Patriots and Buccaneer fans
The Patriots Instagram account decided to post a throwback video on November 29th,
2023, during the recent season of Tom Brady’s performance in 2006 AFC Divisional game (He
played extremely well.) User @weldonator89 commented “We’re down bad if we’re posting
highlights from 17 years ago.” Key terms to identify here are how he said “We’re” regarding the
team's performance as well as what team's social media team is posting. His grammar choice
shows that he believes he is part of the team, he is the Patriots. This is quite common among
fans, saying things such as “We won” or “We lost.” It shows a connection from the fan to the
team. In the article “Sports Complex: The science behind fanatic behavior,” Wang defines it as
Team Identification, or “The extent to which a fan feels a psychological connection to a team
and the team’s performance.” The level of saying “We” regarding a team is common (in my
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experience) in the sports world for avid fans, however it is a stark characteristic of a parasocial
Parasocial relationships can also be negative and not just fun admiration, when Brady left New
England for Tampa the fans who previously adored him became his biggest critics. For example,
when Brady posted on his Instagram page for his last retirement post, user @moyotski stated
“ACTING LIKE THE PATS DIDN’T MAKE YOU WHO YOU ARE.” An aggressive comment
that had nothing to do with his retirement post, where he essentially thanked Tampa for allowing
him to come there, win them a super bowl and then retire. This was common from Patriots fans
though, according to the article “What do die-hard Tom Brady fans make of Sunday? Once a
Brady fan always a Brady Fan” The coach of the Patriots Bill Belichick had this to say on the
matter, “You’re either a Patriots fan or you’ve been pretending for the last 20 years.” Meaning
you either stay a New England fan and hate Brady or you follow Brady to Tampa. (Rueb 1)
However, when Brady was in the Superbowl against the Kansas City Chiefs, fans found
Parasocial relations can also elicit physical reactions as well due to secondary causes, for
example in the Cleveland Clinics article "How Rooting for Your Team Can Hurt Your Heart,"
they speak on how the stress of a high-stakes game (Most games are high stakes or intense) can
trigger heart attacks in people who are at risk. (Cleveland Clinic 1) Although this reasoning
seems a little far-fetched, there is evidence to prove otherwise. According to the article, when
watching a high-stakes game your body starts to stress which then releases adrenaline which
triggers your fight or flight response. This response quickens your heart rate, which in people
who are at an elevated risk of heart-attacks this can be incredibly dangerous. People who are at
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high risk would include those with high blood pressure and cholesterol, have diabetes, or smoke
and drink excessively.(Cleveland Clinic 1) The parasocial relationships players develop with
fans and teams lasts through the years and into old age, as the article "Hearing 'I Love You'
Doesn't Bring as Much Happiness - as Watching Your Favorite Team Win?" explains.
StudyFinds did a study, obtaining research that hearing the words “I love you” from a loved one
typically causes a person to be happy on average of four hours. Whereas when a sports fan
watches their team win it keeps them happy for on average of four hours and nine minutes.
(StudyFinds 1) This study shows how important sports teams and players are to fans. Nine
minutes may seem insignificant but the fact that it is held in higher regard than hearing “I love
you” should show the pedestal that sports fans put their teams on.
My study has drawn out the effects of parasocial relationships regarding the advances of
social media in the lens of a rhetorical analysis. Each parasocial relationship is unique in the eyes
of each fan. They each believe the parasocial relations they uphold are individually special and
they are due to each different person's individuality. As defined by Wang, Team Identification
has different levels. Not all parasocial relations are on the same level of extremity and humans
differing opinions and personality traits also can alter how a person views their own parasocial
relation. Each one is unique to an individual, and if done on a healthy level can lead to fun
enjoyment of the game of football. Without the advances of media technology, the parasocial
relations that thrive in the 21 st century would not be possible, for better or worse it has allowed
Eric Rueb, The Providence Journal (TNS). “Eric Rueb: What Do Die-Hard Tom Brady Fans
Make of Sunday? Once a Brady Fan, Always a Brady Fan.” Hill Country News, Hill
hard-tom-brady-fans-make-of-sunday-once-a-brady-fan-always-a-brady-fan,90162.
“How Rooting for Your Team Can Hurt Your Heart.” Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland Clinic, 19
Schaik, Thomas van. “Forging Athlete Fandom through Parasocial Relationships.” LinkedIn, 21
van-schaik.
StudyFinds. “Hearing ‘I Love You’ Doesn’t Bring as Much Happiness -- as Watching Your
sports/.
Thomas, Nikki. “On Parasocial Relationships with Professional Athletes - Pop Junctions.” Henry
relationships-with-professional-athletes.
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Wang, Shirley. “Sports Complex: The Science behind Fanatic Behavior.” Association for
complex-the-science-behind-fanatic-behavior.