Sports journalism has been criticized for ignoring sport’s social dimensions, but research suggests that those days of pure enthusiasm are over. This study investigates how the Finnish press has covered societal issues in Olympic reporting and how this coverage has evolved over time. The data consist of Helsingin Sanomat’s coverage of the Barcelona 1992 and Paris 2024 Olympics. Societal issues were addressed in both cases, but the proportion of such articles was higher in 2024. Applying critical discourse analysis, the study examines the discourses through which the Olympics are represented in these articles. Through discourse analysis, four discourses that both question and reinforce the legitimacy of the Olympics were identified. Coverage also includes highly critical reporting of the Olympic Movement. However, the comparison demonstrates a shift toward more critical, multi-voiced, and socially reflective sports journalism. Yet, national loyalty and the pursuit of Olympic success continue to temper its critical depth.
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Häkli et al. (2026) studied this question.
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