Jared Max: What Do Our Sports Interests Say About Who And What We Are?
By Jared Max
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Earlier this month, Public Policy Polling conducted a national survey that asked 28 questions regarding Americans' interest in sports. The survey revealed data that told many stories. Some were enlightening. Others predictable. Some puzzling.
The PPP survey focused on admiration versus dislikability among particular sports and individual players. Understandably, contrasts are sharp based on age, race and political ideology.
Yellow highlighter in hand, I spent several hours studying the results. I drew attention to numbers that told obvious stories. I looked for disparities between general averages and each demographic. I calculated numbers to better understand the actual sample sizes. I cross-referenced data to help draw conclusions. Still, there were times I was left wondering, "Why is that?"
On Wednesday, I posted a general collection of results that represented this survey. Today, we dig deeper into the NBA, NHL and golf.
-- Not only are the Golden State Warriors the people's choice (19%) in rooting interest to win the NBA Championship, the Bay Area team is an overwhelming favorite for those who identified as "very liberal" (31%) and "somewhat liberal" (34%)
-- Stephen Curry beat LeBron James and Kobe Bryant, 26%-16% for "favorite player" among NBA fans who voted for Barack Obama in 2012,
-- LeBron James beat Stephen Curry, 24%-14% for "favorite player" of NBA fans who voted for Mitt Romney in 2012
-- Kevin Durant drew more bipartisan support of NBA fans who voted for Obama (16%) and Romney (12%) than any other player
-- Only 1% of NBA fans who voted for Obama selected Dirk Nowitzki (8% of Romney voters) or Chris Paul (10% of Romney voters) as their favorite player
-- Only 1% of NBA fans who voted for Romney selected Derrick Rose (6% of Obama voters) as their favorite player
-- While NBA fans scored James Harden and Kyrie Irving identically in "favorable" ratings (34%), Irving is notably more popular than Harden among those who are "somewhat conservative" (46%-34%) and "verity conservative" (35%-26%)
-- In the "favorite player" category, Tim Duncan came in second place (12%) to LeBron James (22%) among NBA fans 66 and over, but Duncan tied for the fewest votes among 18- to 29-year-olds
Michael Jordan vs. LeBron James
-- Asked who the best player of all-time is — Michael Jordan or LeBron James — 77% of NBA fans said MJ, 14% chose LBJ, 9% were unsure
-- While 19% of African American and 16% of Hispanic NBA fans said James is the best all-time player, only 12% of whites and 2% of other races agreed
-- While 40% of white NBA fans said that Jordan (at present age, 52) wold beat James today in a game of 1-on-1, only 19% of African American NBA fans agreed
-- Approximately 407 (23%) of 1,471 people surveyed identified as golf fans
-- Among every age group, Phil Mickelson was voted "favorite golfer"
-- Among every age group, Rory McIlroy was voted "best golfer"
-- 16% of golf fans called Tiger Woods their "favorite golfer," while 15% said he is the world's "best golfer"
-- 57% of African American golf fans identified Woods their "favorite," while 39% voted him the world's "best"
-- Woods' highest "favorable" ratings came from Hispanic golf fans (88%)
-- While between 31% and 43% of whites, African Americans and golf fans of other races scored Woods "unfavorable," only 3% of Hispanic did so
-- Among the eight teams who survived the first round of the playoffs, the Rangers have the largest contingency of 18- to 29-year-olds (27%) who are rooting for them to win the Stanley Cup
-- Among the final eight teams, the Rangers are even with the Anaheim Ducks for the most Hispanic fans rooting for them to win the Cup (33%)
-- The Rangers fan base resides in every aisle; 19% of Democrats, 18% of Republicans, 14% of independents or other parties are rooting for the Rangers to win the Cup
-- Among NHL fans, more women are rooting for the Rangers (19%) to win the Cup than any other team; more men (24%) are pulling for the Blackhawks than the Rangers (16%)
-- Among Barack Obama voters, the Rangers edge the Blackhawks (20% to 18%) for the most fans wishing them the Cup
-- Among Mitt Romney voters, the Blackhawks are more popular with NHL fans than the Rangers, 21%-17%
SURVEY BREAKDOWN
Between May 7 and 10, 2015, PPP surveyed 1,471 registered voters nationally. Eighty percent of the interviews were conducted on landline phones, while 20% occurred online. In addition to having responded to questions regarding sports, all surveyed were was asked to identify their age, race, gender and political beliefs — including who they voted for in the 2012 Presidential election. The margin of error is +/- 2.6%.
To help translate percentages into actual numbers, I used a calculator. For example, I wanted to know how many people 53% of 1,471 surveyed equates to. Results were not exact; percentage points were rounded up and down. Because some questions about personal ID were unanswered, some percentages do not add up to 100.
Gender
-- 780 women (53%)
-- 691 men (47%)
Race
-- 1,059 White (72%)
-- 177 African American (12%)
-- 118 Hispanic (8%)
-- 74 Other (5%)
Age
-- 647 aged 46-65 (44%)
-- 407 aged 30-45 (23%)
-- 294 aged 66+ (20%)
-- 191 aged 18-29 (13%)
Political party
-- 588 Democrat (40%)
-- 602 Republican (34%)
-- 460 Independent/other (26%)
2012 Election
-- 691 Barack Obama (47%)
-- 647 Mitt Romney (44%)
-- 132 Other/Don't remember (9%)
Political ideology
-- 427 Moderate (29%)
-- 309 Somewhat conservative (21%)
-- 265 Somewhat liberal (18%)
-- 265 Very conservative (18%)
-- 191 Very liberal (13%)
Unabridged results to Public Policy Polling's national sports survey can be found here.
Jared Max is a multi-award winning sportscaster. He hosted a No. 1 rated New York City sports talk show, "Maxed Out" — in addition to previously serving as longtime Sports Director at WCBS 880, where he currently anchors weekend sports. Follow and communicate with Jared on Twitter @jared_max.