| The Olympic Movement enjoys a tremendous popularity in global society. In the last thirty years this popularity has survived political boycotts, terrorism, drugs, commercialism, and bribery scandals. Despite all of these problems, the Olympics continue to draw hopeful participants and spectators. Following one of the most controversial scandals in Olympic history, the 2002 Winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake City most recently demonstrated this continuing popularity of the Olympics.;How can we explain the world's attraction to the Games? This thesis examines the values people have about the Olympic Games as a means of exploring what people like about the Games and what draws them to the Olympics. By using the case study of the Salt Lake City bribery scandal, I provide a specific social context in which to analyze the opinions of English-speaking Canadians. In this thesis, examples of language use in newspaper discourse are key to making sense of Olympic popularity. Through an in-depth analysis of the discourses depicted in newspaper editorials, column commentaries, and letters to the editor I look for themes and patterns of language use---i.e., metaphoric language, evidence of polarized conflicts, and explicit value statements---that directly or implicitly suggest what English-speaking Canadians value or do not value about the Olympics. While we can conclude that many Canadians value and respect the historical ideals of the Olympic Movement, their criticisms of the International Olympic Committee contradict the overwhelming public support for the Games; hence, many questions about the global popularity of the Olympics remain. Further critical examination of Olympic structure and organization and the public's role in shaping these policies is needed. |
