Dr. Nicky Lewis
Associate Professor in the Media School at Indiana University Bloomington. Her research and teaching focus on media psychology, particularly on audience consumption of sports and entertainment.
Email: nhlewis@iu.edu
Twitter: @nickylew42
In a clear separation from their Olympic compatriots’ social media approach, Paralympians’ and Paralympic social media platforms implemented a controversial humor-based strategy to increase audience exposure and engagement with the 2024 Paris Paralympic Games.
Paralympics’ YouTube released a short series of videos leading up to the Games featuring Paralympian Matt Stutzman driving around and interviewing other Paralympians in a style similar to James Corden’s Carpool Karaoke and Jerry Seinfeld’s Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee. Content centered on the day-to-day lives of athletes and featured a candid question and answer format. Stutzman, who drives with his feet, was asked by fellow Paralympian Scout Bassett in one video if he did yoga or got pedicures. They both shared a laugh as a result. The Paralympics official TikTok featured videos showing various aspects of Paralympian performances with viral audio dubbed over them, including cyclist Darren Hicks pedaling with his left leg (his right leg had previously been amputated) and the audio was a song that had been edited to only include the word ‘left.’
As of September 2024, the Paralympics official TikTok had 4.7 million followers and over 2 billion video views. Their YouTube channel had over 1 million subscribers. It was a risk to use humor as a social media strategy, which could invite potential mockery of Paralympians, but it paid off. And there may be several reasons why. Past research has demonstrated that comedy (including digital media sketches) can reach and engage audiences to think and converse about tough social issues. This discourse, in turn, can result in prosocial outcomes. It attracts attention and reduces hostility; it can also increase the visibility of underserved and marginalized groups. Using comedy on Paralympic social media platforms presented Paralympians as complete individuals – facing challenges, employing capabilities, and embracing humor to break the ice. This strategy can actually reduce any initial discomfort experienced by audiences.
Many Paralympians were on board with the strategy and saw it as taking narrative control over their stories. Craig Spence, spokesperson for the International Paralympic Committee, also stated that Paralympians wanted to show their sense of humor as individuals. And clearly, the approach was successful in garnering views, likes, and followers. But was there a downside? Spence noted that those who criticized the accounts were largely not part of the disability community (the administrator of the Paralympic social media accounts is former Paralympian Richard Fox). However, some Paralympians saw it as capitalizing on those with disabilities as an easy way to increase engagement.
If a comedic approach is used to promote the Paralympics, it should be done ethically. Social media platforms should feature both human-interest stories and competition of the Games in their content. There is room for humor in both of these elements. Caty Borum Chattoo and Lauren Feldman, authors of A Comedian and An Activist Walk into a Bar, made a few key recommendations: comedy shouldn’t be sanitized to make it more palatable for audiences, but it should be focused on humanizing the Paralympians, their lives, and their personalities. Using humorous content solely for increasing engagement is a faulty strategy as it could have a backfire effect, where mocking takes center stage over comedic virality. Paralympian Noelle Malkamaki also noted that the Paralympic and Olympic social media platforms should feature similar content. If Paralympians are going viral for content that humorizes performances, Olympic social media platforms should be aiming for the same.
A comedic take on disability stands in stark contrast to other (and more common) media strategies that emphasize the inspirational and aspirational aspects of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. And, there is evidence that inspirational content can work to increase empathy for and reduce stigma toward those with disabilities.
However, inspiration-based strategies can be just as controversial. Reactions to this content (sometimes referred to as ‘inspiration porn’) can be mixed, especially regarding the Paralympics. Audiences may burn out from seeing these types of stories. Disability activist Stella Young argued that these messages can also objectify Paralympians. Non-disabled individuals may see these images, judge Paralympian abilities in comparison to themselves, and feel better about themselves as a result. This places Paralympians as objects of pity, not as elite athletes.
To challenge these stereotypes, many Paralympians for Paris 2024 also took part in a social media campaign declaring they were not participants in the Games, but competitors. This reinforced the notion that Paralympians achieve greatness because of their skills, not because of their disability. It also framed Paralympians in the same light as their fellow Olympians – using language to level the playing field.
Whether humor, inspiration, or both are employed as Paralympic social media strategies, the Paralympian should be at the center of the messaging. Content that exposes audiences to multiple dimensions of the athlete – the challenges of preparation and practice, the stress of competition, and, yes, the laughs along the way – all serve the greater good. They all remind us of what it means to be human.
