The National Football League

Final Campaign Research Report

Campaign Research Methods

SCOM 388-0002

Dr. Yeonsoo Kim

December 7, 2019

Jessica da Cunha, Rachel Inangelo, Amanda Christian,

Madison Farabaugh, Isabel Babonneau

 Table of Contents

Executive Summary……………………………………………………………………..2

Introduction………………..……………………………………………………………...4

Internal Factors Analysis ………………………..……………………………………..6

External Factors Analysis ………………..…………………………………………….9

Analyzing the Publics……………………………..…………………………….….…...12

Findings: SWOT Analysis & Key Target Publics ……………………....………. 15

Conclusion & Primary Research Plans……………………....……………………. 17

Primary Research…………………………………………..…………………………… 18

Research Question/Hypothesis………………………………………………………. 18

Methods…………………………………………..……………………………………….. 22
Measurement…………………………………………..…………………………………. 22

Results …………………………………………..…………………………………………. 24

Conclusion …………………………………………..……………………………………. 26

Bibliography…………………………………………..………………………………….. 30

Appendixes…………………………………………..……………………………………. 36

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Executive Summary
Client
The National Football League (NFL) is an American professional football league that was
founded in 1920. The league now has 32 teams in eight divisions and two conferences across the
United States. The NFL is one of the most popular sports leagues in the country owning 40 of the
top 50 most watched sporting events ever in the United States (Underwood, 2019).

Issue Statement & Focus of the Project

During the 2016 season of the NFL, the quarterback of the San Francisco 49ers, Colin
Kaepernick, decided to kneel during the National Anthem, which sparked a racial and political
divide. Consequently, the NFL has dealt with a decrease in viewership and ratings. The main
focus will be determining the impact that the protest and the divide has had on NFL popularity.
By knowing this, the NFL can be more prepared to deal with a similar situation in the future.

Key Findings
Strengths
As an entertainment powerhouse, the NFL has numerous business strategies and far-reaching
connections that help to keep it at the top. Among these factors are its prominence on social
media platforms, its strong relationship with college football, and its sponsorship/partnership
deals with name brands like Nike, Budweiser, and Pizza Hut. Additionally, the organization
effectively roots itself in being an American tradition that brings together people from all walks
of life. Perhaps the NFL’s greatest strength, and largest source of revenue, involves deals with
major broadcasting networks like CBS, ESPN, and Fox that pay big bucks for showing rights.

Weaknesses
The NFL cannot please everyone and therefore has its downsides. The organization itself has
many players, which makes it hard for everyone to be on the same page. Although the NFL has
its own set of values, the players within don’t always share those same ones. Along with this is
the outreach of their fanbase. Unfortunately, the NFL hasn’t been able to reach out globally
where there’s a whole other market of people. A big problem that is rarely addressed is the issue
with mental and physical health in the NFL. This would include domestic abuse, substance
abuse, and physical trauma to the body. This is a tremendous weakness that the NFL deals with.

Opportunities
The NFL has the opportunity to build a more international fanbase, to stream more through
nontraditional mediums, and to create more opportunities for the younger demographic to get
involved in football and exercise, and therefore, bring them into the world of the NFL. Because
the NFL’s major fanbase and following is the United States, the organization could potentially
expand globally by streaming to all countries and taking games to a broader public. Also, by
streaming games and other football related events through cable, the official website, and other
newer mediums like Hulu, the organization would be able to reach a larger public. Finally,
creating more programs that get youth involved with football and other physical activity will

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generate a more positive public image for the organization by creating a community from a
younger age and encouraging exercise.

Threats
Every organization has its concerns, and, for the NFL, there is a threat of other major sports
organizations including the NBA and MLB. There will always be worries about losing viewers
to these other sports and eventually becoming less popular. The up and coming football league,
known as the XFL, could certainly be a threat to the NFL and its fanbase as well for similar
reasons as the NBA and MLB. Any sort of decline in the NFL’s viewership, particularly due to
situations similar to this one, could impact them tremendously and even cause them to lose
sponsorships and partnerships with other organizations.

Key Publics & Benefit Statements

The key public is NFL fans from the age of 16 to 30. The National Football League can provide
this public with communication and action that proves their commitment to players and socially
responsible efforts through community service and continued efforts like Play60 and the NFL
Foundation. This public is typically most engaged with college football and the NFL provides
the only major professional football league that extends past NCAA football.

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Introduction
Client & Issue
The National Football League (NFL) is entering its 100th season and still remains one of the
most-watched sports leagues in the United States. According to Stacker.com, the NFL is
responsible for 40 of the top 50 most watched sporting events in the United States, including
number one (Underwood, 2019). During the 2016 season, Colin Kaepernick, then quarterback of
the San Francisco 49ers, sparked a movement across the league. Kaepernick kneeled during the
National Anthem to show that he will not and can not "stand up for a flag or country that
oppresses black people and people of color" (Wyche, 2016). This perpetuated the racial and
political divide forming in the National Football League.

Situation Analysis
In August 2016, Colin Kaepernick, the quarterback of the San Francisco 49ers, began kneeling
during the National Anthem. He started this at the beginning of the 2016 NFL preseason in
response to recent police brutality and the continued "oppression of black people and people of
color." This went unnoticed for two weeks and then gained traction in the media. Soon after,
more players joined in on the peaceful protest—spreading to cheerleaders, staff, and other sports
leagues such as the NBA.

According to recent polls, 41 percent of adults have a less favorable view of the league due to the
protests (Sabin, 2018). Political affiliation seems to matter; 81 percent of Republicans have
unfavorable views of the protests as opposed to only 20 percent of Democrats. Recognizing the
impact the movement had on older, more conservative viewers of the NFL, Commissioner
Goodell released a statement stating, "We believe very strongly in patriotism in the NFL."
Several franchises followed suit, including the Miami Dolphins and Dallas Cowboys, by
enforcing a policy that would suspend players for up to four games if they participated in the
protests. Support for the suspension policy is split down the middle with 50 percent agreeing
with policy changes (Sabin, 2018).

The impact of these protests are still being felt today in the National Football League. In addition
to political affiliation impacting favorability, age also plays an important role. Over half of adults
between the ages of 18 and 29 say that kneeling is acceptable (Sabin, 2018). However, the
decline in viewership has been seen among many demographics. African American and White
viewership in 2017 has declined among all ages, suggesting that older viewers favor the NFL
less due to player protests and younger viewers favor the NFL less over intolerance of racial,
peaceful protest (Clinkscales, 2018). The trends associated with this loss in viewership include
less substantial deals over broadcasting rights, lowered cost of rights to the Super Bowl which in
turn lowers the cost for commercial air time, and losing sponsorships like Papa John's.
Relationships with sponsors, partners and financial supporters are at stake because they depend
on viewership and popularity to strike expensive deals with these stakeholders, bringing in
billions of dollars to the NFL.

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Additionally, the Xtreme Football League (XFL) is set to launch a new professional football
league in eight cities in 2020, vying for former NFL fans and players. The NFL will need to turn
this around by improving in other areas, shifting from a polarizing racial debate and/or proving
corporate social responsibility, otherwise they will continue to see a decline in popularity and
subsequently, money. This has proved to be a significant obstacle for the NFL and will not only
impact them, but will impact individual franchises, sponsors, partners, and companies that
purchase Super Bowl air time.

This situation is complicated to resolve because opinions vary surrounding the National Anthem
protests. This is a top priority for the National Football League because viewership steadily fell
from 2016 to 2018, with a slight boost in 2019 but still less than it was before in 2015 (Pallotta,
2019). First, the NFL needs to determine the role that the protests still play in viewership and
how it still affects the favorability of the league. FiveThirtyEight determined that the way people
feel about the protests change depending on how the questions are asked; framing these opinion
polls by patriotism, free speech and race all resulted in slightly different results (Casteel, 2017).
The policy that the NFL put in place states that all players on the field must stand during the
National Anthem or face suspension and fines, although they still give players the opportunity to
stay in the locker room, which was a compromise hoping to appease both sides (Clavio, 2018).
The NFL should shift the focus from these protests to focus on more agreeable topics like player
safety and giving back to respective communities.

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Organization Analysis- Internal Factors
History & Mission
The National Football League (NFL) was founded in 1920 by a group of men in Canton, Ohio
who sought an organized, professional league comparable to Major League Baseball (MLB). At
the time, the professional football teams that existed independently suffered from high salaries,
bidding wars between rival clubs, and localized attraction- mainly in Midwestern industrial
towns (Klein, 2014). With a goal to “raise the standard of professional football in every way
possible,” (Klein, 2014) the men drafted a proposal for what was then named the American
Professional Football Association (APFA) and later, in 1922, became the National Football
League.

After almost 100 years in operation, as of 2019, the NFL has experienced growth in all its
business and social sectors. According to NFL Careers, the association has developed a
successful model for the modern sports league through “extensive revenue sharing, competitive
excellence, strong franchises across the board, and national distribution.” It’s long-standing
mission of stewardship that unites and inspires diverse communities has adapted over the years
to keep delivering sporting entertainment to those who love the game, with hopes of representing
its values of Respect, Integrity, Responsibility to Team, and Resiliency (NFL Careers, 2019).
Multiple CSR efforts like the NFL Foundation and Play 60 confirm these values based on the
company’s investment in the health and safety of youth football and mutual support for its
communities.

Structure and Personals

The NFL is made up of 32 teams and divided into two conferences: the American Football
Conference (AFC) and the National Football conference (NFC). These conferences are further
divided into North, South, East, and West, each with four teams that play 16 regular-season
games with four pre-season and 10 postseason playoff games (Alder, 2018). Each team is owned
separately as opposed to being owned by the NFL itself. There are also numerous departments
and figures behind the scenes who strive to keep the NFL running. Among the most notable are
Commissioner Roger Goodell, the Operations Team led by Executive Vice President Troy
Vincent, and the Competition Committee that reviews the regulations of all competitive
operations.

Performance
As a whole, the NFL generates around $15 billion during its 2018 season, making it the “king of
U.S. sports,” (Soshnick & Eben Novy-Williams, 2019). Between 2018 and 2019, the NFL has
seen an 11% increase in the value of its average team, which is now at $2.86 billion, and it
claimed 40 of the top 50 spots for sports audiences as of 2018 (Ozanian, Badenhausen &
Christina Settimi, 2019). In terms of television revenue, the league earns around $238 million
from its deals with successful networks like Comcast, CBS Corp., Walt Disney, Fox Corp. and
AT&T (Ozanian et. al, 2019), making it the driving force behind the NFL’s profit. This revenue,
according to Ozanian et. al, is expected to increase as the NFL becomes more involved with
streaming platforms such as Apple TV and Hulu. According to Investopedia, although TV deals
with broadcasting companies make up the majority of the NFL’s income, the league also profits

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off of merchandising/licensing deals (about 10% of the NFL’s yearly revenue), ticket sales (about
$7 million from a single stadium event), concessions ($3-5 million for the year), and corporate
sponsors ($1.3 billion) (Eckstein, 2019).

While the NFL’s ratings and viewership are finally rebounding after 2 years of decline (Pallotta,
2019), their levels are not where they used to be before the decline began in 2016 (Brown, 2019).
Furthermore, overall attendance to games and “cord-cutting” of younger generations are factors
that slow down rebounds in rating and viewership growth (Rapaport, 2018). According to
Rapaport, these trends are concerning because, as less individuals are willing to watch games in
actual stadiums and less people are willing to pay for cable, the league is losing profit on
merchandising, tickets, and concessions as well revenue that goes toward broadcasting deals with
TV networks and sponsorships/partnerships with big-name brands.

Internal Impediments
Internal impediments are currently a major issue with the NFL due to the lack of cooperation
between owners and players. As discussed in the client and issue section, the NFL faced huge
controversy when Colin Kaepernick knelt in protest during the National Anthem. Although
Kaepernick gained some support from fellow players and fans, the league itself was not in
agreement with the quarterback’s actions. According to CBS News, “NFL owners have approved
a new policy aimed at addressing the firestorm over national anthem protests. It permits players
to stay in the locker room during the "The Star-Spangled Banner" but requires them to stand --
and not kneel -- if they're on the field” (CBS, 2018). This shows that the NFL has yet to work out
this conflict amongst their internal publics, which in turn prevents them from progressing as an
organization.

A couple of other internal impediments that the organization has dealt with in the past include
issues of players being accused of domestic abuse, instances of the use of performance
enhancers, and neglected issues of the players’ mental health due to repeated head injuries. The
Bleacher Report explains their many past issues as following a pattern, “controversies follow a
now-familiar path: a football player, team or executive involved in an incident that is related to a
major societal capital-I Issue” (Tanier, 2016). Because of their recurring controversies the
organization has created more obstacles for themselves to overcome such as how their following
views them as an organization.

Niche
A huge aspect of the NFL that differentiates it from other organizations is that it’s the only
professional football major league. With regards to money, the NFL brought in a bigger revenue
last season, of $14 billion, than that of the NBA, which was $7.4 billion total revenue (NBA,
2019). The NFL also has the most number of teams for professional leagues with 32 teams. The
MLB and the NBA have 30 teams, and the MLS has 24 (NBA, 2019). This means that the NFL
has a bigger market to reach out to across the united states. The NFL has had a much longer
history as well, as it started September 17, 1920 (NFL, 2005).

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Ethical Base
The NFL has a “commitment to diversity,” which is important for the success of the league
(Missions). As stated on their website, “we must overcome the existing cynicism by making
progress in both the culture and composition of the NFL organization”. The league wants to
make good ethical choices for their organization, but unfortunately the response to the Colin
Kaepernick protest does not properly implement their mission of being inclusive. The NFL
makes up for this in other areas. One of the biggest partnerships the NFL has created is with the
nonprofit organization, United Way (Economic). The NFL Foundation itself focuses on youth
football, protecting players, and creating community involvement (Economic). According to the
Foundation website, “Since 1973, the foundation has contributed nearly $370 million to charities
and youth football programs” (Economic). The NFL also teamed up with the American Heart
Association, and created the NFL Play 60 Challenge (NFL PLAY). The program has helped as
many as 5.5 million kids improve their overall health through physical activity (NFL PLAY).

Communications audit
Within the National Football League, its communication audit currently involves communicating
updates on games, scores, highlights, players, breaking news, team news, etc. to connect with not
only their fan base but also the football nation as a whole. Some channels that it uses to
communicate include; TV, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.Being such a popular name in social
media gives the NFL the ability to increase its numbers of followers to have these most up to
date statistics. Facebook has about 15 million followers, Twitter with about 21 million, and
Instagram with about 8.5 million followers (“Mediakix,” n.d.). Their most popular source of
communication is through their Instagram account. From taking a look on their account the
following was discovered. On average they can receive a range of likes from 200,000 to 450,000
on average. As well as an average of 500,000 to 2,000,000 views on their videos. After the
Kappernick incident occurred, it took off over several social media platforms as well as news
outlets. It brought a large amount of negative press to the NFL and their overall reputation.

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Organizational Analysis- External Factors
Supporters
Some of the most well-known supporters of the NFL include cable TV networks including NBC,
CBS, FOX and ESPN. These networks pay millions of dollars each year to own broadcasting
rights. Specific financial figures are not released, but it is reported that CBS, NBC and Fox each
pay the NFL around three billion dollars per year (Huddleston Jr., 2019). Large brands like
Budweiser and Pepsi also pay for SuperBowl commercial air time, in which the NFL pockets
somewhere in the tens of millions of dollars (Handley, 2019). Other supporters include Sling TV,
Directv (NFL Sunday Ticket), and Amazon Prime who now has rights to air Thursday Night
Football games. Pizza Hut is the official pizza sponsor of the NFL and Budweiser is the official
beer partner of the NFL. College football remains a supporting partner, providing the NFL with
new talent and special access to the players through combines and scouting.

Arguably, the most important group of supporters are found in the fanbase. Of NFL fans, 53
percent are men and 47 percent are women (Sorilbran, 2019). Research indicates about three out
of every four men in the United States consider themselves an NFL fan. Additionally, one in
three NFL fans fall between the ages of 18 and 34, while the average television viewer of the
NFL is 47 years old (Sorilbran, 2019). They also found that the average household income of
NFL viewers is 94.5K.

Competitors
Competitors to the NFL include other football leagues such as the Alliance of American Football
and college football, both of which provide similar viewing experiences. The newly forming
XFL is a competitor of particular concern because, unlike the other two, it will be the most
similar to the NFL in terms of team and audience characteristics. The league also poses a threat
to the NFL’s possession of star-athletes, something it relies on heavily for ratings (Eckstein,
2019). Other types of sporting entertainment that compete for viewership with the NFL include
Major League Baseball (MLB), the National Hockey League (NHL) and the National Basketball
Association (NBA).

Opponents
Individuals and groups who are against the concussive health risks of football and the domestic
violence of some of its players have been long-standing opponents to the NFL and contribute to
its hurting reputation.

Opponents specific to the Kaepernick case are activist groups on either side of the spectrum who
have a reason to be upset with how the situation was/is being handled. Many civil rights
advocates who agreed with Kaepernick started movements that boycotted watching the games
until they saw improvements, as seen with tweets like “NoKaepernickNoNFL” (Washington,
2017). Similar blackout tactics were taken by certain conservative groups, including veterans,
who believe that kneeling is unpatriotic and disrespectful (Washington, 2017). However,
Washington states that there are still veterans who agree with Kaepernick and support him
because they feel that is the very freedom (of speech) they fought to achieve.

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External impediments
The most prominent external impediment that the NFL is dealing with is related to current major
social issues and the conflicting views that the varying publics hold about the issue. Many of the
NFL viewers and stakeholders give mixed feedback when it comes to kneeling during the
anthem and all of the policies that accompany them. According to BillyPenn.com, “Some fans
say they love players’ commitment to social justice. Others want them to stick to sports” (Jones,
2019). Because of these opposing opinions from the varying publics and the NFL’s conflicting
actions it gives viewers and stakeholders reason to question their support of the organization and
its players. According to theUndefeated.com, “As player activism becomes more widespread, the
NFL is caught in a tightening vise of boycotts from both sides of the political spectrum”
(Washington, 2017).

Public Environment
Visibility
The NFL has a huge fanbase, which means their marketing strategies have to go above and
beyond. Throughout the year, they keep fans engaged during drafts, pre-season, regular season,
playoffs, and the Super Bowl. Every 2 out of 3 Americans watch the NFL, which attracts
advertisers to their brand (IMI). The NFL platform provides marketers a way to reach millions of
viewers and consumers. It’s been said that “The rise of fantasy football has strongly reinforced
brand awareness with participants becoming even more invested in the NFL product and
around-the-clock news” (IMI). Despite some downfalls, the NFL brand has had incredible
success because the have sole control of all imaging, licensing, and implementation (IMI).
Although the Colin Kaepernick case has been in the media for 3 years, they remove this negative
stigma by highlighting how much the league gives back to the less fortunate (IMI).

Reputation
Despite any setbacks, the NFL is seen as a very powerful corporation that is a big part of
American culture (Kanski, 2016). With this being said, the NFL has had many safety concerns
that are forgotten very easily (Kanski, 2016). Whether it’s a player getting a concussion or a case
of domestic violence, the NFL has managed to keep its fans through it all. They grew a lot of
attention during Colin Kapernick’s protest, yet took action to maintain their brand (Kanski,
2016). NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell stated, “we believe very strongly in patriotism in the
NFL. I personally believe very strongly in that. I think it's important to have respect for our
country, for our flag, for the people who make our country better; for law enforcement, and for
our military who are out fighting for our freedoms and our ideal” (Roger, 2016). This just shows
how they are an organization that stands their ground during a dilemma.

Media environment
After Colin Kaeprnick refused to stand for the national anthem, the protest made its way all
throughout the media. The responses to this protest ranged anywhere from good to bad. An
interesting response was when Kaepernick was named the new face of NIKE’s campaign for its
30th anniversary (Mindock, 2019). The response to this was quite negative, as the hashtag
“NikeBoycott” trended on twitter showing outrage (Mitra, 2019). The Washington Post came out
with an article titled “Colin Kaerpernick has done more than make a statement, he has shown
NFL players their power” (Boren, 2017). This article addresses Kaepernick for his activism and

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ability to symbolize much bigger things than football (Boren, 2017). It’s important that the NFL
speak on the issue as well, which Commissioner Roger Goodell did. He stated “I think it's
important if they see things they want to change in society, and clearly we have things that can
get better in society, and we should get better. But we have to choose respectful ways of doing
that so that we can achieve the outcomes we ultimately want and do it with the values and ideals
that make our country great” (USA).

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Publics Analysis
Identifying Publics
The NFL has multiple key publics that affect its decision-making processes and action plans.
These include but are not limited to its fan-base of viewers, those employed or otherwise
internally involved in game play (coaches, players, board members), and business stakeholders
such as investors, donors and a total of 31 partners/sponsors. The average NFL team employs
3,739 individuals (Doyle, 2017). Their fan base includes an estimated 115 million people that
reside in the United States of America (AFI, 2018). Within this fan base, 73% of American men
watch NFL games, and 55% of American women watch NFL games (Sorilbran, 2019). In terms
of their players, the NFL currently employs 1,696 players between their 32 teams with an
average 53 players on each team (National Football League, 2019).

Customers
In terms of the NFL customers, these mainly include their fans. The demographics for these are
made up of both male and female; with a higher male to female ratio with 56% female and 74%
male (Mander, 2019). With an age range from 16- 64 along with younger and older viewers.
Within this age range, the most predominant demographic are the 25-34 year olds (Mander,
2019). Politically speaking, NFL fans are “13% more likely to be Republican over Democrat”
(Johnson, 2017). From a recent poll completed in 2018, in total 44% of Democrats had a
favorable view of the NFL, while only 35% of Republicans had a favorable view of the NFL
(Marcin, 2018).

Producers
The National Football League produces its own games, networks and services, but is supported
and financed by other organizations. The NFL is sustained by TV networks that pay for
broadcasting rights such as CBS, NBC, FOX and ESPN. According to CNBC, CBS, NBC and
Fox each pay the NFL around three billion dollars per year (Huddleston Jr., 2019). One of these
networks is slated to air the Super Bowl each year, and in return receives billions of dollars for
commercial air time. The NFL receives a cut of these profits, reportedly tens of millions of
dollars each year (Handley, 2019). For many years, Nike has been the uniform and apparel
supplier, supplying players and fans with jerseys.

The NFL's many supporters such as Pizza Hut, the official pizza sponsor, and Budweiser, the
official beer partner, pay billions of dollars for the envied sponsorship. Papa John's was the
official pizza sponsor from 2010 through 2018, and the deal was mutually cancelled. Papa John's
no longer found the deal to be as profitable, with viewers declining since the 2016 protests
(Schad, 2018). If viewers continue to decline, the NFL should expect to lose more sponsorships
or expect a decline in value for broadcasting rights or Super Bowl air time.

The 53 players rostered on each of the NFL’s 32 teams are considered producers because without
them, the NFL would not continue to function. The athletes and their performances on and off
the field are, ultimately, representatives that reflect the NFL’s standards for the game. The better
the performances of these representatives, the more profit the NFL reaps—in revenue and
reputation.

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Enablers:
Members of the League Governance team establish the rules and regulations of the game and
therefore set the official standards for game play and behavior. Another group that contributes to
the NFL’s standards are USA Football, the sport’s national governing body for youth, middle,
highschool, and amateur players that focuses on best practices for coaches, player development,
and an all-around safer, better game. This organization is a valuable ally because it works with a
younger demographic that will hopefully remain or become involved with the NFL in the future.

Beyond the streaming companies themselves (CBS, Fox, etc.), the restaurants and businesses that
play NFL networks, the league's big-name sponsors like Nike, and business partners that sell
products associated with the NFL brand are all factors that keep the league present in multiple
areas of an individual’s daily life.

Opinion Leaders:
In general, the NFL must consider the actions and perspectives of many opinion leaders within
company management, its partners/sponsors, the media, teams/players, alumni & legends, and
the non-affiliated but still involved football community as a whole.

As commissioner and “face” of the NFL, Roger Goodell assumes negotiation responsibility for
anything from business deals with players/teams, league schedules, and rules of the game
(Dorfman, 2017). His authority and power are therefore held in high regard when it comes to
decision-making processes of the league. Besides Goodell, leading members of the Legends,
Hall of Fame, and Alumni communities are influential figures based on their long-term
involvement and established respect within diverse football communities and organizations.
Head coaches and star players who have a large following and have taken a stand on the issue-
such as Raiders’ Brandon Marshall, the Seahawks' Jeremy Lane, and Eagles’ Malcolm Jenkins
(SB Nation NFL, 2018)- must also be kept in mind for their ability to influence policies and
public opinion. Additionally, commentators and analysts for half-time reports and post-game
shows, such as Terry Bradshaw and Michael Strahan, are influential due to their expertise and
likeability in the world of football.

Other opinion leaders more relevant to Kaepernick and the anthem controversy are the
spokespersons for various protest movements because they have established public credibility in
leadership and/or experience and are capable of organizing rally efforts. Examples of these
spokespersons are the veterans on either side of the debate. Recent politicization of the league
has led to an increased correlation between political affiliation and views of the NFL. For
example, President Donald Trump’s comments about the kneeling led to more negative views of
the NFL for some of his voters when compared to their views before he mentioned the event at
all (Quealy, 2017). Thus, the perspectives of certain political figures are especially influential
when the “separation between sport and state” becomes more hazy (Jones, 2019).

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Lastly, NFL partners and sponsors are significant figures because of their mutual involvement in
business deals that, if not yielding desirable results, can change at any time and, subsequently,
reflect poorly on how the league is doing.

Limiters
The NFL has a number of other football leagues competing against them, although they are not
as widely viewed as the NFL they are still a threat to the organization’s following, especially
during these conflicting times and the NFL’s controversial history. According to
ftw.usatoday.com, “Within just the past year or so, we’ve seen football leagues sprouting up all
over the place, all of them hoping they can be an alternative to the NFL” (Curtis, 2018). As
stated by Curtis, many of these competitors have just started up such as AAF, AFFL, XFL, etc.
Other competitors are composed of sports leagues that are not football based but focus on sports
that have a more global view such as soccer, which according to worldatlas.com, “enjoys an
estimated 4.0 billion person following, and a global sphere of influence” (Sawe, 2018). Not only
are the competitors growing but so do the activist groups that oppose the NFL’s actions. Because
the NFL is dealing with such a huge social issue there are sure to be activist groups and other
organizations that will follow. According to The Guardian, “Representatives of Women’s March,
the National Action Network, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People
and other activist groups protested outside the NFL’s New York City headquarters on Friday,
after the league issued a policy aiming to stop players kneeling during the national anthem”
(Gabbatt, 2018). With public protests happening against the NFL and their policies, the
organization could potentially lose a substantial portion of their publics if they come to find that
they agree with the protests going on and find it in their best interest to boycott the NFL because
of the controversy around the organization. The limiters are likely to drastically change within
the next few years if the NFL finds a way to come together on the topic of protests because right
now their main limiting factor are the activists for social justice.

Intercessory publics, and opinion leaders

Following the Colin Kaepernick controversy, there have been various sources of input. One of
these sources was Donald Trump who took a great stance on the situation. He had criticized any
players who refused to stand, saying how much disrespect it showed (Ortiz, 2018). Trump even
suggested that these players who don’t stand, shouldn’t get to play (Ortiz, 2018). He came out
with multiple tweets and public statements, where he “called for fans to boycott games of
kneeling NFL players, urged team owners to dismiss protesting athletes, name-called
participating demonstrators and equated the movement with disrespect for the American flag”
(How, 2017). NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, made it clear that if a player does disrespect
the national anthem or flag, their team will be fined (Ortiz, 2018). Many celebrities and
organizations showed their support, while many others did not.

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Summary of Findings
Findings: SWOT Analysis & Key Target Publics

Strengths Weaknesses

● Has strong partnerships with cable
TV networks, Amazon Prime,
Directv, etc.
● Sponsorships with Budweiser &
Pizza Hut
● Long history in the United States
(100 years)
● Social media platforms/ followers
● Good relationship with college
football
● League and players not on same page
for protest
● Doesn’t have a global fanbase
● Controversial past regarding domestic
abuse and players’ substance use
● Issues of player safety

Opportunities Threats

● Xtreme Football League (XFL)

● Tap the global fan bases
● Streaming on more, non-traditional
networks
● Increase outreach to young fan base
through skills camps, Play60, etc.
● Threats from the popularity of other
American leagues like the NBA and
MLB
● Potential for further decline in
viewership
● Losing sponsorships/partnerships
● Politicization

Key Target Public

16-30 year old NFL fans are traditionally an active public, but are losing interest in the NFL.

Issue
The leadership of the NFL has been criticized by this group for their intolerance and strict policy
changes regarding the issue. This public, as opposed to the older generation, is generally more
supportive of social movements including the National Anthem protests; 54% of young fans
agree that kneeling is acceptable, about twice as many as those aged 45-65 (Sabin, 2018).

15
Organization
The young NFL fanbase is a critical public to target because this is the group that will maintain
the NFL's popularity for years to come. This public is the most active public in sports, but they
lack loyalty because there are other sports or leagues, such as the NBA and college football, that
draws in a younger fanbase. In comparison to the MLB, NCAA football and MLS, the NFL
seems to be losing viewer interest within the 20-29 year old age range, as research suggests they
are 10% less likely to be interested in the NFL (HuffPost, 2017).

Communication
The fans aged 16 to 30 mainly utilize streaming services such as Hulu and Amazon Prime, as
well as social media channels such as Instagram and Twitter. This public isn't actively seeking
information about this particular issue, but they are seeking information in general that will build
the NFL's credibility back up. This public uses individual player's and team's personal social
media for credible information about their favorite players and teams.

Demographics/Psychographics
This public ranges from high schoolers to recently employed college graduates all across the
nation. In 2017, the NFL estimated that about 45% of NFL fans were women (Salkowitz, 2018).
The younger fanbase will be more persuaded by appeals to the future as they are expecting the
NFL to move on from this and be better.
Benefit Statement
The National Football League is the only major professional football league and can offer this
public exciting football that extends past collegiate play. The NFL needs to shift from this issue
that occured three years ago and prove to this fan group with actions that the NFL is socially
responsible and inclusively cares about their players.

16
Conclusion & Suggestions for Future Primary Research
Conclusion
During the 2016 season, Colin Kaepernick took a knee during the National Anthem and sparked
controversy in the NFL over what is considered appropriate protest. This occurrence caused a
decline in viewership and popularity of the NFL among fans and supporters for various reasons.
This decline in viewership continued through the 2018 season until it finally started to rebound,
although still less than it was prior to 2016. The effects of this issue are still being felt today,
though the immediate effects have seemingly worn off. Moving forward, it's important to
establish trust and loyalty with the younger NFL fan base so that if something like this were to
occur again, there is efficacy in the relationship. Understanding the impact that this had on the
NFL will inform how the NFL chooses to deal with these types of situations in the future.

Practical Implications
This current research will help our client find future opportunities in varying ways, but mainly by
dissecting its current issues and learning from past mistakes. By looking into why the current
issue is still affecting the NFL will give a good base to finding the solution and being able to
avoid similar conflicts in future situations. Analyzing how the organization failed in their initial
response to the situation of Kaepernick and other past issues and based on who their publics are
how they can take action in the right direction to mending the relationship they have with their
varying publics whether it be viewers, stakeholders, players, etc. When successfully repairing
their image as a more united and cooperative organization the NFL can then take more
progressive and tactful steps toward bettering their reputation.

Suggestions for Future Research

Future research would benefit from clarification on current feelings toward the NFL in regards to
how it handled the protests. In a broad sense, it would be helpful to know where public opinion
of the NFL lies now: is the league fulfilling public expectations of being a positive, inclusive
corporation? Specific questions to further consider would be to what extent the protests still
affect NFL ratings/viewership today compared to other issues, how players and fans feel about
the racial situation now, and- based on the fact that ratings/viewership never fully recovered to
their level before the protests- what can be done to build the league’s reputation back up. To this
extent, research centered on the strengths and weaknesses of potential CSR strategies could
prove to be quite useful. Additionally, when responding to similar situations in the future, such
research would be beneficial for the formation of PR action plans.

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Part II: Primary Research

Introduction
By conducting this survey, we hope to gain an insight on the JMU populations’ overall
perception and opinions on the National Football League and their racial inclusivity issues after
the purpose of the survey. More specifically, the concepts we decided to address through this
study are (1) awareness of issue, (2) perception of NFL racial inclusivity, (3) importance of NFL
being racially inclusive, (4) prefered response strategies, (5) preferred communication strategies,
(6) motivational factors, (7) attitudes towards NFL in general, (8) attitudes toward NFL
regarding racial inclusivity issues, (9) willingness to watch, (10) perception of player patriotism
and lastly, (11) political affiliation. The overall purpose of this survey was to gather individuals'
opinions, awareness, and perceptions of the NFL and their racial inclusivity issues. This issue
has risen several issues for the NFL and placed them in a position of finding a way to correctly
react. The findings of this survey will benefit the NFL in providing them with an understanding
of their publics and how they felt revolving issues of racial inclusivity. The feedback from this
survey can also provide the NFL with effective strategies, tactics, and approaches that they can
later use if other issues arise. The NFL will also be able to understand what channels their
publics prefer the most along with behavioral intention. This will assist the NFL in the future if
they need to plan specific messages for specific audiences and channels to reach their audiences
and create an impact.

Research Questions and Hypotheses

Kaepernick awareness on the perception of NFL racial inclusivity

When the media took wind of Colin Kaepernick kneeling during the National Anthem, it didn't
take long for it to spread around the league and into broader media networks. When the issue
seemed to die down, NIKE named Kaepernick the face of the 30th anniversary campaign. The
conversation was sparked all over again, inviting outrage with "#NIKEBoycott" trending
immediately (Mitra, 2019). There hasn't been any direct research about how aware the
college-aged population is about this issue, so the study is attempting to examine the students
self-report on their awareness surrounding Kaepernick, the issue and the response. The study has
defined racially-inclusive as valuing diversity, viewing people of color as important, creating a
welcoming environment for everyone, treating everyone equally and respecting everyone.

These concepts are important because it provides the basis for our research. If the study wants to
learn the impact of the Kaepernick issue on perceptions of the NFL, it's important that this study
measure their awareness. As the viewership and popularity of the NFL decreased following the
issue, the study needs to also measure how people perceive their racial-inclusivity.

RQ1. What is the relationship between the awareness of the Kaepernick issue and the
perception of the NFL's racial inclusivity?

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Importance of NFL racial inclusivity

Viewership steadily declined from 2016 to 2018, but went up roughly 5% overall in the
following season (Pallotta, 2019). It's important to measure how students value racial inclusivity,
because that will determine if their negative perception of racial inclusivity has an impact on
overall perception, attitude and behavior regarding the NFL. We measured importance by giving
6 statements regarding actions or initiatives of the NFL and having them select how important it
was on a scale of not at all important to extremely important. Later, the survey supplements this
question by asking about the motivational factors of watching or supporting the NFL. This will
help our client understand if this is an issue worth fixing or worth responding to in the future.

RQ2. How important is it that the NFL is racially inclusive among JMU students?

Preferred Response Strategy

The current NFL anthem policy that allows players to either stand for the anthem on the field or
stay in the locker room (CBS, 2018) was meant to be a compromise between those who agreed
with the Kaepernick racial protest and those who did not. However, there is still controversy
surrounding the NFL’s response to the movement. As of 2018, 41 percent of adults still have a
less favorable view of the league due to the protests, and support for suspensions should a player
violate the policy is split fifty-fifty (Sabin, 2018). It is important for the NFL to consider whether
current and potential response strategies meet its publics’ expectations of reasonable action in
order to maintain a positive organizational reputation.

To determine public opinion regarding how the NFL should implement racial inclusivity into its
operations and protocol, the following research question is suggested:

RQ3. What is the preferred response strategy that JMU students wish to see from the
NFL when dealing with racial inclusivity?

Preferred Communication Channels

The NFL has a wide variety of communication channels that it uses to connect and engage with
its various publics. These channels include social media (Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram),
traditional news media and television screening, the NFL website, and the NFL app. With a fan
base of about 115 million Americans (AFI, 2018) from diverse backgrounds, experiences and
preferences, the NFL must consider which communication channels are most effective for each
of its different publics in terms of staying updated on current issues and events.

The following research question can be used to examine public preference for specific
communication channels when discussing topics like racial inclusivity:

RQ4. What communication channels do JMU students prefer from the NFL when dealing
with issues of racial inclusivity?

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Motivational Factors

According to Jones (2019), “Some fans say they love players’ commitment to social justice.
Others want them to stick to sports.” In other words, viewers of the NFL have differing opinions
involving how relevant social justice issues are to the actual game of football.Knowing the
motivations behind NFL viewership will help the league determine how relevant the Kaepernick
issue and similar future events are to its publics when it comes to the NFL’s involvement. If fans
think the NFL is not racially inclusive but still watch it, the league could benefit from knowing
why that may be. Additionally, motivational factors can assist the NFL in allocating resources
towards and crafting future campaigns/messages for publics that are motivated by certain factors
over others.

The following research question will help explain why individuals watch the NFL:

RQ5. What are the motivational factors for watching the NFL?

Relationship between attitudes on NFL after Kaepernick issue and willingness to watch

Because of the first initial protest started by Kaepernick viewership of the NFL has significantly
declined among U.S. supporters. Yet, a questionnaire asking viewers about why they have
stopped watching express that the Kaepernick issue has nothing to do with their viewership (The
Undefeated, 2016). Seeing as though ratings and views are important for organizations such as
the NFL, asking questions to students about their feelings pertaining to the Kaepernick issue and
if this affects their viewership will help collect knowledge on why viewership has gone down
and what can be done to better it as well as if these are directly related.

The following question was devised to examine students’ relationship between their viewership
and their view on the NFL after the Colin Kaepernick protest issue:

RQ6. What is the relationship between attitudes about the NFL surrounding the
Kaepernick issue and willingness to watch?

Effects of awareness on perceptions and attitudes

Students who are aware of Colin Kaepernick’s kneel during the national anthem and the protests
arising from this event will acknowledge that there is an issue with racial inclusivity within the
NFL. Because of this awareness to the racial issues and issues certain players are facing, students
will perceive the NFL’s inclusivity in a negative manner. Furthermore, those who perceive the
NFL’s inclusivity more so in a negative manner, in turn, will have more negative attitudes toward
the NFL overall. We predict that as awareness of the issue increases, so will negative perceptions
of the NFL’s inclusivity. This will ultimately lead to more negative attitudes.

20
Based on the logic above, the following hypotheses are derived:

H1: JMU students who are more aware of the Kaepernick issue will have a more
negative perception of the NFL's inclusivity.

H2: JMU students who have a more negative perception of the NFL will have a more
negative attitude toward the NFL.

Effects of political affiliation on attitudes towards the NFL

According to Sabin (2018), Democrats tend to view the NFL more favorably as a result of the
anthem protests (39% more favorable vs. 18% less favorable), and Republicans tend to view the
league less favorably (12% more favorable vs. 70% less favorable). The NFL’s key public for
this campaign is individuals ages 16-30 who, as opposed to older generations, are more
supportive of social movements like the anthem protests (Sabin, 2018) and have criticized the
league for its strict anthem policy in the past. Thus, the NFL must consider how its conduct
regarding the Kaepernick case has impacted public opinions about its racial inclusivity, which we
predict will vary based on party affiliation and will ultimately affect attitudes toward the NFL.
We are assuming these hypotheses to be true because liberals currently tend to hold racial issues
such as inclusivity as more relevant/important in today’s society than conservatives. For instance,
according to Pew Research Center (2017), 81% of Democrats and Democratic leaners believe
there still needs to be change for blacks to have equal rights as whites while 59% of Republicans
and Republican leaners believe “the country has already made the needed changes” for blacks to
have equal rights.

The following hypotheses can be used to test the logic and predictions mentioned above:

H3. Liberal JMU students are more likely to rate the NFL as being less racially inclusive
than conservative students.

H4: As liberal JMU students perceive the NFL as being less racially inclusive, they are
more likely to display negative attitudes toward the NFL.

Effects of NFL patriotism on conservative attitudes towards the NFL

In his 2016 statement on kneeling during the anthem, Commissioner Goodell emphasized the
NFL’s strong belief in patriotism. Typically, such a message resonates well with conservative
viewers. However, as of 2018, Republican viewers are less likely to have a favorable view of the
league (Marcin, 2018). Part of this trend could be because many of those with less favorable
views saw the anthem protests as unpatriotic, which would be supported by reactions to 2017
tweets by Trump in which negative comments about Kaepernick kneeling led to more negative
views of the NFL for his voters (Quealy, 2017). Because NFL fans are 13% more likely to be
Republican than Democrat (Johnson, 2017), it is important for the league to determine how
patriotism is related to conservative attitudes, which we predict will have a positive correlation.

21
We predict this to have a positive correlation because conservatives tend to value patriotism and
nationalistic views more so than liberals. In a poll conducted by the American Culture & Faith
Institute, it was found that only 10 percent of conservatives labeled the NFL as very patriotic,
whereas liberals rated the NFL as very patriotic 30 percent of the time (Stepman, 2017).

Based on the discussion above, the following hypothesis can be used to determine how perceived
patriotism affects conservative attitudes toward the NFL:

H5: As conservative JMU students perceive the NFL players as unpatriotic, they are
more likely to display negative attitudes toward the NFL.

Methods
Sampling method
The study included participants from the JMU student population, approximately 21,000 people.
We distributed a survey through SONA and the JMU bulk email system, in which we received
304 responses. The sampling method used here was convenience sampling, as JMU students
were able to access the survey quite easily.

Data Collection and Procedures

In order to collect data in this study, we used a self-administered online survey. James Madison
University students were asked to participate in a survey, to understand student perceptions of
the NFL in regards to racial inclusivity. They received an invitation through their JMU email, in
which they had the option to take the survey through qualtrics. The participants of the survey
were asked questions regarding the NFL, including their perceptions, attitudes, etc.

Measurements
Awareness of issue
To determine student’s awareness of the Colin Kaepernick issue with the NFL, students
were asked three questions. The first question included the following item: How familiar are you
with Colin Kaepernick? The second question included: How familiar are you with Colin
Kaepernick’s actions? The final question included: How familiar you are with the NFL’s
response to his actions? All of these questions were asked using a five-point Likert scale, with
answers ranging from Not at all aware to Very well aware (Cronbach a= .95).

Perception of NFL Racial Inclusivity

Another variable this research measured was perception. This was measured to determine
students' perceptions of the NFL’s Racial Inclusivity. For this variable, there were five questions.
Each question was asked on a five-point Likert scale, with answers ranging from Strongly
Disagree to Strongly Agree. In relation to student perception, the options included: The NFL
values diversity the NFL views people of color as an important part of the National Football
League The NFL creates a welcoming environment for everyone the NFL treats all players,
coaches, affiliates, and employees equally, and the NFL respects everyone from all backgrounds
(Cronbach a= .90).

22
Importance of NFL being racially inclusive
An additional five-point Likert scale was used in order to understand how important it is
to students that the NFL is racially inclusive. The students were given six questions meant to
measure the variable of importance, with answer scales ranging from Not at all important to
extremely important. Options for student answers were NFL players can use their public
positions as a platform for addressing civil issues such as racial inclusivity, The NFL strives for
equal representation in hiring among coaches and club, and The NFL takes an active role in
racial issues within the United States (Cronbach a= .87).

Preferred response strategies

Preferred response strategies were measured to determine how students would like to see
the NFL respond to specific issues. Students were given different scenarios of situations that
could occur and were provided with potential responses the NFL could take to that particular
issue. The students then chose from answers ranging from Not Preferred to Preferred, Not
Appropriate to Very Appropriate, and Unnecessary to Very Necessary.

Preferred communication strategies

Another variable measured in the study involved which communication channels students
prefer to use. Using a five-point Likert scale, the following question was posed: how much you
prefer receiving information from the following communication channel? The scale included
answers ranging from Not at all preferred to Very preferred. The options for communication
channels included the NFL website, twitter, facebook, instagram, youtube, NFL mobile app, and
traditional media (tv, print, radio).

Motivational factors
Motivation was a variable measured to determine student’s motivations for watching the
NFL. Respondents were given a five-point Likert scale with answers ranging from Very
unimportant to Very Important. The motivation factors included interest in a team, interest in
football, interest in a player, community pride, competition, self-esteem enhancing, drama/
entertainment, vicarious achievement, aesthetics, family reasons, and economic/ monetary
factors.

Attitudes toward NFL in general

The study also measured the variable of attitude to determine student’s attitudes toward
the NFL in general. For this variable, another five-point Likert scale was used. Questions began
with the phrase “For me the NFL is…”, in which students then chose the answer that they agreed
with most. The answers ranged from Negative to Positive, Unpleasant to Pleasant, and Bad to
Good (Cronbach a= .95).

Attitudes towards NFL regarding racial inclusivity issues

Attitude was measured again, but this time in regards to student’s attitudes towards the
NFL regarding racial inclusivity issues. A five-point Likert scale posed the following question
for students to answer: how do you feel about the NFL regarding racial inclusivity? Answer

23
options ranged from Negative to Positive, Unpleasant to Pleasant, and Bad to Good (Cronbach
a= .96).

Willingness to watch
This research also measured willingness to watch in order to determine the reasoning
behind why student’s watch the NFL. A five-point Likert scale required students to choose from
Very Unlikely to Very Likely for different possible reasons. The reasons to watch included NFL
Official Games, NFL TV Networks, and NFL Preseason Games (Cronbach a= .81).

Perception of player patriotism

The variable perception was measured again, but this time to determine student’s
perceptions of player patriotism. The first question included: how do you perceive the NFL
players? This had a five-point Likert scale, with answers ranging from Unpatriotic to Patriotic.
There were seven other questions regarding student perceptions as well. These were asked on a
five-point Likert scale with answers ranging from Not preferred to Very preferred, Not
appropriate to Very appropriate, and Unnecessary to Very necessary. Some of the topics
included individual clubs are allowed to form their own rules/regulations regarding the anthem
and players who do not stand, the NFL should not interfere with how players respond to the
national anthem, and players in the NFL should be allowed to peacefully protest without
franchise/league interference.

Political affiliation
Student political affiliation was measured through two different five-point Likert scales.
They both asked the question: how would you describe your political affiliation? One scale had
answers ranging from Very liberal to Very conservative. The other scale had answers ranging
from Democrat to Republican (Cronbach a= .92).

Results
Demographic information of respondents
Our survey was administered through Qualtrics and a mass email was distributed to a total of 304
students at James Madison University that completed the online survey. The average age of
participants was 19.37 (SD= 1.88), ranging from 18 to 30 years old. There were slightly more
female participants (n=157, 51.6%) than male participants (n=141, 46.4%). Five participants
(1.6%) identified themselves as "other."

Test of research questions and hypotheses

RQ1 explored the relationship between the awareness of the Kaepernick issue and the perception
of the NFL's racial inclusivity. A regression test was conducted to test this relationship. The
findings found a positive relationship, although the test was not statistically-significant (β= 0.04,
p= .53). Therefore, no conclusions can be made.

24
RQ2 sought to examine how important the NFL's racial inclusivity is to JMU students. A
descriptive analysis was conducted and JMU students reported on a scale of not at all important
to extremely important. The average score was 3.94 (SD=.94), therefore most students found the
importance of the NFL's racial inclusivity to be moderately important.

RQ3 explored the preferred response strategies that students wish to see from the NFL when
dealing with racial inclusivity. A descriptive analysis was conducted and JMU students reported
the top 2 preferred response strategies being players in the locker room with a mean score of
3.38 (SD=1.32) and the peaceful protesting with a mean score of 3.53 (SD=1.36). The bottom 2
preferred response strategies were individual franchises with a mean score of 2.71 (SD=1.11)
and consequences against policy with a mean of 2.93 (SD=1.50).

RQ4 examined the communication channels that JMU students preferred from the NFL when
dealing with issues of racial inclusivity. By conducting a descriptive analysis, the top two
preferred channels were traditional news media with a mean of 3.50 (SD=1.25) and Instagram
with a mean of 3.29 (SD=1.33). The least two preferred channels were Facebook with a mean of
2.42 (SD=1.49) and the NFL mobile app with a mean of 2.54 (SD=1.41).

RQ5 examined the motivational factors for the NFL’s publics to watch their games and football
as a sport in general. A descriptive analysis was conducted, resulting in interest in a team and
interest in football being the top two most chosen answers. Interest in a team having a mean of
4.17 (SD=1.06) and interest in football having a mean of 3.94 (SD=1.28). The least chosen
motivational factors were self-esteem enhancing and economic and monetary factors. Self-esteem
enhancing having a mean of 2.61 (SD=1.26) and economic and monetary factors having a mean
of 2.35 (SD=1.17).

RQ6 explored the students’ attitudes towards the NFL regarding the Colin Kaepernick issue in
relation to their willingness to watch the NFL’s content. A regression test was conducted and
resulted in Since consumers show more favorable intent to support a company by engaging in
positive communications about a company, when a company implements environmental CSR in
a proactive way compared to a passive way, hypothesis two was supported.

H1 predicted that JMU students who are more aware of the Kaepernick issue will have a more
negative perception of the NFL’s inclusivity. A regression test was conducted to determine the
relationship between the variables of awareness of the Kaepernick issue and perception of racial
inclusivity. The test revealed statistically positive effects of awareness on perception, and it was
not statistically significant (𝛽=.036, p< .05). Based on these results, H1 was not supported.

H2 proposed that students who have a more negative perception of the NFL will have a more
negative attitude toward the NFL. A regression test was ran in order to explore the relationship
between perception of the NFL and attitude toward the NFL. The test revealed positive effects of

25
perception on attitude and had statistical significance (𝛽=.62, p<.001). Therefore, H2 was
supported.

H3 explored whether liberal JMU students are more likely to rate the NFL as being less racially
inclusive than conservative students.Another regression test was conducted to evaluate the
relationship between the variables perception of racial inclusivity and political affiliation. The
test showed a positive correlation between the two variables, but we predicted a negative
relationship. Thus, H3 was not supported, but our results were statistically-significant. (𝛽=.53,
p<.001).

H4 predicted that as liberal JMU students perceive the NFL as being less racially inclusive, they
are more likely to display negative attitudes toward the NFL. A regression test was also used to
evaluate the relationship between liberal student's perception of the NFL's racial inclusivity and
attitude toward the NFL. This test showed a significant positive correlation between both
variables with a significant score of (𝛽=.50, p<.001). Thus, H4 was supported.

H5 proposed that as conservative JMU students perceive the NFL players as unpatriotic, they are
more likely to display negative attitudes toward the NFL. A regression test was conducted to
measure the relationship between conservative student's perception of NFL players and attitude
toward the NFL. The test showed a significant positive correlation between both variables (𝛽=
.25, p<.01). Thus, H5 was supported.

Conclusion
Summary
This study focused on the National Football League (NFL) and the issue they faced regarding
Colin Kaepernick’s protests during the national anthem. The 49ers quarterback was first noticed
kneeling on September 1st, 2016 and has caused controversy for the NFL ever since due to the
fact that the NFL has prohibited the player from further doing so. This study was conducted with
the purpose of examining college students awareness of this issue and how it has affected their
attitudes and perceptions of the NFL.

According to the study a total of 304 James Madison University students participated in the
survey. Looking at the demographics of the study there were more females than males who
participated with females having a total of 157 (51.6%) and males having a total of 141 (46.4%),
leaving the remaining number of participants having stated their gender as “other” (N=5, 1.6%).
Because this survey was aimed at college students and distributed to a college campus emailing
list the average age of the participants was 19 years old (Mean=19.37, SD=1.88). Political
affiliation was measured on a likert scale that included five points, 1 being more conservative
and 5 being more liberal. This resulted in a slightly higher number of conservative participants
(Mean=2.93, SD=1.13). In this study there was a total number of 11 variables being tested

26
through six research questions and five hypotheses including: (RQ1) what is the relationship
between the awareness of the Kaepernick issue and the perception of the NFL's racial inclusivity,
(RQ2) how important is it that the NFL is racially inclusive among JMU students, (RQ3) what is
the preferred response strategy that JMU students wish to see from the NFL when dealing with
racial inclusivity, (RQ4) what communication channels do JMU students prefer from the NFL
when dealing with issues of racial inclusivity, (H1) JMU students who are more aware of the
Kaepernick issue will have a more negative perception of the NFL's inclusivity, (H2) JMU
students who have a more negative perception of the NFL will have a more negative attitude
toward the NFL, (H3) Liberal JMU students are more likely to rate the NFL as being less racially
inclusive than conservative students, and (H4) as liberal JMU students perceive the NFL as being
less racially inclusive, they are more likely to display negative attitudes toward the NFL.

From the survey data collected the following information was obtained: (1) the preferred
response strategy to the issue was “Players in the NFL should be allowed to peacefully protest
without interference”, (2) the least preferred response strategy to the issue was “Individual
franchises should be responsible for making decisions regarding anthem policies, (3) interest in a
team was the most chosen motivational factor for watching NFL games, (4) economic and
monetary factors was the least chosen motivational factor for watching NFL games, (5)
traditional news media including television, radio, and print media was the most preferred
communication channel, and (6) Facebook was the least preferred communication channel.

Though the data collected was obtained from mainly college aged students on a single college
campus it is still useful for helping the organization in deciding what action they should lean
toward during any future issues regarding race and political affiliation. Also, providing the NFL
with information on which channels are the best to communicate through with their younger
audiences.

Theoretical Implications
The empirical findings of this study indicate a variety of significant discoveries, regarding
perceptions of the NFL. These significant findings include: (1) awareness of the Kaepernick
issue did not influence perception of the NFL’s inclusivity, and (2) political affiliation did not
impact student’s rating of the NFL regarding racial inclusivity.

According to the findings, the data indicates that awareness of the Kaepernick issue had no
influence on student’s perception of the NFL’s inclusivity. Although the researcher’s were not
expecting this result, there are some plausible reasons why this is the case. The demographics of
the participants are an average age of 19 years old, as well as more females than males. It has
been found that the NFL focuses on attracting these younger women to the sport itself (Hampton,
2017). It is possible that many of the participants have overlooked the Kaepernick issue and
fallen for the marketing strategies that attract them to the league. Although the case left the NFL
in a tough position, they have made efforts to maintain their image and fans as well. They have

27
achieved this through their support to organizations that address issues involving social justice
(Lapchick, 2019). If researchers were able to survey a more diverse sample populations, the
results may have differed. The study suggests that awareness did not have an impact on this
sample’s perception of the NFL’s inclusivity, likely due to lack of diversity in demographics and
NFL efforts.

Another discovery from the empirical findings of this study indicates that political affiliation did
not impact student’s rating of the NFL regarding racial inclusivity, as researchers expected.
Instead of liberal students rating the NFL as being less racially inclusive than conservative
students, results found the opposite. This finding is in congruence with NFL politics, in which
63% of San Francisco 49er fans are liberal (Rogers, 2018). Liberal fans remained loyal to the
team, opposed to those who are consersative. The findings show that the NFL needs to work on
gaining more conservative support regarding racial inclusivity.

Based on the research findings, the researchers infer that if the corporation maintains a positive
image among their fanbase and remains inclusive, they will continue to gain positive
perceptions. This was inferred based on the findings that (1) student’s perceptions are not
impacted by awareness of the Kaepernick issue, and (2) conservative students are more likely to
rate the NFL as being racially inclusive than liberal students. This finding correlates with the
NFL’s value of integrity, in which they make sure to do the right thing (MISSION). Overall, the
study suggests that the more the NFL maintains their values, the more they’ll receive acceptance
of their corporation regarding perceptions.

In conclusion, awareness of the Kaepernick issue had no influence of student’s perceptions of the
NFL’s inclusivity, and political affiliation did not impact student’s rating of the NFL regarding
racial inclusivity as expected, as conservative students rated them as less racially inclusive
opposed to liberal students. In this case, maintaining a positive image and staying true to their
values is important for the NFL.

Practical Implications
Building upon our secondary research, this survey allowed us to understand the real impact of
the Kaepernick issue on the perception of the NFL and its racial inclusivity, as well as gain some
insight into how the NFL should deal with issues like this in the future. First, our results indicate
that people are most motivated to watch football because of their interest in a team and football,
which explains who the most loyal fanbase is regardless of controversy. In terms of preferred
communication channels, participants reported that they receive NFL news from traditional
media sources (TV, radio, print) and Instagram, and they do not seek information on Facebook or
NFL sources like the website or app.

Our survey also measured preferred response strategies by asking several questions about
policies regarding the National Anthem protests. The results found that respondents rated
opportunistic approaches higher, such as letting the players peacefully protest or stay in the
locker room if they wish to not stand, and consequential approaches were rated lower, such as
giving players financial penalties or suspensions. Overall, it seems as though JMU students don't
care whether players protest and they would prefer the NFL to take a backseat role. In fact, RQ2

28
found that JMU students reported it was only 'moderately important' for the NFL to be racially
inclusive.

It was also found that the more positive the attitude surrounding the Kaepernick issue, the more
willing respondents were to watch the NFL. This is important because it places more pressure on
the NFL to act appropriately to similar events, so that viewership doesn't decline again, like it did
after the 2016 season. Lastly, we predicted from secondary research that liberal students would
be more concerned with the NFL being racially inclusive and display a negative attitude towards
the NFL due to that; however, our results found that liberal students rated the NFL as more
racially inclusive than conservative students. This is an interesting finding that can help
determine which groups of people are affected most by similar events in the future.

Hypothesis four and five were supported as our survey found that liberal students who found the
NFL to be less racially inclusive were more likely to display negative attitudes toward the NFL
and conservative students who perceived NFL players to be unpatriotic were more likely to
display negative attitudes toward the NFL. While it may not only be among liberal students as
concluded earlier, our results found that racial inclusivity is a factor when it comes to overall
attitude toward the NFL. This also indicates that patriotism is a core value found in conservative
students and can determine their attitudes toward the NFL.

Limitations & Future Research

There were several limitations in this study. One limitation had to do with the relatively small
size and narrow demographic of the sample group. Having only 304 respondents who were all
JMU students inhibits the ability to generalize the results of this study to broader populations of
age groups, professions, and more. Additionally, potential limitations could have been present in
regards to the reliability of responses. Part of the survey was administered through SONA, a
research system that many JMU freshmen are required to utilize for course credit. This could
have skewed the data to reflect more views of that particular group. Also, there was a chance that
some individuals who filled out the survey did not take it seriously or misinterpreted questions.
Aside from impacting reliability, this could also impact the survey’s validity if the recorded
responses are not authentic to the nature of the question. A final limitation involved the method
of measurement. While regression tests are useful for finding positive or negative relationships
between variables, the findings of statistically significant hypotheses do not necessarily prove
that a change in one variable causes a change in the other.

Based on the study, future research could further explore the relationship between awareness and
perception of inclusivity. The results from the regression test for this relationship did not reveal a
significant relationship, but this could have been due to the wording of the questions or the type
of analysis performed. New research could also seek to learn more about how the measured
variables impact each other within a larger sample size with broader demographics and whether
such results compare with those of this study. Additionally, researchers could explore the effects
of implementing communication and crisis response strategies related to the most preferred
suggestions explored in the survey.

29
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35
Appendixes
1. Below is our questionnaire to be distributed through SONA and the JMU bulk email
system. All scale questions are measured on a five point scale.

How familiar are you with the following aspects of the NFL Kaepernick issue? Please select the
number which best represents your opinion.
Not at all Slightly Slightly Very well
aware unaware Neutral aware aware
Colin Kaepernick
Colin Kaepernick's
actions
The NFL's response to
his actions

Please rate your perception of NFL racial inclusivity.

Strongly Somewhat Neither agree Somewhat Strongly

disagree Disagree nor disagree Agree Agree
The NFL values
diversity.
The NFL views people
of color as an important
part of the National
Football League

The NFL creates a

welcoming environment
for everyone.

The NFL treats all

players, coaches,
affiliates and employees
equally.

36
The NFL respects
everyone from all
backgrounds.

How important are the following aspects in relation to the racial inclusivity of the NFL? Please
circle the number which best represents your opinion.
Not at all Slightly Moderately Very Extremely
important important important important important
The main objective of the
NFL's Diversity Mission is
to "create a culturally
progressive and socially
reflective organization that
represents, supports and
celebrates diversity at all
levels."

The NFL's anthem policy

gives players the option to
stand on the field during
the anthem or wait in the
locker room until it is over.

NFL players can use their

public positions as a
platform for addressing
civil issues such as racial
inclusivity.

The NFL strives for equal

representation in hiring
among coaches and clubs.

The NFL takes an active

role in racial issues within
the United States.

37
The NFL produces an
annual Occupational
Mobility Patterns report
that summarizes
movement in the league's
diversity and inclusion
(including demographics
of newly hired staff, etc.)

How do you feel about the NFL regarding racial inclusivity?

Negative Positive

Unpleasant Pleasant

Bad Good

“For me the NFL is….”

Negative Positive

Unpleasant Pleasant

Bad Good

How do you perceive the NFL players?

Unpatriotic Patriotic

The NFL implemented a policy that players on the field must stand for the national anthem, and,
should they choose not to stand, they may remain in the locker room or elsewhere off the field.
Not preferred Very preferred

Not appropriate Very appropriate

Unnecessary Very necessary

Clubs with players who act against this policy face financial consequences as well as potential
suspension (for the players).
Not preferred Very preferred

Not appropriate Very appropriate

Unnecessary Very necessary

38
Individual clubs are allowed to form their own rules/regulations regarding the anthem and players
who do not stand.
Not preferred Very preferred

Not appropriate Very appropriate

Unnecessary Very necessary

Players may choose to stay in the locker room during the National Anthem if they do not wish to
stand.
Not preferred Very preferred

Not appropriate Very appropriate

Unnecessary Very necessary

The NFL should not interfere with how players respond to the national anthem.
Not preferred Very preferred

Not appropriate Very appropriate

Unnecessary Very necessary

Individual franchises of the NFL should be responsible for making decisions regarding anthem
policies.
Not preferred Very preferred

Not appropriate Very appropriate

Unnecessary Very necessary

Players in the NFL should be allowed to peacefully protest without franchise/league interference.
Not preferred Very preferred

Not appropriate Very appropriate

Unnecessary Very necessary

How important are the following reasons in motivating you to watch the NFL?
Very Slightly Slightly Very
unimportant unimportant Neutral important important
Interest in a team

39
Interest in football
Interest in a player
Community Pride
Competition
Self-esteem enhancing
Drama/Entertainment
Vicarious Achievement
Aesthetics
Family reasons
Economic/monetary
factors

Please select how likely you are to watch the following NFL related events/programs.
Extremely Moderately Neither likely Moderately Extremely
unlikely unlikely nor unlikely likely Likely
NFL Official Games
NFL TV Network
NFL Preseason Games

Please select how much you prefer receiving information from the following communication
channels.
Not at all Slightly not Slightly Very
preferred preferred Neutral preferred preferred
NFL website
Twitter
Facebook
Instagram
YouTube
NFL mobile app
Traditional news media
(TV, print, radio)

How would you describe your political affiliation?

40
Very liberal Very conservative

How would you describe your political affiliation?

Democrat Republican

What is your age? ______

What is your gender?

● Male
● Female
● Other
● Prefer not to say

2. IRB FORM

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