By: Megan Saul
Culture Editor
The XXXIII Olympiad Games, the 2024 Summer Olympic Games, and the 17th Summer Paralympic Games recently took place in Paris during July and August. Thousands of athletes came together to compete for their respective countries during these games. People demonstrate extreme patriotism for their country during the Olympics and Paralympics because these events occur every two years, the Summer Games only every four years. Many brands and businesses took the opportunity to publicize the 2024 Summer Games on their social media platforms, but there was a major publicity disparity between the Olympics and Paralympics. Notably, the Olympics were widespread across platforms. Accounts including the official Olympic platform and other well-known clothing brands also posted them in a more professional and respectful manner, unlike the Paralympics. Both the Olympic Games and the Paralympic Games should receive equal publicity and recognition to give the athletes of both games the credit they deserve.
The lack of viewers that the Paralympics has reflects the amount of publicity on the Paralympics. Statistics from the American television broadcasting company NBC reported there were “15.5 million viewers per night for the 2020 Olympic Games, in contrast to 14 million viewers in total for the 2020 Paralympic Games.” The University of Calgary reported, “5,488 articles appeared during the Olympics (July 26-Aug 12) in the same 300 newspapers. Although the Olympics were spread over more days than the Paralympics, numbers indicate that the coverage of the Paralympics was less than 10% of the Olympics.” These statistics show the lack of recognition and coverage of the Paralympics is not fair to the athletes competing in the Paralympics.
On TikTok, the Paralympics and Olympics accounts have contrasting ways of publicizing the games. The Paralympics account took a more humorous approach by posting funny moments and mistakes made by the Paralympians, but many believed this approach was disrespectful and unappreciative. An article from NPR explains that millions of people are outraged by this account. Comments on the Paralympics account’s videos are often angry, with viewers writing comments such as “I need to know who approves these,” and “Who is running this account?”A spokesperson at the International Paralympic Committee announced that a past Paralympian is in charge of Paralympic social media accounts. Contrary to most opinions, some Paralympians have shared that the account’s publicity is good as it has increased the visibility of the games. Regardless of this support, the amount of Paralympic publicity should still be increased. Brands and businesses need to use their public platforms to promote the Paralympics and Olympics to create greater respect for all Paralympians and Olympians.
(Sources: NPR, University of Calgary, Western News)