Introduction

Throughout the second half of the twentieth century, the game of baseball has experienced a cultural makeover.  Not only have black players come to exert a heavy influence on the game, but now some teams have more players with Latino names than European names.  More recently, players are arriving from East Asia, especially Japan, and they are making their mark felt.  In particular is Ichiro Suzuki, last year’s American League Rookie of the Year and Most Valuable Player.

With such a large influx of players from different nationalities, the face of baseball has clearly changed on the field.  But how has it changed off the field?  How is the fan base different?  How are these players interacting with American players, and how are they assimilating into their team, and into society?  How are language barriers being dealt with?  What are the political implications of this influx?

This research seeks to understand the cultural influence that international players are having on baseball in the United States.  This topic holds an appeal to academics who are interested in a variety of topics like sociology and race relations.  Also, this topic should appeal to any fan of sports, especially baseball.  Many times people ignore the larger aspects of sports, but issues like this one can reveal the important role of sports in society.

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Library Sources

George Eisen and David K. Wiggins, eds., Ethnicity and Sport in North American History and Culture. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1994.  Davis—GV709.5.E84 1994

Samuel O. Regalado, Viva Baseball!: Latin Major Leaguers and Their Special Hunger. Urbana, IL: University of Illinois Press, 1998.  UL—GV865.A1 R38 1998

Michael M. Oleksak and Mary Adams Oleksak, Béisbol: Latin Americans and the Grand Old Game. Grand Rapids, MI: Masters Press, 1991.

Andrew Kolker and Louis Alverez, The Japanese version (videorecording). New York: The Center for New American Media, 1991.

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Online Articles

Schmuck, Peter. (2002, August 25).  International Pastime: Japanese players’ booming success has infused major-league baseball with energy, both at home and abroad.  The Baltimore Sun [Online], 35 paragraphs.  Available: Lexis-Nexis Academic [2002, September 13].

Dvorak, Todd.  (2002, April 16).  Studying foreign cultures through the lens of youth baseball.  Associated Press [Online], 18 paragraphs.  Available: Lexis-Nexis Academic [2002, September 13].

Shuji, Takashina. (1997, October).  When rules meet reality.  Japan Echo [Online].  Available: Expanded Academic ASAP [2002, September 13].

Winegardner, Mark. (1999, October 3).  Los Naturales. The New York Times Magazine [Online]. Available: Expanded Academic ASAP [2002, September 13].

Being Ichiro: a season spent studying baseball’s most elusive right fielder. (2001, September 16). The New York Times Magazine [Online].  Available: Expanded Academic ASAP [2002, September 13].

Padres say Hispanic market still part of mix. (2002, March 31).  The San Diego Union-Tribune [Online].  Available: Expanded Academic ASAP [2002, September 13].

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Web Resources

Title of Web page: Japanese American Baseball History Project
Web address: http://www.nikkeiheritage.org/research/bbhist.html
Brief description: Historical overview of Japanese-American baseball in the twentieth century.
Source of Web Site: National Japanese American Historical Society

Title of Web page: LatinoBaseball.com
Web address: http://www.latinobaseball.com/
Brief description: Web site with multiple links delving into various issues regarding Latino players in Major League Baseball.
Source of Web Site: latinobaseball.com

Title of Web page: Latino/Hispanic Baseball
Web address: http://www.lasculturas.com/lib/libBaseball.php
Brief description: Resources on Latin American Baseball and Latino Baseball players.
Source of Web Site: lasculturas.com

Title of Web page: Nisei Baseball Research Project
Web address: http://www.niseibaseball.com/
Brief description: Site with links to various articles on the history of Japanese-American baseball.
Source of Web Site: Nisei Baseball Research Project

Title of Web page: Japanese-American Baseball Pioneers
Web address: http://abcnews.go.com/sections/sports/DailyNews/nisei_000330.html
Brief description: News article on Japanese-Americans in World War II Internment Camps finding solace in baseball.
Source of Web Site: ABC News

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Internet Mini-Essay

China’s Great Firewall

Since 1995, the Chinese government has enacted more than 60 laws regulating Internet activities (1).  Overall government officials have wavered between welcoming the Internet as a tool for the country’s advancement and restricting its access to undermine subversive efforts against the government, but officials have been particularly prone to increasing restrictions during times of political stress (2).  Recently, the government has closed thousands of Internet cafes and made dozens of arrests (1).

In August, the government enacted a new set of regulations requiring Web publishers to censor their own sites or risk being shut down.  But self-censorship started occurring farther back in time.  Since March, more than 300 organizations, including search engine Yahoo, have signed a government-approved public pledge for self-regulation.  Yahoo’s signing elicited shock because it was in the middle of a freedom-of-expression battle with the French government over allowing users to search for Nazi memorabilia (1).

Meanwhile, Chinese Internet users have been launching protests against government restriction of the Internet.  The Declaration of Internet Citizens’ Rights, which demands free expression and freedom of information and association on the Internet, is circulating widely and leading the charge (1).

Although restrictions have loosened somewhat in the past year, for two weeks the government recently blocked access to the popular search engines Google and AltaVista.  The ban of Google has suddenly ended, while the government is persisting in blocking AltaVista (3).  During the ban, when Chinese users attempted to enter these websites, they were redirected to sites that have registered with the Chinese government and follow strict censorship procedures (2).  Throughout this time, the government refused to comment on the ban, never even acknowledging its existence, or that of any other censorship measure (3).

NOTES:

(1) Chang, Xiao, & Beach, Sophie (2002, August 25).  Opinion.  Los Angeles Times [Online], 10 paragraphs.  Available: Lexis-Nexis Academic [2002, September 15].

(2) Kahn, Joseph (2002, September 12).  China Toughens Obstacles to Internet Searches.  The New York Times [Online], 19 paragraphs.  Available: Lexis-Nexis Academic [2002, September 15].

(3) Deans, Jason (2002, September 13).  Chinese government backs down on Google.  The Guardian [Online], 13 paragraphs.  Available: http://www.guardian.co.uk/internetnews/story/0,7369,791772,00.html [2002, September 15].

THREE WEB SITES:

Title of Web page: OJR Article: Internet Censorship in China
Web Address: http://www.ojr.org/ojr/business/1017967553.php
Brief Description: Article on loosening of government restrictions.
Source of Web Site: Online Journalism Review.

Title of Web page: DFN: China regulates online news and chats
Web Address: http://dfn.org/focus/china/news-regulations.htm
Brief Description: News article on restriction of personal Web access.
Source of Web Site: Digital Freedom Network.

Title of Web page: New Zealand News – Technology - Hactivismo hatches plot to sneak through censorship gaps
Web Address: http://www.nzherald.co.nz/storydisplay.cfm?storyID=2347986&thesection=technology&thesubsection=general
Brief Description: News article on new movement against international government censorship.
Source of Web Site: New Zealand News.

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