Monday, March 20, 2006
Playoff Economic Impact Hype
Remember all the breathless TV reporting about the large uptick in economic activity associated with the Steelers January playoff run to the Super Bowl? Beer and snack sales way up. Steeler paraphernalia sales off the charts. This was mostly anecdotal of course with no attempt to look at the businesses that might have been losing sales because normal shoppers were home watching football and partying. Nor was there any recognition of the huge amounts of dollars being spent by locals in their travels to see games in Cincinnati, Indianapolis and Denver.
Well, the real numbers are in and they are not pretty. According to the Pennsylvania Department of Revenue retail sales tax collections in Allegheny County for the month of January 2006 were down nearly three percent from January 2005. That means taxable sales in the County were also down by the same percentage. Meanwhile, retail sales nationally rose an astounding 9.3 percent from January 2005 to January 2006.
Obviously, a lot of factors were involved in the retail sales numbers for Allegheny County besides the Steeler playoff run. But to listen to the reporters and their attempts to find a positive spin on the Steeler games, one would have thought the County was undergoing an economic boom.
Unfortunately, the opposite was true and it would have been fairly easy for journalists to try to add balance. The really awful part is that Allegheny County performed so poorly compared to the nation. There is the real story.
Is it too much to ask for reporters and news editors to set aside the desire to hype the economic impact of sports and present balanced reporting? Studies from around the country by many, many analysts have shown sports to be virtually insignificant economically. Yet, the boosters in the civic community and the news rooms never seem to get it or even want to get it.
Well, the real numbers are in and they are not pretty. According to the Pennsylvania Department of Revenue retail sales tax collections in Allegheny County for the month of January 2006 were down nearly three percent from January 2005. That means taxable sales in the County were also down by the same percentage. Meanwhile, retail sales nationally rose an astounding 9.3 percent from January 2005 to January 2006.
Obviously, a lot of factors were involved in the retail sales numbers for Allegheny County besides the Steeler playoff run. But to listen to the reporters and their attempts to find a positive spin on the Steeler games, one would have thought the County was undergoing an economic boom.
Unfortunately, the opposite was true and it would have been fairly easy for journalists to try to add balance. The really awful part is that Allegheny County performed so poorly compared to the nation. There is the real story.
Is it too much to ask for reporters and news editors to set aside the desire to hype the economic impact of sports and present balanced reporting? Studies from around the country by many, many analysts have shown sports to be virtually insignificant economically. Yet, the boosters in the civic community and the news rooms never seem to get it or even want to get it.
