How strange... I was unaware that NHL games now frequently feature military themes in their games. "What better place to sell that military presence than Canada’s national game? Already a space that is dominated by a kind of militaristic, violent, patriarchal culture, hockey provides fertile ground and a captive audience for reinforcing the discipline of the new militarism. Randy Rose, a senior product manager for the NHL, gushed last year that the league’s “fan demographics fit perfectly into this strategy,” referring to military recruitment efforts. Recruitment is certainly part of the goal, but there is little doubt that the NHL is at the centre of an effort to rebrand the Canadian military and build consensus around the “support the troops” mantra. Military appreciation nights are now annual events in every Canadian NHL city, though they were largely unheard of a decade ago. The Toronto Maple Leafs, for instance, began these promotions in 2006 and shortly thereafter launched “Luke’s Troops,” in which defenseman Luke Schenn donated a fraction of his salary to buy tickets for soldiers’ families. The promotion gave a regular opportunity to make an announcement about the courage of the armed forces, to encourage the audience to clap for the soldiers’ families and to reinforce the idea that the troops were doing noble work, without actually talking about what they are doing. In Winnipeg, amidst the euphoria of the return of the Winnipeg Jets, a new logo was unveiled that had been designed in collaboration with the air force, as the new ownership was intent on directly connecting the team to the military. The announcement was made at an air force base and it was revealed some months later that the franchise actually had a legal obligation to give good representation to the military. When I published an article criticizing the logo, I had my face slapped in the Winnipeg Sun with the title “dishonourable mention” for having dared to speak ill of the armed forces." canadiandimension/articles/5443/
Posted on: Wed, 07 Aug 2013 22:15:32 +0000
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