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PITLANE POLITICS: British and American Media Framing of the 2021 and 2022 Saudi Arabian Grands Prix

Takáts, Emese LU (2026) SIMZ41 20261
Master of Science in Middle Eastern Studies
Abstract
This thesis examines how British and American media frame the 2021 and 2022 Saudi Arabian
Formula 1 Grands Prix. Situated within the growing scholarly debate on sport diplomacy,
sportswashing and Western media representation of the Middle East, the study addresses the
following research question: How does the British and American media discourse construct
and frame the 2021 and 2022 Saudi Arabian Grands Prix? Furthermore, to trace the evolution
of the frames, the second research question examines how the frames evolved within the two
events.
The thesis utilises Robert Entman’s (1993) Framing Theory and Edward Said’s (1978) theory
of Orientalism. With this theoretical framework, the thesis moves beyond the description of
media... (More)
This thesis examines how British and American media frame the 2021 and 2022 Saudi Arabian
Formula 1 Grands Prix. Situated within the growing scholarly debate on sport diplomacy,
sportswashing and Western media representation of the Middle East, the study addresses the
following research question: How does the British and American media discourse construct
and frame the 2021 and 2022 Saudi Arabian Grands Prix? Furthermore, to trace the evolution
of the frames, the second research question examines how the frames evolved within the two
events.
The thesis utilises Robert Entman’s (1993) Framing Theory and Edward Said’s (1978) theory
of Orientalism. With this theoretical framework, the thesis moves beyond the description of
media frames toward a deeper analysis of the cultural and ideological structures shaping the
narratives. Methodologically, the study applies a qualitative framing analysis to thirty British
and American media articles using a comparative case study design centred on the two Grand
Prix.
The analysis reveals that the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix is framed not as a sporting competition
but as a moral crisis in which Western values are compromised for financial gains. In 2021, the
dominant frames centred on Saudi Arabia’s human rights violations and the construction of a
Western saviour frame through Lewis Hamilton’s symbolic activism. The 2022 coverage was
significantly transformed by the Houthi attack near the Jeddah circuit, shifting the discourse
from a moral critique of the host nation to a diagnosis of institutional failure within Formula
1.
Mapping the findings onto Said’s Orientalism, the study identifies four interconnected
mechanisms: the saviour frame, the alienation of landscape, the framing of oil wealth as
corrupting capital and the normalisation of regional danger. These mechanisms worked
together to maintain Western positional superiority. Through selection and salience, the media
coverage defined Saudi Arabia’s involvement in sport primarily through its controversies,
which consequently delegitimised the Kingdom’s sporting agency. The study contributes to
Middle Eastern studies and sport diplomacy scholarship by demonstrating that global sport
remains a site of Western discursive authority and that Orientalism persists in contemporary
media. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Takáts, Emese LU
supervisor
organization
course
SIMZ41 20261
year
type
H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
subject
keywords
Framing theory, Sport Diplomacy, Sportswashing, Saudi Arabia, Formula 1, Orientalism
language
English
id
9241414
date added to LUP
2026-06-25 10:54:21
date last changed
2026-06-25 10:54:21
@misc{9241414,
  abstract     = {{This thesis examines how British and American media frame the 2021 and 2022 Saudi Arabian
Formula 1 Grands Prix. Situated within the growing scholarly debate on sport diplomacy,
sportswashing and Western media representation of the Middle East, the study addresses the
following research question: How does the British and American media discourse construct
and frame the 2021 and 2022 Saudi Arabian Grands Prix? Furthermore, to trace the evolution
of the frames, the second research question examines how the frames evolved within the two
events.
The thesis utilises Robert Entman’s (1993) Framing Theory and Edward Said’s (1978) theory
of Orientalism. With this theoretical framework, the thesis moves beyond the description of
media frames toward a deeper analysis of the cultural and ideological structures shaping the
narratives. Methodologically, the study applies a qualitative framing analysis to thirty British
and American media articles using a comparative case study design centred on the two Grand
Prix.
The analysis reveals that the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix is framed not as a sporting competition
but as a moral crisis in which Western values are compromised for financial gains. In 2021, the
dominant frames centred on Saudi Arabia’s human rights violations and the construction of a
Western saviour frame through Lewis Hamilton’s symbolic activism. The 2022 coverage was
significantly transformed by the Houthi attack near the Jeddah circuit, shifting the discourse
from a moral critique of the host nation to a diagnosis of institutional failure within Formula
1.
Mapping the findings onto Said’s Orientalism, the study identifies four interconnected
mechanisms: the saviour frame, the alienation of landscape, the framing of oil wealth as
corrupting capital and the normalisation of regional danger. These mechanisms worked
together to maintain Western positional superiority. Through selection and salience, the media
coverage defined Saudi Arabia’s involvement in sport primarily through its controversies,
which consequently delegitimised the Kingdom’s sporting agency. The study contributes to
Middle Eastern studies and sport diplomacy scholarship by demonstrating that global sport
remains a site of Western discursive authority and that Orientalism persists in contemporary
media.}},
  author       = {{Takáts, Emese}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{PITLANE POLITICS: British and American Media Framing of the 2021 and 2022 Saudi Arabian Grands Prix}},
  year         = {{2026}},
}