The Caitlin Clark Effect: Analyzing Fandom and Challenges in the WNBA 2024 In this Fanalytics podcast episode, Professor Mike Lewis from Emory University examines the evolving dynamics of the WNBA in 2024, driven by the sensational rise of Caitlin Clark. The discussion covers Clark's substantial impact on viewership, drawing more attention to women's basketball than ever before. It delves into the league's financial difficulties, its unique position at the intersection of sports and social justice, and controversies involving media coverage and internal league politics. The episode also explores key topics such as the WNBA's marketing strategies, the role of established stars, and comparisons to other entertainment sectors. With a look ahead to major events like the World Series, the episode contextualizes the WNBA's current and future landscape within the broader sports fandom ecosystem.
00:00 Welcome to the Fanalytics Podcast
00:11 The WNBA: A Mixed Story
00:36 The Importance of the WNBA in 2024
01:21 Challenges and Media Coverage
02:33 Fandom and Financial Concerns
03:50 Key Questions About the WNBA
05:26 The Caitlin Clark Effect
06:12 Social Justice vs. Sports League
17:50 Media Attention and Marketing Challenges
19:05 Olympic Snub and NBA Frustrations
20:54 Rivalry and League Dynamics
21:44 Megan Rapinoe's Controversy
23:07 WNBA's Business and Fandom
25:39 International Potential and Challenges
26:42 Fandom Politics and Future Directions
31:20 Concluding Thoughts and Future Topics
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Fanalytics podcast.
So my. My name is Mike Lewis. I'm a professor at Emory university in Atlanta. Atlanta Georgia. So today's topic. The WNBA. okay. The WNBA is a story I've been following closely. Closely. Now it's a mixed story, right? Don't get me wrong. It's. It's a story. The WNBA has received massive amounts of attention. That have not exactly translated to massive. Of amounts of viewership or massive amounts of, of tickets. Ticket sales. So I spent a lot of time.
I've spent a lot of time thinking about the WF. WNBA because I think it is the most important fandom story of. 2024. It might be the most important sports business story. Because there's so much going on. Beneath the surface there's. Politics. Their sport. There's a mainstream star in, in Caitlin. Caitlin Clark.
So there's so much happening that is in. And look the WNBA. The women's professional basketball league. Is also. Also an interesting prospect. Has some interesting potential. In terms of moving forward. So when we're thinking about fandom, Fandom. The NFL is the giant. Baseball's a little bit of a. A mixed bag these days, the WM BA you know, very, very. Much integrated in pop culture. The WNBA is something that. Is absolutely fascinating to watch because it's, it's something that's struggled historically. And it's something that seems to be at a bit of an inflection point. So today's topic is to. Essentially recap, the 20, 24 season. Okay. So. Before we even get into the meat. Meat of this. I mentioned some celebration at this point. In terms of the finals TV viewership. Okay. So. I think they're saying a 23 or 24 year high in terms of finals. Viewership. But it's not, it's not that simple.
So the raw. Number really needs. It's a number that we need to dig into and compare. It to what they did in the regular season with Caitlin Clark. It's also something. That we should compare to, to other sports properties to get a real sense. Of the health of the league. Um,
the league has endless media coverage.
Uh, again, Again, a little bit of a strange phenomenon. Um, the coverage. It tends. To be more personality focused. My favorite recent story was. Angel Reese. Essentially complained that the WN BA. Salary. I think she makes about 75,000 per year. Doesn't actually. I actually cover her rent. Okay. And so, you know, like I said, When we think about the WNBA, you really got to assemble this brick by brick to, to get. Get a sense of where the leagues are. The other thing is. That there's been some recent media just over the last couple of days. Talking about in known real names, cited. But the NBA owners, NBA owners, and the NBA still. Still owns, I think more than half of the WNBA. Are upset at the lack. Lack of financial returns. So even this year with all the hype. Hype all the attention. Um, the record setting in season TV. Viewership of the Indiana fever games. That. The WNBA has lost $40 million. And so, you know, Over time, I've seen different, different. The WNBA. Is a tarred lead to. Assess because a lot of the data is essentially not available. But, you know, we're talking about 25 years of being subsidized at a rate of. You know, about $50 million per year.
So the, the NBA owners have. Essentially subsidized this league. Invested in it. And again, Let's let's use that word invested in it to a tune of perhaps a bill. Billion dollars. And so it's almost surprising that there hasn't. Been more concerned. About the, the lack of financial returns.
All right. So essentially. Actually I want to address three questions, three issues related. To the WNBA today's podcast. So number one. A fundamental. A mental observation about fandom. So, so much of the. A discussion about the WNBA tends to get us drug into. Political matters issues about fairness. In terms. Of gender, gender pay rates. Um, in terms of. Have, you know, how likely, you know, the, the words misogyny and racism are thrown around. And a lot. So how much of. You. Essentially the, there's almost this, this, this feel that. Fandom is owed to the WNBA. And now whenever fandom. Um, seems to be something that's old and I don't, I look, I don't care if it's the NFL quarterback and coach saying. The fans got to cheer us on or just the local major league baseball team or the WNBA. Phantom his own to no one. When you think about what fandom is. It is it's passion for some cultural organization.
It. It is the most discretionary, the most optional thing a person can put their money. Money and time into no one knows anyone fandom. If you're not. Getting fandom. That's a hundred percent on you. The players. You the. The league. The idea of blaming the fans for not coming out, not. Getting in their car, driving to a stadium, paying a couple hundred dollars. To watch. Watch people play a game for money. Ridiculous.
So I've got no sympathy. No patients for that. I think that's an important thing. It's not something that people talk a lot. About these days, but in the background of a league, like the WNBA, I suspect. Suspect. That's what a lot of people feel about the situation. Number two. What exactly is the Caitlin Clark effect.
So we've been. The Caitlin Clark effect, the Caitlin Clark effect for the entire season. So Clark is obviously this mainstream star. So what has Clark. Actually brought to the league in terms of fandom. And at this point, You know, Throughout the podcast. I'll start to talk about two different kinds. Of fandom core fandom and entertainment fandom. So the WNBA. MBA has a core group of fans that have been around for years. Clark brought. A new fan base. And so what is the difference between what the core fans. The longterm WNBA fans like and want, and what. Clark's fans are looking for.
Okay. Number three. And I, and th th all these points end up being Interrelated.
Is the WNBA, a social. Justice organization or a sports league. Now that. Might be stated a little bit in an inflammatory way. I don't even really mean it. What is the overall mission? Of the WN BA. And I think this is, this is a topic for just about every sports league at this point. Point, you know, the, in the, and this really became look sports and politics. I have a long, long history things have really got moving with the Colin Kaepernick protest. A few years back. But this essentially breakdown of. Being an entertainment product, a sporting event versus. The platform using, using its influence and its audience for. For whatever goals or political goals that it wants to advocate for. Ends up almost always creating a bit of a mess and then. Number four.
So what does all this mean for the league? Um, thinking about where things. Things are going forward in the future, because like I said, the WN BA. It is a really interesting sports business story. Even if you don't. Care about the action on the court.
📍 All right. So issue number one, what exactly is the Caitlin Clark effect? Now, when you look at the WNBA data. Television viewership data. Um, regular season attendance. What you see if you go back over the entire. History of the league is essentially a decline. The the. The league's best numbers where it's first couple of where it's, where it's first. Couple of seasons. Now that's, um, Again, one of the dilemmas. Emma's and all this. And look I'm old enough to remember when the WNBL came out. And the massive amount of hype that came along with it. So one of the challenges. Is in assessing the league is actually under, you know, I think we almost have to be skeptical. About the realness. Of any of the numbers. You know, so. We're the attendance numbers really that good, where they inflated. Um, I, well, we've all been to sporting events where the number announced. For attendance doesn't seem to match who's in the stands.
And I think the WNBA has been. Very guilty of that, but taking these numbers as real, the WNBA. Has been on a clear decline. Uh, up until the point where we hit. Um, COVID some of the social justice movements and then a little. A bit of a, a bump up in WNBA a interest. Now.
Yeah, of course. What happened to the WNBA? This year is a major media star arrived in the form of Caitlin Clark. Now you got to remember what a star Clark was at the university of Iowa.
It almost sounds absurd, but. interesting. Clark actually ended up. Drawing more viewers. To the woman's NCAA tournament, basketball championship, then to the men's. , this is something very few people. Per day. I actually predicted it last year, but very few people thought I was even in the realm of possibility. So Clark. Clark arrived.
And, and can, you know, we have to think about. Where stardom. Where stardom comes from. And so in the case of. Clark. Right. And she really arrived in the previous year's NCAA tournament where. She starts hitting these really long distance threes. There's some trash. Talking there's some hand gestures. And she essentially. Took, you know, the, the TV audience fell in love with her and ESPN fell in. Love with her.
And so all the marketing heart hype starts to. starts to follow. So Clark arrives in the WWE NBA and. And now for the first time in, you know, since the. The beginning of the league. When they build up massive hype about Rebecca Lobo. And Lisa, Leslie. They've got a mainstream star. So someone that if you put her on a state farm commercial people know. Who she is. Okay.
Now, when you look at. Her affect and maybe the best way to do it is just. When you look at what Clark was drawing. In terms. Terms of TV audience throughout the playoffs. Uh, one number. W. 2.5, 4 million. So in her final playoff game of the season. Season. The viewership was two and a half million. The next game. Essentially that happened was a semi-final game. Where they drew. 600,000. So Clark seems to be worth. Worth, you know, and again, I'm not sure exactly.
I'm not sure how the best way to look at it. Maybe she increases the viewership by four times or here she were. We're increasing the viewership by about 2 million people. Okay, so Clark. 2.5 million Volks next game. A semi-final. Farther on in the playoffs, they go down to 600,000. We get to the NBA. Finals first game 1.1 million second game 1.3. 4 million. Third game 1.39 million. Okay, so now. Now they're setting records.
And I think they said it about 80% higher than last year's championships. Series. So the numbers are great in some ways you're. We're over year. The links. Sorry, the links were in the, in the Liberty are. Are massively outdrawing the Liberty and the ACEs. But in comparison to the games that Clark played. In the ratings actually look relatively poor.
So the, you know, we're. We're setting essentially records are the best final viewership in 20. Three years. But the finals is viewership is. I think they said it was the S the first game with the 17th, most viewed game of the season. Behind 15 regular season, Indiana. Hanna fever games. Okay. So the Caitlin Clark effect. Is very, very real. Now, like I said, I want to be a bit of a skeptic here.
Um, there's almost always. The challenge in fandom and with superstars, it's like, is the person a superstar because. They're great. Or is this person a superstar? Because everyone. Knows them. And I think in Clark's case almost inevitably, It's a little bit of both, but Clark is where all the attention. On women's basketball. Has gone.
I mean, she is essentially the face. So the league. Now the other comparison to make. 'cause again, I there's some celebration at the moment in terms of, you know, the finals. Viewership being up about 80%. Is if we take a different sport. So the NCAA. Woman's college. College softball world series. Has become has become. Fairly popular. It's got a great and very strong. Niche audience. And so last year's last summers. I mean this summer, just a few months back. The final between Texas and. The Oklahoma. Drew 2 million viewers.
Okay. So I think that puts. Puts things in perspective. So the final a WNBA with. Sabrina. Stewie. The massive amount of hype. That's been placed on this league. The ratings are. Our. Quite a bit less. Then the college. Softball world series between Texas and Oklahoma. Where. I don't know a single name. I don't think anyone out there knows a single name. So. Celebrations are. Great. There's some prog you. If you're a fan of the league, some progress has been made. Um, So much of this is attributable to Caitlin Clark. Clark and maybe the residual CA Caitlin Clark interest. Um, but. But I think there are still really legitimate questions as to how viable this. This league is going forward.
How much of a real. Sports oriented fan base has been acquired. How. How much of it is really just based on folks, checking in to see the media Hyperloop. Related to Caitlin Clark. All right. The next second. Actually the third question here. The third issue of what is the balance between, is this a sports league or is this a social justice movement? Now, before we get to some of the comments that have been made over the last year. Some of the controversial comments, some of the, uh, And again, Almost all of it related to, to Caitlin Clark. Let's go back in time. A little bit.
So I've got a, um, an excerpt from a time magazine article. Uh, in 2021. Okay. So.
On August 4th, the players from the Atlanta dream. And Phoenix, mercury, Merck and Phoenix mercury. Appeared on. National television. Wearing black shirts with an all caps. Message. Red and white font on the front that. I said vote Warnock. Okay. For those of you that don't know. Warner. Warnock is one of the Senate is a Senator from the state of Georgia. And the person he defeated in his, uh, in his campaign. It was Kelly Loffler. Now Kelly Loffler is. Is interesting in a variety of ways. She's got she. Got a fair amount of media attention back when she was a Senator in terms of her appointment by. Uh, president Trump. But really critically to this part. Part of the story.
Is that Loffler? Was the owner of the Atlanta dream. So. So the team. Was actually wearing t-shirts. That said vote for Warnock who was running against. Kelly Loffler. Um, And so the, you know, the article continues. WNBA players have been at the fourth. Forefront of social justice movements and sports in recent years, players. Players were among the first to wear black lives matter warmup t-shirts before games. Games. Several, uh, in response to, uh, incidents. It's related to police violence. You know, and, and again, it's, it's continuing on from. There some discussion about some of the activism in the, the wobble, the WNBAs version of the bubble. But again, let's sort of come back to this whole thing. Thing, because I think it's a it's I think it's a very important starting point for what the league has. Been about right.
This notion that the owner of a teams. The players of that team are campaigning for that persons. Opponent. Okay. So the WNBA. Has long portray. Portrayed themselves as a, you know, the part of their brand is. Is that allow their players come from marginalized communities. A lot of, uh, You know, a lot of the players are African-American. A lot of the players are. LGBT. So that's been a. Core part of the w N B a fanbase. Okay. So like this notion that the players and the fans come from marginalized communities. Is an important part of the WNBA story. 'cause fandoms are essentially communities. And in the case of the WNBA, they're a relatively close knit community because the S. The scale of the league is relatively small, you know, essentially can. Almost imagine that. Part of this is, uh, it's us against the world. Type of type of ethos in the, in the fandom. So. So what happened next?
When Clark arrived and remember, Clark's making all this money. She's. He's getting all this attention. Is incredibly predictable. So before the. Season. Uh, A'ja Wilson. Uh, the league's MVP. VP best player in the league. I think a couple of time MVP. Uh, sh. Before the season she's quoted as saying, I think it's a huge thing. I think a lot of people may say it's not about black and white, but to me it is. It really is because you can be topknot at top-notch at what you are as a black woman. But yet maybe that's something that people don't want to see. Wilson told the associated press when asked about the role. Race might play with Clark's appeal.
Fair. Enough. Right. You understand the perspective that the league MVP is? Is coming from that she is the best player in the league, but she's not getting the media. Media attention or the marketing deals that the Caitlin Clark. It is now. I think it's a little misguided. Because Clark was such a unique situation, right?
It's like lightning in. Bottle kind of a thing. Um, throughout the entire season. You know, Sheryl Swoopes seem to get in. To stir the. The pot regarding Caitlin Clark over and over again. Um, Making comments about that. She wouldn't be dominant that she, her stats. Stats are inflated by taking too many shots that angel Reese should be rookie of the year. Year. Et cetera, et cetera.
Now, Swoopes is an interesting one because swoops is truly. WN BA royalty, you know, one of the. Essentially one of the folks from the very beginning of the league. So. When, one of your key commentators, one of your key studio people is essential. Essentially. Skeptical. Or bashed. Bashing your newest star. It's not a, it's not. Uh, good look.
I mean, you almost, you almost imagine going back in time. If some people in the studio. We're continually bashing Michael Jordan. Would that have worked for the duck for the NBA when they are trying to build that league up. Um, continuing on the Olympics snap. Caitlin Clark was left off the Olympics.
In favor of folks that had been with the WNBA. For a long time. So I think it was like Diana Taurasi, maybe. On her fourth appearance on the Olympic team. Caitlin Clark left. Left off. Now again, I think this really does come back. To the notion of this. The WNBA as a community. Uh, as. The community that is loyal to the players that have been essentially. Essentially trying to build the league for a long time. But leaving. Caitlin Clark off the Olympic team was really a. And. An amazingly shortsighted move.
Remember we came back, we started by talking about the NBA. NBA being frustrated. If I'm an NBA owner and I'm. I'm subsidizing this league to 40 or $50 million a year. You've now suddenly been given this great marketing asset and Caitlin. Alan Clark. And you're not going to promote it. I suspect that a lot of what the NBA owners are unhappy. About is the misuse of Clark and the Olympics snub was one of. The most. You know, one of the most obvious cases of. Essentially jealousy getting in the way of, of good business and look. Yeah, people will argue that Clark wasn't lighting it up beginning of the season.
I think by the. When the team was selected, Clark was either leading or second and league. League and in assess, you know, she's obviously a great shooter. Clark belonged on the team. And it's, you know, a basketball people might. I want to dispute that with me, Clark belonged on the team. Even if your notion. Notion is that these teams play for years and years, you know, you've got to get some new players on. On that team, essentially for the 2028 Olympics and the 2032 Olympics. Eric's.
Uh, let's see what else?
Um, Angel Reese. Kind of endless things, you know, th this idea of a rivalry. Between Clark and angel Reese. Eh, you. And I think the notion is like, this is, this is bird and magic, right? East coast. Coast west coast kind of things, but. You know, they're both in the Midwest, but. But. Uh, angel Reese is not, you know, There's gotta be a little bit of mutual respect and maybe there is, but. So much of the angel Reese, Caitlin Clark interaction seems. To take on a negative connotation or a negative tone.
And so that's. Uh, again, kind of a painful aspect of all of this. Um, especially. Because it seemed like the league was much more interested in embracing angel Reese. Relative to Caitlin Clark. It was only really the last month of the season where people. We'll stop talking about. Angel recess, the potential a rookie of the year. Um, Megan Rapinoe. Okay.
What's Megan. Repino. Got to do with this. Um, Megan Repino and this was a, from a. Uh, news. Article as well. Megan Rapinoe is calling foul on Christine Brennan. The longtime us women's national. National team star. Wait on, wait in on the ongoing WNBA outrage. Outrage over Brennan. The USA today, columnist and her questioning of. SunGard. Carrington after she poked. Kaitlin. Lynn Clark in the eye during the first round playoff opener. Okay.
So I don't know how many people saw this. I don't think a lot. It was, uh, you know, Uh, a foul that looked bad, but what Rapino did with this is. Again, she called this out as a potentially a racist issue on the, on the part of Christine Brennan. So throughout the entire. Higher league, you know, this, this star shows up with this mass ADI. Audience. And throughout the entire league, it is just. A pattern of resentment. Um, calling out the. New fans as racist because they only showed up because Caitlin Clark showed. Showed up.
It is one of the worst things. Things, I, you know, I'm a marketing professor. If you were writing a case study. This would be the ease, easiest case. Starting to write because it's almost like the league got every thing. All right. So back to the WNBA as this incredibly fascinating sport. And business case. Um, I'm fascinated by the WNBA and I'll give you three reasons why I am number one. The challenges in build. Building a new sport. It's not just the WNBA. And I think that's something people forget when they want to cast this as a. An issue. Laid to female sports, building an expanse. expansion league is incredibly difficult. The space. Base is just too cluttered.
And again, it kind of goes back to this notion. No one owes anyone. Fandom if all. Of my fandom energy. Is already devoted to the NFL. Well, and major league baseball and college basketball. I don't owe it to anyone to shift and start watching. Something else to start watching professional lacrosse or. To, you know, start going to Miami minor league hockey games.
I just. Just, I just don't right. It's it's what I'm entering. It's essentially telling. Telling people that they need to engage in different hobbies. So the WNBA is. And. In some ways. Look, we haven't seen a professional sports league really. Built from the ground up in a long time. You know, every few years we've got. A new professional football league. And inevitably they fail after. A couple of years. Uh, at one point in Atlanta, we had two look profession. Lacrosse teams.
I think we're down to one, but you know, odds are that. That's not going to become a major sport. So it's just an incredib. Incredibly challenging thing to do. The WNBA is interesting because. Because, wow. There's always this narrative that they need more media attention. More sponsorship. We've never seen an expansion league. League get as much attention free coverage media. Media deals and essentially push as the WN BA. And so we really have to almost ask the question of just how much potential. Is there in the WN BA. Business given. That look, if the NBA has been funneling 50 million. Dollars a year. As I said at the beginning of the show, that's a Billy. Billion dollars invested. What have they built in terms of a fandom for that billion? Billion dollars.
And again, You can give anyone a billion dollars, give profession. Professional lacrosse, a billion dollars. I don't know what you can build. It's an important. Important part of the story of fandom in America in 2024. Number two. I think the WN BA. Women's basketball has really interesting international. Anil potential. So we've got Don and. The dominant international sport is soccer. There really. He is no dominant.
Woman's international. Sport. Is there enough? Worldwide is. Uh, you think about something like live. Golf. Even if there aren't enough fans in America, are there enough fans? Fans worldwide to make for a successful ongoing woman's. Basketball league. 'cause like I said, there's not like there's a lot of competition in. The American sports marketplace.
Is there a lot of competition in that? Female sports segment worldwide. Okay. So again, WNBA really kind of interesting as an expansion league. Even though it's about. You know, 20, I think 28 years old now. A lot of interesting ideas, possibilities as an international league. But. For number you. But what's really. Really happening in 2024.
Is this. Interaction of fandom politics and sports. Okay. And so when I think about the D WNBA and their, their path, Path forward, at least in the near term. That's the key issue, right? And so let's go back to this. And I've, I don't want to overwhelm. Emphasize it, but I don't want to underemphasize it. When Kelly Loffler. We're only Atlanta dream. Her players wore, t-shirts saying. Vote for the other person in the election.
That. That is a real strong move saying we don't care about our. Our ownership. We are about this social justice. Movement. Okay. And that really is what defines the league. Or has defined the league in the past. Now, Caitlin Clark shows up. And. Now we've got this, you know, she shows up with millions. Of fans. Centrally a household name. Caitlin Clark might be. The biggest sports star in America in 2024. Right. She's gotten. In that much, that much attention.
Now she shows up with this, this new fan base, right. And again, you know, you look. Usually, I think when we talk about athletes, most athletes are massively overpaid. Because they're not bringing a fan base. But in this case, If the TV ratings for Clark's game is 2.4 million. The next. Playoff game goes to 600,000. Then maybe Clark's worth. 2 million fans or even more dramatically, maybe she's worth four times the audience.
Okay. So Caitlin Clark was a gift. To the league that essentially a lot of folks in the league. Did not. I want to take. Okay. And again, I think. The key way of thinking about this? The, the useful way of thinking about this is as this notion of. Have a fandom. Community. All right. So going into the season, look, the, the WNBA has a fandom. When they say . With a significant political component. So let's make something really clear. The biggest problem with the league. Is that. It's got this. Eh, look, the biggest problem with the league. League. And maybe the league's greatest strength is that it's got this core. Fandom. But the core fandom. Isn't big enough. Now. I've got no problem. Like, I love the WNBA. The core WNBA fandom. Um, cause they're in it together.
I love fandoms in general. I love the. Lord of the rings fans. I love anime fans, right. Because I think about. These things as kind of these really interesting. Little subcultures. But the problem that WNBA has is that their fan. Based their fan community. Isn't big enough. For it to get the level of attention and. And money and prestige that they want. Right.
So that core community is great. They love. You know, they, they love the players. They love the league. They're into. To it, you know? They're they're all in. They're all. In right. And so in some ways that that core WNBA fan base is. Really great. Now it might be a little different than other. Other fandoms, I think there's a little bit less inf interest in winning and losing. And more about just supporting the woman's basketball game. But this comes back to, and again, so go back to this. This angel Reece quote about that.
She's upset that the WNBA can't. Play pay her salary. You can't essentially have it both. Ways. You can't be upset about the size of the. The WNBA fandom about the viewership about the media. Deals in the sponsorship deals. If you're not interested. in being politically neutral or embracing. Racing this new fan base. You can't do it.
You can't have. Both things. And look, I understand the frustration, right? Cause the perspective. We're playing this top-notch woman's basketball game. And so we should be supportive, but that's where the problem. Comes in the, we should be supported again, this notion of no one knows. Fandom. To to anyone.
So if you want the. The voicemail want to fly private. If you want to make a million dollars a year. You got to hit that mainstream audience. But the problem. Is that, that mainstream audience? Somehow finds itself. Disliked or at, at, at odds with this marginalized audience. Now to be blunt. The. The antipathy, the. Anger is only flowing in. In one direction.
Um, It at least from this kind of macro macro perspective. You know, I think this is a good place to, to begin to wrap this up. Because I do think it is. Kind of highlights something that's really going to be important for a lot of sports moving forward. And really a lot of entertainment, properties, really, anything where. You're really driven by having fandom. I like this idea. Of a mismatch. Between different between different. Fan bases. I'm appealing to look.
One of the things. That's kind of fascinating about marketing in 2024. Is marketing has always been, it's always preached. The idea of segmenting an audience and building. Uh, product to hit different market segments. One. One of the things that seems to be happening with entertainment in 2024. Is. Is the notion that. That, that idea of. Segmenting audiences. It is somehow almost a little bit offensive. Uh, for non-sports example. The rings of power on Amazon. Is is again an absolutely fascinating. Thing, right.
Amazon goes out, spends a billion dollars to get the, the Tolkin franchise. the Lord of the rings. And then they start changing. At around. I mean, when you go out and you buy a franchise, what are you really buying? You're buying a fan. Base. Laura, the rings fans. Okay. WNBA. I was gifted with Caitlin Clark fans. Okay, so you look. So Amazon's got the Lord of the rings fans, but they decide they want more. Right.
So they take some of the characters and they reinvent. Bent them to be more appropriate for 2024 sensibility. Abilities. But what happens to the, but now. You're playing a really dangerous game. Right? Is the core audience. The Lord of the rings audience. Are they interested in this updated view? This updated universe where gladiatorial is. And ask kicker instead of this, a theory, all sorceress. They don't. Seem to be. Okay.
Now, do you make up for it by having more? Our new fans come in.
In the case of the rings of the power. I don't think so. And I think it's just really a challenging thing. So. In the case of the WNBA, you've got your core audience now. Now you bring in this very much more mainstream audience. And in terms of Caitlin Clark, the conflicts are almost inevitable. So. When we're talking about sports entertainment, what we're talking about is. Cultural products. And so fandoms are subcultures. That deserve that. Are interested in specific cultural. Products. Is it possible? To be all. Things to all people.
And I think that's a big issue in almost all sports now. Everyone is trying to be more inclusive, bring in more different fan. Fan basis. Absolutely makes sense. A great sentiment. But are there limits to what you can do in the case? Case of sports. I mean, look theoretically. Who cares? You know, the, the football stadium can look like a rainbow.
It doesn't affect anything. But where it gets challenging. Is when. You start to change the content. Okay. In the case of entertainment. Lord of the rings rings of power, man. That content was changed. When it comes to, uh, the WNBA, you know, again, You don't actually have to change the content, right. It's a basketball game, everyone. One wants to watch it where the WNBL made all the mistakes was on the periphery. How they talked about the new fans, how they talked about Caitlin Clark, how. How they treated Caitlin Clark. All right, so we'll wrap. It here.
Uh, the other big news. We got a world. Series with the New York Yankees and the Los Angeles Dodgers. So next week we'll dig into again. You know, like if I got two favorites, At sports. In terms of thinking about where sports fandom is going in the future. It's the WNBA. WNBA and it's major league baseball, both sports with some unique. Challenges and unique opportunities.
So I can hardly wait. I love. The idea of this, you know, Los Angeles, New York world series tactic.