“How do You like America?”.

In examining Hunter S. Thompson's Gonzo journalism, other themes and aspects have perhaps over-shadowed the consideration of Gonzo as/and sports journalism. Through looking at Gonzo's relationship with sport, and its prominent exploration of the place of sport within wider American cultural contexts, this article examines the ways in which Gonzo differentiates itself as a type of more critical sports journalism, more concerned with the exploitative, corrupt and negative aspects of sports. By comparing and contrasting Gonzo with conventions of sports journalism, and wider conventions governing the presentation of elite sport in America, Gonzo is used to illustrate ways in which ideological deployments of sport are contested, particularly in terms of the complex tensions between mercenary ideas of sport, and myths of sport reliant on ideas of passion, loyalty and emotion. These elements support an argument that the stylistic methods associated with Gonzo journalism facilitate a hybrid form of sports journalism which, though highly subjective, is nonetheless strongly tied to critical social and political commentary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]