The Real and the Unreal : Hyper Narratives of Indigenous Athletes and the Changing Significance of Race, 2nd edition

The second edition of The Real and Unreal reflects on the objective from the first edition, which was to claim the changing significance of race in the context of Australian sport. Race is celebrated in terms of indigenous athletic dominance, yet the persistence of racial inequality on and off field is denied. The approach, underlined by critical race theory, argues the presence of racial discourse in the mainstream press through the framing of hyper realism of race, looks to hold. Whereas the project of dismantling racial hegemony through cultural transformations underscores the rise of celebratory discourse in the first edition, the emphasis in this second edition is on how they converge to unintentionally reaffirm colonial ideology of racial difference. And while a more circumspect tone is noted, logics of race continue to inform the representation of indigenous athletes. For instance, the construct of "indigenous talent" forms part of normalising discourse, of indigenous inclusion in Australian Rules football, that masks the realities of competition in which few make it, the hard work that goes into being a "talent", the racial stereotyping of "talent", and the burden of being a "talent".