Horse races have a rich tradition that spans across cultures around the globe. Since their introduction as primitive competitions between speed and stamina to elaborate spectacles featuring large fields of runners with sophisticated electronic monitoring equipment. But their essence remains constant: A horse race is determined by who crosses the finish line first.

Races involve horses being forced to run at full speed for extended periods, usually miles, over a course with turns and jumps that may include turns and jumps. The goal is usually outrunning an opponent by an amount of time (typically minutes or so). They are considered one of the oldest forms of sports and popular spectator sports around the world.

Racing is also a significant source of gambling activity, and betting on races is commonplace across many states. Horses may be owned individually or managed by corporations or groups of investors; most races are conducted at licensed racing tracks licensed by state or provincial racing commissions which set rules, enforce them and distribute purses which award winning horses’ owners with total monetary awards (purses).

Injurys are a prevalent risk in horse racing, an activity often considered hazardous and stressful for the animals involved. One study revealed that three thoroughbreds die every day in North America from injuries sustained during races; excessive speed being the leading cause. Some trainers have been accused of whipping their horses into pain by whipping into pain-inducing whipping or using drugs to increase speed; furthermore some have even been accused of killing retired race horses after retiring them from competition altogether.

Doping has long been a problem in racing. Painkillers and anti-inflammatories developed for human use often crept into race preparation preparations without racing officials being aware. Furthermore, penalties for breaking the rules were weak; trainers caught simply moved on.

Over the last decade, however, these issues have become more acute as thoroughbred racing’s popularity and prices declined significantly. While injuries and doping played a part in this decline, other factors also played a part, including alternative health care practices like acupuncture and herbal remedies which has had an effect.

Researchers Johanna Dunaway from Texas A&M University and Regina G. Lawrence from University of Oregon School of Journalism and Communication examined newspaper coverage of governor and U.S. Senate elections between 2004 and 2008 from multiple corporate-owned newspapers as well as independent- and family-owned papers, noting a trend where large chains tended to present elections as horse races rather than discussing policy issues. They determined this pattern by looking at coverage that focused on who was ahead and behind rather than discussing policy issues; such practices ultimately hurt voters, candidates and media outlets themselves. According to research by these two scholars they observed this trend among corporate-owned newspapers while independents or family-owned newspapers tending towards framing elections as horse races than their independent and family counterparts did; when covered on policy issues they found it could impacted all parties involved as well.