A horse race is a method of choosing a chief executive officer by pitting two or more senior executives in a head-to-head competition. Some governance observers and board members are uncomfortable with this approach, which involves open competition within an established time frame, but it has produced outstanding CEOs at some of the world’s best-known companies. The horse race method can have a negative impact, however, on other senior-level management and can disrupt a company’s culture.
The earliest horse races were match races between a pair of horses whose owners provided the purse. Eventually, wagers were placed and agreements were recorded by disinterested parties, who came to be known as keepers of the match book. In the early years of organized racing in England, these match books became so large that they had to be published with varying titles. One of the earliest was An Historical List of all Horse-Matches Run (1729).
During the American Revolution, Col. Richard Nicolls laid out a race course in Long Island and introduced organized thoroughbred racing to the United States. By the 1860s, dash racing became the rule, and speed took precedence over stamina. As a result, jockeys became increasingly skilled at coaxing a few extra yards out of their mounts.
While horse racing is an exciting sport, it is also cruel to the animals involved. Injuries are common, and even a healthy young thoroughbred can break down after years of training and racing. As a breed bred for entertainment, racehorses are isolated from other members of their herd and spend 23 hours a day in a 12-by-12-foot stall. This type of confinement often leads to behavioral problems and skeletal injuries. It can also exacerbate preexisting conditions such as laminitis, an inflamed and painful condition that can be fatal.
For animal rights activists, the treatment of horses in racing is akin to the cruel ways that humans raise animals for food. Thousands of these beautiful, intelligent creatures are confined in unnatural, stressful environments, suffer extreme physical stress and die callously after a short life as a commodity for human entertainment.
A study by Johanna Dunaway, associate professor of communication at Texas A&M University, and Regina Lawrence, associate dean at the University of Oregon School of Journalism and Communication, found that partisan newspaper ownership was associated with more horse-race coverage during election season. They also found that the coverage was most prevalent in close races and during the weeks leading up to Election Day. This type of political horse-race reporting may be especially damaging to voters who do not have the information they need to make informed choices. It is important that journalists provide complete context for readers to avoid skewing their choices. To do so, they must be careful not to simply present a slanted picture of the issues and candidates. Instead, journalists must strive to be like the announcer of a horse race and identify long-shots who can come from behind to win.