Feminist Sports Media Analysis: Representation and Resistance

Dunja AntunovicGraduate Student

College of CommunicationsThe Pennsylvania State University

“ALRIGHT!!! JUST WHAT WE NEED!!! WOMEN OFFICIATING THE GAMES NOW!!

“Weird... how is she going to ref from the kitchen?”

“Hasn't been one half way decent women in the NFL, outside of those lovely Cheerleaders.”

“One question is she hot? if so the nfl is moving in the right direction if not i dont care”

Gender inequities

“Major inequities remain for female athletes—especially in terms of media attention, distribution of institutional resources, and opportunities to coach and lead in the world of sport”

(Cooky & LaVoi, 2012, p. 44)

Representations of Female Athletes

Lack of representation

Trivialization

Sexual Objectification

Where are the women?

What do female athletes do?

What about the ESPN Body Issue?

Body Issue: Nice try, ESPN?

“Empowering”

More diversity

What does the magazine sell?

ESPNW: Another nice try?“Connect female fans”

“Provide an engaging environment where women are an integral part of the sports conversation”

“Your primary destination for women’s sports”

That’s it???

Resistance is possibleLook for journalists who offer a different

perspective

“When you watch footage like that, as I did as a speaker at the conference, you have to give the IOC credit for honesty: It didn't even try to fake its concern for the achievements of women in sport. Or perhaps it is simply cluelessness; the IOC doesn't know, or perhaps doesn't care, about how awful that opening video looked.”

Christine Brennan (USA Today)

Resistance is, indeed, possible

Alternative media sources: BLOGS

User-generated content (UGC)

Feminist “dream:” Variety of “voices”

What can you do?Imagine….

You work at a media organization You get the task to be in charge of the sports

sectionCome up with “strategies” to change dominant

discourseDo your “activist assignment” on sports &

gender