It's a Man's Man's Man's World

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Men versus women. This is not a new theme but one that constantly fluctuates in any industry. Gender equality has been a constant issue but in sports journalism, one that is still in flux. In a time before social media connections like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, women involved in sports journalism faced a copious amount of backlash for their involvement in a predominately male environment. 

 

Scott Stringer, 63, played professional football for the St. Louis Cardinals from 1974-76 and he echoes this sentiment that not many women were present in the position. Stringer remembers the lack of female representation on and off the field.

 

“The majority, if not all, of the reporters and broadcasters were male. This was not unusual at the time.  The National Football League’s viewer base was predominantly male", Stringer says. 

 

The Sports world eventually identified the female viewer as a potential market group that they had not been reaching. This produced the early female broadcast journalists that mostly held sideline reporter positions. This addition helped bring a larger viewer base to games by adding the female viewer, while adding to the male viewer appeal by using attractive female reporters.

 

"The early female reporters I remember were Phyllis George and Jayne Kennedy. Both were attractive, well dressed, and possessed enough football knowledge to be credible", stated Stringer. "In the early years they were taken seriously by the female audience as someone they could identify with in a male dominated sport, but only had limited roles in the broadcast", Stringer adds.

 

With the success of the early female pioneers and the expansion of the viewing audience to include a large percentage of women, opportunities increased and more and more female journalists were seen on television. This was especially true regarding the coverage of female sports. Who better to analyze and discuss female athletic events?

 

The Olympics, with numerous female competitions, provided a natural opportunity for female broadcasters. The female broadcast journalists were knowledgeable and articulate. Most were ex-athletes which earned them immediate credibility. This continued success provided a larger role for women in broadcast journalism, and over time, the necessity to be a “looker” was diminished with more relevance on knowledgeable and adept reporting.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Before 1978, women reporters were not allowed in the men’s locker room before or after games to interview players. In a judicial decision, female reporters were allowed equal access into the male-oriented locker rooms with some initial backlash.

 

"Guys were upset. They felt an invasion of priavcy because it was women encroaching into their territory. It was invasive", Stringer recalls.

 

Women sports journalists faced unfair treatment at the hands of their male counterparts once they did enter the locker rooms. Stringer recalls a rebellion amongst the players as well as the other male journalists.

 

"It was almost like little kids being told they had a bedtime", Stringer says. "We definitely made it clear we didn't approve of their presence on our territory", Stringer adds.

 

It was this mentality that made many women journalists ban together for their future in the industry. 

 

There were many pioneers that paved the way. Some of the notable names were Donna De Verona, an ex-Olympic swimmer, Phyllis George (discussed above), Jayne Kennedy (also discussed above) Lesley Visser and Linda Cohn, both worked for ESPN.

 

As previously discussed, these women advanced the perception, in a positive way, to the modern day viewing audience of both men and women, that women could be just as knowledgeable and offer insight into sports of all varieties just as well as their male counterparts. The efforts of these women provided role models for younger women and showed that opportunities for them to pursue a career in sports journalism was not out of reach. The role in college sports of Title IX was a huge boost to the participation of women in sports, and their natural transition into broadcasting sporting events.

 

Today’s sports fan generally does not distinguish between a male or female broadcaster as long as they are knowledgeable and insightful about the sport they are covering. Women’s sports are more enjoyable to watch and certainly relate more to the audience with female broadcasters.

 

"ESPN has done a wonderful job of mixing male and female broadcasters on their shows and I believe it adds in a positive way to the broadcast", Stringer says.

 

With today’s audience made up of so many demographic identities, it has been part of the programming strategy to not only have male and female broadcasters, but white, black, latino or asian broadcasters depending on the sport and the target audience.

 

This inclusion of all demographic types was a derivative of the door opened by female journalists. These women became trailblazors for other female journalists to enter onto the scene. With more opportunities than before, women's roles became just as prominent than men in an age before social media platforms.

 

Today, women journalists have a substantial foundation that was paved by many women reporters before them combined with a growing social media market as reporting tools. Does this change the way people view current female journalists than it did in the past.

 

Stringer grew up in an age without social media and most in his generation do not participate in the platform. With that said, female journalists' involvement using social media can be a mixed blessing. While it can provide access to many potential fans and offer a human side of the journalists' personality, it can also denigrate and diminish the journalists' image if not used properly. Any time a journalist, male or female, interacts with the public, they are being judged on their behavior and opinions, just as they would be doing an interview on television or radio.

 

"It is imperative to always maintain an appropriate image using social media so as not to tarnish your reputation when conducting yourself as a professional journalist," Stringer says. "If you lose your credibility, you potentially lose your journalistic integrity", Stringer adds.

 

Positively, properly utilizing, social media can enhance your image and further your effectiveness as a journalist. In today's heavily covered sports world, character is extremely important. 

 

By highlighting the past struggles for women, it is clear that they did have a disadvantage compared to men. What, if any, is the disadvantage today? Is social media the factor that impairs the judgement of the masses toward female legacy media members in sports journalism? 

 

 

WO