Hey everyone,
This past week I was playing in a softball tournament in Pensacola, Florida. The field that we played at was amazing, but when I looked over at the baseball field next to us, it was even better. Nice score board, landscaping, and the bleachers were amazing. There was also a game going on there, they had people taking pictures, and probably a few reporters to go along with the photographers. And, as I looked around our field, there was not one reporter to be seen.
Coverage of women's sports is not as common as men's and I think it's a little bit unfair. When women do get coverage, it's usually commenting on their appearance. On a site I found, it states that males attract 90% of sports news, and when female athletes are shown it tends to sexualize them, by commenting on appearance. Maria Sharapova is very seldomly reported on without someone commenting on her appearance.
Another thing that tends to bother me is that women's sports aren't hardly shown on the big time sports channels like ESPN. On three different networks, men got 91% of air time while women got 6%, and gender neutral topics got the other 2%. I think it's not fair because there are women who watch sports and want to hear about women's athletics, not just men's. People need to realize that things are changing and men aren't the dominant of the two sexes anymore, they are more equal now. Women can do most things men can, maybe not at the same physical level, but they can do anything a man can do. I think men fail to recognize women in sports because they are still stuck in that mindset that women are not meant to be playing sports and that no one wants to watch women play.
There have been many studies about this topic and every single one shows that men are the ones who get all the coverage. Yet all these studies fail to make any changes in people's opinions.
I think it’s not very fair that male sports coverage receives more attention than female sports. I think it is disturbing those males attract 90% of sports news, and when female athletes are shown it tends to sexualize them, by commenting on appearance. An example that you brought up I can strongly relate to…Maria Sharapova! She is a very good athlete but rarely have I heard her being spoken as in an athletic way. It is usually about how beautiful and sexy she looks, which is sad. Hopefully the future will bring about more change and women will begin to receive more attention in regards to their athletic abilities, not physical appearances!
ReplyDeleteI agree, men sports receive more coverage than women's sports. I watch ESPN now and then and I like to watch women's sports, but most of the time men's sports are always on. Men's sports are more fast paced, which makes them fun to watch; but women's sports are also fun to watch. Some women athletes have such amazing talent and I think that should be shown around the world. You make a very good point of when women do get coverage, the reporters always seem to talk about their appearance.
ReplyDeleteMen's sports do get a lot more coverage, but I think that it can be attributed to one major thing. The majority of sport watchers are men. I would like to know what percentage of ESPN watchers are male and what percentage are female. My guess is that there is gonna be alot more male viewers, so the stations put on more male played sports. I do think that women sports should have a bigger part in the aired sporting world, but until the audience changes I doubt anything will change.
ReplyDeleteBy being a part of all different sports growing up I know what kind of stuff the girls get stuck with it. The boys are always the ones who get bigger and bigger things such as equipment and rinks for hockey and diamonds for baseball. Just because we are girls doesn’t mean anything. Even the famous women athletes on television are not being spoken about their talent but it’s more about their appearance and that’s the way they have always been noticed which is not very positive. Great post Ashley!
ReplyDeleteI do agree with you that women's sports aren't recognized as much like men's sports are. It isn't fair on how it always works that way. But more males watch sports which leads to this and as they say "women aren't as aggressive as males, so therefore it isn't as exciting to watch." It is kind of harsh,but kind of true. But women work so hard in sports that they should be recognized just the same as men are. Do you think the coverage will ever be equal?
ReplyDelete