How Does Media Influence The Sexualization Of Women
Casey Harmon
Mrs. Bynarowicz
AP Literature and Composition
5 December 2014
Media Representation and Sexualization of Female Athletes Through Visual, Verbal, and Written Commentary Six time U.S. Open champion. Highest-earning woman athlete of all time. Currently ranked No. 1 in the world. Posed naked on the cover of a magazine and in a bikini for several others, downsized to nothing more than a sexy body. This is the sad reality of this star tennis player, Serena Wiliams, along with many other female athletes in the world today. Sexualization and minimization of female athletes and women’s sports in mass media is an unfortunate trend that continues to occur in the sports world. Especially in sports like tennis and volleyball, the accomplishments …show more content…
and athleticism of stars like Anna Kournikova and Brandi Chastain are down-sized, with the only focus being on their “golden and sleek” bodies or their “tantalizing short skirts and tight tops” (Fuller 177). The language used by television and radio commentators as well as the ‘sexy’ covers of magazines and photo shoot spreads minimizes females to pure sex objects and nothing more. While many seem to note that this is unfair and plain wrong and few have even made attempts to stop it, the media continues to marginalize these women; this includes tactics such as having athletes pose naked and in physically attractive clothing to detract from their athleticism, limiting their television airtime to about 5 percent, gender-marking, and using ambivalent diction to portray the women as, in general less powerful, skilled, and successful as their male counterparts.
Up to the present time, women’s involvement in sports took a very long time to develop. Prior to the first suggestion of women’s participation in athletics in 1870, opportunities for competitive physical activities were very limited for women. Activities were recreational and emphasized physical activity such as horseback riding, swimming, and showboating, playing a sport while wanting all ostentatious behavior to be seen at all costs (flaunty, flashy, and gaudy), rather than sport-specific in nature and competitive such as basketball and soccer. Colleges encouraged women to focus on academics, while men were encouraged to participate in athletics. In 1929, the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of teaching produced its annual report, American College Athletics, which stated that there should be a way to “give athletics back to boys,” proving the belief that men athletics were better (Thelin 1994). Soon after this report was released, the Women’s Division-National Amateur Athletic Foundation (NAAF) was formed to counter this belief. Their efforts, along with women’s physical educators around the country led to the formation of the nation’s first women’s college basketball teams, and eventually to the first ever women’s college basketball game between University of California Berkeley and Stanford in 1896. Women’s athletics increased greatly after this event, but slowed down again when the Great Depression hit, along with both World Wars. Soon after, however, the Civil Rights Movement was established and helped propel the status and opportunities of women around the world, resparking the interest in female sports. In response to this, the Division for Girls and Women in Sports (DWGS) amended its long-term official position statement from, “women intercollegiate programs ‘may’ exist,” to “women intercollegiate programs are ‘desirable’ to exist” (Bell 2008). After this, things started happening pretty quickly for female athletes. In 1966 the DWGS appointed the Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (CIAW), and in 1969, the first schedule of national championships for women’s sports was introduced. Gymnastics and track and field were the first sports to make the championships in 1669, but were soon followed by swimming, badminton, and volleyball in 1970, and basketball in 1972. Also in 1972, Title IX was passed, a federal law stating that, “No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance…” (NACWAA 2010). The passing of this law, and the federal risks of disobeying it, have helped the push for women’s sports, and have succeeded. Since 1971, female participation in high school sports has increased from 295,000 to 2.8 million, an increase of 840 percent (Bell 2008). In 1972, only one in 27 girls played sports in college, whereas now, almost half of college athletes are female (Kort 47). At the same time, the number of female sports teams per college or university has increased from 2.5 to 8.32. Regardless of these facts, this is still an ongoing issue. Despite the progress and efforts made to reduce discrimination against female athletes, they are still being treated as nothing more than bodies, especially by the media. To begin, “women in general are often sexualized and objectified and female athletes are no exception” (Tanner 6). This is especially true in visual media such as magazine covers and photo shoot spreads. Rather than focusing on the women’s athletic achievements and abilities, visual media focuses on physical appearance, clothing, and esthetic appeal (For example, when soccer player Brandi Chastain scored the final penalty kick leading her team to a World Cup victory over China in 1999, she threw off her jersey in excitement, causing a massive media sensation. The majority of the media’s attention was not garnered from her team’s victory, however. Instead, the removal of her shirt gained the most coverage, plastering the covers of multiple magazines, internet sites, and sports stories everywhere (See Image 1.1). Even today, 15 years later, when searching “Brandi Chastain soccer” on Google, 10 out of the first 23 images that come up are pictures of Chastain in her sports bra. (See Image 1.2). In the same way, when female athletes beat records, win championships, or make any athletic accomplishment, they are almost always asked to participate in a photo shoot, which is almost always either naked or in a bikini, regardless of their sport. This is very evident in the ESPN Body Issue 2010 photo spread with the Women’s U.S. water polo team posing naked as well as the ESPN Body Issue 2009 with Serena Williams posing naked, and the ESPN Body Issue 2014 with Venus Williams posing naked. (See Images 1.3-1.6). The purpose of this magazine is to direct attention to the magnificent bodies of athletes, and nothing more. This detracts attention from the athletes themselves, minimizing the athletes’ athleticism and potential. Interestingly, however, there are just as many men posing naked on the covers of these ESPN Body Issues as women. This goes to show that sexualization of athletes is not only revealed in women, but is an issue pertaining to athletes of both genders, and is an increasing problem. To enumerate this, Jessica Shaller of St. John Fisher College conducted a study in order to track and analyze such magazine covers. 281 issues of Sports Illustrated from January 2000 to November 2005 were examined. After each image was labeled male or female and separated, the analysis showed that 266 out of the 281 images featured men, and the other 15 featured women. Out of these 15 covers, only six showed the athletes in action, that is, in their uniform playing the sport. The other 9 showed the athletes either posing, striking a pose in either their uniform or other athletic gear, or modeling, posing in clothes other than athletic gear intended to make the athlete appear physically attractive. These included the 2004 gold medalist softball team, the original Dallas Cowboy cheerleaders, female college athletes from Stanford, Texas, and Connecticut University, Anna Kournikova, Maria Sharpova, Danica Patrick, and Jennie Finch, all reputable athletes. Due to this sexualization, female athletes are portrayed as unimportant in the actual world of athletics, and nothing more than sex objects, because, well, sex sells. But according to Mary Jo Kane, “Sex sells sex, not women’s sports” (Kane, 2007). This is an extremely accurate representation of the goals behind the media’s sexualization of these athletes. Not only are magazines a way for the media to minimize female athletes, but also television, which is no different than magazine covers in terms of visual representation. While female athletes do get some air time, it is only 5 percent, with males filling 92 percent, and the other 3 percent being gender neutral topics (Duncan 2014). Not only do they get significantly less air time, but women’s sports also suffer from lesser-quality production, camera work, editing, and sound in the majority of sports. While men’s sports programs include different intriguing camera angles, constant slow-motion plays, and multiple replays, female sport programs usually include one camera angle the entire time, with little to no slow-motion plays or replays. It is clear that television producers pay more attention and value men’s sports to a higher degree than women’s sports.
In addition to visual media as a tool to sexualize female athletes, sports reporters and commentators use written commentary to minimize them. Linda K. Fuller organizes her research and findings of The Sun, The Daily Mail, and The Times during overage of the 2000 Wimbledon Championships in a table in her book, Sexual Sports Rhetoric: Global and Universal Contexts (See Table 1). The coverage of female tennis players competing in the 2000 Wimbledon Championships is a perfect example of common written commentary on female athletes. As is seen in the table above, the women were “frequently described in culturally stereotyped and egregiously sexist terms by the predominately male reporters,” and almost all focus was placed on their physical appearance or clothing instead of any athleticism whatsoever. It is important to note that these sources include things such as The Times, a supposedly reputable British newspaper, as well as The Sun, a newspaper known for “The Best News, Sport, Showbiz and Celebrities.” What is even more interesting is that they share the same viewpoints on female athletes, and make a majority of the same comments about them. This goes to show that this is a growing national issue, and that even trustworthy sources are turning to marginalization of athletes. Moreover, this sexualization of female athletes is evident in verbal commentary of female athletes through sports reporters and commentators on athletic programs. Viewers of men’s basketball games were more often informed of relevant statistics than in women’s games. “In men’s games, there was an average of 24.3 on-screen graphic statistics and 33.3 verbal statistics, for a total average of 57.6 statistics per game. In the women’s games, there was an average of 9.3 graphic on-screen statistics, 29 verbal statistics, for a total average of 38.3 statistics per game” (Duncan 2014). Ambivalent language is also often used when describing female athletes which detracts from their abilities further. Examples include, “big girl,” “she’s tiny,” and the use of the words “girl,” or “young lady” in general. Men are “big guys” who play “big games,” and are never described as boys (Tanner 10). This infantilization of athletes is another way in which the media marginalizes female athletes, and causes audiences to view them as such. Clearly, this marginalization of women’s sports has an obvious effect on audience perception and interpretation of the athletes.
In the same way that people who are brainwashed believe what they are brainwashed to, sports viewers respond to and eventually make a reality of what they are subjected to. The cultivation theory, a theory stating that television shapes the concepts of social reality, originally proposed by George Gerbner and Larry Ross in the Journal of Communication in 1976, has proven that “viewers begin to perceive what is true in the television world as what is true in the real world” (Tanner 8). This means that because sports viewers are constantly subjected to sexualization and minimization of female athletes, they are more likely to think of these athletes as sex objects and unimportant in the world of sports. The same goes for magazines, photo shoot spreads, written commentary, and even radio. Agenda building also has a part in this, as “coverage denotes importance,” therefore the more prominence an athlete or sporting event receives, the more an audience views it as being important (tanner 8). Interestingly, Linda K. Fuller has a different response. In her book, she states that there are three common responses of spectators in sports: females are inferior to males, females are equal with males, and females are superior to males. The first response is clear from the cultivation theory, as well as, in general, from younger males. The second response, that …show more content…
females are equal with males, is generally the response of females and/or people that just love watching the sport. The last response however, is very interesting; that female athletes are better than male athletes. Linda K. Fuller conducted a study asking random spectators for three words to describe male professional athletes and three words to describe professional female athletes. Two very different pictures emerged. “Male athletes were most commonly described as ‘overpaid,’ ‘egotistical,’ ‘strong,’ ‘arrogant,’ ‘conceited,’ and ‘greedy.’ In contrast, female athletes were described as ‘dedicated,’ ‘strong,’ ‘talented,’ ‘athletic,’ ‘hardworking,’ and ‘passionate” (Fuller 101). Furthermore, female athletes themselves are subject to responses to this media representation.
Guest speaker at USC Annenberg’s Institute of Sports, Media, and Society’s second annual USC Conference on Sports Mary Jo Kane and her team conducted a study where she presented a panel of 4 pictures to various female athletes and asked them a series of questions. The first picture represented athletic competence-- on court, in action image with emphasis on athleticism. The second represented a mixed message—off court, posed image with athletic marker but emphasis placed on femininity. The third image represented sexy/classy lady—off court, posed image with no athletic marker, in fashionable attire. The last and final image represented soft pornography—off court, posed image that emphasizes sexual objectification. Four specific images were shown to each athlete (See Image 2.1) The four questions that each athlete was asked were the
following: 1) Which image best represents how you would like to be portrayed? 2) Which image best represents how you would like your sport to be portrayed? 3) Which image best increases interest in your sport? 4) Which image best increases respect for your sport?
The results of the study showed that the vast majority of the athletes responded with competence to questions 1, 2, and 4, however, responded with the soft porn image combined with the competence image for question 3. They, too, recognize the marketing techniques used by media to increase interest in the sport. At the same time, the majority of athletes coupled the “mixed message” image with the “competence” image when answering question 1. This helps prove that female athletes felt the need to “perform femininity” (Kane 2013). Not only is the pure sexualization of the athletes heinous and just plain wrong, but it has begun to affect the athletes themselves. This could lead to a negative psychological effect in female athletes, and could even possibly be destructive to them. In an attempt to help this growing issue, several efforts have been made to lessen and hopefully stop this sexualization of female athletes and undermining of women’s sports. Perhaps the greatest and most successful effort is Title IX, a federal law stating that, “No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance…” (NACWAA 2010). Since being passed in 1972, high school and college participation in athletics has soared. The formation of clubs and societies such as the NCWAA, the CIAW, and the DIGS work together to better this ongoing problem. Conferences such as the USC Annenberg Sports Conference are held each year, and made available to the public. Clear efforts are being made. In order to prevent this unfair, unethical sexualization of women from continuing, efforts need to be made by the public. This can include making oneself aware of what is going on by reading research reports, watching conferences, and paying close attention to visual media. Boycotting magazines that use sexual exploitation of female athletes to sell copies is an option. Another option is to get involved in local or even national clubs or societies whose sole purpose is to stop the sexualization. It can be seen that if nothing is done, the morals of society are skewed. All things considered, sexualization of female athletes is just plain wrong. Not only are females recognized as equals with men on a national level, but they are also recognized in the Constitution. Efforts have been made to prevent it from happening, but it has been a slow process. The media continues to minimalize, marginalize, and sexualize female athletes through its representation of these athletes, and the public continues to accept it as a norm. If this continues, it will either become the norm for the next generation, or, due to lack of airtime as it is, could result in the complete annihilation of coverage of women’s sports. Imagine a world without female athletes; the world would go back on history. Women would once again be looked upon as the less dominant gender, and the United States would have to go through the Civil Rights Movement all over again. Until this is pervasive on a societal level and stops completely, something needs to be done. So get involved.
Image 1.1
Image 1.2
Image 1.3
Image 1.4
Image 1.5
Image 1.6
Image 2.1
Table 1
Player
Commentary
Source
Anna Kournikova
“So who cares if she can’t play tennis?”; “The blonde beauty who puts the phwoar in Wimbledon”; “More a pretty face than a tennis ace.”
The Sun
June 24: 3
Anna Kournikova
“Kournikova’s first point was won in the fashion stakes as she took to the court wearing a clinging white dress slashed away at the shoulders.”
The Sun
June 24: 53
Anna Kournikova
“Tennis smasher Anna Kournikova lets down her hair and shows her finest doubles form yet in a low-cut $2,000 Dior denim dress. The Russian beauty, 19, wowed crowds with a flash of thigh too.
The Sun
July 25: 9
Anna Kournikova
“Kournikova is sleek and golden. Her dress never looks creased and she grunts in a helpless, childlike way”; “If she threw herself around a bit more, sweated profusely and allowed her grunts to sound manly, she could arguably fulfill her obvious potential.”
The Times
June 29: 38
Various
“At one end of the spectrum, there’s Scary Spice in the person of Venus Williams, 6 ft 2 in of sinuous black muscle. At the other end, there’s Baby Spice in the tasty shape of Anna Kournikova, long blonde tresses plaited into a pigtail, breasts trussed up in the designer sports bra she has richly endorsed. Between these extremes there sprawls a sultan’s seraglio of other vixens, all tanned and trained to appeal to the most jaded appetites.”
The Daily Mail
June 26: 42
Alexandra Stevenson
“A statuesque teenager given to wearing tantalizing short skirts and tight tops.”
The Daily Mail
June 26:43
Martina Hingis
“…Whose high level flirting has endeared her to the men’s locker room.”
The Daily Mail
July 5: 86
Mary Pierce
“She was the teaser for Kournikova, it hardly mattered that she wasn’t winning. There was so much to admire beyond her game. There still is, to be sure. So tight was her top that it seemed to have grown into her skin. As for her skirt, well…”
The Times
June 28: 38
Venus Williams
“Venus was wearing an out-fit applied with a spray can that ran out halfway through.”
The Times
June 29: 38
Works Cited
Bell, Richard C. "A History of Women in Sport Prior to Title IX." The Sport Journal (2008): n. pag. 14 Mar. 2008. Web. 30 Nov. 2014. <http://thesportjournal.org/article/a-history-of-women-in-sport-prior-to-title-ix/>.
Duncan, Margaret Carlisle, Michael Messner, Linda Williams, and Kerry Jensen. "Gender Stereotyping in Televised Sports - LA84 Foundation." LA84 Foundation. The Amateur Athletic Foundation of Los Angeles, 2014. Web. 27 Nov. 2014. <http://www.la84.org/gender-stereotyping-in-televised-sports/>.
Female Athletes in the Media: Under Representation and Inadequacy. St. John Fisher College. Digital Commons, 2006. Web. 28 Nov. 2014. <http://fisherpub.sjfc.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1029&context=ur>. Fuller, Linda K. Sexual Sports Rhetoric: Historical and Media Contexts. New York: Peter Lang, 2010. Print.
Kane, Mary Jo. "Sex Sells Sex, Not Women 's Sports." The Nation. The Nation, 15-22 Aug. 2011. Web. 27 Nov. 2014. <http://www.thenation.com/article/162390/sex-sells-sex-not-womens-sports>.
Kort, Michele. "Play ON: The Sporting Side of Title IX." Ms. Magazine. Ms. Magazine, n.d. Web. 29 Nov. 2014. <http://www.feminist.org/education/TriumphsOfTitleIX.pdf>.
Stevenson, Betsey. “Title IX and the Evolution of High School Sports.” Contemporary Economic Policy 25.4. (2007): 486-505. Business Source Permier. Web. 1 Dec. 2014.
Thelin, John R. Games Colleges Play: Scandal and Reform in Intercollegiate Athletics. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins UP, 1994. Google. Google, 1994. Web. 28 Nov. 2014.
"Title IX Information." NACWAA. UCONN, 2010. Web. 29 Nov. 2014. <http://www.nacwaa.org/advocacy/title-ix/information>.
Media, Gener, and Sports: Image Representation and Title IX. Dir. Mary Jo Kane. Youtube. Youtube, 26 Mar. 2013. Web. 8 Nov 2014.
Mrs. Bynarowicz
AP Literature and Composition
5 December 2014
Media Representation and Sexualization of Female Athletes Through Visual, Verbal, and Written Commentary Six time U.S. Open champion. Highest-earning woman athlete of all time. Currently ranked No. 1 in the world. Posed naked on the cover of a magazine and in a bikini for several others, downsized to nothing more than a sexy body. This is the sad reality of this star tennis player, Serena Wiliams, along with many other female athletes in the world today. Sexualization and minimization of female athletes and women’s sports in mass media is an unfortunate trend that continues to occur in the sports world. Especially in sports like tennis and volleyball, the accomplishments …show more content…
and athleticism of stars like Anna Kournikova and Brandi Chastain are down-sized, with the only focus being on their “golden and sleek” bodies or their “tantalizing short skirts and tight tops” (Fuller 177). The language used by television and radio commentators as well as the ‘sexy’ covers of magazines and photo shoot spreads minimizes females to pure sex objects and nothing more. While many seem to note that this is unfair and plain wrong and few have even made attempts to stop it, the media continues to marginalize these women; this includes tactics such as having athletes pose naked and in physically attractive clothing to detract from their athleticism, limiting their television airtime to about 5 percent, gender-marking, and using ambivalent diction to portray the women as, in general less powerful, skilled, and successful as their male counterparts.
Up to the present time, women’s involvement in sports took a very long time to develop. Prior to the first suggestion of women’s participation in athletics in 1870, opportunities for competitive physical activities were very limited for women. Activities were recreational and emphasized physical activity such as horseback riding, swimming, and showboating, playing a sport while wanting all ostentatious behavior to be seen at all costs (flaunty, flashy, and gaudy), rather than sport-specific in nature and competitive such as basketball and soccer. Colleges encouraged women to focus on academics, while men were encouraged to participate in athletics. In 1929, the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of teaching produced its annual report, American College Athletics, which stated that there should be a way to “give athletics back to boys,” proving the belief that men athletics were better (Thelin 1994). Soon after this report was released, the Women’s Division-National Amateur Athletic Foundation (NAAF) was formed to counter this belief. Their efforts, along with women’s physical educators around the country led to the formation of the nation’s first women’s college basketball teams, and eventually to the first ever women’s college basketball game between University of California Berkeley and Stanford in 1896. Women’s athletics increased greatly after this event, but slowed down again when the Great Depression hit, along with both World Wars. Soon after, however, the Civil Rights Movement was established and helped propel the status and opportunities of women around the world, resparking the interest in female sports. In response to this, the Division for Girls and Women in Sports (DWGS) amended its long-term official position statement from, “women intercollegiate programs ‘may’ exist,” to “women intercollegiate programs are ‘desirable’ to exist” (Bell 2008). After this, things started happening pretty quickly for female athletes. In 1966 the DWGS appointed the Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (CIAW), and in 1969, the first schedule of national championships for women’s sports was introduced. Gymnastics and track and field were the first sports to make the championships in 1669, but were soon followed by swimming, badminton, and volleyball in 1970, and basketball in 1972. Also in 1972, Title IX was passed, a federal law stating that, “No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance…” (NACWAA 2010). The passing of this law, and the federal risks of disobeying it, have helped the push for women’s sports, and have succeeded. Since 1971, female participation in high school sports has increased from 295,000 to 2.8 million, an increase of 840 percent (Bell 2008). In 1972, only one in 27 girls played sports in college, whereas now, almost half of college athletes are female (Kort 47). At the same time, the number of female sports teams per college or university has increased from 2.5 to 8.32. Regardless of these facts, this is still an ongoing issue. Despite the progress and efforts made to reduce discrimination against female athletes, they are still being treated as nothing more than bodies, especially by the media. To begin, “women in general are often sexualized and objectified and female athletes are no exception” (Tanner 6). This is especially true in visual media such as magazine covers and photo shoot spreads. Rather than focusing on the women’s athletic achievements and abilities, visual media focuses on physical appearance, clothing, and esthetic appeal (For example, when soccer player Brandi Chastain scored the final penalty kick leading her team to a World Cup victory over China in 1999, she threw off her jersey in excitement, causing a massive media sensation. The majority of the media’s attention was not garnered from her team’s victory, however. Instead, the removal of her shirt gained the most coverage, plastering the covers of multiple magazines, internet sites, and sports stories everywhere (See Image 1.1). Even today, 15 years later, when searching “Brandi Chastain soccer” on Google, 10 out of the first 23 images that come up are pictures of Chastain in her sports bra. (See Image 1.2). In the same way, when female athletes beat records, win championships, or make any athletic accomplishment, they are almost always asked to participate in a photo shoot, which is almost always either naked or in a bikini, regardless of their sport. This is very evident in the ESPN Body Issue 2010 photo spread with the Women’s U.S. water polo team posing naked as well as the ESPN Body Issue 2009 with Serena Williams posing naked, and the ESPN Body Issue 2014 with Venus Williams posing naked. (See Images 1.3-1.6). The purpose of this magazine is to direct attention to the magnificent bodies of athletes, and nothing more. This detracts attention from the athletes themselves, minimizing the athletes’ athleticism and potential. Interestingly, however, there are just as many men posing naked on the covers of these ESPN Body Issues as women. This goes to show that sexualization of athletes is not only revealed in women, but is an issue pertaining to athletes of both genders, and is an increasing problem. To enumerate this, Jessica Shaller of St. John Fisher College conducted a study in order to track and analyze such magazine covers. 281 issues of Sports Illustrated from January 2000 to November 2005 were examined. After each image was labeled male or female and separated, the analysis showed that 266 out of the 281 images featured men, and the other 15 featured women. Out of these 15 covers, only six showed the athletes in action, that is, in their uniform playing the sport. The other 9 showed the athletes either posing, striking a pose in either their uniform or other athletic gear, or modeling, posing in clothes other than athletic gear intended to make the athlete appear physically attractive. These included the 2004 gold medalist softball team, the original Dallas Cowboy cheerleaders, female college athletes from Stanford, Texas, and Connecticut University, Anna Kournikova, Maria Sharpova, Danica Patrick, and Jennie Finch, all reputable athletes. Due to this sexualization, female athletes are portrayed as unimportant in the actual world of athletics, and nothing more than sex objects, because, well, sex sells. But according to Mary Jo Kane, “Sex sells sex, not women’s sports” (Kane, 2007). This is an extremely accurate representation of the goals behind the media’s sexualization of these athletes. Not only are magazines a way for the media to minimize female athletes, but also television, which is no different than magazine covers in terms of visual representation. While female athletes do get some air time, it is only 5 percent, with males filling 92 percent, and the other 3 percent being gender neutral topics (Duncan 2014). Not only do they get significantly less air time, but women’s sports also suffer from lesser-quality production, camera work, editing, and sound in the majority of sports. While men’s sports programs include different intriguing camera angles, constant slow-motion plays, and multiple replays, female sport programs usually include one camera angle the entire time, with little to no slow-motion plays or replays. It is clear that television producers pay more attention and value men’s sports to a higher degree than women’s sports.
In addition to visual media as a tool to sexualize female athletes, sports reporters and commentators use written commentary to minimize them. Linda K. Fuller organizes her research and findings of The Sun, The Daily Mail, and The Times during overage of the 2000 Wimbledon Championships in a table in her book, Sexual Sports Rhetoric: Global and Universal Contexts (See Table 1). The coverage of female tennis players competing in the 2000 Wimbledon Championships is a perfect example of common written commentary on female athletes. As is seen in the table above, the women were “frequently described in culturally stereotyped and egregiously sexist terms by the predominately male reporters,” and almost all focus was placed on their physical appearance or clothing instead of any athleticism whatsoever. It is important to note that these sources include things such as The Times, a supposedly reputable British newspaper, as well as The Sun, a newspaper known for “The Best News, Sport, Showbiz and Celebrities.” What is even more interesting is that they share the same viewpoints on female athletes, and make a majority of the same comments about them. This goes to show that this is a growing national issue, and that even trustworthy sources are turning to marginalization of athletes. Moreover, this sexualization of female athletes is evident in verbal commentary of female athletes through sports reporters and commentators on athletic programs. Viewers of men’s basketball games were more often informed of relevant statistics than in women’s games. “In men’s games, there was an average of 24.3 on-screen graphic statistics and 33.3 verbal statistics, for a total average of 57.6 statistics per game. In the women’s games, there was an average of 9.3 graphic on-screen statistics, 29 verbal statistics, for a total average of 38.3 statistics per game” (Duncan 2014). Ambivalent language is also often used when describing female athletes which detracts from their abilities further. Examples include, “big girl,” “she’s tiny,” and the use of the words “girl,” or “young lady” in general. Men are “big guys” who play “big games,” and are never described as boys (Tanner 10). This infantilization of athletes is another way in which the media marginalizes female athletes, and causes audiences to view them as such. Clearly, this marginalization of women’s sports has an obvious effect on audience perception and interpretation of the athletes.
In the same way that people who are brainwashed believe what they are brainwashed to, sports viewers respond to and eventually make a reality of what they are subjected to. The cultivation theory, a theory stating that television shapes the concepts of social reality, originally proposed by George Gerbner and Larry Ross in the Journal of Communication in 1976, has proven that “viewers begin to perceive what is true in the television world as what is true in the real world” (Tanner 8). This means that because sports viewers are constantly subjected to sexualization and minimization of female athletes, they are more likely to think of these athletes as sex objects and unimportant in the world of sports. The same goes for magazines, photo shoot spreads, written commentary, and even radio. Agenda building also has a part in this, as “coverage denotes importance,” therefore the more prominence an athlete or sporting event receives, the more an audience views it as being important (tanner 8). Interestingly, Linda K. Fuller has a different response. In her book, she states that there are three common responses of spectators in sports: females are inferior to males, females are equal with males, and females are superior to males. The first response is clear from the cultivation theory, as well as, in general, from younger males. The second response, that …show more content…
females are equal with males, is generally the response of females and/or people that just love watching the sport. The last response however, is very interesting; that female athletes are better than male athletes. Linda K. Fuller conducted a study asking random spectators for three words to describe male professional athletes and three words to describe professional female athletes. Two very different pictures emerged. “Male athletes were most commonly described as ‘overpaid,’ ‘egotistical,’ ‘strong,’ ‘arrogant,’ ‘conceited,’ and ‘greedy.’ In contrast, female athletes were described as ‘dedicated,’ ‘strong,’ ‘talented,’ ‘athletic,’ ‘hardworking,’ and ‘passionate” (Fuller 101). Furthermore, female athletes themselves are subject to responses to this media representation.
Guest speaker at USC Annenberg’s Institute of Sports, Media, and Society’s second annual USC Conference on Sports Mary Jo Kane and her team conducted a study where she presented a panel of 4 pictures to various female athletes and asked them a series of questions. The first picture represented athletic competence-- on court, in action image with emphasis on athleticism. The second represented a mixed message—off court, posed image with athletic marker but emphasis placed on femininity. The third image represented sexy/classy lady—off court, posed image with no athletic marker, in fashionable attire. The last and final image represented soft pornography—off court, posed image that emphasizes sexual objectification. Four specific images were shown to each athlete (See Image 2.1) The four questions that each athlete was asked were the
following: 1) Which image best represents how you would like to be portrayed? 2) Which image best represents how you would like your sport to be portrayed? 3) Which image best increases interest in your sport? 4) Which image best increases respect for your sport?
The results of the study showed that the vast majority of the athletes responded with competence to questions 1, 2, and 4, however, responded with the soft porn image combined with the competence image for question 3. They, too, recognize the marketing techniques used by media to increase interest in the sport. At the same time, the majority of athletes coupled the “mixed message” image with the “competence” image when answering question 1. This helps prove that female athletes felt the need to “perform femininity” (Kane 2013). Not only is the pure sexualization of the athletes heinous and just plain wrong, but it has begun to affect the athletes themselves. This could lead to a negative psychological effect in female athletes, and could even possibly be destructive to them. In an attempt to help this growing issue, several efforts have been made to lessen and hopefully stop this sexualization of female athletes and undermining of women’s sports. Perhaps the greatest and most successful effort is Title IX, a federal law stating that, “No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance…” (NACWAA 2010). Since being passed in 1972, high school and college participation in athletics has soared. The formation of clubs and societies such as the NCWAA, the CIAW, and the DIGS work together to better this ongoing problem. Conferences such as the USC Annenberg Sports Conference are held each year, and made available to the public. Clear efforts are being made. In order to prevent this unfair, unethical sexualization of women from continuing, efforts need to be made by the public. This can include making oneself aware of what is going on by reading research reports, watching conferences, and paying close attention to visual media. Boycotting magazines that use sexual exploitation of female athletes to sell copies is an option. Another option is to get involved in local or even national clubs or societies whose sole purpose is to stop the sexualization. It can be seen that if nothing is done, the morals of society are skewed. All things considered, sexualization of female athletes is just plain wrong. Not only are females recognized as equals with men on a national level, but they are also recognized in the Constitution. Efforts have been made to prevent it from happening, but it has been a slow process. The media continues to minimalize, marginalize, and sexualize female athletes through its representation of these athletes, and the public continues to accept it as a norm. If this continues, it will either become the norm for the next generation, or, due to lack of airtime as it is, could result in the complete annihilation of coverage of women’s sports. Imagine a world without female athletes; the world would go back on history. Women would once again be looked upon as the less dominant gender, and the United States would have to go through the Civil Rights Movement all over again. Until this is pervasive on a societal level and stops completely, something needs to be done. So get involved.
Image 1.1
Image 1.2
Image 1.3
Image 1.4
Image 1.5
Image 1.6
Image 2.1
Table 1
Player
Commentary
Source
Anna Kournikova
“So who cares if she can’t play tennis?”; “The blonde beauty who puts the phwoar in Wimbledon”; “More a pretty face than a tennis ace.”
The Sun
June 24: 3
Anna Kournikova
“Kournikova’s first point was won in the fashion stakes as she took to the court wearing a clinging white dress slashed away at the shoulders.”
The Sun
June 24: 53
Anna Kournikova
“Tennis smasher Anna Kournikova lets down her hair and shows her finest doubles form yet in a low-cut $2,000 Dior denim dress. The Russian beauty, 19, wowed crowds with a flash of thigh too.
The Sun
July 25: 9
Anna Kournikova
“Kournikova is sleek and golden. Her dress never looks creased and she grunts in a helpless, childlike way”; “If she threw herself around a bit more, sweated profusely and allowed her grunts to sound manly, she could arguably fulfill her obvious potential.”
The Times
June 29: 38
Various
“At one end of the spectrum, there’s Scary Spice in the person of Venus Williams, 6 ft 2 in of sinuous black muscle. At the other end, there’s Baby Spice in the tasty shape of Anna Kournikova, long blonde tresses plaited into a pigtail, breasts trussed up in the designer sports bra she has richly endorsed. Between these extremes there sprawls a sultan’s seraglio of other vixens, all tanned and trained to appeal to the most jaded appetites.”
The Daily Mail
June 26: 42
Alexandra Stevenson
“A statuesque teenager given to wearing tantalizing short skirts and tight tops.”
The Daily Mail
June 26:43
Martina Hingis
“…Whose high level flirting has endeared her to the men’s locker room.”
The Daily Mail
July 5: 86
Mary Pierce
“She was the teaser for Kournikova, it hardly mattered that she wasn’t winning. There was so much to admire beyond her game. There still is, to be sure. So tight was her top that it seemed to have grown into her skin. As for her skirt, well…”
The Times
June 28: 38
Venus Williams
“Venus was wearing an out-fit applied with a spray can that ran out halfway through.”
The Times
June 29: 38
Works Cited
Bell, Richard C. "A History of Women in Sport Prior to Title IX." The Sport Journal (2008): n. pag. 14 Mar. 2008. Web. 30 Nov. 2014. <http://thesportjournal.org/article/a-history-of-women-in-sport-prior-to-title-ix/>.
Duncan, Margaret Carlisle, Michael Messner, Linda Williams, and Kerry Jensen. "Gender Stereotyping in Televised Sports - LA84 Foundation." LA84 Foundation. The Amateur Athletic Foundation of Los Angeles, 2014. Web. 27 Nov. 2014. <http://www.la84.org/gender-stereotyping-in-televised-sports/>.
Female Athletes in the Media: Under Representation and Inadequacy. St. John Fisher College. Digital Commons, 2006. Web. 28 Nov. 2014. <http://fisherpub.sjfc.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1029&context=ur>. Fuller, Linda K. Sexual Sports Rhetoric: Historical and Media Contexts. New York: Peter Lang, 2010. Print.
Kane, Mary Jo. "Sex Sells Sex, Not Women 's Sports." The Nation. The Nation, 15-22 Aug. 2011. Web. 27 Nov. 2014. <http://www.thenation.com/article/162390/sex-sells-sex-not-womens-sports>.
Kort, Michele. "Play ON: The Sporting Side of Title IX." Ms. Magazine. Ms. Magazine, n.d. Web. 29 Nov. 2014. <http://www.feminist.org/education/TriumphsOfTitleIX.pdf>.
Stevenson, Betsey. “Title IX and the Evolution of High School Sports.” Contemporary Economic Policy 25.4. (2007): 486-505. Business Source Permier. Web. 1 Dec. 2014.
Thelin, John R. Games Colleges Play: Scandal and Reform in Intercollegiate Athletics. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins UP, 1994. Google. Google, 1994. Web. 28 Nov. 2014.
"Title IX Information." NACWAA. UCONN, 2010. Web. 29 Nov. 2014. <http://www.nacwaa.org/advocacy/title-ix/information>.
Media, Gener, and Sports: Image Representation and Title IX. Dir. Mary Jo Kane. Youtube. Youtube, 26 Mar. 2013. Web. 8 Nov 2014.