The Female Experience in Sports Media
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STILL ON THE SIDELINES: THE FEMALE EXPERIENCE IN SPORTS MEDIA Sara K. Blankenship, B.A. Thesis Prepared for the Degree of MASTER OF ARTS UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS December 2014 APPROVED: Tracy Everbach, Major Professor Koji Fuse, Committee Member James Mueller, Committee Member Cornelius Foote, Committee Member Cory Armstrong, Chair of the Department of Journalism Dorothy Bland, Director of the Frank W. Mayborn Graduate Institute of Journalism and Dean of the Frank W. and Sue Mayborn School of Journalism Mark Wardell, Dean of the Toulouse Graduate School Blankenship, Sara K. Still on The Sidelines: The Female Experience in Sports Media. Master of Arts (Journalism), December 2014, 64 pp., 3 tables, references, 49 titles. This qualitative study aims to analyze the lived reality of women working in sports media today. Through systematic analysis of 12 in-depth interviews, the findings of this study suggest that the adoption of technological advancements in news media and all associated outlets have created a leveling effect for women due to the demand for highly skilled individuals who can handle the digital demand of modern news production. This study suggests that longtime gender disparities in sports media are experiencing a bit of a reprieve due to the massive digital audience and the need for professionals who can deliver information quickly and efficiently and with accuracy. However, the persistent symbolic annihilation of women as well as hegemonic hiring practices that emphasize aesthetic appeal have created a difficult path for women to move off the sidelines and into roles with more creative and analytical breadth, even with a rapidly increasing demand for jobs in the media industry. Copyright 2014 by Sara K. Blankenship ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to first thank Dr. Tracy Everbach for her unremitting support and guidance throughout this project. What seemed at times impossible was made possible by your invaluable experience and immeasurable passion for research. I appreciate you as a teacher, mentor, and friend more than I could ever describe. I would also like to thank my committee members, Dr. Koji Fuse, Dr. James Mueller, and Professor Cornelius Foote, for your insightful and expert feedback during the most difficult phases of this process. Your support was instrumental in the success of this research project. I would also like to thank all the respondents who selflessly contributed, without hesitation, their thoughts and experiences on being a woman in media today. Your participation in projects like these is the cornerstone of what we know as academics and citizens of a social world. Lastly I would like to thank my husband, Brandon Reynolds, for his unconditional encouragement during the most difficult academic endeavor I have ever attempted. Thank you for your companionship during late nights of writing and revisions, and never wavering in your belief that I would cross the finish line. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ........................................................................................................... iii LIST OF TABLES ......................................................................................................................... vi CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................... 1 CHAPTER 2 REVIEW OF LITERATURE ................................................................................... 3 The History of Women in Journalism .................................................................................... 3 Underrepresentation and Lack of Promotion in a Changing Newsroom, Marginalization in Television News ..................................................................................................................... 6 Masculinity in Sports, Media, and Sports Media ................................................................... 9 Women in The Sports Department ....................................................................................... 16 CHAPTER 3 THEORETICAL CONSTRUCT ............................................................................ 19 The Feminist Framework ..................................................................................................... 19 Hegemony ............................................................................................................................. 21 Masculine Hegemony ........................................................................................................... 21 Symbolic Annihilation .......................................................................................................... 22 CHAPTER 4 METHODOLOGY ................................................................................................. 24 Qualitative Analysis of In-Depth Interview Data ................................................................. 24 CHAPTER 5 RESULTS ............................................................................................................... 28 The Early Exposure Effect ................................................................................................... 28 Mentorship ............................................................................................................................ 33 Aesthetics Have a Time and Place ....................................................................................... 34 The Digital Shift and Ensuing Pressure on Everyone .......................................................... 36 Staying in a Shaky Industry .................................................................................................. 38 CHAPTER 6 DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION .................................................................... 41 Discussion ............................................................................................................................. 41 iv Limitations and Suggestions for Future Research ................................................................ 46 APPENDIX A PERSONAL INTERVIEW QUESTIONNAIRE ................................................. 48 APPENDIX B LIST OF INTERVIEWEES/RESPONDENTS .................................................... 52 APPENDIX C SUPPLEMENTAL TABLES ............................................................................... 55 REFERENCES ............................................................................................................................. 59 v LIST OF TABLES Page Table 1 CBS ...................................................................................................................................14 Table 2 ESPN .................................................................................................................................15 Table 3 FOX ..................................................................................................................................15 Table C.1 CBS ...............................................................................................................................56 Table C.2 ESPN .............................................................................................................................57 Table C.3 FOX ...............................................................................................................................58 vi CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION Should the role of women in sports media today be measured against the initial intent of the first wave of the feminist movement, it would appear that we have made few strides in terms of equality. The sports media industry has enjoyed decades of astronomical financial success as well as record-breaking statistics in regard to popularity and visibility among print and television media outlets, yet they continue to employ and promote a much higher proportion of men over women, which creates a problematic message for the millions of consumers who have significant influence and purchasing power. This inequity has not escaped the attention of media scholars, who have conducted countless studies on the role of women and the concept of femininity in sports media, creating a groundswell of the content that demands a shift in protocol. Gender roles have long been an integral part of social science research, so this pattern of research will likely continue until and even after a tangible change is made and women are featured as credible components of sports media production. The focal point of analyzing these roles centers on how they developed and how they affect the realm in which they exist. With much focus placed on women and the context in which they are treated in news, entertainment, advertising and digital media, their role in society has been one subject to intense examination. As the linear timeline of available research lengthens and the social experience changes, so must the focus of research that seeks to analyze and discuss that experience. Female journalists are no exception to the interest of social science researchers; their function within a male-dominated industry lends researchers a unique opportunity to examine a microcosm of our social reality. 1 This study examines current experiences of female sports journalists in both print and broadcast media and the perceived “state of affairs” for women on and off the field. The data collected from a series of in-depth interviews will shed light on whether women are truly making inroads toward a progressive version of sport journalism that diversifies the