A KICK IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION: AN EXAMINATION OF USA TODAY COVERAGE OF THE U.S. WOMEN’S WORLD CUP TEAM by AIMEE MARGARET RUSSO (Under the Direction of Billy Hawkins) ABSTRACT The purpose of this study was to examine the media coverage of the United States Women’s World Cup team and how they were portrayed during the tournament in USA Today. Many female athletes and their achievements are marginalized in the mainstream sports media. Through a content analysis of articles from each of the past four World Cup tournaments, the researcher found that as opposed to a focus on beauty or the femininity of the athletes, the players were given overwhelming recognition for their athletic performance and accomplishments in the game of soccer. INDEX WORDS: Female Athletes, FIFA Women’s World Cup, Women and Sport, Sport Media, Portrayal of Gender A KICK IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION: AN EXAMINATION OF USA TODAY COVERAGE OF THE U.S. WOMEN’S WORLD CUP TEAM by AIMEE MARGARET RUSSO A.A., Gainesville State College, 2007 A.B.J., University of Georgia, 2009 A Thesis Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of The University of Georgia in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree MASTER OF SCIENCE ATEHNS, GEORGIA 2012 © 2012 Aimee Margaret Russo All Rights Reserved A KICK IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION: AN EXAMINATION OF USA TODAY COVERAGE OF THE U.S. WOMEN’S WORLD CUP TEAM by AIMEE MARGARET RUSSO Major Professor: Billy Hawkins Committee: Jepkorir Rose Chepyator-Thomson Lee Becker Electronic Version Approved: Maureen Grasso Dean of the Graduate School The University of Georgia May 2012 iv DEDICATION To all of those who inspire me to follow my heart, accomplish my goals and never cease evolving. v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to sincerely thank everyone who helped me throughout my educational endeavors and those who assisted me in the completion of this project. This thesis was important to me in earning my graduate degree and to achieve in the amount of time that I set out was near impossible. However, with the help and support of many, my dream came true. To my parents who never let me feel that anything was out of reach. To my father, who passed on his love of writing to me and has helped cultivate and shape my skills throughout the process. To my mother, who always encourages me to be the best I can and never let go of my confidence. To my sister, who constantly inspires me with her will to succeed and courage to take on the world. To Dr. Billy Hawkins, thank you for seeing this process through with me, as inconceivable as it may have seemed. I am grateful to you for trusting in me and helping accomplish this goal. To Dr. Jepkorir Rose Chepyator-Thomson, thank you for your motivation and the inspiration I received through your insight and your teaching. To Dr. Lee Becker, thank you for serving on my committee and your support of aiding me throughout the process. vi To James, thank you for your understanding and persistence to push me when I need it most and for always keeping me grounded. To many more years of happiness and potential publications in the future as Mr. and Mrs. Dulebohn. vii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS……………………………………………………………………….v LIST OF APPENDICES………………………………………………………………………….ix CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION TO THE PROBLEM…………………………………………1 Statement of purpose…………………………………………………...…3 Significance of the study………………………………………….............3 Delimitations……………………………………………………...............5 Limitations…………………………………………………......................5 Assumptions……………………………………………………...............6 Research Questions…………………………………………………........6 Definition of terms…………………………………………………….....7 2 REVIEW OF LITERATURE…..…………………………………………..…....8 Theoretical Perspective……………………………………………..…....8 Social construction of gender……………………………………...……..9 Sport and the mass media………………………………………………..12 Gender construction in the media…………………………….….……...13 Female athletes in the mass media……………………………….…..…15 Summary………………………………………………………….…….20 viii 4 METHODS..…………………………………………………………….……….22 Theoretical Framework……………....…………………………………..22 Study design……………………………………………………..………22 Sampling,………………………………….…………………………......24 Data Collection……………………….……………………………..…...24 5 RESULTS...…………………………………………………………………..…26 1999 Article Breakdown………….……………………………………..28 2003 Article Breakdown………………………….……………………..30 2007 Article Breakdown……………………………………….………..32 2011 Article Breakdown……………………………………….………..33 Summary……………………………………………………….………..35 6 DISCUSSION.…………………………………………………………….…….36 1999 U.S. Women’s World Cup Team Coverage.………………….…..36 2003 U.S. Women’s World Cup Team Coverage.…………….………..37 2007 U.S. Women’s World Cup Team Coverage.………………….…..37 2011 U.S. Women’s World Cup Team Coverage.………………….…..37 Overall Themes…………………………………………………………38 7 CONCLUSIONS………………………………………………………………..40 Suggestions for future research…………………………………………42 REFERENCES…………………………………………………………………………………43 ix LIST OF APPENDICES APPENDIX A 1999 Article References………………………………………..50 APPENDIX B 2003 Article References………………………………………..54 APPENDIX C 2007 Article References………………………………………..56 APPENDIX D 2011 Article References………………………………………..58 APPENDIX E Sample Coding Sheet…………………………………………..61 APPENDIX F Coding Instructions…………………………………………….62 1 CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION TO THE PROBLEM “How good does a female athlete have to be before we just call her an athlete?” - Anonymous Of all segments of American society, sport has the ability to permeate through all demographics. Although women have participated in sports competitively for centuries, there still exist major barriers to the progression and acceptance of female athletes in American culture. One main impediment is the framing of female athletes by the mass media. There is no debate over the fact that male athletes are covered more predominantly by the media and in a different fashion than female athletes (Bishop, 2003; Duncan & Messner, 2000). Beyond simply numbers, the differential language used by the media to describe the male and female athletes supports the system of hegemonic masculinity promoted through the male dominated coverage (Sabo and Curry Jansen, 1992). Though women have made great strides through their participation in sports with the enactment of Title IX in 1972, female athletes have yet to be recognized more for their athletic abilities than their aesthetic qualities, as Mean & Kassing (2008) note that, "greater presence does not always result in greater acceptance and/or equivalence, and the positioning of women in sport remains contested and problematic” (p. 126). The question is whether that same progress is reflected in how they are portrayed through media messages. Marginal increases in coverage, though a small victory, have yet to reflect the accomplishments of women in sport. The media’s reporting is “laced with diminutives and talk of emotional fragility instead of physical strength 2 (Bishop, 2003, p.185). While this commentary is commonplace, it is easier for audiences to dissect the information as general knowledge (Rada & Wulfemeyer, 2005). The mass media send messages through television, radio, newspapers, magazines, and Internet (Christopherson et al., 2002). Those in the public then interpret those messages to formulate their own perceptions. Furthermore, there exists an assumption within the realm of media studies that suggests how members of society view themselves and how others perceive and treat them is related to how they are portrayed in the mass media (Dyer, 1993; Bernstein, 2002). Therefore, it is important to closely examine the message regarding female athletes because of the reality that the mass media constructs for its audiences. The media plays a major role in popular culture, acting the part of arbiters in determining what is important and what is not. Even though women’s sports and their athletes have been very successful, the way the media frames the players, teams and events has inhibited the overall ability for them to achieve mainstream popularity. The media has marginalized and made insignificant the accomplishments of female athletes through not only their absence in coverage, but by placating their strengths and focusing on their emotions and appearance. While this is generally not the focus of male sports coverage, it is commonplace for female athletes to be covered in a way in which there exists a balance between referencing beauty and brawn. Whether it is the reinforcement of existing beliefs, the media has the power to promote or hinder the success of various women’s sports organizations, such as the Women’s National Basketball Association and Ladies Professional Golf Association. The overall lack of coverage, as Duncan & Messner (1998) suggest, has restricted women’s sports from building and sustaining an avid audience. The United States Women’s National Team, although more successful in international play than its male counterparts, is not only underrepresented in the 3 media, but it is also framed in a way that does not adequately portray the players’ athletic abilities. With their recent World Cup Tournament run to the final championship game in 2011 came increased media attention similar to that of their 1999 World Cup winning predecessors. Although these teams who competed in the 1999 World Cup and in the 2011 World Cup experienced more media coverage during the event; however the pure numbers may not be the most important measurement criteria. Statement of Purpose This study looks to examine the content of articles about the female athletes on the United States Women’s National team during