Playing+Unfair-+Representations+of+Women+in+Sport

Name: Damaris Mocan  Student Number: 08299099   Tutor: Abbey Diaz Playing Unfair: Representations of Women in Sport

Running like a Girl: How Equitable is the Playing Field when it comes to Women in Sport?
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Cultural Artefact “Strong is beautiful” is a campaign developed by the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) that claims to promote women’s tennis by capturing the key characteristics that identify with female tennis athletes; that is, grace and athleticism. The advertisements are being released globally within the period of 2011 to 2012. This campaign features 38 female tennis players who expose personal stories, dreams and pressures associated with being an athlete. The selected advertisement focuses on tennis player Serena Williams who shares her tradition in ensuring that every new tennis outfit should represent a new winning.

Public Heath Issue In recent times mass media has become increasingly influential. Has come to the point in which individuals depend on the media to reinforce of values, societal norms and attitudes (Fink, 1998). According to Kane and Greendorfer (1994), mass media not only assists in the reinforcement of these values, but is also a potent component in their creation.

Although achieving many athletic milestones, there is no doubt that women are underrepresented in sports (Fink, 1998). Females participating in sport are often displayed in a weak, uncoordinated and incompetent light, the focus being on sporting failures rather than achievements. Hence, the participation of females in sport is often deemed insignificant and out of the norm (Lopiano, 1996). This factor in turn deters women from playing in sport or engaging in physical activity. A review performed by the International Council of Sport Science and Physical Education (ICSSPE) (n.d.) demonstrates that there is a clear difference in sport participation of males and females; females being significantly less active than males globally. This is a public health issue as it signifies that women are not benefiting from the positive effects that arise from exercising such as diabetes prevention, primary prevention of some cancers, injury prevention and the promotion of mental health. (Bauman, Bellew, Vita, Brown, Owen, 2002).

Moreover, women in sport are subjects to stereotyping and sexual objectification by the mass media. In viewing images of glamorised and sexualised female athletes, both young girls and women are subject to self-objectification; an occurrence that in the long term could lead to body dissatisfaction and eating disorders (Daniels, 2009)

Literature Review As previously mentioned, media today has the potential to shape and create societal values, norms and stereotypes (Fink, 1998). By allocating less time for televised female sports, sexually objectifying, marginalizing and focusing on aspects other than athleticism, female athletes are being discriminated against.

The initial and most predominant means by which female athletes are marginalized is through the lack of television airplay time allowed for women’s sport. A report issued by the Australian Sports Commission (2010), displayed that within the period of 2009-2010, a mere 9% of all sports coverage in Australian television news media was devoted to female sport while non-news programming made up 7%. Male sport, on the other hand, occupied 81% of television news reporting, and 86% of non-news programming.

The distribution television time of reflects the popularity of the gender sport. Just as it is the majority of sport aired in regards to gender, male sport is the majority of sport viewed. This occurrence is not only true in regard to the male population, but also to the female population. Men are more likely to watch male sports as by doing this, the societal belief that men are stronger, faster and more competent than women is emphasized (Angelini, 2008). Similarly, it is a way in which men learn about masculinity as defined by the media (Whiteside, Hardin, 2011). Although women are more accepting to watching female sports, the majority of their viewing is occupied by male sports. Women attempt to use sport as a means of relating to the male figure in their life (Whiteside, Hardin, 2011). This action could prove to be unfavorable to the participation of the female in sports, as consistent viewing of solely male sport will lead to the implicit learning that sport is a male domain due to their intrinsic characteristics of a competitive spirit, aggressiveness and stamina and is not an activity that should be undertaken by women (Angelini, 2008).

Furthermore, there is acknowledgement within literature that there are gender-biased sports. That is, sports that are appropriate for women and sports that are only appropriate for men. Female appropriate sports are consistent with the gender stereotype in that a ‘feminine sport’ is one considered to display grace and beauty. Such sports include synchronized swimming, figure skating and gymnastics (George, Hartley, Paris, 2001). Regardless of the fact that there are over 20 million women worldwide that play ‘male appropriate’ sports such as football, there is little to no coverage of these games (George et al., 2001). An example of this can be displayed through the relative coverage allowed for different sports within the NBC Olympic Game in relation to gender. It was found that 84% of gymnastics covered was woman’s gymnastics where as team sports were allocated a significantly smaller time slot in comparison to that of the male teams (Wade, 2008). It is argued that coverage of sport dependant on gender values and norms discriminates the position of the woman within society (George et al., 2001). It supports the stereotype that sport is the natural domain of men.

Another mode in which the media is reinforcing stereotypical beliefs is the way in which females are presented in media articles and advertisements, and the content that these articles primarily focus on. An example of this can be identified through a study, which showed that out of five consecutive of Sports Illustrated magazine, six women were either sexually objectified or revealed current or previous emotional struggles experienced (Lopiano, 1996). The publicity of female athletes primarily focuses on more ‘feminine’ roles of the athlete such as being a wife or mother, being in emotional distress, or sexually objectified, while athleticism of the female is often underrepresented (Lopiano, 1996).

Cultural and Social Analysis Through the literature review, it was displayed that females are a marginalized group when it comes to sport and athletics. This is represented through the relative broadcasting time allowed for women’s sport, the way in which women female athletes are portrayed in the media and the popularity of the broadcasted female sports in comparison to that of male sport. Although the current situation is one unfavorable to many, looking back through history, women have come a long way in this regard.

Before the 1970’s women were effectively excluded from many subjects within school, health and physical education being one of them (Lopiano, 2000). Women refrained from engaging in any form of physical activity as it was highly regarded as a ‘male hobby’ and females were considered fragile, weak and incapable of participating in such activities. In 1972, a bill in America under the title IX was passed which required schools to provide funding for girls’ sports (Lopiano, 2000). Since then, there has been an explosion in the female sport participation on both high school and college levels (Lopiano, 2000). From that time onwards, the female stereotype within Western cultures has shifted towards a more acceptable status. Today’s women have more courage than ever before and often see themselves as competitive, strong and skilled athletes (Lopiano, 2000).

Furthermore, alongside the IX bill, the feminist movement also assisted in the improvements of female sport participation throughout time. Even though the passing of the IX bill was primarily due to feminist encouragers, the feminist movement in the 1960’s helped give women esteem and courage that was previously non-existent. In doing so, women were open to take on traditional male activities such as sport. This is demonstrated through the positive reaction of females following the passing of the IX bill.

Although coming a long way, according to Roth and Basow (2004) females have yet to experience complete liberation, a status that is argued to require physical liberation. Physical liberation involves the ability for women to partake in sport without the need of sexual objectification to gain attention from the media (Roth, Basow, 2004). If achieved, media coverage of a female athlete will focus on athleticism rather than other aspects of life that contribute to the cultural stereotype of a woman, in turn reinforcing the current societal hierarchy gender; where men are superior to women (Roth, Basow, 2004). Lack of a future movement for complete liberation of women will in turn cause societal values to be shaped by changes in the current male dominated discourse, making no improvement to the current values associated with women (Roth, Basow, 2004).

The focus in changing today’s societal values and norms associated with female athletes, the media industry must be targeted as it is undeniable that exposure to media has a considerable effect on the attitudes and beliefs of viewers. According to the gender Schema Theory, the perception of gender is formed in children by means of repeated social cues within their immediate environment (Angelini, 2008). If the representation of the female gender is changed to one more equal to that of male within media, (particularly television) children will internalize these depictions and form their beliefs accordingly (Angelini, 2008). A change in societal values and norms associated with female athletes is possible.

Analysis of Artefact Although active athletes that have accomplished many sporting achievements, females are still represented in a way that supports the outdated cultural norms and values of women; that is beautiful, sex object, weak and submissive. The video of Serena Williams from the WTA advertisement campaign accurately depicts this issue. It is a clear example that the media portrays athletic women in a way where beautification and fashion are always at the forefront of their minds. The component of athletic achievement in this advertisement is marginalized and merely alluded to by means of using new fashion pieces to represent a winning game. The flying glitter, sparkling sexy outfit and air brushed face definitely takes the attention off the perfectly administered backhand swing performed or the degree of effort that was put into it.

In completing this assignment, I learned the extent of which women have to go to in order to gain attention in the media. Although I had an idea of the issue, I was not aware of the gravity of the situation. This assignment also gave me insight into how women are represented in the media. Although it would have been subconsciously internalized, I did not consciously realize that the failures and emotional issues that a female athlete is facing are more readily publicized than their athletic achievements. This has taught me to be more skeptical and analytic towards what I am presented with by mass media.

__Generation Y- Are we clicking our lives away?__
I would like to start off by congratulating you on and an interesting piece of writing. The subject of 'clicking my life away' that is one that I can very much relate to, which brought me to critically analyse myself and the amount of time I spend (waste) in front of the computer screen and television. I found it really intriguing that there is now a mental health disorder associated with fearing lack of mobile phone contact- a condition that could have never been imagined thirty years ago. Furthermore, the statistics you presented on Facebook really shocked me. It is saddening to think that such a large proportion of people only interact by means of technology.

Again, good work on this piece of writing.

'__Ooh La La, Did you see that'- How equitable is the playing field when it comes to women's sport__
I personally found your wiki post very interesting. The artefact that you selected suited your writing exceptionally well. Having covered this topic myself, some of the information presented was familiar to me however I did not consider the fact that the industry of televised sports is becoming a globalised, profit seeking industry where games are being changed to maintain the attention of the audience. I also found it shocking to read that $719 billion worth of insurance claims are due to physical inactivity.

Thanks for a good read.

References Angelini, J. R. (2008). Television sports and athlete sex: Looking at the differences in watching male and female athletes. //Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media.// 52(//1//), p 16-32. doi: 10.1080/10934520701820752

Australian Sports Comission. (2010). Towards a level playing field: Sport and gender in Australian media. Retrieved from: []

Bauman, A. Bellew, B. Vita, P. Brown, W. Owen, N. (2002). Getting Australia Active. //National Public Health Partnerships//. Retrieved from: [|__http://www.nphp.gov.au/publications/sigpah/gaa.pdf__]

Daniels, E.A. (2009). Sex objects, athletes, and sexy athletes: How media representations of women athletes can impact adolescent girls and college women. // Journal of Adolescent Research. // 24(//4),// 399-422. doi: 10.1177/0743558409336748

Fink, J. S. (1998). Female athletes and the media. //Journal of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance, 69//(6), p 37-45. Retrieved from: [|__http://web.ebscohost.com.ezp01.library.qut.edu.au/ehost/detail?sid=d2ff6a84-d99d-4a07-bcf4-e2408ea2d83c%40sessionmgr114&vid=1&hid=107&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=afh&AN=976551__]

George, C. Hartley, A. Paris J. (2001). The representation of female athletes in textual and visual media. //Corporate Communications: An International Journal//. 6(//2//), p 94-101. Retrieved from: []

Kane, M.J. & Greendorfer, S. L. (1994). The media's role in accommodating and resisting stereotyped images of women in sport. In P.J. Creedon (Ed.), Women, media, and sport: Challenging gender values. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Lopiano, D.A. (1996). Women athletes deserve respect from the media. [Editorial]. Retrieved from: http://web.ebscohost.com.ezp01.library.qut.edu.au/ehost/detail?sid=9fc6bf3d-e9f8-410f-be00- aa60412d6992%40sessionmgr13&vid=1&hid=14&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=afh&AN=9603087758

Lopiano, D.A. (2000). Modern history of women in sports: Twenty-five years of title IX. //Clinics in Sport Medicine//. 19(2), p 163-173. Retrieved from: []

Roth, A. Basow, S.A. (2004). Femininity, sports, and feminism: Developing a theory of physical liberation. //Journal of Sport and Social Issues.// 28(//3)//, p 254-265. Doi: 10.1177/0193723504266990