Proving Your Worth: Women In Sports Journalism

Broadcast journalist, Elle Rudd, has been told that she “doesn’t have the balls to be a sports journalist” and is “too pretty” to be one. However this does not pull her back from tackling stories on and off the pitch.

A topic considered for men, sports are no longer a single gender interest with women increasing their positions in sports media.

“This field is no longer limited to men only. At major sporting event you will encounter female journalists who are just as good as any male journalists”, says Al Jazeera reporter, Tracy Francis.

But this job does not come easy. Women in these positions are constantly judged on their knowledge on sports and whether or not they are doing any of this work for themselves.

“They are these weird little subtle phrases that get you off-guard and work their way into your brain to add to your insecurities”, says Elle Rudd, a broadcast sports journalist for That’s Manchester.

“A list of my favourites are: being asked, as a sports journalist, whether I know who Alan Shearer is; repeatedly asked whether I'm looking for a husband and/or looking forward to being a wag. On the same day I was told that I was showing too much leg and not enough leg.”

Taking a year out from her journalism degree at City University London to work in the field, Elle is making her way through the sports journalism world with her head held high, not scared of the criticisms that come her way.

Elle makes a point that women in sports journalism are not just there to report but have to look a certain way too; “The presenting jobs in the 'spotlight' are predominantly women, specifically very attractive blonde women. I am all for women looking and feeling beautiful but certain news organisations take incredibly knowledgeable and talented female journalists and dress them up. They are not viewed as people more as objects.”

“I have also heard stories of women sports presenters being forced to wear dresses with sleeves only because they are a size 14 and there arms are too fat for TV”, she continues in disbelief.

Controversy over the treatment of females in the field has been highlighted in recent months. In January, Australian sports journalist, Mel McLaughlin, then working for Network Ten, was the subject to sexist comments by West Indies cricketer, Chris Gayle, during a live interview.

Gayle told McLaughlin that he really wanted to do the interview “just to see her eyes for the first time”, as well as asking her out on a date and telling her “don’t blush baby”. As a result of these comments, the Melbourne Renegades sanctioned Gayle for AUD$10,000 for inappropriate conduct.

McLaughlin said that she was “embarrassed” but wanted to move on from the incident and do her job; “We want equality, we always want equality.”

American reporter, Erin Andrews, of Fox Sports and co-host of Dancing With The Stars, was subject to harassment after a stalker filmed her, whilst she was nude, in a hotel room during a work trip and posted it across the Internet. After a court case, Andrews was awarded $55 million on last Monday, 7th March, but says it does not make up for the embarrassment and trauma that she now faces.

“This happens every day of my life. Either I get a tweet or somebody makes a comment in the paper or somebody sends me a still video to my Twitter or someone screams it at me in the stands and I’m right back to this. I feel so embarrassed and I am so ashamed”, Andrews told the court tearfully.

These two instances are not the only discriminations that female sports journalists face, but are the stories that have gained international coverage recently. Elle calls these instances “textbook sexism” for the women and is what should be expected if they enter the field, but there are subtler digs that are encountered daily.

“One interesting thing I notice about being a female journalist is that men almost quiz you to determine you validity. When a man says 'I like football', men tend to reply with 'Ohhh who's your team?', which is followed by friendly banter. When a girl says it, they are grilled. 'OH YOU LIKE FOOTBALL!? WHO’S YOUR TEAM? OH REALLY? WHAT WAS THE 1983 GOALKEEPERS UNCLE CALLED?' Double standards everywhere.”

These double standards prove to be a source of laughter for Elle, but also a serious point of discussion. People have different expectations for women of sports journalism but much of the time those expectations contradict each other.

“Sports fans are a weird breed. They are almost scared that their archaic chauvinistic macho world will be ruined if women infiltrate it. But on another note, they insist that a girl that can talk sport is 'every man’s dream'.”

As a female sports producer, Tracy feels that there’s more to it than just have knowledge. “If you analyse, you will find women in sports journalism are given high positions. But as with everything there is what is called survival. Women have to prove their worth in order to be given consideration for a position.”

Tracy feels the pressure even in her higher position and that’s because she is a woman, though she believes it should be a gender issue. “Journalism is very competitive and sometimes us women journalists don’t always get what we deserve even if we have the required qualification.”

Though people believe that there are increases of women in journalism, in sports specifically, there is still a clash between whether or not a woman can take charge in a masculine topic. The truth is however is that regardless of the criticisms, women in sports journalism tackle their job as they should; professionally.