Tucker Center Newsletter - 2009 Fall
- Letter from the Director
- Feature Article: Social Media: What it is and Why it Matters to Women’s Sports
- Research Updates
- Special Guest Bloggers: Marie Hardin and Dave Zirin
- Did You Know? A Women Talk Sports Network Exists!
- Staff Updates: Austin Stair Calhoun
- Kudos & Announcements
- Fall 2009 Distinguished Lecture: “Facing Off Over Facebook: The Impact of Social Media on Women’s Sports”
Letter from the Director
Happy Fall 2009! As the new school year gets underway, we've got a number of exciting initiatives and new endeavors we'd like to share with you. Over the summer, we were busy using social media to expand the Tucker Center's digital presence. For example, we created a multimedia archive, Twitter account, and Facebook page. Developing and implementing these innovative technological forums have energized the Tucker Center staff and allowed us to share the important work we do with new audiences around the globe.
The topic of social media takes center stage in mid-October when we devote our Fall Distinguished Lecture to the opportunities and pitfalls of this Brave New Media World, particularly as it impacts women’s sports. A panel of experts will explore the intersections of gender, sport, and social media from a number of different perspectives. Professor Marie Hardin, sport media scholar from Penn State University, Rachel Blount, sports journalist from the Star Tribune, and Angela Ruggiero, University of Minnesota hockey player and four-time Olympian, will analyze how social media platforms such as Twitter and MySpace can both challenge and reproduce how female athletes are portrayed in more traditional sport media venues. Come join us in what I’m sure will be a most thought-provoking event.
Beyond the Distinguished Lecture, I’m excited to point out that a number of Tucker Center graduate students are using their critical thinking skills—not to mention their tech-savvy insights—to conduct their own research on new media and its potential influence on women’s sports. The findings from their investigations are highlighted in Research Updates. I’m also excited about the new projects underway at the Tucker Center as well as the many accomplishments of our students, staff, and research affiliates. One I’m particularly proud to announce is the creation of We Coach: Educating and Empowering Through Sport, an educational initiative dedicated to increasing the number of female coaches in youth and interscholastic sports. The reason this initiative is so important is that despite the passage of Title IX in the early 1970s, there has been a dramatic decline nationally in the number of intercollegiate female head coaches in women’s sports, from 90% in 1972 to 43% currently. This trend is also evident across Minnesota. While historic data from our state are unavailable, according to the Minnesota State High School Coaches Association, today’s percentage of female interscholastic head coaches is only about 20%. To learn more about this timely, cutting-edge program see WeCoach.
Finally, to get up to date on all the latest Tucker Center news be sure to read Kudos & Announcements and visit our homepage at www.tuckercenter.org. In the true spirit of social media—and creating more dialogue about the world of women’s sports—we invite you to offer your own perspectives by visiting the new Tucker Center Blog.
—Mary Jo Kane, Director