Wensing, E. H. and T. Bruce (2003). "Bending the rules: media representations of gender during an international sporting event (Torciendo las reglas: representaciones mediaticas de genero durante un evento deprotivo internacional.)." International review for the sociology of sport (London) 38(4): 387-396.
Extensive qualitative research shows that, even at its best, media coverage of women athletes tends to be ambivalent, meaning that it juxtaposes positive descriptions and images with descriptions and images that undermine and trivialize women's efforts and successes. However, researchers have rarely explored the implications of nationalism - in particular during global sports events - for coverage of women's sport. This analysis of media coverage of Cathy Freeman during the Sydney 2000 Olympics points to an instance in which gender lost its place as the primary media framing device because of Freeman's importance as a symbol of national reconciliation.
Vincent, J., C. Imwold, et al. (2003). "Newspaper coverage of female athletes competing in selected sports in the 1996 Centennial Olympic Games: the more things change the more they stay the same." Women in sport and physical activity journal (Las Vegas, Nev.) 12(1): 1-21.
This study was a comparison of how selected newspapers from Canada, Great Britain, and the United States reported on female athletes competing in four "gender-appropriate" sports with female athletes competing in four "gender-inappropriate" sports at the Centennial Olympic Games. The liberal feminist theoretical framework underpinning this study views equality of opportunity and individual liberty as an inevitable by-product of political, legal, and educational reform juxtaposed with a gradual social acceptance. Content Analysis was used to examine all the articles and photographs from the front pages and the sports sections of the newspapers. Based upon the data, female athletes competing in the "gender-appropriate" sports of swimming, gymnastics, tennis, and diving received more newspaper coverage than female athletes competing in the "gender-inappropriate" sports of soccer, softball, field hockey, and volleyball in terms of the average number of words per article and the average number of paragraphs per article. In addition, the "gender-appropriate" athletes were over-represented in the average number of photographs, the average number of photographs on the first page, and the average number of photographs on the top of the pages. Qualitative analyses of articles and photographs revealed a subtle but discernable amount of culturally stereotyped coverage.
Reilly, R. (2003). "Under covered: 'if Tiger had a year like Annika,' says LPGA player Jill McGill, 'they'd reschedule sunsets for him.'" Sports Illustrated (Los Angeles) 98(3): 94.
Rick Reilly comments that females athletes continue to break records and achieve great success in sports, but the media gets distracted by some non sport issues.
Pedersen, P. M. and W. A. Whisenant (2003). "Examining stereotypical written and photographic reporting on the sports page: An analysis of newspaper coverage of interscholastic athletics." Women in sport and physical activity journal (Las Vegas, Nev.) 12(1): 67-86.
The purpose of this study was to assess the presence of gender-biased or stereotypical coverage in the written and photographic newspaper reporting of interscholastic sports. Over a one-year timeframe, a total of 602 newspaper issues were randomly selected from Florida's 43 daily newspapers. These daily issues contained 1792 articles and 827 photographs that fit the criteria for inclusion. The results of the study were consistent with previous research on the media's stereotypical coverage of athletics. Both female and male athletics were over-represented in both written and photographic coverage of traditionally accepted "sex appropriate" sports. Male athletics were under-represented in both written and photographic coverage of "sex inappropriate" sports. Female athletics, when analyzing their participation in "sex inappropriate" sports, were under-represented in the photographic coverage but not in the written coverage. Overall, there existed hegemonic masculinity within the sports pages of the Florida print media.
Messner, M. A., M. C. Duncan, et al. (2003). "Silence, sports bras, and wresting porn: women in televised sports news and highlights shows." Journal of sport and social issues (Thousand Oaks, Calif.) 27(1): 38-51.
This study of televised sports news on three network affiliates and ESPN's SportsCenter extends and expands on earlier studies in 1990 and 1994 to examine the quality and quantity of televised coverage of women's sports. The dominant finding over the decade spanned by the three studies is the lack of change. Women's sports are still "missing in action" on the nightly news, and are even less visible on SportsCenter. Textual analysis revealed some change over the decade, but mostly showed continued gender asymmetries in televised sports news and highlight shows: (a) the choice to devote a considerable proportion of the already-thin coverage of women's sports to humorous feature stories on nonserious women's sports, and (b) the (often humorous) sexual objectification of athlete women and nonathlete women. The authors conclude with a discussion of how and why television has continued to cautiously follow, rather than lead or promote, the growth in girls' and women's sports.
McCullick, B., D. Belcher, et al. (2003). "Butches, bullies and buffoons: images of physical education teachers in the movies." Sport, education and society (Abingdon, England) 8(1): 3-16.
The purpose of this study was to examine the cinematic images of physical educators during the past decade. This study is approached from two perspectives: (a) framing and (b) social cognition. Framing, an approach to media studies most often reserved for critical analysis of news, provides useful generalities for a formative study of movie images, which directs explicit attention toward the construction and use of media frames. Contemporary social cognition theory blends social learning theory with an understanding of the power of media images. Media observers (i.e. movie viewers) can acquire symbolic representations of behaviour through media images and these images are powerful and informative enough to inform subsequent behaviour. Using the Internet Movie Database (IMDB), each researcher compiled a list of movies. After an initial list from the IMDB was compiled, researchers added films that they knew, from personal knowledge, included physical education teachers. A final list of 18 movies was distributed to each of the four coders, with a stipulation that the coding take place during a specified time period of no more than three months. Each researcher observed the videotapes independently while noting the dialogue and camera shots of all scenes involving physical educators for emerging frames of reference regarding physical education teachers. Ethnographic content analysis, a media studies variation of the constant comparative method, aided in the identification of frames (categories and themes) that emerged from the data. The researchers independently made notes concerning the video observations and then later developed a system of classification by comparing notes and discovering regularities within the data. The constant comparative method was used to assist in the assessment and grouping of framing approaches. Agreement between researchers had to be 100 % for a frame to be included in research findings. It was agreed that frames had to be constructed by both verbal and visual indicators in the films, and it had to be strongly associated with at least three films. Although nuances in setting, plot and the personalities of characters might arguably make frames in each film studied unique; several frames emerged as characteristic of depictions of physical educators: (a) there is no distinction between physical educators and coaches, (b) physical educators are incompetent teachers, (c) physical educators are drill sergeants and are the proverbial 'bully from hell' who enjoys seeing a student humiliated, and (d) characteristics of physical educators are gendered: women are often depicted as butch' or lesbian; men, as buffoons devoid of masculine' leadership qualities. An understanding of these frames is important because it provides clues about social cognition and behaviour in regard to issues of physical education from the classroom to the school board meeting from decisions made about participation in physical education class to decisions made about the priority of physical education in the school setting.
Higgs, C. T., K. H. Weiller, et al. (2003). "Gender bias in the 1996 Olympic Games: a comparative analysis." Journal of sport and social issues (Thousand Oaks, Calif.) 27(1): 52-64.
This study examined the televised coverage of the 1996 Summer Olympic Games in Atlanta to determine the amount of coverage time, quality of coverage devoted to men's and women's same sport activities, and to compare this coverage with that of the 1992 Summer Olympic Games. Of the more than 150 hours of NBC televised coverage, a total of 60 hours was then randomly selected as an appropriate sample. A content analysis was then performed on those segments that featured same-sport activities for men and women. This included quantitative (e.g., running time, length of segments, number of slow motion replays, and use of onscreen statistics) and qualitative (e.g., the narrative of the commentators) analyses. Although the findings suggest there have been notable improvements in the way female athletes were presented in the 1996 Olympic Games as compared to the 1992 Olympic Games, there are still many disparities in the coverage of women's sports, especially those that traditionally appeal to the media audience.
Cunningham, G. B. (2003). "Media coverage of women's sport: a new look at an old problem." Physical educator (Indianapolis, Ind.) 60(2): 43-49.
Past research of both private and public media has demonstrated that the coverage of women's sport is substantially less than that of men's. However, no research of media directly associated with intercollegiate athletics has examined the coverage of sports not considered to be "main" sports or to possess high brand equity. To fill this void, the present study examined the Internet coverage of university sponsored men's and women's tennis sites. The availability of information as well as the length of press releases were analyzed. Results indicate no differences in the presence of information between men's and women's sites. However, the coverage of women's tennis was significantly longer than that of men's, signaling a stark change from previous findings. Implications and directions for future research are offered.
Bishop, R. (2003). "Missing in action: feature coverage of women's sports in Sports Illustrated." Journal of sport and social issues (Thousand Oaks, Calif.) 27(2): 184-194.
This analysis follows up work in the late 1970s analyzing Sports Illustrated's coverage of women's sports in Olympic years 1956, 1960, 1964, 1968, 1972, and 1976. This article analyzes feature articles in the first issue of each month of Sports Illustrated beginning in 1980, with 72 issues reviewed for total number of articles per issue, sex of athlete featured in each article, number of pages per article, and type of sport covered in each article. An exploration of photographs accompanying the articles is included. In all, 569 articles were reviewed. Although there was an increase in feature coverage of women's sports in the early 1990s, the change in coverage for the entire period compared with the period analyzed previously was not significant in percentage of articles about women and percentage of pages denoted to coverage of women's sports. The percentage of photos featuring women dropped dramatically from 1994 to 1996.
Berry, T. and L. Lauzon (2003). "A content analysis of fitness magazines." Avante (Gloucester, Ont.) 9(2): 8-16.
This study looked at how exercise is promoted within fitness magazines. The text and graphics of magazines were rated for emotionality of the language, themes of exercise promotion, and images of exercisers portrayed. The results showed that a majority of articles focused on appearance as the reason to exercise and a minority promoted exercise for health. Further, it was found that although women's fitness magazines incorporated the needs of beginners, men's magazines most often showed advanced activities with no accommodation for novice exercisers. This study also supports findings of media extremes of male muscularity and female thinness. This content analysis provides an empirical starting point for future research into the role that fitness magazines may have in influencing exercise behaviour.
Wearden, S. T. and P. J. Creedon (2002). "'We got next': images of women in television commercials during the inaugural WNBA season." Culture, sport, society (London) 5(3): 189-210.
The Women's National Basketball Association began its first season in 1997. If television coverage could approach the sport in a non-stereotypical way, it held the potential for dramatically shifting the landscape of gender-role socialization. As a package, television programming should not be separated from the commercial messages interspersed within it, which also speak powerfully to the audience. Consequently, this study examines commercials aired during WNBA games in terms of gender roles and sexism. The results suggest that, to some degree, commercials aired during WNBA games exhibit fewer sexist images than found in earlier studies. In fact, there was a greater number of non-stereotypical than stereotypical images shown during these commercials. However, these results are skewed by the fact that the least sexist commercials aired the greatest number of images. When image is the unit of analysis, the majority of images are non-stereotypical, but when the commercial is the unit of analysis, there is a greater number of commercials with predominantly sexist images.
Sweet, D. (2002). "SI Women's demise thins out category: magazine, first tested in '97, follows Women's Sports & Fitness in closing." Street and Smith's sportsbusiness journal (Charlotte, N.C.) 5(26): 8.
Announces the end, after a three year run, of Sports Illustrated Women.
Sweet, D. (2002). "Fabulous Sports Babe still one and only female sports radio host." Street and Smith's sportsbusiness journal (Charlotte, N.C.) 5(29): 21.
Profiles Nancy Donnellan, also known as the Fabulous Sports Babe and the first women to host a national sports-talk radio show.
Staurowsky, E. J. and J. DiManno (2002). "Young women talking sports and careers: a glimpse at the next generation of women in sport media." Women in sport and physical activity journal (Las Vegas, Nev.) 11(1): 127-161.
As the American public is confronted with a more established female sport presence at all levels, the potential for girls to consider a career in sport media has expanded exponentially. Girls growing up in the age of `GRRL Power' envision themselves as professional basketball players, world champion soccer stars, women who run like the wind, and as sports broadcasters. However, the dawn of a new age has also brought with it increasing complexity with regard to the issues aspiring young women seeking careers in sport media encounter. The overall purpose of this study was to extend the frame of our understanding about gender, sport, and the media by documenting the experiences, concerns, and attitudes of undergraduate females who hope to pursue careers as sports journalists, sports broadcasters, and sport media professionals. Based on interviews with ten undergraduate women, the next generation of women in sport media are more than prepared to take on with confidence, assertiveness, and a great deal of solid professional training the challenges that await them. However, even as undergraduates, these women have had to deal with, and make sense, of sexual objectification and sexism in the workplace. The article concludes with recommendations for how to support young women in their quest to pursue careers in sport media.
Robinson, L. (2002). Whose body is this: women athletes in the media. Black tights: women, sport and sexuality. 1st ed, Toronto, HarperCollins, c2002, p.79 96;237, Total No. of Pages: 19. L. Robinson.
This chapter explores the relationship between female athletes and mass media: how they are portrayed, media coverage of female sports events, and how sexism, sex roles and fantasy affects media coverage of the athletic female body.
Pedersen, P. M. and W. A. Whisenant (2002). "Amount of photographic coverage for boys and girls on the sports page of newspapers as related to circulation size." Perceptual and motor skills (Missoula, Mont.)(3 Part 2): 1278-1280.
The present study analyzed the amount of photographic coverage devoted to high school athletics over 1 year. Previous research pertaining to sex differences in newspaper coverage of sports has focused on the amount of written coverage given. Present findings indicated that, as with written coverage given female athletes, photographic coverage differed significantly by newspaper circulation. Specifically, the larger the newspaper circulation, the more inequitable the photographic coverage of high school athletics was for girls.
Hawes, K. (2002). "Get the ball rolling. Education, persistence and creativity key to better coverage of women's sports." NCAA news (Indianapolis, Ind.) 39(10): A1-A4.
Research has consistently indicated that media coverage of women's sports remains low, and that men receive more than 90% of the sports coverage. What's an athletic administrator supposed to do to help increase coverage of women's sports? Start by persuading media outlets that coverage of women's sports is in their own self-interest and a good business decision.
Harris, J. and B. Clayton (2002). "Feminist, masculinity, physicality and the English tabloid press: the case of Anna Kournikova (Weiblichkeit, Maennlichkeit, Koerperlichkeit und die englische Boulevardpresse: der Fall Anna Kournikova.) (Femineidad, masculinidad, fisicalidad y la prensa amarilla inglesa: el caso de Anna Kournikova.) (Feminite, masculinite, physicalite et la presse tabloide britannique: le cas de Anna Kournikova.)." International review for the sociology of sport (London) 37(3/4): 397-413.
This article is an examination of how femininity, masculinity and physicality are created and (re)presented within the English tabloid press. In identifying mechanisms for the construction and maintenance of (hegemonic) femininity and masculinity within sport, a gendered sports formula has been developed to analyse and explain sports coverage within this particular medium. Copies of the Sun and Mirror newspapers were collected and analysed over the course of the summer of 2000. The study highlights that idealized conceptualizations of femininity and masculinity are prevalent within the dominant narratives of both publications, not least through the disproportionate ratio of male/female sports coverage where only 5.9 percent of the sports reporting focused upon women's sport. Our analysis of this mechanism is explicated through focusing upon one of the most photographed athletes in the world today, the Russian tennis player Anna Kournikova. Kournikova, we posit, is the most powerful symbol of the masculinity/femininity nexus within media sport and accounted for one-third of all articles on women's sport. She is presented as the masculinists' transcendent image of the idiosyncratic sportswoman, whereby masculinity is maintained through ideological representations of femininity. While the analysis does not focus exclusively on Kournikova, it is argued that she, more than any other athlete, epitomizes the gendered sports formula within the tabloid press.
Goodman, R., L. Duke, et al. (2002). "Olympic athletes and heroes in advertising: gendered concepts of valor?" Journalism and mass communication quarterly (Columbia, S.C.) 79(2): 374-393.
Analysis of television advertisements aired during the National Broadcasting Corporation's (NBC) telecast of the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney. Using traditional archetypes of heroes (the innocent, orphan, martyr, wanderer, magician, warrior), the authors analyzed commercials to see how both male and female Olympic athletes were depicted as heroes.
Constanzo, M. (2002). "'One can't shake off the women': images of sport and gender in Punch, 1901-10." International journal of the history of sport (London) 19(1): 31-56.
Examining the manner in which the popular press portrayed middle-class Edwardian women's activity in sport provides insight into the social liberation of English women. The popular middle-class British journal Punch included thousands of images of sportswomen. Despite the misogynistic satirizing of inept women, Punch's cartoons and articles depict distinct changes in women's behaviour and social expectations that are linked to their increasing involvement in sport. By engaging in sport, women unconsciously challenged and permanently altered the pervasive middle-class Victorian ideology. The contents of Punch suggests that middle-class women's participation in sport, though perhaps begun in a conservative manner, completely altered and expanded their social role and changed the traditional image of womanhood.
Christopherson, N., M. Janning, et al. (2002). "Two kicks forward, one kick back. A content analysis of media discourses on the 1999 women's World Cup soccer championships (Deux coups de pied en avant, un coup de pied en arriere: analyse de contenu du discours des medias sur la coupe du monde de football feminin en 1999.)." Sociology of sport journal (Champaign, Ill.) 19(2): 170-188.
The 1999 Women's World Cup Soccer Championship serves as a particularly good site for examining both the social construction of gender and the structure of contradiction-surrounding women's role in sport and society. We conducted a content analysis of 576 American newspaper articles reporting on the 1999 Women's World Cup Soccer Championship. Contradictory messages surrounding women and sports were present, as past research has suggested. An analysis of more qualitative aspects of our data reveals the structure of these contradictions and provides substantial depth to this analysis. We discuss how the media actively promoted or constructed certain gender ideologies and how these gender ideologies contributed to the popularity of the event.
Bradshaw, A. (2002). Tough girls; women warriors and wonder women in popular culture. (Review).
Bernstein, A. (2002). "Is it time for a victory lap? Changes in the media coverage of women in sport (1st es Zeit fuer eine Siegesrunde? Veraenderungen in der Berichterstattung ueber Frauen im Sport.) (Es hora de una vuelta de la victoria? Cambios en la cobertura mediatica de la mujer en el deporte.) (Est-ce le temps de crier victoire? Changements dans la couverture mediatique des femmes en sport.)." International review for the sociology of sport (London) 37(3/4): 415-428.
From a feminist perspective sport has been viewed for a long time as a sexist institution, male-dominated and masculine in orientation. And yet, in recent years, women have truly advanced in organized, competitive sport. In this context this article looks at the role of the media in relation to women and sport, reflecting on the literature which has accumulated over the past two decades in this field and considering the notion that more recently a shift in the coverage of women's sports and female athletes has occurred. Through examining changes that did take place, this article shows that although women have gained some ground as far as media visibility is concerned, especially in major sporting events, it is far too early for a 'victory lap'. By looking at findings of studies from the late 1990s and examining the media coverage of Marion Jones and Anna Kournikova this article shows that the type of coverage female athletes get has still a long way to go.
(2002). "Women's sport newspaper survey." British journal of teaching physical education (Berkshire, England) 33(1): 14.
Outlines sample unit which can be used with a variety of age groups which examines how newspapers cover women's sports.
(2002). "ESPN celebrates 30 years of Title IX." AVCA online newsletter (Colorado Springs, Colo.) 19 July 2002.
The thirtieth anniversary of Title IX is on June 23, 2002, and ESPN is presenting a "Women and Sports" weekend.
(2002). "Who is. Lisa Guerro." Sports illustrated (Los Angeles) 96(11): 27.
Lisa Guerro is an anchor on Fox Sports Net's The Best Damn Sports Show Period.
Pedersen, P. M. (2001). "Investigating the existence of equitable reporting or hegemonic masculinity: a content analysis of the print media coverage of interscholastic athletics." FAHPERD journal of health, physical education, recreation, dance and driver education (Tequesta, Fla.) 39(3): 32-34.
Lines, G. (2001). "Villains, fools or heroes? Sports stars as role models for young people." Leisure studies (London) 20(4): 285-303.
This article discusses ways in which sport stars are constructed as role models for young people. It cites instancing examples from the sports calendar of the 'Summer of sport' 1996, in its discussion of the media construction of sports stars as villains, fools or heroes. It identifies the gender differentiated readings of sports stars as heroes and heroines and concludes that the ways in which media critics accord hero and role model status does not necessarily reflect the opinions of young people.
Lansbury, J. H. (2001). ""The Tuskegee Flash" and "The Slender Harlem Stroker": Black women athletes on the margin." Journal of sport history (University Park, Pa.) 22(8): 233-252.
This study suggests that press coverage in the 1940s and 1950s contributed to the loss of at least two Black women from the public memory - 1940s track star Alice Coachman and 1950s tennis star Althea Gibson. Sports stories about these two women were more about gender and race rather than their athletic accomplishments.
Jenkins George, J. (2001). "Lack of news coverage for women's athletics: a questionable practice of newspaper priorities." Women's sports experience (East Meadow, N.Y.) 10(2): 6-7.
Statistics on women's sports coverage in newspapers are presented.
Hollinshead, R. (2001). "The effects of sports information on gender equity in the media." AVCA online newsletter (Colorado Springs, Colo.) 1(12), 25 July 2001.
Wuestenberg, P. and J. Todd (2000). The portrayal of female athletes in film.(Abstract). 2000 North American Society for Sport History: proceedings & newsletter, Iowa City, Iowa, North American Society for Sport History, c2000, p.66, Total No. of Pages: 1. C. M. Parratt.
Cummings, E. A. (1997). Positive images: media portrayals of African-American and female athletes, California State University.