Academic Exchange Quarterly
Fall 2006 ISSN 1096-1453 Volume 10,
Issue 3
To cite, use print
source rather than this on-line version which may not reflect
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Media
Literacy: (Mis) Shaping Women’s Sports
Susan G.
Ziegler,
Ziegler, Ed.D.,
is Professor of Physical Education and Sport Psychology
Abstract
The messages the
media sends about women’s sport have had a powerful influence on how women
athletes and women’s sports are accepted in this culture. This article describes a media literacy
assignment developed to provide students with a dramatic example of the need
for media literacy and the dangers of accepting, as truth, many of the messages
and cultural production the media has developed about women’s sports.
Introduction
Women’s sport
has come a long way since the pre Title IX days (Education Amendment Act of
1972). Title IX requires no person can
be excluded from participation or denied benefits on the basis of sex from any
educational program receiving federal funds. When applied to sports
participation, Title IX standards can be met in three ways: proportionality
(ratio of women students to women athletes), a record continuous improvement in
women’s sports, or meeting the needs and interest of the women students. There have been many legal challenges to Title
IX, but all have resulted in support for Title IX.
Many argue that
Title IX has accomplished its goal and should be revised or eliminated. They argue that Title IX has resulted in the
elimination of men’s sports. What is not acknowledged is that men’s football
and basketball have maintained their budgets resulting in cuts to budgets of
other sports. It is difficult to argue that Title IX has met its goals given
that less than thirty percent of universities are in compliance with Title IX
and women athletes are awarded about thirty-six percent of the athletic
scholarships (Women’s Sport Foundation, 2005; Eitzen, 2006). Today, Title IX is still under attack (see
Women’s Sports Foundation, 2006; Carpenter & Acosta, 2005). What possible
role has media played in the evolution of support for women’s sports in the
Part of the
explanation for the limited progress of women’s sports has much to do with the media’s
presentation of the sports’ world. The
power of the media to create and define culture appears to be unlimited. Many advocates for women’s athletes feel that
the most important competition for women’s sports is with the media.
The media
literacy project that I used in my senior level course in sport sociology was
developed with two primary goals: (a) Provide
an accurate historical overview of the development of women’s sports and (b) Provide
students with the media literacy tools needed to uncover the power of the media
in controlling the images, stories, and ultimately the growth potential for
women’s sports. We discussed the lack of
success of women’s sports in gaining media recognition and economic stability. The male argument went like this: “Who wants to watch or even support women
athletes. They aren’t as skilled as men,
they are boring to watch, and after all, most of them are lesbians.” Many women thought the status quo was just
fine. Helping my students understand the
role of the media in the construction of their beliefs was an exciting journey.
Media’s Techniques: Portrayal of Women Athletes
I used an
analysis of the media’s coverage of women’s sports as a starting point towards
creating a better understanding of how the imaginary world created by the media
has had a definite and devastating impact on the real world struggle of women’s
sports to survive and on women athletes search for recognition. This social construction of women’s sports
has changed in the past six years. Much
of the coverage appears to trivialize, sexualize and marginalize women athletes
(Kane, 2000). Most research into media
coverage estimates that the amount of print space and television time focusing
on women athletes ranges from about five to eight percent (Alper, 2002). This percentage also includes the nonsensical
stories about nude bungee jumpers, bare-breasted baseball fans, and a host of
other sexualized or trivialized stories.
The techniques
used in creating beliefs and attitudes about women’s sport are powerful examples
of the need for media literacy. Unless
changed, the growth of women’s sports will continue to be minimal. We discussed techniques frequently used by the
media and I challenged them to find examples of media techniques used to
minimize the coverage of women’s sports or to trivialize, marginalize or
sexualize women athletes. Duncan and
Messner (1998) discussed numerous methods used by the media that distort the
view of women athletes. These included:
Historical Look at Media Coverage
Media coverage
of female athletes has evolved from virtually no coverage in the 1950s, to minimal coverage thru the mid 1990s’ with much
of the coverage skewed. That is, female
athletes were often portrayed in non sport settings or, when in sport settings,
were pictured making mistakes or displaying emotions. The current coverage of women athletes has
improved with more stories and photographs that depict the true athleticism of
women. However, there is an increasing
trend that emphasizes the non-athletic, the feminine, and most recently, the
sexual aspect of women athletes.
Decisions by elite
athletes such as Brandi Chastain, Anna Kournikova, Jenny Thompson, and others
have set a new standard for covering (or uncovering) female athletes. The trend of marketing women’s sports by
displays of sexuality versus athletic competence is dangerous. It would appear that many of the elite
athletes believe it is good publicity for themselves and for their sport if the
media portrays them as hyper-sexualized. For many, posing nude/semi-nude is
their only opportunity for making money.
The portrayal of
women athletes by the media reflects at least three themes (Shugart,
2003). In the first theme, “passive
objectification,” athletes are seen in non sport activities (hot, sexy,
soft-porn poses) or pictures focus on certain body parts (breast, bottom) which
are “disembodied from the action” (p. 11).
The second theme, “Athleticism as sexualized performance,” portrays women
as athletes, but the sub-text has sexual innuendos. For example, when Brandi Chastain whipped off
her shirt after the
The third theme “vigilant heterosexuality”
evolved to counter homophobic perceptions of women athletes. The stories/pictures
focus on the use of make-up, jewelry, hair styles, feminine/sexy dress,
etc. A major emphasis is on the women athletes’
relationships, including male boyfriends, fiancés, husbands and children. There
are subtle messages of women athletes as “passively susceptible and receptive
to …male influences in their lives” (p. 18).
Of course, the
ultimate control of women’s sports is receiving no media coverage, thus
representing the symbolic annihilation of women’s sports and reinforcing the
message that women’s sports are not important or interesting. The lack of
social validation and representation makes it difficult for women’s sports to
organize, be recognized, valued and supported (e.g. sponsorships).
Themes and Theories
Several theories
were used to guide students in their media literacy experience. Objectification
Theory addresses the shift from developing self-worth based on how we feel
about ourselves to developing self-worth based on how others evaluate our
appearances and behaviors based on gender ideals (Fredrickson & Roberts, 1997; Sanchez & Crocker, 2005). Cultivation Theory posits that repeated
exposure to media messages affects beliefs and attitudes (Gerbner, Gross,
Morgan, & Signorelli, 1994). This
one-two punch has had a negative impact on the development of women’s sports.
Magazines were
used for the analyses. The content and “advertising in women’s magazine’s play
an influential role in formulating, maintaining, and alternating how readers
understand the construction of socially acceptable gender norms” (Inness, 2004,
p. 125). Research confirms that magazine
messages focus on how to correct a woman’s imperfections and inadequacies. The authors concluded that pictures on magazine
covers send clear messages on how women should look and what men should look
for in a woman (Malkin, Wornian & Chrisler, 1999). It is against this background of self-
objectification that girls and adolescents learn about culture and the cultural
expectations for their behavior, attitudes, and beliefs. Not only are young girls learning to be
objects for male eyes, but young boys are learning through cultural
observations (magazines, video games, music, Internet, cartoons, books,
television) what their roles are in relation to girls/women and the
expectations they should have for female behavior.
Media Literacy Assignment
Armed with these
theories, media techniques, and their own skepticism about the role of the
media in the promotion of women’s sports, the students were ready to begin
their own research. Each student was responsible for selecting a total of three
magazines and analyzing two issues of each of magazine (general women’s
magazine, general men’s magazine, and sports and/or fitness magazine). Students selected magazines such as:
o Women’s magazine: Women’s Day, Cosmopolitan, Essence, Playgirl, etc.
o Men’s magazine: GQ,
Maxim, Black Men, Playboy, etc.
o Health, fitness, and/or sports magazine: Shape, Sports Illustrated, Fit, etc.
Three types of
analyses were completed: (1) Front covers,
(2) Advertisements, and (3) Stories/features within the magazine. Recording sheets were provided. Once the data were collected, students
identified major themes evolving from the stories, advertisements and photos
and identified media techniques used to influence readers’ thinking.
Let the Shouting Begin: Project Outcomes
I was surprised
to find that almost half of the class did not understand the power of the media
in creating the ‘reality’ of women and women’s sports. Some of the men had difficulty letting go of
their preconceived beliefs about women’s sports. Most were not consciously aware of magazines’
use of soft-porn in the pictures of women athletes. Some of the women argued that women should have
the right to choose how to portray their bodies, and that if given the
opportunity, they too would pose nude.
At this point I
divided the class into groups of three or four by gender. Groups discussed why women athletes would
pose nude in the media and what messages that would send. The results were fascinating. The women had a rather heated discussion
amongst themselves. Some women argued
that women athletes worked hard for their sports and that displaying their
bodies gave voice to their ‘power’ as women.
Speaking with their bodies was the modern day version of “I am woman,
hear me roar!” Other women felt that the male audience was not a consumer of
women’s sports but rather enjoyed ‘consuming’ the bodies of the sexy athletes. In fact, they suggested that the sexual
display by athletes reinforced Objectification Theory and did more to harm
women’s sport. These students countered
that the only media inspired theme song was “I am woman, I’m a whore!”
Some men thought
that the use of sexualized pictures drew the attention away from the sport. They could find no logical link between
posing in a sexual position and gaining respect for the athlete or her sport. They thought men got ‘turned on’ by viewing
the soft-porn portrayals of women athletes. Coverage that was humorous or sexual represented
sport as something not to be taken seriously or respected. Others felt that
women should do anything they can to sell their sport. The example used was that the popularity of
beach volleyball might be due to the regulation that requires women players to
wear bikini bathing suits which are no wider than two inches at the hips.
The ensuing
debates between the men and women were quite revealing. The women who supported
the sexualization of the female athlete by the media could not believe the men
were so literal in their interpretation of the media images. Whereas, the women were seeing ‘power,
strength and beauty,’ the men were seeing ‘hot, sexy, babe.’ The women who
supported the media’s interpretation and presentation of women’s athletes were
devastated to see that sexualization and respect did not co-exist.
It took a great
deal of effort and lively debate for the students to recognize and accept the
power of the media in influencing how they think and what they value. The purpose of the assignment was to
introduce them to the concept of media literacy and its importance in the
social construction of reality. It
resulted in the students learning the importance of questioning media messages
and being educated on the dangers of taking media at face value. They were able to identify numerous
techniques used by the media to influence reader’s opinions. Media literacy training is needed in all
fields to help educate students about the power of the media and its potential for
influencing beliefs, attitudes, values and behaviors.
Research
suggests that the more a woman is trivialized, marginalized and sexualized the
less likely she will be taken seriously and the less likely she is to succeed
in work or sports. The marginal
representation of women sports continues to play a major role in its lack of acceptance
and support. For example, women comprise
forty percent of all college athletes, but receive between five and eight
percent of television coverage (Alper, 2002). Much of the coverage still contains sexual
overtones and ridicule.
The students
concluded that only history will tell if the strategy to sexualize women
athletes will backfire for women’s sports and play into the hands of those who
wish to keep women athletes (and their sport) as second class citizens. Most students
recognized the power of the media and concluded that until media literacy
training exists to help counter media’s messages about women’s sport, its
evolution and importance in our culture will remain undeveloped and
underappreciated. They concluded that
many of the media messages perpetuate the sexualization, trivialization, and
marginalization of women athlete and the lack of coverage contributes to the
symbolic annihilation of women’s sports.
Of course, a few students complained that we were being too literal in
interpreting media messages and we should just admit that women’s sports aren’t
interesting or deserving of support.
Another major
stumbling point for the students in trying to reconcile the development of
women’s sports was the issue of money.
Given that there is a limited pool of resources to support sports, any
increase in women’s sport was perceived as a potential decrease in resources to
men’s sport. Some students concluded
that money and power drive decisions and media practices in sport (and in
society). Those who have the power strive
to maintain the status quo. If so, women
will continue to be sexualized and marginalized in the media, in sport, and in
most other sectors of society.
Conclusion
These learning
activities provided a powerful tool to help students understand the importance
of media literacy training. Throughout
the year, students continued to bring me examples of the media’s influence on women’s
sport and on the role and status of women.
One student’s comment summarized the power of media literacy
training: “Well, thanks a lot for
ruining sports coverage for me!” Media
literacy training has the potential for creating social change and should be
part of the curriculum across all subjects from K-16.
References
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(Executive Producer). (2002). Playing
Unfair: The Media Image of the Female
Athlete (video-recording).
Carpenter, L.,
& Acosta, R. (2005). Title IX.
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Eitzen, D. (2006). Fair and foul.
Fredrickson, B. L., & Roberts, T. A. (1997). Objectification theory:
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173-206.
Gerbner, G.,
Gross, L., Morgan, M., & Signorelli, N. (1994). Growing up with
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