Media Representations as a Form of Stacking: Male and Female Athletes Featured on Men’s Magazine Covers, 1980–2019

Abstract

This study analyzed 264 athlete images featured on the covers of nine men’s magazines across a 40-year period, 1980–2019. Among males, who accounted for 227 (81%) of the 264 athletes, African Americans and Latinos each represented 6 sports, most of which involved team competition, while White males represented 21 sports, many of which were individual. Analyses of position stacking in football showed White players in positions considered “central” to contest outcomes and Black athletes assigned to more “peripheral” roles. Among females, nearly all of whom were White, more than one in three participated in professional wrestling or sports entertainment. Other female athletes represented individual sports such as tennis and swimming. Overall, the study concludes that men’s magazines reproduced stacking patterns observed in earlier research.

Racing for Representation: A Visual Content Analysis of North American Running Magazine Covers

“…In contrast, the wide ranging and complex representations granted to non-racialized individuals allows them to see themselves as unique, important, and integral to an orderly society, reinforcing a positive sense of self (Mastro et al, 2011). For racialized individuals, however, their limited representation inhibits them from developing complex and positive understandings of their cultural and racial groups, which in turn can inhibit the development of multifaceted identities (Colburn & Melander, 2018; Denham, 2020; Mastro et al, 2011).…”

“…These factors are at play in sports media. Recent studies have revealed that racialized individuals are rarely represented on the covers of sports magazines (Denham, 2020; Eagleman, 2011; Lawrence, 2016; Primm et al, 2007). Lawrence (2016) found that South Asian and Black men were the least represented in the UK edition of Men’s Health magazine from January/February 2010 to January/February 2011.…”

“…Lawrence (2016) found that South Asian and Black men were the least represented in the UK edition of Men’s Health magazine from January/February 2010 to January/February 2011. While Black athletes were more present in the magazine than South Asian men, their inclusion was deemed peripheral to the central representation of white athletes (Denham, 2020; Lawrence, 2016). Lawrence describes the pages of the magazine as being an ode to “ideally beautiful white women” and “chiselled white male bodies” (Lawrence, 2016, p. 782).…”

“…This is especially clear as there is virtually no correlation between athletic accomplishment or participation and the likelihood of being a cover athlete of Sports Illustrated (Primm et al, 2007). Even in sports where racialized individuals are the majority, they are disproportionately under-represented in the media (Denham, 2020; Zenquis & Mwaniki, 2019). This is especially pronounced for racialized female athletes, who bear the double burden of sexism and racism within sport.…”

“…To date, scholars have analyzed the representation of racialized and female athletes in sports magazines within the Western context (Denham, 2020; Frisby, 2017; Lawrence, 2016; Smallwood, Brown, & Billings., 2014; Weber & Carini, 2013); however, there is limited research specifically examining the representation in speciality running magazines. Past research in sports media has shown the differential treatment of sports athletes on the basis of gender (Buysse & Embser-Herbert, 2004).…”