The Status of Women in Sport-Talk Radio: A Survey of Directors

Abstract

Sport-talk radio has been recognized, along with other forms of sports media, as a masculine space where women’s value as athletes and fans is diminished. Little is known, however, about the gendered dynamics of sport-talk-radio production. This study used a survey of programming directors from across the United States to explore issues around the employment of women and coverage of women’s sport by local stations. Results suggest that many stations do not employ any women, although more than half do. Still, leadership positions belong primarily to men. Programming directors see little value in women’s sport for their listeners and make decisions that reinforce their vision of an audience that also sees little value in women’s sport. Using a feminist lens, the authors speculate on the impact that women in positions of power could have on programming if their representation moved beyond token status, while acknowledging the realities of the sport-media workplace.

“From Fizzle to Sizzle!” Televised Sports News and the Production of Gender-Bland Sexism

“…A common perception in the sports industry is that audiences, viewers, and fans are inherently not interested in women’s sports (Hardin et al 2013), and gender-bland sexism reflects and reinforces this postfeminist sensibility. Gender-bland sexism explains the lack of coverage of women’s sports and the poor quality of coverage not as sexism on the part of (mostly male) sports commentators but in terms of the market-based logics of supply and demand (Bonilla-Silva 2006, 2012; Gill 2016).…”

The Footy Girls of Tumblr: How Women Found Their Niche in the Online Football Fandom

“…Even though engaging with sports is a favoured pastime for both men and women, prior studies have shown that women feel marginalised as sports fans (e.g., Gosling, 2007; Pope, 2017; Toffoletti & Mewett, 2012b). Women generally feel unwelcome in both online and offline sports discussions (e.g., Hardin, Antunovic, Bien-Aimé, & Li, 2013), and indeed, women have often been unwanted at sports events since the beginning of modern spectator sports. Schultz and Linden (2014) demonstrate that women were only welcome as spectators to American sports under strict conditions—either as moral agents to calm down the unruly men or as consumers filling up the stands (Fink, Trail, & Anderson, 2002).…”

Men or Women, Only Five Olympic Sports Matter

“…Further, the lack of women as NBC speakers (anchors, play-by-play announcers, color commentators or analysts, and reporters) indicates the sexism of the sports media industry (Arnold, Chen, & Hey, 2015; Hardin, Antunovic, Bien-Aimé, & Li, 2013). This is not a surprising finding considering the list of NBC Olympic commentators released by the network about a month before the games: Of the 128 play-by-play commentators, analysts, and reporters, only 28 were women (Zaccardi, 2016).…”