Every year we hear about a distinct drop off in
viewership towards women's athletics and every year we seem to turn a cheek to
that issue. People talk about it all they want, but nothing seems to be
changing when it comes to the popularity of female sports. Believe me, it's not
because the U.S. doesn't enjoy watching sports on television...According to
Nielsen, "There is an enormous amount of sports content to choose from and
a shocking amount of hours viewed. In 2015, there were 127,000 hours of sports
programming available on broadcast and cable TV and 31+ hours spent viewing
sports, which is up 160% and 41% respectively from 2005. (Nielsen)" So,
why does a business such as the WNBA get so much less attention than the NBA?
Well, one of the issues I'll be discussing is the debate about lowering the
hoop that way the women can dunk more. My other two issues I'l be talking about
revolve around the "sex appeal" aspect of the women's game. Ronda
Rousey dominating her sport and being rewarded with a Sports Illustrated cover
and Raymond Moore's comments towards women tennis players at a recent press
conference. The world of sports certainly gives women athletes attention, but
is it the right kind of attention?
Male athletes dominate the conversation when it comes to the highest
paid players both domestically and nationally. As I'm sure it comes to no
surprise, not one female athlete is even in the top 100. Of those highest paid
athletes, 18 were from the NBA with James Harden rounding out the group at
number 100 (By the Numbers). Now, we're all aware of the high flying and
exciting game that the NBA plays. What most of society doesn't seem to realize
is that the WNBA is a highly more efficient game as far as statistics show.
There are far less turn overs, fouls, ejections and personal fouls, so it seems
like the women play a better brand of the game. We just don't see Skylar
Diggins and Maya Moore throwing down monster dunks on a daily basis like we do
from LeBron James and Russell Westbrook. Recently, head coach of the UCONN
women's basketball team Geno Auriemma and WNBA superstar Elena Delle Donne were
asked if lowering the hoop in the women's game is something they'd support.
Without even hesitating, they both said "absolutely." Quickly
following those comments, another WNBA star Diana Taurasi was asked the same
question and responded differently, "If that's what they want to do then
they might as well have us put on an apron and stick us back in the kitchen
(USA Today)." Geno and Elena backed up there stance by explaining
how lowering the hoop would allow these professional female athletes to show
how athletic they really are. It seems to me that there's not only outside
pressure, but an internal issue with this particular sport as to which
direction to move forward in.
A
more popular female athlete, Ronda Rousey, has actually been all over the news.
From her consistent coverage on ESPN to her recent Sports Illustrated cover
where she was wearing nothing but body paint, Ronda has become a woman many
young girls can look up to. Not only has she dominated the gruesome sport of
the UFC, but she’s using her looks to market herself as well. However, many
people seem to believe that the whole “sex appeal” market is the driving force
as to why professional female athletes aren’t as respected as they should be. “According to Janet Fink, an associate professor in the
department of sports management at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.
"Another thing we are finding, and this makes sense, is that each time a
female athlete is pictured in a sexualized way, it diminishes the perception of
her athletic ability," said Fink, who specializes in sports consumer
behavior, as well as media and marketing depictions of female athletes.
(ESPNW).” Is it wrong for Ronda Rousey to take her looks as well as her talent
and put them in the public eye? I guess we’ll always be the judges when it
comes to what’s right and wrong for sports stars/celebrities, but that’s an
entirely different issue.
My
final point of emphasis on the issues surrounding women’s sports and athletes
is the press conference of Indian Wells CEO Raymond Moore. Below you’ll see the
link to the press conference and what he said was pretty shocking to say the
least.
I
don’t know if saying “to his credit” applies here, but Moore did issue a public
apology the following morning. You know who wasn’t buying it? The sport’s
arguably biggest star, Serena Williams and she made her point very clear during
her interview that same day. She stated that Mr. Moore knew exactly what he was
saying and that the women in the sport of tennis would not accept an apology
from him.
It’s
hard not to completely agree with Williams based on what was actually said by
the aforementioned CEO.
In
the end, it’s difficult to completely understand why the majority of society
doesn’t pay attention to women’s sports. However, what we do know is that it’s
easy for people to scrutinize and judge every aspect of their game. Sports act
as somewhat of a religion in the United States and to have such a drop off of
interest based on gender is quite concerning. Will these women ever get the
respect they deserve? Who knows, but in the meantime we can at least respect
them and hope that the internal conflicts within the female athletic world get
settled.
Http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHcMBLFJ7zzY_hrMio8sWzQ. "Raymond Moore,Indian Wells CEO
Shocking Comments." YouTube. YouTube, 20 Mar. 2016. Web. 09 Apr. 2016.
Bodenhauser, Kurt. "The World's
Highest Paid Athletes 2015: Behind the Numbers." Forbes. Forbes
Magazine, 10 June 2015. Web. 09 Apr. 2016.
Fagan, Kate. "Sex Sells? Trend May
Be Changing." ESPN. ESPN Internet Ventures, 14 Oct. 2014. Web. 10
Apr. 2016.
Fagan, Kate. "Elena Delle Donne
Says Diana Taurasi Is Hurting the Sport with Quips about Skirts, Kitchen."
For The Win. N.p., 30 Mar. 2016. Web. 10 Apr. 2016.
I am not a huge sports fan, but I have to say I will always watch the Yankees as well as Patriots because those are the teams I have grown up with my family liking. Because of that, I would have to say I would also not be one to watch women’s sports. Growing up, I did dance and completive cheerleading unlike many other girls who enjoyed doing soccer and basketball. It is actually very surprising to me that there is such a decline in viewership of female sports. Ronda Rousey as well as the UCONN girls basketball team makes me question this statement.
ReplyDeleteI believe that there are many women athletes who inspire young girls, however I do not think women are as equal to men within the sports world. Just as Brian points out, there is no one woman in the list for most paid athletes within the top 100. (Badenhausen). I am not bashing on any of the great male athletes out there, but I think there are absolutely a few women athletes out there who definitely deserve to be on the list. Furthermore, there are not any women’s teams on the most popular on social media list as well. (Badenhausen). It is a shame that such great teams and women athletes are not as popular and getting as much fame, as they should be. There was also an article for this week, which talks about the most valuable sports teams, which also does not include any women’s teams. We all know that there are lists of teams that are absolutely favored but when looking at the list it is sad to think not one is a women’s team. (Badenhausen). I hope that in the future we see more women’s teams on these lists! On one hand, it is not that I think they are not valued, but just some of these men’s teams are so popular within our country. I would also have to agree with Brian on the fact that there are so many outside pressures as well as internal struggles in women’s sports. As much as I believe men and women should be equal in the sport’s world, there are going to have to be different standards physically, like the height of the basketball hoop example Brian gave us.
Recently, I have heard a lot about Ronda Rousey and what a role model she is for young women. As a female in the UFC, she is a very tough individual who has overcome and fought through many obstacles. As a woman, she is dominating the world of this sport right now, even though it is such a physical sport. When it comes to female athletes, I think there will always be talk about looks and marketing themselves in a way that shows off their bodies. One, I think this could be a bad thing for young girls and the image they think they should look like. However, I believe that Rousey is a role model for girls, whose image will inspire girls to be healthy as well as active. Women, especially athletes are always going to be criticized for their looks and their “sex appeal” but I think it is important to shift that negativity into a positive light. After all, if anything young girls should be looking up to these women instead of Kim Kardashian and models for how they should look.
After doing this reading and then writing my response, I am too wondering why people don’t pay attention to women’s sports more. I think even though I am not a big viewer of sports, I want to now start watching them more often. I think it is important for women to support the great women athletes out there who inspire us as well as are our role models in our society. I hope that if more women started supporting and respecting other women, we can one day grow to be equal as men in the athletic world.
Works Cited:
Badenhausen, Kurt. Barcelona and Real Madrid Head The Most Popular Sports Teams On Social Media. N.p.: Forbes, n.d. Print.
Badenhausen, Kurt. The World's Most Valuable Sports Teams. N.p.: Forbes, n.d. Print.
I will admit I’m not someone who watches a lot of sports or considers myself a sports enthusiast by any means. However, I’ve grown up around people who love sports and compete in them. I was a competitive swimmer myself from the age of 6, so most of my childhood into teenage years was spent devoted to the sport. When I was a teenager I distinctly remember wondering why the female professionals were portrayed in a “sexy” manner. Long before Ronda Rousey graced the cover of Sports Illustrated Olympians Amanda Beard and Natalie Coughlin were featured in the magazine. This sent a confusing message to young girls like myself who looked up to them for their swimming abilities and achievements. All the sudden people are paying attention to swimming, but not because they like the sport.
ReplyDeleteSimilarly many young girls look up to Ronda Rousey, but do they know why in our increasingly sexualized media? According to the 2015 Nielsen Year in Sports Media Report, “Ronda Rousey’s highly anticipated fights, massive endorsement deals, and cameo in the Entourage movie, motivated female viewers to tune in to UFC events” (Nielsen). The spotlight on Rousey certainly encouraged female viewers to engage, but was this also in part due to how she is portrayed?
In his blog Brian asks if it’s wrong for Ronda Rousey to put her looks and talent in the public eye. My response would be that ultimately it’s up to personal discretion. Of course an athlete can be both beautiful and talented, but my problem comes from the attention that isn’t concerned with both. When a public figure goes on the cover of Sports Illustrated for example, there is always the threat of misguided attention. However, I think this plays into a bigger trend of “attractive” female athletes.
I remember watching a lot of tennis growing up where attention was placed on how pretty Anna Kournikova and Maria Sharapova were. But is tennis, or any sports for that matter, about how “pretty” the players are? Nielsen reports that Serena Williams, “three 2015 tournament victories all saw increased
viewership compared to the year prior, and her U.S. Open Quarter finals matchup against sister Venus … was the most viewed tennis match* of 2015” (Nielsen). Clearly, the Williams sisters have lasting power, but they’ve also been known to shed their clothes in photos. Just now I googled “Serena Williams” and the first result was, “Serena Williams is ready for summer while trying to perfect her selfie face in a bikini.” You can view the E! article here. While Nielsen reports her success on the court, the media is far more concerned with what she’s doing off the court.
I think this just goes to show that whether a professional athlete, musician or film/TV star these figures have lives outside their careers. Unfortunately, they seem to be signing on for 24/7 attention, from the cover of Sports Illustrated to the comfort of their bathroom mirrors. Where media is concerned the “news” will always be concerned with sex appeal.
Works Cited:
"2015 Year in Sports Media Report." Nielsen.com. Accessed 28 March 2016. Web.
Vulpo, Mike. “Serena Williams Is Ready for Summer While Trying to Perfect Her "Selfie Face" in a Bikini.” EOnline. 10 April 2016. Web. Accessed 11 April 2016.
By Chris La Bella
ReplyDeleteThe issue regarding female athletes and the media is an extremely complex matter, to say the least. While female participation in sports continues to increase, the amount of coverage they receive is surprisingly decreasing. This concern, on top of other issues involving entertainment value, and the focus on “sex appeal” for women, makes the overall situation even more complicated. But, what can really be done?
One of the biggest arguments is that tapping into the male demographic is vital in terms of increasing viewership and future coverage of women’s sports. However, it seems as though the vast majority of individuals simply expect men to suddenly gain a newfound love for women’s athletics. Essentially, the future of viewership currently relies on men, which shouldn’t be the case. While a spike in male viewership would undoubtedly benefit women’s sports, I believe there is a better approach. The focus should not be on catering to male viewers, but attempting to increase female viewership instead. Simply put, the target demographic should be women moving forward.
Clearly, attempts to sexualize women’s athletics in order to entice men into watching are not working effectively, and it appears as though female athletes are polarized more than anything. With this said, instead of “showing off” the women in a sexual manner to gain male attention, why not portray women in a light that would influence females of all ages into supporting women’s sports? I would like to believe that this approach would lead to more women actively seeking out coverage, physically attending more women’s matches and games, and giving the media no choice but to increase overall coverage due to the obvious emerging trend. The bottom line is that the success of women’s sports in terms of viewership and coverage begins with female interest in sports. National events involving women’s sports gain massive attention among all demographics, like the recent Women’s World Cup, which was the most-watched English language soccer match in U.S history (Nielsen, p.8). However, domestic leagues like the WNBA need initial backing from actual female supporters in order to launch a larger movement.
On a different note, while the WNBA may consist of “better” play if one considers the minimal turnovers, fouls, and ejections, what cannot be forgotten is the importance of entertainment value within sports. Specifically for the WNBA, I believe the athletes may have to swallow their pride and lower the rims so the public can witness more alley-oops and dunks, which the NBA capitalizes off of greatly as 18 men’s basketball players were in the “World’s Highest-Paid Athletes 2015” (Badenhausen). Other sports played by both men and women like soccer and tennis are inherently similar, which is where the importance of female viewership and overall marketing tactics towards women need to improve. With this said, the current situation involving women’s athletics and the media is rather unfair, but the outlook is promising if the correct efforts are made.
Works Cited
Badenhausen, Kurt. "The World's Highest-Paid Athletes 2015: Behind The Numbers." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 10 June 2015. Web. 11 Apr. 2016. .
“The Year In Sports Media Report: 2015.” Nielsen
I think that these are extremely pertinent issues that need to be resolved rather than simply discussing them without much being done. I myself am not a huge sports fan, but it is hard not to hear about the current issues plaguing women’s athletics and female athletes in general. As to your point about female athletes’ sex appeal, I completely agree that this can be seen as a misguided attempt to garner attention. As a popular athlete Ronda Rousey has her pick of magazine covers and basically where she wants to be featured, but there is the sense that sex appeal can be a misguiding force for female athletes. While we do live an a time where sex appeal is extremely prominent and a major mode for marketing oneself, it is a bit troublesome for some young girls. However, an example of a positive campaign was recently done by Always in which they asked people to throw or run like a girl. Older participants did so in a mocking and stereotypical manner, however, the young (girl) participants actually ran and threw without buying into the preconceived notion of what it means to be female athlete. Yet this sexualized portrayal of professional female athletes proves to be problematic for young female athletes because it is presenting an untrue image of things. Rousey is regarded as an immense athlete with incredible abilities and yet she is still being judged by her looks when she poses naked on the front of magazines.
ReplyDeleteAside from the issue of professional female athletes’ portrayal in the media, there is a growing issue with wage-discrimination, specifically with members of the US women’s national soccer team. This is made apparent in an article by ESPN.com News Services entitled “US women’s team files wage-discrimination action vs. US Soccer.” Recently, five members of the US women’s national soccer team “have filed on behalf of the entire team a wage-discrimination action against the US Soccer Federation with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission” (ESPN.com News Services). This comes as a result from the USSF’s 2015 financial report which says that “despite the women’s team generating nearly $20 million more revenue last year than the US men’s team, the women are paid almost four times less” (ESPN.com News Services). In a time where we strive for more gender equality, this is extremely problematic and deeply concerning to say the least.
Furthermore, this follows the 2015 Year in Sports Media Report done by Nielsen in which they say “the US women’s national soccer team has brought soccer fever back to the US” (Nielsen). Given the large female viewership (over 43%) I also believe that this wage-discrimination issue sets a bad tone for all that the team has accomplished. They were able to reach and hopefully spark the interest of young girls, however, they are still being paid significantly less for playing the same sport as the men’s team. Discussing this issue, as you say, will no longer suffice because action needs to be taken in order to stop undermining female achievements based on looks and to start paying attention to the actions and accomplishments throughout each sport.
"2015 Year in Sports Media Report." Nielsen.com. Web.
ESPN, ESPN.com News Services via. "US Women's Team Files Wage-discrimination Action vs. US Soccer." ABC News. ABC News Network, 31 Mar. 2016. Web. 10 Apr. 2016.
Prior to reading your post all the way through I made my own decision regarding whether the hoop should be lowered. I immediately thought to myself that it shouldn’t. In such a touchy subject it’s difficult to come to terms with the proper way to approach it. Women want to be treated as equals, which they should be entitled to considering they’re human. However, I find that the “solutions” that people attempt to create are belittling to a female’s ability. Lowering the hoop will add entertainment value, yes, but what about the women that can dunk with the hoop where it is? Shouldn’t it be more about trying to get to the same level as your opponent rather than bringing them down to yours? So I guess that in this case I agree with Diana Taurasi’s statement that, “If that’s what they want to do then they might as well have us put on an apron and stick us back in the kitchen” (USA Today).
ReplyDeleteOn the rare occasion that I flip to a sports channel I never see female sports advertised as much as I see male sports. I think that may be a piece of the problem. I think another piece of the problem is how sexualized women are in society as a whole. It’s human nature for men to be attracted to a nearly nude woman on the front cover of a magazine, and if she was dressed in her sports gear with sweat dripping down her face and bruises on her body she wouldn’t gain the same type of attention. This has been an age-old problem, but it has slowly been getting better with campaigns such as Like A Girl, where girls are empowered to be what they want to be.
Going back to my point about female sports not being advertised as much, how many times have you heard a female game aired on the radio surrounded with a ton of hype? I can say for myself that I’ve never heard it. This is surprising considering, “Not only is sports consumption increasing on TV and digital outlets, but sports radio listenership is on the rise as well. From 2011 to 2015, the Average Quarter-Hour (AQH) share increased 12% (4.1% to 4.6%), and showed steady increases year over year. October of 2015 experienced the highest AQH shares of the year at 5.5% as the MLB Playoffs, NFL and college football seasons were in full swing” (2015 Year in Sports Media Report). Women’s sports scores seem to be mentioned in passing as if they aren’t relevant. Don’t even get me started on the wage gap between men and women because that’s a side of me that no one should have to see, but according to an article in Forbes, “Athletes from 23 different countries make up the top 100, although Americans dominate the list with 62 entries thanks to soaring salaries in baseball, basketball and football” (Badenhausen). I wonder what the difference in female salaries versus male salaries is in this case. If a women’s salary matched that of a males in the same sport do you think a woman would make the list?
The next time that someone asks you how the games looking, why don’t you ask him or her which one? That is if a women’s game is on at the same time as a men’s game. I’m sure they wouldn’t expect that response, but maybe it’ll plant a seed of equality in their mind.
Works Cited:
"2015 Year in Sports Media Report." Nielsen.com. Accessed 28 March 2016. Web.
Bodenhauser, Kurt. "The World's Highest Paid Athletes 2015: Behind the Numbers." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 10 June 2015. Web. 09 Apr. 2016.
Fagan, Kate. "Elena Delle Donne Says Diana Taurasi Is Hurting the Sport with Quips about Skirts, Kitchen." For The Win. N.p., 30 Mar. 2016. Web. 10 Apr. 2016.
Katherine Chirillo
ReplyDeleteDr. Burns
MSS 450
12 April 2016
Brian,
Female athletes may never receive the same kind of attention that male athletes are used to. The way I see it, women sports teams and individual players are not given much attention unless it is just one for a short period of time. Two examples are the U.S. women’s soccer team during the Women’s World Cup and Ronda Rousey during her success in the UFC. These two examples also follow along with the fact that they would not be paid as much as a famous male athlete. It all comes down to the numbers.
As a woman who had hoped to play professional soccer one day, the 2015 Women’s World Cup was the best. For once more than only a couple people seemed to know what was going on, and cared to watch the games. According to Nielsen there was a huge jump in viewership, and especially for women. Maybe that has been the issue all along, not enough women watching sports. In women aged 12-17 there was a 48% jump in viewers, and in women aged 18-34 there was a 43% jump (Nielsen).
The main issue may not be women watching sports, but women watching women’s sports. Women watched about 173 minutes on average of the Women’s World Cup in 2015 and 320 minutes on average of the Men’s World Cup in 2014 (Nielsen). I’m not sure why women wouldn’t be interested in women’s sports, but it may be because most people are watching men’s and that’s what most people would be talking about.
We have even seen a rise in popularity of individual female athletes. The accomplishments of Ronda Rousey were talked about for a while. She was all over the news and she even made a Sports Illustrated cover. I wasn’t sure about her appearance in nothing but body paint, but I did enjoy her spotlight when it came to the UFC. She was shown in action wearing what she would for the sport she excels in. I do agree with your finding that once a woman is shown in a sexualized way her athletic ability is diminished. This really makes sense, and unfortunately most times women are shown it is in a sexualized way. Many times, a woman’s worth is based on her appearance.
Usually when it comes to athletes I can’t believe the amount they are paid. According to Forbes, the top two highest paid athletes are both male boxers, and you don’t see a female on the list until number twenty-six, Maria Sharpova (Bodenhauser). The women on this list are the ones that always come back. For example, Serena Williams who is a very well known tennis player. However, should the list be a little more equal instead of completely male dominated? Hopefully the numbers will continue to rise for women.
Works Cited
"2015 Year in Sports Media Report." Nielsen. Web. 12 Apr. 2016.
Bodenhauser, Kurt. "The World's Highest Paid Athletes 2015: Behind the Numbers." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 10 June 2015. Web. 12 Apr. 2016.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThere is absolutely no question that male athletes dominate the sports world. I find this subject to be difficult to argue because I prefer to watch male dominated sports such as football, hockey, golf and boxing and so does the rest of the civilization. It is unfortunate for female athletes but that’s just how it goes, men dominate sports and it is because people like to watch male sports more than female sports. Male athletes bring in more revenue because their viewership is higher making their paychecks much larger than females. For instance, boxer Floyd Mayweather has been the highest paid athlete 3 times in 4 years, shattering the record for athlete earning. “Mayweather received a $100 million check on fight night, but the real payoff came after the revenue figures were tallied up. The fight was a dud in many people’s eyes, but it smashed every financial record in boxing, including pay-per-view buys (4.4 million and climbing), total gate ($73 million) and sponsorships ($13 million).” (Bodenhauser) The amount of revenue male athlete dominated sports bring in just cant be compared to female athletes. Women know this when they commit to playing a sport at a professionally level but they choose to do it anyway because they love it and who honestly is in a rush to join the real world?
ReplyDeleteNow here is where there is a huge issue that is absolutely disgraceful. The U.S. men’s national soccer team received nearly quadruple the amount of money than the women’s team did for losing in the World Cup. While the women won the 2015 Women’s World Cup and generated nearly $20 million more revenue last year than the U.S. men’s team. “Also greatly disparate, according to the figures, is the pay for playing in the World Cup. The US women received a team total of $2 million when it won the World Cup last year in Canada. Yet when the US men played in the World Cup in Brazil in 2014, the team earned a total of $9 million despite going just 1-2-1 and being knocked out in the Round of 16.” (ESPN.com News Services) Until last year during the coverage of the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup Championship, female sports and their popularity were pretty much nonexistent. Women athletes are significantly under paid than the men and quite frankly it is a disgrace but this topic is difficult to argue because women and men prefer to watch male dominated sports over the women. That is just the way it goes but when the women’s soccer team is blatantly paid less then the men’s team although they are clearly bringing in more revenue and winning, I find it to be a degrading.
Works Cited
ESPN.com News Services. "US Women's Team Files Wage-discrimination Action vs. US Soccer." ABC News. ABC News Network, 31 May 2016. Web. 10 Apr. 2016.
Bodenhauser, Kurt. "The World's Highest Paid Athletes 2015: Behind the Numbers." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 10 June 2015. Web. 09 Apr. 2016.
Angela Holdorf
ReplyDeleteI think that Brian did a very good job in bringing out the issues that come with female athletes, as well as how they’re portrayed in the media. According to the Nielsen review, in 2015 there were over 127,000 hours of sports programming available on TV, and 31 billion hours spent viewing sports (Nielsen). This statement alone confirms how many viewers are actually watching sports, and each of those viewers have an opinion on female athletes. While there are some major star female athletes like Ronda Rousey, it is not very often that we hear about female athletes or female sports. In a previous media class I had to go over the way females are observed through the media. From that my opinion is that they aren’t always getting the right attention. While we do tend to hear about their accomplishments, it is not nearly as close to the amount of times we hear about male athlete accomplishments. The other moments we do hear about female athletes, they are usually spoken about in a sexist way or a comment is made about their looks. I personally can’t remember the last time I heard about a female athlete doing something amazing since Ronda Rousey, but I can definitely tell you something about a male athlete.
I really loved Brian’s point he made when he brought up Ronda Rousey posing for the cover of Sports Illustrated in only paint. When he first mentioned that before I saw the picture of it, I immediately figured it was going to be seductive and negative. However, when I saw the picture I feel like it almost looked more like art than a scandalous bathing suit. Of course there is sex appeal involved, but I don’t feel that should diminish their athletic ability anymore than a man’s would. Take David Beckham, an extremely well known soccer player. He has posed half naked more times than I could count, yet that never diminishes his athletic ability.
According to “The World's Most Valuable Sports Teams” by Kurt Badenhausen, “The world’s 50 most valuable sports teams are now worth $1.75 billion on average, up 31% from 2014. The minimum valuation to make the cut is $1.15 billion, versus $856 million a year ago, thanks largely to the soaring worth of NBA and MLB teams” (Badenhausen). But if you look at the majority of these “valuable teams” most of them are all male sports, which is kind of sad when you think about it. And the worst part is that it has become such a norm that you almost don’t really notice it anymore. Yet, in the Nielsen report it states that the 2015 Women’s World Cup Final was not only the most-watch English soccer match, but also it was the third most non-football sporting event. Yet, 43% of the viewers were female (Nielsen). This just proves the point that even when a women’s sporting event is popular, a majority of the viewership is by females. But if you go to a male football game, there is a good mixture of men and women.
I think Brian’s final point with adding in the press conference was a great way to end his blog. It really pointed out the issues faced. And I think Williams was right to say what she did and not accept his apology.
Work Cited:
Badenhausen, Kurt. The World's Most Valuable Sports Teams. N.p.: Forbes, n.d. Print.
"2015 Year in Sports Media Report." Nielsen.com. Accessed 28 March 2016. Web.
When it comes to sports, women definitely get the short end of the stick.
ReplyDeleteIf we look at the “Top 50 Most Valuable Sports Teams of 2015” you can see that none of them are women’s teams (10 Most…). This is basically saying that no women’s team is valuable. All they needed to do was include one womens team and it would not have been a big deal. But the fact that they went through 50 mens teams but didn’t think to include a womens team is ridiculous. Women dominate sports just as much as men and just because they are not recognized does not mean that they are not valuable.
Problem with sexualizing female athletes is that it tells women that the only way they can be taken seriously is if they show off their bodies. There has been talk about changing women’s basketball uniforms to include tighter and shorter shorts. REALLY?! Why do women need to appeal to men?! It is a sport! Not a beauty contest. And when women athletes do show off their bodies they are criticized for showing too much skin, it’s a double edge sword. And when male athletes like David Beckman do underwear ads its okay because he is a guy? It’s the worst kind of double standard.
Then is we look at the highest paid athletes of 2015 there are women on that list either (Highest-Paid…). The wage gap for women in sports is not going unnoticed, but no one is speaking for women. They work just as hard, if not harder, then men to get little or no credit in their field.
Andrew Zimbalist recently discussed the problems with pay inequality in college sports. “Over at the men’s tournament, the N.C.A.A. pays for success: Each game a team plays (not including the championship) earns the team’s conference roughly $260,000 this year plus $260,000 each of the five following years. So the total value of a victory in the men’s tournament is approximately $1.56 million. By contrast, a win in the women’s tournament brings a reward of exactly zero dollars. That’s right, zero dollars” (Zimbalist). The fact that women do not get paid to win, but men get paid to lose is absolutely ridiculous. People think that we have come very far in the sports world but it is fact like this that make women feel useless. Even though they love the game the will less likely want to continue if they are not being recognized for it.
Works cited
" The World's Highest-Paid Athletes 2015: Behind The Numbers” Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 10, June, 2015
"The World's 10 Most Valuable Sports Teams 2015." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, n.d. Web. 11 Apr. 2016.
Zimbalist, Andrew. "The N.C.A.A.’s Women Problem." The New York Times. The New York Times, 25 Mar. 2016.
I think it's a sad truth that women's sports do not get as much time or attention as men's sports. I don't watch many sports but even I will admit that when I do watch sports (like the Red Sox or the World Cup) it's when men are playing. There really isn't any justification to it. I think the media reports men's sports heavily and they only report on women's when it's about one particular person or something cool happened. At the end of the day, women's sports just do not get as much attention as men's sports do.
ReplyDeleteThere were no women amongst the highest paid athletes of 2015 (Badenhausen). All of these roles were taken by men; golf players, basketball players, and football were among the highest paying sports. None of these sports have very large impact as far as women's sports go. Sure, there is the WNBA, but people treat it like a joke. I think the problem lies in the media - people are going to naturally consume what is being offered to them. If more female sports were broadcasted on TV, maybe there would be more viewings.
It's been shown that live broadcasts of sports are one of the only things that keeps sports rating competitive with streaming services (Nielsen). People don't want to stream sports - there is an advantage to watching them live. I think if women's sports utilized more time on broadcast networks, it would be good for them. There was a growth in female viewers for the World Cup (Nielsen) and I think that as social media has begun to dominate society, it's a good way for female sports to rise up and gain more viewers. It isn't fair that women's sports don't get as much attention as men's sports do; it really is insulting to women. But I really think it's the media's fault as much as it is the viewers: people aren't going to watch things that aren't readily available to them. It's the sad truth of society.
"2015 Year in Sports Media Report." Nielsen. Web. 12 Apr. 2016.
Badenhausen, Kurt. "The World's Highest Paid Athletes 2015: Behind the Numbers." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 10 June 2015. Web. 09 Apr. 2016.
It makes sense reading The World’s Highest-Paid Atheletes 2015: Behind the Numbers and not seeing any woman near the top. “Mayweather tops the list for a second straight year and a third time overall.” (Badenhausen) Mayweather topping the list again and again is no surprise, but I cannot imagine a year in sports where I would see a woman in his position. The article is even broken up into which sports had the highest paid athletes and which nationalities they are. Not once does it break it down by gender, because there is not enough of a divide between genders when it comes to who is making the money, it is all male dominated. Why would females make it onto the highest paid list anyway? Female sports really are looked over and not half as popular as male dominated sports.This is a very relevant topic that I believe gets overlooked too much. I agree with Brian’s point that even though people are talking about the issue of woman’s sports no one seems to do anything about it. There are even sports that woman cannot play professionally at all like football. “The NFL is a huge business, with anywhere from $9 to 10 billion in yearly revenue. As many of have pointed out, the NFL ‘owns’ a day of the week for many Americans.” (Subramanian) Since the NFL basically “owns” a day of the week and it's a sport woman cannot participate in, this really lowers viewership of women’s sports overall.
ReplyDeleteOne thing that I did not know before reading your blog is the question asked to the UCONN women’s basketball head coach about lowering the hoop. I thought that was insulting to the women who are so talented in the sport and now they are just trying to make things easier for them? I think they deserve equal treatment always, and the fact that anyone would question that is questioning their ability to play the game. I find it funny that some female athletes were on board with the idea. This may be a stepping-stone in the direction of other changes throughout women’s sports not only basketball, and why disrupt something that has been traditional for this long? The last point in the article I want to comment on is the sexualization of female athletes. “Sex sells” is something our world today is obsessing over and has become the norm. In the media, things are getting racier and racier and for woman, being in the spotlight for something sexual is not uncommon. I am wondering if the female athletes who are doing these magazine covers and exposing themselves are doing so because of the attention they need that they are not getting from sports themselves. Maybe these women think if they put themselves out there this way, people would be more interested in watching their sport. It is sad because men would never have to do this or have the same intention as women. Hopefully something is done over these issues and things will become more equal for both genders in the near future.
Works Cited
Badenhausen, Kurt. "The World's Highest-Paid Athletes 2015: Behind The Numbers." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 10 June 2015. Web. 11 Apr. 2016
Subramanian, Pras. "'Concussion' Director Reveals the Cold Business Side of the NFL." Yahoo Finance. N.p., 23 Dec. 2015. Web. 12 Apr. 2016.
The world of sports, just like most other sectors in the United States and around the world, favors men, leaving women struggling to claim equal status. In his blog, Brian made great points that are both publicly known yet ignored facts, that are still quite shocking to fathom as you would think equality among the sexes would have conquered this divide by now. Yes, it is true we have made great strides in terms of giving a more equal balance among men and women in the work force, household, and daily life, but it is also true that we are far from where we need to be. The journey towards gender equality can be seen directly in the contrast between the perception and treatment of male versus female sports, both within the sports world and among spectators and other outsiders. Merely based on numbers and rankings alone, it is evident that males dominate the majority of sports fans’ attention. In the article, The World’s Most Valuable Sports Teams, on Forbes website, it says, “The world’s 50 most valuable sports teams are now worth $1.75 billion on average, up 31% from 2014. The minimum valuation to make the cut is $1.15 billion, versus $856 million a year ago, thanks largely to the soaring worth of NBA and MLB teams,” (Badenhausen). It goes on further to list the world’s top ten most valuable sports teams, and not one of them is a women’s team. There are multiple explanations as to why male sports receive a significantly larger amount of attention, but I believe that it all stems back to the original notion that people hold on to, telling them that getting involved in sports is masculine, men are naturally more masculine than women, and therefore a stigma arises that men will naturally be better and thus, more interesting to watch, than their female counterparts. This ultimately leads to the amounts each individual sport player is paid, and it comes to no surprise that men do exceptionally well when it comes to salaries, while women are left getting much less. Brian mentions in his blog that within the top 100 highest-paid athletes of 2015, not one individual was a female. Furthermore, the top three paid athletes earn hundreds of millions of dollars a year. In the Forbes article, The World’s Highest-Paid Athletes 2015: Behind The Numbers, it is said, “Mayweather tops the list for a second straight year and third time overall… Mayweather, Woods and now Pacquiao are the only athletes to earn nine-figures in one year,” (Badenhausen). This provides evidence that the perception of the different genders in the world of sports directly influences the lives of these female sports players, both within their work lives and financially. The last comment I have regarding Brian’s post, comes from my strong agreement with an aspect he brought into his argument—the sexualization of the female gender. As society makes it so masculinity is associated with the male gender, and sexuality is handed to females, the divide in sports stays heavily fixed, because our society and culture are no where near removing these labels from their respective genders. The video Brian shared on his blog displays the CEO, Raymond Moore, discussing women in a degrading manner, and the picture Brian provided of the female athlete, Ronda Rousey depicts how a female athlete can easily be seen as more sexual rather than athletic, while you would never see a male posed for a magazine without the strong mention of his sport. Overall, I strongly agree with every point Brian makes, and definitely see our society maintaining the difference in treatment towards the separate genders, as we hold on to our steadfast perceptions attributed to males and females.
ReplyDeleteWorks Cited:
ReplyDeleteBodenhauser, Kurt. "The World's Highest Paid Athletes 2015: Behind the Numbers." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 10 June 2015. Web. 11 Apr. 2016.
Bodenhauser, Kurt. "The Worlds Most Valuable Sports Teams." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 15 July 2015. Web. 11 Apr. 2016.
Http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHcMBLFJ7zzY_hrMio8sWzQ. "Raymond Moore, Indian Wells CEO Shocking Comments." YouTube. YouTube, 20 Mar. 2016. Web. 09 Apr. 2016.
I think that women get the short end of the stick in most professions and this has become most apparent in recent years. In October 2015 Jennifer Lawrence spoke out about the wage gap between men and women in the film industry and today the conversation has expanded to include women in sports. Recently, the US women’s national soccer team has filed a wage-discrimination action against the US Soccer Federation. According to the USSF’s 2015 financial report the numbers concluded that, “despite the women’s team generating nearly $20 million more revenue last year than the US men’s team, the women are paid almost four times less,” (ESPN.COM). It is very disheartening to know that the more profitable team between the two is making so little compared to their male counterparts. In 2015 the US women’s team won the FIFA Women’s World Cup and received a team total of $2 million, but what did the men earn when they lost the World Cup in 2014? The men earned a team total of $9 million after being knocked out in the Round of 16 (ESPN). If that isn’t blatant discrimination than I don’ t know what is.
ReplyDeleteAnother topic that Brian addressed was how women athletes use their sex appeal in marketing. The only reason that women have to resort to advertising is because they don’t make enough money from just playing their sport. According to Janet Fink, she says that once female athletes are pictured in a sexualized way her talents as an athlete come into question but I don’t see anyone questioning David Beckham, JJ Watt, or Cristiano Ronaldo’s talent. There is this double standard between men and women but it doesn’t make sense in the slightest. If a woman is beautiful, such as Ronda Rousey on the cover of Sports Illustrated, then people shouldn’t lose faith in her talents as an athlete because she got on the cover BECAUSE of her talent. It just becomes a vicious cycle for women: they become the top player in their sport, they get advertisement deals and are placed on the cover of magazines, and then people stop watching them play because their athletic talents are shadowed by their good looks.
Looking at the highest-paid athletes it’s amazing that Ronda Rousey wasn’t up there but there are some females on the list at least. On the Top 100 highest-paid athletes list Mayweather came in first with $300 million and Pacquiao in second with $160 million (Badenhausen). There were at least two women on the chart after some further research, in 2015 Maria Sharapova raked in $29.7 million and Serena Williams came in as a close second for the females, earning $24.6 million (“The World’s”). While both these women are stunningly beautiful I believe that they don’t struggle to get airtime on ESPN because they are playing a unisex sport. Women that play soccer, basketball, or box as a profession are playing in male dominated sports and that is why amazing athletes like Ronda Rousey don’t earn as much money or recognition as they should. Despite the high level of skills these women have it isn’t enough for them to earn the same amount as men but hopefully someday soon that will change.
Works Cited
Badenhausen, Kurt. "The World's Highest-Paid Athletes 2015: Behind The Numbers." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 10 June 2015. Web. 12 Apr. 2016.
ESPN, ESPN.com News Services via. "US Women's Team Files Wage-discrimination Action vs. US Soccer." ABC News. ABC News Network, 31 Mar. 2016. Web. 12 Apr. 2016.
"The World's Highest-Paid Female Athletes in 2015." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2016.
Brian,
ReplyDeleteDespite not being a huge sports fan I find the difference of popularity between female sports and male sports fascinating. With today being National Equal Pay Day it is clear that the issue of females being paid less than males, athletes included, is on the public's mind (Badenhausen). Unlike other businesses, the revenue dynamics of athletic teams and athletes depends on popularity in the public--- something male athletics have a much stronger base with than females. I believe this may be the reason of pay discrepancies for some female sports.
The core of the issue lies in the fact that female sports just aren't as popular as men's. To understand why I think we have to dissect the differences between the two. For example, in women's lacrosse there is a no contact rule that has been in place for over 126 years now, "The ball has to be seen above the side wall (the stringed net) of the stick for women as there is no body contact and stick work is more skilful. For men, the ball can be below the side wall of the stick as this deeper pocket allows the ball to remain in the stick when a player is body-checked,"(Lewis). In other sports like cycling and swimming females don't compete for the same distances as men and in tennis and diving women don't complete as many sets. Former cyclist olympic champion Nicole Cooke said this about the rule differences, "At the age of 12 one is unaware of the problems ahead. One expects there to be an infrastructure for both boys and girls to develop and demonstrate their talents; to nurture them. One does not expect that nothing is available if you are a girl or that worse still, girls will be specifically excluded, not allowed to compete. It is somewhat of a handicap trying to demonstrate just how good you are on a bike when you are not allowed to ride," (Lewis).
A couple weeks ago I went to watch my friends lacrosse game in Virginia and saw how frustrated family members in the stands were when the refs were blowing their whistles every time a girl even breathed on someone else. How are you supposed to get the ball back if you can't get close enough to hit the stick, on top of not being able to touch them at all? It's not only frustrating its not as exciting or interesting to watch because you're just waiting for them to shoot or fumble for the other team to have a shot at getting the ball. I personally think that because rules have made some female sports not as exciting as men's due to the difference in how they are played/performed is the reason why they are not as popular. Because they are not as popular they are not aired or streamed as much (Nielsen). And because they are not aired or streamed as much they are not making as much money, therefore not allowing the female athletes to be paid as much as male athletes. I think the only way to truly fix this issue is to make the sports played as equally as possible and to stop treating female athletes like they are too delicate to play the same way men do.
"2015 Year in Sports Media Report." Nielsen. Web. 12 Apr. 2016.
Badenhausen, Kurt. "The World's Highest Paid Athletes 2015: Behind the Numbers." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 10 June 2015. Web. 09 Apr. 2016.
ESPN, ESPN.com News Services. "US Women's Team Files Wage-discrimination Action vs. US Soccer." ABC News. ABC News Network, 31 Mar. 2016. Web. 12 Apr. 2016.
Lewis, Aimee. "Is Sport Sexist? Six Sports Where Men & Women Are Still Set Apart." BBC Sport. BBC, 18 Sept. 2014. Web. 12 Apr. 2016.
Brian,
ReplyDeleteDespite not being a huge sports fan I find the difference of popularity between female sports and male sports fascinating. With today being National Equal Pay Day it is clear that the issue of females being paid less than males, athletes included, is on the public's mind (Badenhausen). Unlike other businesses, the revenue dynamics of athletic teams and athletes depends on popularity in the public--- something male athletics have a much stronger base with than females. I believe this may be the reason of pay discrepancies for some female sports.
The core of the issue lies in the fact that female sports just aren't as popular as men's. To understand why I think we have to dissect the differences between the two. For example, in women's lacrosse there is a no contact rule that has been in place for over 126 years now, "The ball has to be seen above the side wall (the stringed net) of the stick for women as there is no body contact and stick work is more skilful. For men, the ball can be below the side wall of the stick as this deeper pocket allows the ball to remain in the stick when a player is body-checked,"(Lewis). In other sports like cycling and swimming females don't compete for the same distances as men and in tennis and diving women don't complete as many sets. Former cyclist olympic champion Nicole Cooke said this about the rule differences, "At the age of 12 one is unaware of the problems ahead. One expects there to be an infrastructure for both boys and girls to develop and demonstrate their talents; to nurture them. One does not expect that nothing is available if you are a girl or that worse still, girls will be specifically excluded, not allowed to compete. It is somewhat of a handicap trying to demonstrate just how good you are on a bike when you are not allowed to ride," (Lewis).
A couple weeks ago I went to watch my friends lacrosse game in Virginia and saw how frustrated family members in the stands were when the refs were blowing their whistles every time a girl even breathed on someone else. How are you supposed to get the ball back if you can't get close enough to hit the stick, on top of not being able to touch them at all? It's not only frustrating its not as exciting or interesting to watch because you're just waiting for them to shoot or fumble for the other team to have a shot at getting the ball. I personally think that because rules have made some female sports not as exciting as men's due to the difference in how they are played/performed is the reason why they are not as popular. Because they are not as popular they are not aired or streamed as much (Nielsen). And because they are not aired or streamed as much they are not making as much money, therefore not allowing the female athletes to be paid as much as male athletes. I think the only way to truly fix this issue is to make the sports played as equally as possible and to stop treating female athletes like they are too delicate to play the same way men do.
Works Cited
"2015 Year in Sports Media Report." Nielsen. Web. 12 Apr. 2016.
Badenhausen, Kurt. "The World's Highest Paid Athletes 2015: Behind the Numbers." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 10 June 2015. Web. 09 Apr. 2016.
ESPN, ESPN.com News Services. "US Women's Team Files Wage-discrimination Action vs. US Soccer." ABC News. ABC News Network, 31 Mar. 2016. Web. 12 Apr. 2016.
Lewis, Aimee. "Is Sport Sexist? Six Sports Where Men & Women Are Still Set Apart." BBC Sport. BBC, 18 Sept. 2014. Web. 12 Apr. 2016.