Women's game: Not 'as good' as it was?

A story in the South Bend Tribune today reports that ND women's basketball coach Muffet McGraw, speaking at the annual NACDA meeting, lamented the state of women's college basketball -- ethically speaking -- today. "It's not quite as good as it used to be. I think the pressure to win is affecting people," she said, and later added, "People aren't exactly following the rules" but those who know about it aren't "willing to step forward."
It seems that a logical follow-up question for her is "What specific rules violations to you know about?" She added that there haven't been any "major infractions" in the women's college game of late, but she is convinced an ethics committee is needed.

'Small stories' and Title IX

As fans of women's sports know, the 37th anniversary of Title IX came and went last week with recognition from the White House, Women's Sports Foundation and women's sports advocates but with little mainstream media coverage.
Of course, the passing of the milestone for the law without wider celebration is disappointing -- but not surprising. Title IX still remains controversial, and myths about the law's impact on boys' and men's sports prevail -- especially among young people. Focus groups with teenagers and college students about Title IX, conducted by the Center for Sports Journalism, revealed that these young people shared their suspicion about the law through narratives in which boys and men were victims. Stories about opportunities stripped from male athletes -- whether based on "reality" or admittedly fabricated by participants -- were used to understand the law.
It was surprising to hear these narratives even from young women who have clearly benefited from the law. But these stories, which are simple tales that conform to gender norms, are powerful tools to tear down support for the law.
The answer? We propose that sports feminists everywhere make a concerted effort to inject individual narratives of equality and access for girls and women into the Title IX debate. An example of these is found in the WSF video about Title IX -- but we also need them at lower levels, among middle-school and high school athletes, for instance. These "small stories" of equality and empowerment can -- over time -- change public discourse.

Blaming individuals, ignoring cultures

I read two interesting Web features today that both illuminated our cultural shortsightedness about social issues and sports: Blaming individuals while turning a blind eye toward institutional beliefs and practices that underpin problems.
The first was an outstanding column by Dave Zirin answering Howard Bryant's shrill column about Sammy Sosa's steroid use. In his column, Bryant makes a bizarre charge that Sosa's positive steroids test calls for a "special kind of outrage." He is especially hard on Sosa, on players and on "Mr. and Mrs. Fan." He does not -- as Zirin points out -- take to task an institution (and its management) that has tacitly encouraged drug use for decades. Zirin, whose column will undoubtedly be read by less than a third of those who read Bryant's, raises important contextual questions that position the issue as one going far beyond the decisions of select individuals without cultural and institutional encouragement.
The second Web feature I read today was the discussion on WashingtonPost.com's "The League" about gays in the NFL. Not surprisingly, the column that brought the most response was one by a pastor who made overtly homophobic comments -- he was an easy target. Other columns by more progressive writers argued that NFL players were to blame because they hadn't come out or because individual players have "remained silent."
The problem with these kinds of arguments is that they ignore the very real function of men's football and other male-defined sports (such as baseball and basketball) in U.S. culture: defining (ideal) gender roles. As a culture, we expect the demonstration of masculinity in these sports (that's why "You play like a sissy/girl" is still an effective insult hurled by coaches). Ideal masculinity implies heterosexuality. Our cultural definitions of sport, gender (and, subsequently, sexuality) have -- as one columnist rightly argues -- made it easier for us to elect a black man to the presidency than to foster a culture where gay athletes can play high-level team sports without fear.

Game stories by computer program

Students at Northwestern's Medill School of Journalism may have just invented another nail for the coffin for sports beat writers. Students there are perfecting "machine generated sports stories" (MGSS), a tool that produces computer-generated sports stories using play-by-play data, box scores and other information. According to the release, the tool "can't replace the sports writer who watches a game, gets quotes from players and does analysis." Many sportswriters in legacy media, however, have been replaced -- so they're moving to independent media online. A post on NewspaperShift (PBS) discusses initiatives by some former newspaper journalists to start their own Web cooperatives, bringing together journalists in different cities to offer full coverage of teams and leagues on a single site. The trick, of course, will be in whether such a model can draw enough advertising dollars.

Women's pro sports: Can gender really be taken 'out of the equation'?

The seven teams in the newly launched Women's Professional Soccer league are about two months into their inaugural season, playing in front of crowds that average about 5,400 and in front of viewers tuning into the Fox Soccer Channel. The league's initial success is just part of the reason for high hopes that this league will thrive, according to Commissioner Tonya Antonucci, who spoke to the annual convention of the Association for Women in Sports Media in Philadelphia on Saturday.
Antonucci suggested that the league's strategy -- controlling costs, marketing to a broader array of fans, and having more realistic goals than the WUSA did before it folded -- will help the league survive.
She also suggested that the way the league was built -- by attracting the best players in the world (including the three-time FIFA player of the year, Marta), is a contrast with men's MLS, and that fans will recognize that. In other words, Antonucci doesn't see the WPS competing with the MLS for fans. (The MLS, which has been around longer, draws an average 14K per game.)
"We almost take gender out of the equation in what our brand stands for," she told the group. She said the league has no plans to use "sex appeal" as a selling point for athletes, either. "You embrace who these women want to be," she said.
Antonucci also suggested that because men's soccer in the U.S. competes against another type of "football" -- the NFL, women's soccer has the chance to grow as a spectator sport at a much faster pace than the MLS has. The WPS is operating on the assumption that participants will turn into spectators. Because soccer is so popular as a sport for girls (and boys), there will be ready-made fan base as these players grow older.
If only it were true.
If only it were true that gender can ever be taken "out of the equation" in regard to sports. And if only it were true that girls who play soccer will turn into women who are willing to spend the time (and money) to consume it in large numbers. And that men ("soccer dads") will turn into enduring spectators of a women's professional league.
But research tells us differently. Popular spectator sports in western culture have always been all about gender performance. In other words, gender can't be removed from any sports equation. That's one reason (among several) that soccer will struggle in the U.S. to ever have a sustained, high-numbers following -- it's a gender-neutral sport, and, thus, is less appealing to fans (logically, this quality gives it more appeal as a participatory sport.)
Thus, it is doubtful that the WPS will thrive after its initial splash (and that hasn't been much) -- it will do well to survive more than a few years. I don't say that to be negative as much as to recognize the realities for women's team sports in the U.S.
The naive hopefulness of Antonucci and other backers of the WPS shouldn't be discouraged, however. We need her and women's sports advocates to keep pushing the envelope. But we have to recognize that women's sports as an institution will not thrive until our ideas about sport and gender undergo a fundamental shift -- only then can gender really be out of the equation.

Bloggers and ethical decision-making

A recent post on Eye on Sports Media outlines the response of a local paper (the Athens Banner Herald) and that of a blogger who learned about the DUI arrest of a local personality who provides play-by-play and analysis for UGA sports teams.
The blogger reported the incident; the paper didn't. Eye on Sports Media comes down on the side of the blogger, arguing that the incident was newsworthy and that covering it gives media the chance to point out the recklessness of drunken driving. Non-coverage by the paper "also shows a little bit of media hypocrisy. The media is always more than willing to write sensational news when an athlete or other celebrity is arrested for DUI or some other transgression. They are also all over any news of steroid use by athletes. So what if alcohol abuse and drunk driving is more destructive than steroid use?"
I think EOSM has a point. The man is well-known to local sports fans, and the same standards should apply to him as do with other local sports personalities. I don't know the rationale used by the paper to reject the story.
Dissatisfaction with mainstream media is one reason many fans start their own blogs. As they do, they have to make tough calls about what should and should not be covered -- the kinds of calls mainstream journalists have been making for decades. They can get guidance from a number of sources, including APSE, SPJ and a blogger's code of ethics. As they continue to gain influence, it's critical that bloggers understand the responsibility that comes with the ability to reach a mass audience.

Want to learn more about the WNBA? Naturally, you'd want to know how many moms are on the team...right?

A SportsCenter "Sunday Conversation" today with WNBA legend Lisa Leslie, tailor-made for Mother's Day, focused on LA Sparks players in the role of moms. There are, according, to Leslie, five mothers on the team, who constantly share "mommy information." Leslie emphasized that her role as a new mother is a primary reason for her retirement from sports.
While the news peg for the story -- Mother's Day -- may have driven the focus, the problem with these kinds of features is that they ultimately weaken the image of female athletes in the sports context because these stories are often done to the exclusion of regular coverage of women's sports. We see far too many stories with this kind of angle -- female athlete outside sports. (Oftentimes, it's in a mode that presents athletes in sexualized images.) Although many female athletes are eager to be cast outside their athletic achievements, the more often they're shown off the court, the less credible they're deemed on it -- any day of the year.

Whitlock on the need to examine ESPN

Sports columnist Jason Whitlock, often accused of taking snipes at ESPN for no other reason than that he doesn't work there, argues in a recent column that the network is a "dictatorship" with more power than the leagues it covers. Whitlock adds that bloggers -- "an army of citizen journalists building followings and eroding our credibility" -- are the only place to get critical coverage of the network.
It's true that ESPN has a great deal of influence, but it's not because the number people who watch it exceeds the number watching SpongeBob reruns on any given night of the week. It's because sports journalists have taken their cues from it. ESPN is the pacesetter for other outlets.
The mainstream media doesn't ignore ESPN, as Whitlock argues. It follows the network very carefully. Bloggers may dish the gossip on the personalities there, but ESPN is far from ignored by the many, many sports journalists who ultimately want the network on their own resumes.

The good and bad of non-access to athletes

Blogger-turned-ESPN writer Bill Simmons points out the diminishing role of sports journalists in his latest column, suggesting that in the age of Facebook, the blogosphere and Twitter, athletes no longer need the media. "This isn't a good thing or a bad thing," he adds.
It's both.
It's good for athletes -- who can wield much more control over the ways they are presented to fans -- and, in many ways, it's good for fans, who have more options for getting news on their favorite athletes and teams.
Now, the "bad": It calls into question the relevance of traditional sports journalists, whose traditional "gatekeeping" role has been eroded. And although that is a "bad thing" in some ways, it also provides the media establishment a chance to retool the ways journalists cover sports, moving away from personality- and game-driven coverage and to a public-service approach that critically looks at the institutions and practices in sports at every level -- asking and answering tough questions about the links between sports and tax dollars, education and social values, for instance.
That's the kind of coverage an athlete's blog can never take from journalists.
And that would be a very good thing.

Gender gap in outlook toward homophobia

A recent study by the Center for Sports Journalism, published in the Winter 2009 issue of the Newspaper Research Journal, found that most sports reporters believe homophobia is a problem in sports -- and more of a problem in men's sports than women's. Most also disagreed with the idea that a male athlete would be accepted if he came out, and most reporters also said they did not think it was appropriate to ask athletes about their sexual orientation.
Not surprisingly, gender and age were dividing lines for responses. For instance, female reporters were more likely to say homophobia is a problem in women's sports. Young reporters more often agreed that homophobia was a problem in men's sports.

High school sportainment the ESPN way

SI this week examines "March Madness" in high school basketball, focusing on the recent ESPN RISE national tournament. The tourney "represented the NCAA tournament sensibility brought to high school," Phil Taylor writes.
The article goes on to describe the big business emerging from the marriage of big media and scholastic sports. ESPN, in particular, has made a high-profile push into publicizing youth sports. The talent is free and the rights fees are almost as cheap.
Is that where we want high school sports to go? As a culture, we long ago decided to allow collegiate athletics to mimic the pro model (except for, as Andrew Zimbalist points out, the fact that athletes are unpaid and the NCAA can claim non-profit status). Do we want scholastic sports to mimic the college model? What are the implications for athletics in education at the primary and secondary level? Who profits -- and who loses? Parents, educators, activists, politicians -- everyone needs to be in on this conversation.

"This stuff happens all over the country"

A documentary focusing on the homophobic tenure of Penn State women's basketball coach Rene Portland premiered tonight at the Philadelphia Film Festival. The documentary, "Training Rules," uses the story of Portland, and the player who ultimately helped force her resignation after more than two decades of discrimination, to explore homophobia in women's sports.
Although the documentary uses the Portland story as its narrative, the wider point it makes is vital: That Portland is just one of many coaches, across the country, who have institutionalized homophobia in their programs. As activist and scholar Pat Griffin points out, this isn't an isolated practice. "It happens every day" to the detriment of young women and of women's sports, she says.

The other basketball championships

While most sports fans are tuned into "stand-up" basketball in the form of the NCAA tournament, it's likely they don't know anything about another championship-- the National Wheelchair Basketball Championships this week in Denver. Major universities from all over the U.S. field teams that include top-ranked Paralympic athletes competing at elite levels. It's too bad it doesn't get more mainstream media coverage-- these athletes deserve it. Watch this video to learn more.

Yes, grammar still matters.

Attention aspiring sports journalists: Knowing the difference between "who" and "whom" is still important. According to a survey of sports editors, grammar and writing skills are lacking in many of the young journalists they interview and hire. Meanwhile, aspiring writers should also become more tech savvy and versatile, according to the survey. That means making the most of the range of journalism and other classes offered at the university level and seeking experience through internships and other writing outlets.

The terror of Selena

It's amusing to read the transcript of Alex Rodriguez' interview with Peter Gammons on ESPN -- one in which he was lobbed slow-pitch softballs instead of probing questions -- allowing him to present himself as stumbling into a GNC several years ago and (oops!) grabbing the wrong thing off the shelf after securing fame and fortune.
Rodriguez has also apparently decided to deflect criticism for his wrongdoing to a female reporter -- Selena Roberts -- whom he called "this lady" throughout the interview. Read the transcript: Investigative journalists can sure be terrifying, can't they? Especially when it's a woman ("lady") who's managed to expose the lies.

The post-game interview: Irrelevant?

A panel at Tufts University on sports journalism provide the requisite amount of hand-wringing about the future of sports journalism: Newspapers will die, the Internet is "monster" that has damaged the profession, etc.
The most interesting comments by the panelists, however, were those that questioned the relevance of the post-game interview in light of the increased ability of athletes to communicate directly with fans via the Web. Golfweek writer Brad Klein called it "a ritualistic concession to editors." If the post-game interview fails to deliver substance, it'll be interesting to see what happens with continuing attempts by teams and leagues to restrict locker-room access by reporters. Journalists may find that such access becomes more difficult to protect.

In defense of the game: A new gay slur

A story that has been overshadowed by the Super Bowl and other events this week is one that involves the coming -- and going, we hope -- of a new term that denigrates gays in the interest of protecting the time-honored ritual of fighting in the NHL. The CBC's "Hockey Night" commentator Mike Milbury used the word "pansification" to describe how the NHL would be softened should the league heed calls to ban the practice. After protest, the CBC has finally stepped in and banned use of the word.
It's good the term has been removed as an option for CBC commentators (although under protest, unfortunately). But the bigger issue remains unchallenged: Assumptions about masculinity, sports and sexuality that continue to privilege the "tough guy" in sports -- contricting culturally acceptable behavior for men and women and encouraging prejudice.

Some women 'seethe with resentment'

Paul Farhi's Washington Post story today about the role of women on the sidelines in coverage of major sports events (such as the Super Bowl) doesn't cover new ground. And neither do the comments in response to Farhi's piece-- which provide the usual range of sexist/misogynist tirades.
Farhi's article, does, however, reflect the frustration of some female sports broadcasters who believe (rightly) that decision-making about their marginal roles isn't fair.
Although the story speculates, based on a comment from the WSF's Marj Snyder, that perhaps more women in high-end decisions at networks could make a difference, it's doubtful that the solution is that simple. Women will gain more visibility in sports commentating roles as our ideas and expectations, as a culture, change in relationship to women, men and sports.

Super Bowl coverage: Expanding width, shrinking depth

An article in Editor & Publisher today announced a drop in the number of media requests for the Super Bowl this year. The dip is about 4 percent, from 4,786 to 4,589. The article goes on to provide comments from editors at major dailies who have decided to send fewer reporters to games.
The other news -- not explored by E&P, though -- is that the number of media organizations requesting credentials is higher than for any Super Bowl. That jump is about 10 percent. More than 600 organizations are credentialed. Even as the newspaper industry -- the lion's share of credentials -- is shrinking, the number and variety of outlets covering sports continues to grow.

Sports reporting: Does objectivity matter?

With the media spotlight hot and bright on every key player in the Super Bowl this Sunday, the story about the relationship between Larry Fitzgerald Sr., a sportswriter, and his son, a wide receiver for the Cardinals, has been subject to the typical over-hyped treatment such human-interest stories get. Writers including Rick Reilly have focused dutifully on the ethical commitment by Fitzgerald to obey the no-cheering-in-the-pressbox rule.
Josh Levin's recent Slate article, though, points out that Fitzgerald has not been "objective" in stories about his son. Levin uses examples to point out the very loud cheering -- in the pages of the Spokesman-Recorder. The story has been picked up by the sports blogosphere and used as an excuse to lampoon or criticize the reporter.
I think the more important question, though, is about the assumption by writers that "objectivity" (e.g., avoiding rooting for a victory by a team or athlete) by sports reporters is something sports fans and readers want in their coverage or even see as an ethical issue.. I'm not so sure that whether Fitzgerald will cheer or not on Sunday is of much interest - or relevance -- to fans.
Research has consistently shown that both fans and journalists think homerism on the sports pages is OK. Perhaps the more relevant columns would be those that ask why that is, and what the consequences are for the wider practice of sports journalism.

Predicting the death of independent sports coverage

Poynter's Steve Klein posted comments today about a recent blog post by Mark Cuban that suggests pro leagues subsidize newspaper coverage of sports.
In other words, pro teams band together to pay the salaries of beat writers and, in return, get guaranteed space every day. "I know this is in violation of all previous principles of editorial church and state," Cuban writes, but he also argues that pro leagues need the promotional services of journalists (which they have had for more than a century. They just haven't had to pay for it.)
Klein doesn't raise the myriad ethical issues -- and there are many -- that would arise if such an arrangement became reality. He predicts that some publications will take the bait and "slap an advertorial label on the coverage" to save jobs. But advertorial arrangements with sports orgs -- often not labeled -- have already been part of the financial strategy for some papers.
Klein instead suggests (although with funding from pro leagues, raising, again, the ethical issues) a ProPublica or Huffington-style pool arrangement of top sports journalism talent.

Women in sports: Be "20-percent better"

A Dec. 20 article in the Globe and Mail, "Women on TV: Looks First, Knowledge Later," puts a new spin on an old story about the premium on sexual attractiveness for women covering sports. The new angle: How Web sites such as Deadspin are at once raising the profile and diminishing the journalistic credentials of female sports journalists. Comments on sports blogs are degrading, insulting and sometimes threatening. To be considered credible, an NHL senior vice president of broadcasting recommends women be "20 percent better" than their male counterparts.

AP: 'Helping athletes graduate has become its own academic profession'

An Associated Press story released this weekend shows the phenomenal investment big-time college programs are making to keep their athletes academically eligible to play. The article, which raises serious concerns about the priorities of public universities, was written after months of work to gather financial information and interview athletes, faculty and administrators.

This story is evidence that, as Steve Bilafer with the Sports Business Journal wrote last month, the AP is needed more than ever on the nation's sports pages, which are cutting staffs and resources even as youth and collegiate sports programs are growing and resembling the professional ("sportainment") model for sports.

Athletes: Crafting their own messages

A story published in the San Diego Union Tribune, "Sites to behold," provides a lengthy discussion of the ways athletes are using the Web to bypass traditional media, build their fan base and feed the bottom line. (A recent example, as reporter Tod Leonard points out, was Tiger Woods' use of his Web site to announce surgery on his ailing knee.)
The story includes a list of athlete and team Web sites that stay updated and offer interesting material. They include those of Curt Schilling and Pete Carroll, among others.
What is most interesting to me is what Leonard's story says about the sites of female athletes such as Maria Sharapova and Danica Patrick.. The emphasis--especially on Patrick's Web site -- seems to be far more on sex appeal than sports. Patrick's father says that the emphasis is by design; 'Eventually, she won't be racing, and we still have to keep going.' The same is true for male athletes, right? What are the strategies they use on their Web sites?
It would be interesting to see if the de-emphasis on athleticism is a theme across many of the Web sites of high-profile female athletes.

Prep sports: In 'an encouraging twilight'

In a New York Times article yesterday about the allure of high school football, sportswriter Jere Longman writes wistfully about the tradition of Thanksgiving-Day games among high schoolers. Although Longman concedes -- and a companion article about steroid use among athletes confirms -- that high school football is "not pure," Longman adds: "It is still a game, not yet a business."
The operative word may be yet.. Longman writes that prep football is in an "encouraging twilight" -- a hopeful metaphor for the way things are changing. High-profile rankings and a funding system for youth sports that is increasingly squeezing out lower-income students are two factors in the evolution of youth sports into a money-driven model. (Mark Hyman's blog, Youth Sports Parents, is a great way to follow the evolution. His latest recommends that we consider banning youth sports tournaments on national holidays.)

New book looks at growth, coverage of women's basketball

Christine Baker, a writer and avid sports fan, has compiled excerpts of her interviews with top figures in women's basketball -- including Val Ackerman, Tamika Catchings, Donna Lopiano, and Diana Taurasi -- in a new book called "Why She Plays." I talk a little in the book about the struggles of the WNBA to gain a large media audience. For more about the book, visit Baker's Web site.

Sports, media, politics: An alliance

The election-eve appearances of Barack Obama and John McCain on Monday Night Football tonight mark the second presidential election in a row when the candidates made their final, national televised appearance in a sports venue (In 2004, Kerry and Bush appeared on SportsCenter.) The partnership of politics and sports has been a natural pairing in the U.S. for as long as the two have been institutionalized -- both are sites for the display of masculine power, and some might argue that sports is a microcosm of the wider political landscape.
The partnership isn't only for the TV cameras. The NFL this year became the second sports league to form its own PAC, where owners, team CEOs and league executives invest in influencing the electoral process to secure favorable outcomes on legislative proposals that could cut into profits.

Reporters and SIDs: Tensions start early

Joe Gisondi writes in his "On Sports" blog this week about a study illuminating the ways college journalists and SIDs clash over access to players and over other issues. The study, published in College Media Review, reveals results of a survey of SIDs and college sports editors. Gisondi describes a gulf between the ways SIDs and journalists see their roles on everything from the ways journalists identify themselves to the tactics they use to secure interviews (such as using Facebook). The study seems to point to a couple of issues: The chasm between journalists and athletes/coaches at the college level (one that is sure to grow), and the need for formal training in ethics and professionalism for college sports journalists.

Why women don't stay in the profession

Michele Tafoya this week announced that she is dropping from her primary role as an NBA sideline reporter although she plans to continue some of her duties (including those with MNF) for ESPN.
Her reason: more time with family. It's not surprising -- our research shows that most of the time, that -- not glass ceiling or harassment-- is what prompts women in sports journalism to curb their careers.
The problem now, though, is that with the poor economy prompting buyouts and layoffs in TV and newspaper sports departments, we'll see even more women exiting to find more family-friendly careers. We could see diversity in sports operations continue to dwindle.

Covering college football: 'tough' business

ESPN.com writer Ivan Maisel told students in a Penn State class that focuses on Joe Paterno and the Media about his weekly schedule covering college football -- one that includes travel sandwiched between radio interviews, podcasts, Web chats, plus reporting for his weekly column. The Web, he said, has turned college football into a year-round beat. He also described the ESPN campus in Bristol as one where 60-hour workweeks are the norm.
Maisel, who says he's been on the national college football beat longer than anyone, said he admires students who plan to enter sports journalism. "It's looking tough, but it's still so fun," Maisel said, adding that meeting people he admires and seeing positive examples of leadership helps keep him motivated.

Denial: A losing media strategy for athletes

Penn State professor Michel Haigh is interviewed on a blog posting today by Shaun Assael, author of Steroid Nation, about media coverage of athletes accused of doping. What she found: That denial of wrongdoing by athletes isn't met very kindly by journalists (or the public). Instead, the better strategy seems to be an apology, such as that issued by Jason Giambi.
Assael speculates that another less-effective strategy, however, could become more effective as fans begin to grow deaf to the steady drumbeat of sports scandals: that of "reducing offensiveness" -- or, simply put, positioning the bad behavior as not-so-bad. As Assael notes, if that happens, players like Barry Bonds may have a chance at career revival.