Erin Whiteside

The new "toy department"?: A case study on differences in sports coverage between traditional and new media.

Sports journalism is at a crossroads; sports blogs and new media have become prime news sources and destinations for fans seeking content about their favorite teams. New media producers, and especially bloggers, however, may operate with different standards and practices than those in traditional sports media. This research uses a content analysis that compares new media and traditional media coverage on a single, major story: the 2009 announcement of major league baseball star Manny Ramirez’ 50-game suspension for using a banned substance. An analysis of stories found that new media outlets less often critically positioned Ramirez in the wider context of steroid use in baseball, instead opting for coverage that focused solely on him and often did not challenge his rationale for his positive drug test. The authors speculate that the new “toy department” reputation for sports coverage may be more applicable to the new media environment than to traditional sports journalists.

Public Relations and Sports: Work Force Demographics in the Intersection of Two Gendered Industries

Sports, largely considered the domain of men, and public relations, recently associated with women, intersect in college sports public relations, known as sports information. This study examines that intersection by using an online survey to explore the demographics, division of labor, earnings, career longevity and satisfaction among sports information practitioners and comparing results to data for public relations and sports journalists. The findings suggest that sports information is, unlike other areas of public relations, a staunchly masculine profession. Women are largely excluded from high-status positions and more often report less job satisfaction and shorter tenures than men. This study also provided the opportunity for exploratory research on racial minorities in sports information, with the findings showing sports information as a racially homogonous profession.

Ambivalence on the front lines? Attitudes toward Title IX and women’s sports among Division I sports information directors:

In light of continuing research that assesses how dominant ideology is communicated via mediated sport, this study examines the attitudes of sports information directors (SIDs), arguably initial “gatekeepers” in the media production process and, thus, critical players in shaping sports media messages. A random sample of Division I SIDs was surveyed on questions clustered around gender and sexuality issues. The results showed that Division I SIDs are likely to help gay athletes stay in the closet, although they express more progressive attitudes toward sexuality than sports journalists, who were similarly surveyed in 2009. The results also showed mixed support for women’s sports and Title IX – with implications for coverage – and strong support for a gendered division of labor that could be problematic for the future prospects of women in the profession. The authors use the survey to question assumptions that female SIDs will advocate on behalf of women’s sports, Title IX and other related issues.

“Isn't He a Good Guy?”: Constructions of Whiteness in the 2006 Olympic Hockey Tournament

Given sports’ valued cultural position, scholars argue that images of sports stars provide viewers with guidance about how “good” men should behave (Whannel, 2002). Drawing from cultural studies theories on race in sports, this study explores representations of White hockey players in the 2006 Winter Olympics television commentary. The authors suggest that the commentary provides lessons to viewers by way of the construction of the (White) hockey players as having exceptional physical bodies, intellectual aptitude, and moral righteousness. They further theorize about the intersection of heroism, morality, and privilege of Whiteness in the context of sports.

Unmasking Title IX on its 40th birthday: The operation of women’s voices, women’s spaces, and sporting mythnarratives in the commemorative coverage of Title IX:

As society’s storytellers, journalists often draw upon a standard set of archetypal forms to convey all of the day’s news to their readers. This study considers the practice of commemorative sports journalism, in particular how (and by whom) the stories surrounding Title IX’s 40th anniversary were constructed at two of the nation’s leading sports news outlets. Drawing from a combination of narrative and critical discourse analysis grounded in hegemonic theory, we contend that ESPN and Sports Illustrated shifted away from the traditional battle-of-the-sexes narrative; the end result was a celebratory women-centric model, one that offered progressive ways of understanding Title IX but sometimes fell prey to flaws associated with what White has called the ‘content of the form’.

Moving Toward Parity? Dominant Gender Ideology versus Community Journalism in High School Basketball Coverage

This research uses a content analysis to explore how male and female high school athletes are framed. In analyzing basketball coverage from 121 unique newspapers, results show that although boys received the bulk of the coverage, the gap in parity is much smaller compared to prior research. Furthermore, girls were generally not framed as overtly feminine. Still, the coverage also reflects lingering commonsense assumptions about gender, most notably in reference to the athletic body. The authors discuss the potential of high school sports coverage to challenge normative understandings of gender and sports and to consider the role community journalism standards may play in the construction of equitable and just interscholastic sports coverage.

Feminist Sports Media Studies: State of the Field

Feminist analyses have long informed studies of sports media by detecting and interrogating gender hierarchies and gendered expressions of power. In the current “postfeminist” media environment, women celebrate through individualized narratives of progress, but continue to face structural barriers as a group. To critically assess cultural shifts around women’s potential in sport and media, feminist scholars face a challenge and an opportunity to question underlying assumptions that have informed their analyses.

Forgotten and Left Behind: Political Apathy and Privilege at Title IX’s 40th Anniversary

In June 2012, Title IX celebrated its 40th anniversary to much fanfare nationwide, particularly in sporting circles. The event generated widespread news coverage, and journalists thus played a key role in situating the story of not only the law’s beginnings but its place in contemporary gender politics. This study examines the public memory of Title IX, as told in mainstream media outlets in the weeks surrounding the law’s anniversary. Using the concept of intersectionality as an analytical lens, we argue that the logic of Title IX at 40 gives rise to a narrative of progress that universalizes the experiences of girls and women and situates discrimination as an historic relic while also celebrating and rewarding apoliticism.

Politics in the Toy Box: Sports Reporters, Native American Mascots, and the Roadblocks Preventing Change

Numerous educational institutions and professional sports teams still use Native American mascots, despite strong opposition ranging from Native American groups to the American Psychological Association. Fans, community members, and teams defend the mascots by asserting that they honor Native American peoples. Sports journalists occupy a unique location in the debate, as they regularly cover teams with such mascots and commonly refer to them in stories. In light of this ongoing debate and pressure to change reporting practices, this research used a survey to examine sports reporters’ experiences and attitudes toward Native American mascots and their beliefs about the role they themselves should take in the public debate. Results show an overall lack of support for Native American mascots, with key differences based on participant race, job title, and belief in the value that sports bring to society. Furthermore, sports journalists appear to support taking a public stand on the issue but resist the idea of...

Passing to India: a critique of American football’s expansion

Although India has long held a passion for cricket, an organization called the Elite Football League of India (EFLI) is looking to disrupt that sporting nerve center, and introduce the foreign sport of American football to the country’s growing middle class. While it is too soon to assess how Indian audiences will respond to, negotiate and perhaps create new cultural practices around American football, we focus this article on an analysis of efforts made by promoters of the new league to create a cultural context in which this very foreign game might make sense. Drawing from press releases, promotional videos and news coverage, we demonstrate how language of social, economic and individual (male) development is deployed to create American football as a platform for delivering global brands to a vast Indian market. In deconstructing these efforts, we critically explicate how creative practices are implemented to produce an atmosphere within which globalization may occur.