Interrogating inequalities in Sports Media: Examining gender representation in USA Today Sports online

Examining the representation of gender in American sport's media is critical in determining the social status of our country. Specifically, online news websites dedicated to sports can give us a general idea of where we are at. USA Today Sports website is a commonly used and trusted source of information when it comes to athletic competitions. I took a look at the website to see how often each gender was represented and how they were portrayed. Going into it I figured men would dominate the articles and headlines which they did, but not as dominantly as I thought. There are five basic features on the USA Today Sports website: Top Stories, Featured Videos, Galleries, Headlines, and Featured Content. After reviewing each section I counted eight out of forty of the main photos or articles to be about women. This may not seem like much but to have twenty percent of the website dedicated to women's sports is impressive.

This made me wonder if women would begin to hold a higher priority in American sport's media seeing that USA Today is a prestigious source of news and information. Taking a closer look though I realized something: every single photo or article about women's sports was related to the Winter Olympics in Sochi. Not one women's basketball, soccer, or any other non-winter sport was featured. This essentially means that in the absence of the Winter Olympics there would be little to no coverage of any women's sports. The common idea in athletics is that women take a back seat to men, and this website seems to support this. Initially I thought female athletes were getting more coverage due to social change but soon found out otherwise. This same theme can be seen throughout most sports media companies, so for USA Today to follow suit is no shocker.

Reference: http://www.usatoday.com/sports/

Reflecting on the Shame of College Sports: Should NCAA Div 1 Basketball and Football Players Get Paid?

To me the question of whether or not college athletes should get paid has always been a very simple one: no. When thinking about it the tuition and degree they receive for free more than covers what the average athlete is bringing in revenue to a university. Now some could make the claim that Johnny Manziel generates more revenue than 4 years of tuition at Texas A&M, but he is an outlier. Not only do they receive a free education but some players also get spending money on top of it. With a free degree that will set them up for their future and maybe some spending money the average player gets more than enough to live a comfortable life. When looking at the long term situation the value of a free education becomes that much greater. Having a college degree statistically increases one's lifetime earnings to double of those who don't have one, which in itself is an extremely valuable form of payment.

This has been a big issue in American collegiate sports for decades, but think of the consequences. Schools with large revenue would suddenly have the best players while smaller budget teams wouldn't stand a chance, ruining the competitiveness of the games. Also with all that money who knows what would happen to future star athletes. The fear is that many of them would lose focus on school and want to live the life of a pro, but with the maturity of a college kid. I fear many futures would be derailed and opportunities lost if players were to be paid.

High School Sport

During the introduction of high school sports the US was experiencing social changes that aligned well with its arrival. Schools were looking to market themselves in a more effective way in order to attract the attention of well-off families. The creation of a sports system within a school showed its legitimacy and dedication to the development of kids. Today this continues to happen as high school and even middle schools across the country compete for athletic supremacy. This helps students work with others, manage their time, and motivate themselves to do other extracurricular activities. I believe these are the goals of interscholastic sports and what they aim to do. Through my personal experience I have not only discovered these objectives but have also experienced them. Without sports I wouldn't have learned certain life skills like I did which is why they continue to be a key element of American childhood. One problem though with the system of interscholastic sports is the subversion of educational priorities below athletic ones. I know from personal experience that many of the football players at my high school did not put much emphasis on grades and life after the game. Obviously there are GPA requirements to be on a sports team, but something like a tutoring system could be put into place in order to help athletes make up for the time lost on the field. With all the work put in for sports it'd be nice to get more emphasis on education.

Reference: Lecture notes, Dohrmann Article

Once the cheering stops: The life of a retired pro-athlete

60 percent of retired NBA players are broke within five years of retirement according to a Sports Illustrated article published in 2009. Over the past couple decades people in the sports industry have begun to research player's lives after they've retired from the game they love, and what has been found is shocking. The life of an ex-athlete according to ESPN's 30 for 30 film "Broke" is not that of the perceived American dream. Not only are they often stuck in financial debt but their bodies are used up and damaged. While 78 percent of former NFL players go bankrupt two years out of the game, this is not their biggest problem. Severe brain damage can occur throughout a football players life and cause long term mental health issues. This often leads to hospitalization or treatment, and in some cases even suicide. Caused by depression, self inflicted injuries are a cry for help from athletes who no longer live the superstar life in the limelight. This is a big issue for our sport's culture in that athletes are finding it difficult to transition from celebrity to civilian. It shows how much we glamorize the professionals and put them on a pedestal. In my opinion all that needs to be done is the development of post-career programs for athletes where they can learn key financial concepts. The leagues across the US should press hard upon the retired players to participate in these programs in order to save them from going bankrupt. Until we can educate the mass of players about basic budgeting and saving the problem will go on, and ex-players will continue to frivolously spend.

Resources:
ESPN's 30 for 30 "Broke"
ESPN Article "Life After Football"

Sports, Politics and the Olympics

    In 1936 Germany hosted the Summer Olympics, looking to outdo the 1932 games held in Los Angeles, CA. Not only did they accomplish incredible architectural feats in doing this but they also forced a sense of Nazi nationalism onto the games. Hitler carried this out by initially banning all Jews and Blacks from participating in the games. Eventually the countries involved with the Olympics would force him to allow participants of all race/religion. Hitler was in fact showing a glimpse of what his future plans were and foreshadowing his hatred for everyone except German Nazis. To me this is representative of German Nationalism to project their views onto the rest of the world in a global event. They used this as a way to advertise their ideals and values which is wrong considering the Olympics are suppose to be unbiased.
    Through this specific example one can clearly see how sports and politics can mix. So to say that sports are pure and devoid of political interference is completely false. Not only through the "Nazi Games" have a country's feelings been expressed but also in various other sporting events in history. Take even the NFL Super Bowl, where every year the US Air Force flies planes over the stadium. This is also a sign of nationalism as it shows our military strength to the fans watching the game. These actions have fused together the purpose of sport and the purpose of politics, making countries feel obligated to express some sort of nationalism during games. I believe this will continue to happen as long as sports and politics remain at the top of everyone's conversations.

Reference: Powerpoint