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THE
WINDHOEK CALL FOR ACTION Progress and Lessons Learned
Mass media coverage of women's sport has always been a contentious issue for the women and sport movement. Not only do sportswomen rarely get the recognition they deserve, but the lack of media coverage also puts them at a disadvantage when seeking sponsorship. There are also further significant concerns about the sexist and condescending nature of some media coverage of women in sport, which emphasises sportswomen's femininity rather than their sporting achievements. Many studies have been conducted on this issue, and considerable efforts have been made to address it. The examples below highlight programs that have produced media guidelines, collected statistics and celebrated good practice. However, while there are some breakthroughs, the dominance of male sport in the media continues to be a concern. Progress
Made / Success Stories Australian
Sports Commission The Australian Sports Commission (ASC) compiled a media information package on contemporary issues in women's sport and sent it to journalists across Australia in early 2000. Providing a few paragraphs of information, statistics, quotes, possible angles and contact details of people on a range of issues appropriate for feature stories, the package proved quite successful. Many radio, print and television media followed up and ran with stories, and many sport journalists are still using the contact list. The issues included were:
A Fair Deal For All: Diversity in Sport Media Reporting. A collaboration between the ASC, the University of Canberra and State Departments of Sport, this project featured the production of information and guidelines for the appropriate reporting of athletes with a disability, women, Indigenous and older athletes. The products produced will target three groups involved in sport media: tertiary institutions conducting journalism courses (influencing the future journalists); media organisations (influencing current journalists); and public relations/media personnel in sporting organisations (influencing the information that goes to journalists). Gathering, analysing and synthesising a diverse body of both published and unpublished research on the coverage of women, mature-aged athletes, athletes with a disability, Indigenous and ethnic minority athletes, this project will also take the next step in practically applying that research in consultation with the sports media industry. Outcome - long-term aim is to improve the overall quality, quantity and diversity of sports media coverage in Australia, particularly of women's sport. Media Workshops/seminars: Many state departments of sport and recreation have conducted seminars, working luncheons and workshops on this issue. Lessons Learned The media do not like being "told" how to do their job so the education of working journalists has to be subtle. Targeting "media friendlies" and ensuring they have all the latest contacts, statistics, research, access to athletes, first bite at breaking stories, etc is very helpful. Having a list of good female "talent" is also valuable, so that when journalists request information you can give them the details of women who can give interviews on women and sport issues. We have focussed more of our energies on educating the journalists of the future (so that they consider women's sport as mainstream and newsworthy) and educating the people working within sporting organisations that deal with the media. Canadian Association
for the Advancement of Women and Girls in Sport and Physical Activity
The Canadian Association for the Advancement of Women and Girls and Sport and Physical Activity (CAAWS) has created "A Media Guide for Athletes and their Coaches". Written by a team of sports journalists and sports media relations experts, and published by CAAWS in partnership with other associations including CAC, COA, CCES, Canada Games and Athletes Can, this guide offers tips for coaches and athletes on preparing for an interview and dealing with the media. Copies can be ordered from CAAWS, and many provinces are planning on giving the guide to their athletes who will be competing at the Winter Canada Games in February 2002. WTSN WTSN's schedule continues to evolve and now includes event coverage, WTSN Connects - an hour-long flagship show at 5:30 pm on Saturdays and Sundays that delivers a dynamic mix of news, information, interactivity and entertainment; Benchmarks - weekly documentaries focusing on women who have made an impact on the Canadian sports landscape; Hockey Her Way - a half-hour instructional hockey show; and PE-TV - a fast paced, action-oriented half-hour program focusing on health, exercise and nutrition. WTSN is owned by NetStar's TSN, part of the CTV Inc. family. WTSN Web site: www.wtsn.ca. Sports Axxess USA - Women's
Sports Foundation The 1999 copy of Images and Words in Women's Sports: Guidelines for Female Athletes, Media, Public Relations, Advertising and Marketing Communities was created by the Foundation to provide valuable information to those responsible for promoting and marketing women athletes. Topic areas include: treating male and female athletes equally in sports reporting, commentary, public relations, marketing and advertising in print and broadcast media; the rights of active women to control the ethical and appropriate use of their name and image; and the most frequently asked questions about media coverage of women's sports. In 1998 the Foundation teamed up with a major cable TV station that presents programs targeted towards women, to produce an hour-long special on women in sports. Portions of the Foundation's annual awards dinner were taped and shown alongside personal stories of athletes and their achievements. This media agreement was renewed in 1999, 2000 and 2001. In 1999 the Foundation teamed with a major cable TV network to present Dare to Compete: The Struggle of Women in Sports. The Foundation hosted thirteen events across the country to showcase the premiere of the documentary, which explores the history of women in sports through a collection of personal stories, challenges and achievements of female athletes. In 2000 "Game for Anything", a special about the passion of female athletes for their sports, aired on a major national TV network. Through these and other programs, the Foundation seeks to educate the public about female athletes and the benefits of sports participation for girls and women. It is important that young girls see positive images of female athletes on television, in order to reinforce their belief that they can play and to let them know there are others like them. As the "voice" of women's sports in the USA, the Foundation is regularly quoted on topical issues in the electronic and print media, resulting in more than 1.6 billion media impressions (mentions) each year. Ecuadorian
Olympic Committee The Ecuadorian Olympic Committee (EOC) receives significant support from the media, considering that in Latin America most of the coverage is for football (soccer). There are few women journalists in the Ecuadorian media, but those who are involved in these activities are the ones invited most often to give talks on the Olympic movement and to speak on women and sports. The EOC's Director of Media and Public Relations, Sandra López, is a sports journalist for a major national channel, which helps to maintain closer ties between the EOC and the media. Finnish Sports
Federation The Finnish Sports Federation's Internet newsletter, "Liikunnan ja urheilun maailma" (the World of Sports and Motion), is published every other week, and is widely read by the Finnish sports community. Once a month, the manager of Gender Equality or other interested parties contribute an article for the Internet newsletter on the topic of women's involvement in decision making or other aspect sports. In the spring of 2001, Mr Markku Huuhtanen, a journalist, was awarded a Spikes award for the remarkable, broad-ranging and intelligent articles that he has written through the years about girls' and women's sports in his local newspaper. Japanese Association
of Women in Sport The Japanese Association for Women in Sport (JWS) recruited female reporters in the sports division or section at major newspapers. The JWS has also regularly communicated with the female reporters to inform them and release our activities, which was very effective in promoting our activities and women and sport through the media. Lessons Learned Although we had good opportunities to expose our activities through the media, the number of female reporters in the sport section at all newspaper companies was small. On one hand, most of the major newspaper companies had only one female reporter at their sport section, so that it was easy to write articles related to issues of women and sport. On the other hand, it is true that their male counterparts tend to see their female colleague as minor writers focusing on the "minor issue" of women's sport. In other words, if a female sport reporter focuses on the gender issue, her male counterparts do not tend to recognise her as a good reporter.
Initiatives addressing the issue of media coverage include: contact with the sportswriters' association; the production of several press kits for each action/event; the distribution of a "women and sports" film; and the creation of a media prize. Media Prize: In order to support the feminisation of sports headlines, the Prix Jane Renoux (1945-1999, sports journalist with l'Humanité from 1980 to 1990) rewards a sports journalist for an article or broadcast. The Grand Prix Femmes et Sports recognises a work that, through its theme or realisation, contributed to improving the image of athletes and/or enhancing the commitment and the place of women in the sports world. In 2001, the Prix Jane Renoux and the Grand Prix Femmes et Sports were handed out for two categories: written and audiovisual press. The four recipients each received 4 600 euros. Lessons Learned Women are being increasingly listened to and there has been certain qualitative progress - certain stereotypes have been overcome particularly since the Sydney Olympics. The lag remains significant, however, compared with the broadcast rate of men's sport. WomenSports
of I.R. of Iran WomenSports of the I.R. Iran is designing special women's sports programs and news for television and radio, including interviews with several women in sports and champions in different sport disciplines to show the benefits of women's involvement in sport. From 1999 to 2001, about 30,900 news reports on women's sports events and activities have been broadcast on Iranian radio, including 48 hours of specialised coverage of women's sport activities. 65 newspapers regularly publish news on women's sport activities, and about 43,648 hours have focused specifically on women's sports on Iranian TV. At the same time, about 13,563 women in sports and female champions in different disciplines have been invited and interviewed by different TV, radio and newspaper reporters. In addition, 264 foreign reporters from different countries, such as Turkey, the USA (Newsweek magazine, Washington Post, PBS T.V Group) and Japan, have come to the I.R. of Iran and publicized women and sport news. SCSA - Zone
6 Zone 6 of the Supreme Council of Sport in Africa involves representatives of the media in strategic planning, workshop review and advocacy initiatives, and also works specifically with selected media personnel, encouraging them to pay special attention to women and girls. USA - Girl
Scouts This past year, GSUSA has collaborated with Game Face Productions to produce a resource in conjunction with the traveling photography exhibit entitled, GAME FACE: What Does a Female Athlete Look Like? This resource examines the gains in women's sports over the last century and portrays girls and women of all ages, ethnicities, and abilities in a variety of sports activities. By working to dispel the myth that an athlete must be of a particular body shape or type, it counteracts many of the negative images portrayed in the media, and encourages each girl to discover the athlete within herself. Lessons Learned Photography can be used as an effective
tool to enhance the self-esteem and body image of girls and women.
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