Who Should Take the Blame?

The way that male and female athletes are portrayed in the media is definitely different. We discussed how men are often time perceived as bigger, stronger, and faster with the intent of the pictures to show these characteristics. Female athletes, on the other hand, are very rarely portrayed performing their sport. They are usually shown in posed positions that accentuate their sexuality, beauty and other feminine qualities. The only picture that instantly comes to my mind of a female athlete on the field of play is when Brandi Chastain got the cover of Sports Illustrated. However, the famous photo was one that was taken right after the game, right after she scored the game winning goal, and right after she took off her shirt. The way that female athletes are depicted in photographs is very different from this. Athletes like Anna Kournikova or Maria Sharapova have embraced their beauty and used it to pose for magazines or act in commercials. Some other female athletes have posed in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition (Which happens to be the only time I've seen photos of male athletes that are designed to show off their physical appearance. I remember it happening when athletes' wives would pose in their swimsuits along side their more famous husbands).

Now, I'm not saying that this is right or wrong. It is just the fact of the matter. Should a female athlete be able to endorse her body to make money? I don't have a problem with that. Any person should be able to do the same thing if the opportunity were to arise. Where I'm not necessarily sold is the fact that many people blame the media for this happening. I understand that sport consumers (predominantly male) most likely enjoy seeing scantily-clad, very in-shape female figures as opposed to men in the same fashion. Therefore the media will give the consumer what they want to see. However, I think that the female athletes deserve much of the blame/credit for this.

Coming from a household with three younger sisters and a mother (and a father, but he doesn't factor into this situation), having a female student-athlete as a roommate now, and coaching women's volleyball at the high school and college levels, I have come to the conclusion that MOST females care very much what they look like at all times. Some of the most makeup worn by these women have been on game days because a lot of people will be there to see them. Also, at ONU we take head shots of each athlete to post on our Web site. The males will come looking like they would for any other practice. This will be the only practice of the year where the women have their hair done and makeup fully applied. Again, I feel this is because, as a generality, women care way more how they look then men do.

With all of that, I feel that while the media does almost always show women outside of their sport and in a more clean and "sexy" environment, this is the way the many females wish to be portrayed as well. I know this is not true in every instance, but like with everything in life, there are always exceptions to the rule.