Female Athlete Representation in Sports Media Blog 2

            The sports world has always been a male dominated industry. Female representation has been minimal and bigger coverage on female athletes is usually connected to a negative storyline. In recent news Maria Sharapova, the world’s highest paid female athlete, announced to the world that she had tested positive for the banned substance meldonium at the Australian Open giving her a suspension from tennis. In July 2015, WNBA players Glory Johnson and Britney Griner were arrested on domestic violence charges. Super star tennis player Serena Williams gets spotlighted more in the media for her body type instead of success on the court. Instead of highlighting and praising female athletes for their achievements, the sports industry belittles female athletes.

             Maria Sharapova recently tested positive for the banned substance meldonium at the Australian open. She received a provisional suspension from tennis following a ruling in the case. She also immediately lost a majority of her endorsement from sponsors. This comes as a major misfortune to female athletes, “But Sharapova’s suspension is clearly a major blow to the women’s game, and it remains unclear if and when Sharapova will play again” (Clarey & Tierney, NYTimes). This positive test for a banned substance may ultimately be the end to her career sports analysts predict. However, there have been several instances where major male sports figures have tested positive for banned substance s and have come back from their suspension to successful careers. Alex Rodriguez missed the entire 2014 MLB season, including playoff games. Alex Rodriguez was found guilty of abusing the major league baseballs banned substance policy by using steroids. “This present characterization suggests that the inability to quantify the influence of steroids enables the presumption to lie with the natural talent” (Johnson & Von Burg, 361). Before the news broke about his steroid use analyst would always talk about how he would definitely be in the hall of fame and of all his success on the field. Maria Sharapova admits her mistakes and some analysts say her career is over, Alex Rodriguez misses an entire season because of his steroid use and instantly made a come back is playing hos final season now in 2016. Both are respected athletes in their sports but Maria Sharapova admits to her mistake and her career comes to an abrupt end.

            Domestic disputes have surprisingly become reoccurring news in the sports world. In July 2015, WNBS players Glory Jones and Britney Gringer were arrested on domestic violence charges. “The couple began arguing and “throwing things at each other” on Wednesday afternoon, and Johnson’s sister called the police after the players could not be separated” (Longman, NYTimes). Another notable domestic dispute that has recently occurred was the Ray Rice case. Ray Rice was recorded hitting his wife and then dragging her out of the elevator. This video caused such an uproar because it was shown to the public and it was rumored that the commissioner of the NFL saw it and never reprimanded Rice. Two years since the incident, Ray Rice is trying to fix his reputation and help others not make the mistake he committed, “Two-plus years after the fateful incident, Rice is now a fixture at New Rochelle High School in New York, his alma mater, and spends time with students at his college alma mater, Rutgers. Rice also gives speeches to a number of community organizations” (Jacobs, Sports Illustrated). As for his hope to get back on the field, it is unlikely. In the case of Grinner and Johnson, the WNBA stated that they were looking for more information on whether or not to take any further actions. Another super star female athlete that was in the spotlight was Olympic athlete Hope Solo. Solo was charged with misdemeanor domestic violence charges. All of the Chargers were eventually dropped and Solo remains a starter for the Women's American soccer team. Since it is usually unheard of females in domestic disputes. When it comes to news coverage on domestic disputes, women get less coverage. The Hope Solo and Britney Griner cases were not given as much coverage compared to Ray Rice’s case. Even in the coverage of what happened with Rice it was more focused on how this would further affect his NFL career and not on how heinous the crime he committed was.

            Serena Williams is one of the best female tennis players of our time. Williams has twenty-one grand slam titles and one Olympic medal to her name. But subsequently the media has a habit of brining attention to her body, instead of her athletic talent and achievements, “Russian tennis chief Shamil Tarpischev was rightly fined for snarking on the bodies of “the Williams brothers” and declaring, “It’s frightening when you look at them” (Williams, Salon). This is absolutely incredible that in the society that we live in today a female athlete is body shamed for the body that got her to her success. Serena Williams has over come so many obstacles in life to gain her success and her body should definitely not be he target of such ignorance. When it comes to male athletes it is always praise they get for their bodies and achievements. Even heavier players like Pablo Sandoval are seen as “fit” because even with their excess weight, they still preform well in their sports. Body shaming is nothing new for women but it is sad that even when you are successful female athlete, you still get body shamed.

            It is obvious that there is still a long way to go for women in the sports industry. Whether it is getting fair treatment or general acceptance for who they are and what their bodies look like, there needs to be improvements. It is time that the sports industry changes its ways and treats male and female the same. A start would be to end body shaming because it is unbelievable that is even a problem. A step from there would be to treat all violations the same, instead of saying just because she did this her career is over and then if a man was to do it he would just bounce back and have another successful season.

Work Cited

Clarey, Christopher, and Mike Tierney. "Maria Sharapova Admits Taking Meldonium, Drug Newly Banned by Tennis." The New York Times. The New York Times, 07 Mar. 2016. Web. 11 Apr. 2016.

Jacobs, Melissa. "Ray Rice Talks about His Day-to-day Life." Week Under Review: Ray Rice Deserves a Second Chance. N.p., 10 Apr. 2016. Web. 11 Apr. 2016.

Longman, Jeré. "Brittney Griner Arrested With Fiancée Glory Johnson." The New York Times. The New York Times, 23 Apr. 2015. Web. 11 Apr. 2016.

Williams, Mary Elizabeth. "Even the New York Times Is Body-shaming Serena Williams Now: It’s Time to Break This Absurd and Insulting Habit Once and for All." Saloncom RSS. N.p., 13 July 2015. Web. 11 Apr. 2016.

Von Burg, Ron, and Paul E. Johnson. "Yearning for a past that never was: Baseball, steroids, and the anxiety of the American dream." Critical Studies in Media Communication 26.4 (2009): 351-371.