Women in sports media remain committed to jobs despite abuse, harassment

Most women who work in sports media say they are satisfied with their career choice despite discrimination and abuse, according to a just-released study.

Three decades after passage of Title IX, women who work in sports journalism and sports information face serious obstacles to tenure and advancement, according to a survey by the Center for Sports Journalism at Penn State. Most women report that they have experienced sexual discrimination on the job, and almost half say they have been verbally abused.

But overall, they say the job is still satisfying enough to offset a sometimes-hostile workplace. The findings echo those of earlier studies, said Marie Hardin, an assistant professor of communications the College of Communications at Penn State and associate director of the center.

"Contrary to the stereotype, women are interested in sports and in covering sports," said Hardin. "But women who get into it still aren't fully accepted -- they face discrimination on a pretty routine basis." Hardin said women who took the survey related stories of harassment from colleagues and fans who berated them as unqualified to cover sports.

But harassment is not enough to force women out of their careers, according to survey results. Instead, the biggest reasons women cite for leaving their jobs are lack of advancement and the impact of their job on their lives outside of work.

"Those factors need to be addressed by employers," Hardin said. "Well-qualified women still work in a good-old-boys environment that can keep them from moving ahead. That's a tough pill to swallow when combined with the sacrifices they make in terms of time with their families."

The survey also asked respondents about coverage of women's sports. Although most believe coverage of women's sports is inadequate and that female athletes are stereotyped, many say they're not willing to lobby for better coverage. They also do not believe adding more women to newspaper sports departments or broadcasts will help women's sports get more exposure.

Only about 11 percent of full-time employees in sports at the nation's largest newspapers are women. Fewer women work in sports broadcasting.

The study, published in the current issue of Journalism and Mass Communication Quarterly, surveyed members of the Association for Women in Sports Media, a national organization of women working in print, online or broadcast media and in sports information. The organization meets later this month in Baltimore.