A video has emerged that paints a bleak picture of the culture of sports media here in Australia.
In sharp brush strokes, it's illustrated a blokey culture steeped in sexism and homophobia. For many
watching the story unfold, there was a feeling of deja vu, an uncomfortable and frustrating
familiarity to the words and their purpose.
I couldn't link to the video, but this is a brief transcript I've written of the offending section of the
interview with FOX sports reporter Tom Morris "defending" past homophobic comments made about
fellow FOX sports journalist Megan Barnard:
At the end of his spiel, in his defence, he claimed he “was a man, and a man with a heart, and I've
got feelings. Don't treat me like shit [a male voice in the crown had called him “a cunt”.]
Too many people who should know better dismiss this as simply acceptable "banter". But it's incorrect
and misguided to not see this behaviour as symptomatic of the ways in which women are othered and
isolated in sports media. Research into the demographics of sports journalism has consistently shown
that sport, unlike so many other areas of life, has doggedly resisted embracing gender equity and
continues to be a field dominated by men.
One report analysed gender in Australian media and found that "sport is by far the most gendered of
all topic areas", finding that men wrote 87% of all sport stories. Worse, 84% of quotes in sports
journalism were attributed to male sportspeople.
In my scenario above, Megan Barnard is one of Australia's foremost sports journalists, and holds a
Bachelor of Mass Communication, majoring in journalism, from the Queensland University in Brisbane.
She has 14 years of sports media experience (Tom Morris has 6 years experience).
In any event, Morris was sacked by FOX on the spot, and I'm guessing—hoping?—that this offensive
public commentary marks the end of his journalistic career.
—I'm left wondering if this is isolated to Australia, or if it's also endemic to the USA, Canada, the UK, or
other European countries?
In sharp brush strokes, it's illustrated a blokey culture steeped in sexism and homophobia. For many
watching the story unfold, there was a feeling of deja vu, an uncomfortable and frustrating
familiarity to the words and their purpose.
I couldn't link to the video, but this is a brief transcript I've written of the offending section of the
interview with FOX sports reporter Tom Morris "defending" past homophobic comments made about
fellow FOX sports journalist Megan Barnard:
Quote:Unfortunately, she's a lesbian, lads. [background laughter] Meghan Barnard; fuckin' hot as, but—yep—unfortunately she's got a liquor license, and she's very, very good at it. [awkward background laughter]. The hottest girl at FOX by a long way. [shouted background remonstrations]
At the end of his spiel, in his defence, he claimed he “was a man, and a man with a heart, and I've
got feelings. Don't treat me like shit [a male voice in the crown had called him “a cunt”.]
Too many people who should know better dismiss this as simply acceptable "banter". But it's incorrect
and misguided to not see this behaviour as symptomatic of the ways in which women are othered and
isolated in sports media. Research into the demographics of sports journalism has consistently shown
that sport, unlike so many other areas of life, has doggedly resisted embracing gender equity and
continues to be a field dominated by men.
One report analysed gender in Australian media and found that "sport is by far the most gendered of
all topic areas", finding that men wrote 87% of all sport stories. Worse, 84% of quotes in sports
journalism were attributed to male sportspeople.
In my scenario above, Megan Barnard is one of Australia's foremost sports journalists, and holds a
Bachelor of Mass Communication, majoring in journalism, from the Queensland University in Brisbane.
She has 14 years of sports media experience (Tom Morris has 6 years experience).
In any event, Morris was sacked by FOX on the spot, and I'm guessing—hoping?—that this offensive
public commentary marks the end of his journalistic career.
—I'm left wondering if this is isolated to Australia, or if it's also endemic to the USA, Canada, the UK, or
other European countries?
I'm a creationist; I believe that man created God.
