Gender, Sexuality and Sport

2. Gender, Sexuality and Sport Juliet Jacques Megan Worthing-Davies

3. Aims • Increase understanding and awareness of the effects of discriminatory attitudes in media reporting upon readers • Support journalists to reflect on their own reporting practices • Provide best practice examples of journalism on sexuality, gender and sport • Provide resources and awareness of campaigns that positively aim to change football culture

4. Agenda • Introduction to key issues • Reflection on personal practice • Best practice examples and approaches • Resources • Break (19.50 – 20.00) • Panel discussion • Networking (21.00)

5. Juliet Jacques • Freelance writer for newspapers, magazines & websites • Wrote Transgender Journey for Guardian (2010-12) • Cultural critic for New Statesman • Co-founder of The Justin Campaign (2008-2009) • Written on football for various publications • Independent Pink List 2012/2013 • Orwell Prize longlist 2011

6. Sexism in football • Extensive coverage of Gray and Keys – largely against them, little use of “banter” as defence • Attitudes to women’s sport often patronising • Little critique of structural issues around women’s sports – e.g. lack of funding/coaching, prejudice being people off • Coverage of women in sport often focuses on looks – especially true of women in boardroom positions • Tam Cowan mocking women’s football in Daily Record • Women’s sport gets 5% of newspaper coverage

10. Grantland: Dr V’s Magical Putter • Investigative journalism – long-form piece (Jan 2014) • Looked into story of miraculous new putter • Journalist outed creator as transsexual to investors • Piece covered Dr V’s wish for privacy and her death • Undertone of lack of respect for subject • Failure of responsibility from journalist and editors • Lack of input from any trans people on coverage • No structures in place to understand trans perspectives

13. Thomas Hitzlsperger & Robbie Rogers • Thomas Hitzlsperger – recently retired, highest-profile player to come out, after Robbie Rogers, Justin Fashanu • Robbie Rogers retired before coming out, then played again • Hitzlsperger – issue ignored within football but not media • Good coverage of support for Hitzlsperger/Rogers – positive • Regional coverage of issue – local players were supportive • Media interest in gay footballers – but what kind? • Mirror/Sun suggested it wasn’t an issue – were they right? • Does negative media coverage fuel homophobia, or make it more difficult for players to come out?

16. REFLECTIONS • GRAY & KEYS: What structural issues in football culture made them feel able to behave like this? • Which stereotypes did they use? Can they be challenged? • GRANTLAND: How else might the reporter have handled Dr V’s transgender history? • What could the editors have done differently? • HITZLSPERGER: Do the media lead fans’ opinions on sexuality/gender in sports? • What can you as journalists do to improve things?

17. Good practice: Women’s sports • Stylist campaign for fairer coverage – more women involved, and more reporting • Marina Hyde criticised Gray and Keys with mixture of political analysis and humour • Mirror coverage of Gray/Keys made clear its allegiances: their behaviour was unacceptable • Positive response to Casey Stoney coming out

20. Good practice: Trans people and sport • Lessons learned from Grantland – editor took some responsibility for errors made • Chris Ledger – In Bed With Maradona – well-researched look at legal/structural issues • JaiyahSaelua – coverage attempted to be sympathetic even if it struggled with language

22. Good practice: Gay men and sport • World Soccer – gay issue • Interviews with Hitzlsperger/Rogers – papers largely supportive of them both • Local newspaper focus on supportive players • Ed Smith on cricket – highlighted issues across sports and around prejudice and class

25. Resources - campaigns Football v Homophobia • First year 2010 • 2014 – 36 clubs confirmed actions/work • Focus on education, empowerment and building relationships within football • www.footballvhomophobia.com • @fvhtweets

26. Resources - campaigns Women in Football • Aims to improve women's representation at all levels of the game • Celebrating, lobbying, networking, mentoring • http://www.womeninfootball.co.uk/ • @WomeninFootball

27. Resources – other orgs • Pride Sports • Gay Football Supporters Network • Kick It Out • Women’s Sport and Fitness Foundation • Women in Sport

28. Resources - academia • Routledge Sport & Leisure Studies • Jayne Caudwell – Brighton University • Journal of Sport and Social Issues • International Review for the Sociology of Sport • Taylor and Francis online: Sexuality and Sport: a free article collection - http://explore.tandfonline.com/page/pgas/lgbt-month • Brackenridge, C et al (2008) A Review of Sexual Orientation in Sport  sportscotland Research Report no. 114 Available from http://www.sportni.net/SCNI/Core/CrawlerResourceServer.aspx?resource=1e0dd5d5-6923-444f-bfa0-146fc971f06f • Lawley, S (2011) ‘Sexual orientation and invisibility: Issues in LGBTI sports development and the role of LGBTI sports groups’. Leisure Studies Association Newsletter, March 2011 email scott.lawley@ntu.ac.uk for copy • Griffin, P. (1998). Strong women, deep closets: lesbians and homophobia in sport. Human Kinetics Publishers. • Wellard, I. (2009). Sport, masculinities and the body. Routledge.

29. Resources - media • Trans Media Watch • All About Trans • She Kicks – women’s football magazine • Leagues Behind - Stonewall report on homophobia in football (2009) • FvH fanzine

30. Panel discussion Shelley Alexander Juliet Jacques Scott Lawley Musa Okwonga