"New Flash: Locker room talk"

The last thing that most likely comes to mind when addressing the N.F.L is a woman. What we usually think about first are huge, sweaty meatheads tackling each other to the ground. Needless to say, it would be hard to associate women or feminism with this sport. However, when a sexy young news reporter steps onto the field to interview and observe, it gets talked about.

A week and a half ago, inappropriate behavior was observed by some of the New York Jets toward a female television reporter, Ines Sainz. Sainz is a Spanish reporter for Mexico’s TV Azteca and was doing a story on Mark Sanchez. Apparently coaches were purposely throwing the ball out of bounds towards her and making snide comments to her and about her in the locker room. It’s unknown what was said or even if these allegations are true but it makes one wonder: Are professional athletes really acting this unprofessional? Was this behavior provoked in any way? As I looked through the articles on this topic, I found a lot of interesting pieces of information about the incident. For instance, many reporters are saying Sainz was asking for this attention—that what she wears is inappropriate and attention getting. So I guess having attractive women, or women at all, in a professional sports setting is too much for the program to handle. The league and every other professional athletic organization should have equal standards for female and male employees alike involved in Media relations.

Society upholds hidden rules and boundaries for men and women that are imbedded in our every day lives so it’s hard to notice. But when it is addressed to the public, we begin to question it. For instance why now, after this incident are we just realizing the fact that men are allowed in female athletes’ locker rooms (like in the W.N.B.A) and women shouldn’t be allowed to be in mens’? Is it because female reporters have a hidden agenda and really just want to see a “pro baller” naked? Or is it because the athletes feel like females will hit on them? In class we touched upon the idea that society inadvertently sets particular standards and rules in the workplace. Women, who have a good job and are paid well, are seen as threatening and perhaps got the job because of the way she looks or some another underhanded way. Some N.F.L executives “rationalize that the exclusion or limitation of women inside a locker room is a way to avoid possible conflicts: romantic liaisons or players making advances that could result in jealous wives or girlfriends”(Rhoden, NY Times). So the presence of a woman in a man’s locker room is now a threat to girlfriends and wives? What about men in women’s locker rooms? If having an attractive women in a locker room is seen as a potential threat to players and their romantic relationships, shouldn’t the same thought come up for men? On the other hand, along with all the N.F.L bashing, people are starting to question Sainz’s motives. Some people are saying that with the way she dresses, she’s asking for attention.

The status of women in the N.F.L, as well as other professional athletic organizations has a significantly smaller number of women employees than men. Not to mention, I’d assume that the women that do work in these organizations are very well informed with the sport and are good at what they do and were hired because they deserved it. Sainz Ines seems to make these women look bad. From my standpoint, I agree with the critics and believe she was asking for the snide comments and extra attention. The link below shows what she typically wears on the job. I don’t watch football that often but I’m pretty sure most interviewers don’t wear skintight jeans and especially revealing tops.

Once the AWSM (Association for Women in Sports Media) got word of the scandal, they went to action immediately—trying to find a way to alleviate the situation. However Ines felt that their involvement created an imposition. She tweeted harshly asking why the AWSM had acted so impulsively. She was confused at the nerve of people to “question whether [she] was somehow to blame for what supposedly happened considering the fact that [her] image could be attractive to players”. “Sainz also said she was unhappy with the way the media covered the incident and believes that it set back the women's rights movement by ‘at least 50 years’ (Kloplan, Huffington Post)”. Personally, I don’t think Sainz knows what she is talking about but I find it interesting how her actions say one thing while she says another.

The debate over who is allowed into locker rooms is now full fledge because of this scandal. I think for this to go away, there should be a longer time period after a game for a brief cooling off time for the players. That way, there won’t be nakedness or anything inappropriate for women to see while in the locker rooms. I don’t think women shouldn’t be allowed in locker rooms, however with this time allotment, the controversy over this petty argument shouldn’t be an issue. The issue with women in locker rooms is one thing, but what about the status of women in the N.F.L? I think there could be a lot more room for more women on media relations staff. If this happened maybe “the rules of engagement between the news media and athletes will become less contentious”(Rhoden, NY Times). People might begin to respect the fact that more women are there and doing their job as good as (if not, better than) men.

I don’t think there were any readings we have gone through in class that have good evidence for this particular issue, however there are some class discussions where we spoke about women and sports and women in the media that can relate. First of all, being an athlete my whole life has made me impartial to things regarding women and athletics. As I said in the beginning of this piece, when one thinks of football, femininity is not the first thing that comes to mind (unless you’re thinking about the half naked cheer leaders on the sidelines). I have no problem with this however—there is a reason for men’s sports and women’s sports to be separate and that is fine with me, but what I was upset about was how Sainz conducted herself. If I was a reporter, I would have come to my job looking professional and not like I was about to go out clubbing. I think that especially for women in a work environment, in order for us to be respected, we need to look the part. And it’s unfortunate that I have to say that but especially today, women need to look the part ifthey want to gain some respect. I think Sainz gave all women a bad name when she expected to be fully respected while going to work in what she was wearing.

Additionally, I think that what can be noted from this scandal is the idea of “embedded feminism”. The media creates this illusion that there are lots of powerful women out in the world and creates this fallacy that feminism is done. But when women handle themselves the way that Ines did, what people see isn’t the fact that there is finally a female reporter out there, but that this particular female reporter is a joke. How can we expect society to respect women’s efforts to keep moving up at a professional level when we have women like Ines Sainz re-establishing the stereotype that women and sports do not mix? It’s frustrating for especially, because being a sports reporter or something involved in sports media is something I am potentially interested in having a career in. I love seeing women on TV at sporting events. It makes me happy to know that there are women that are passionate about athletics and are good at what they do. I think that it is something to be respected and I would only be so lucky to have a job like that when I am older.

Works Cited

-"Ines Sainz Was Treated Unprofessionally By Jets, NFL Says." Huffington Post. 18 Sept. 2010. Web. 25 Sept. 2010.

-Klopman, Michael. "Ines Sainz Bashes Association For Women In Sports Media." Huffington Post. 22 Sept. 2010. Web. 30 Sept. 2010. .

-Rhoden, William C. "Limits on Women Reinforce N.F.L's Boys' Club Mentality." The New York Times. 17 Sept. 2010. Web. 25 Sept. 2010. .