The Olympics has been an amazing display of female talent and badassery. Last night, I watched in awe as Simon Biles graced the beam in a near-perfect performance. But I haven’t been impressed by the sexist way the media are covering these talented athletes. The media have minimized their accomplishments and insulted female viewers. Check out these three ways the media have been sexist in Rio.
1. Dan Hicks, an NBC Olympics commentator, credited Katinka Hosszu’s husband for her gold medal. After the Hungarian swimmer won the gold medal in the 400-meter individual medley, Hicks turned to her husband, who’s also her coach, and said, “and there’s the man responsible, ” per The Washington Post. This sparked justifiable outrage across social media, as surely Hosszu is the one ‘responsible’ for her incredible achievement.
2. The Chicago Tribune described bronze medalist Corey Cogdell as “the wife of Bears lineman Mitch Unrein,” and placed her marital status before her athletic achievements. This trapshooter’s accomplishments were overshadowed by information about her husband’s training camp, which was featured in the article! Apparently, her husband’s pre-season schedule is more important than an Olympic medal.
3. NBC justified delaying the Olympics for an hour because women “are not interested in results, ” per The New York Daily News. The Olympics was played an hour later, which is strange because social media is filled with spoilers and live results. When NBC Olympics Chief Marketing Officer, John Miller was asked about the delay, he responded, “The people who watch the Olympics are not particularly sports fans. More women watch the Games than men, and for the women, they’re less interested in the result and more interested in the journey.” Since when do women not like sports results?
Let’s hope the media shapes up for the remainder of the games. These athletes deserve better!
(Photos from Corey Cogdell, Olympics Rio)
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