Woman In Sports
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Title IX, Media, and The Professionalization of WomenĘs Sports have significantly broadened my understanding of women in sports and other forms of physical activity. One significant piece of knowledge I learned from all the articles is how our attitudes and values in society are a product of economics, the media, legislation, and the power of the status quo to maintain its values and attitudes as mainstream values and attitudes. Specifically, in Title IX, Lopiano describes the language of this Education Amendment Act of 1972 that represents an extension of the Civil Rights Act of 1964:No person in the U.S. shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any educational program of activity receiving federal financial assistance (1174). Since Title IX, increasing numbers of women have crossed the male barrier in collegiate and professional sports because of this legislation. Despite Title IX, however, we see that values and attitudes of women and sports reinforced in the media and by corporate sponsors led to the need for such legislation to help create a level playing field for male and female athletes. The need for such legislation is engendered by the negative portrayals of women in the media with respect to sports, particularly in the years before the passage of Title IX. Media portrayals of women often include a double standard with respect to sports. The very qualit
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fluence of economics (male sports pay off; female sports do not) as it is from traditional stereotypes about male and female involvement in sports.
One can see that these articles add to a greater understanding of female participation in sports and its impact on both males and females. However, it also clearly exposes the connection between economics, legislation, the media, and the power of the status quo in forming mainstream values and attitudes. So, too, such elements influence the psyche of women who participate in sports as much as they underlie the perception of different roles for women and men. Only when such influences work to promote a true level playing field in sports will female participation actually increase self-control and enable a fulfilling personal and professional life for women.
The two discussion questions I would like to propose are as follows:
1) How can female athletes exert a more positive influence on the media and consumers with respect to achieving a model of sports participation that is not based on conventional male models of sport?
2) If economics, the status quo, legislation and the media determine the perceptions of women in sports and if women in sports must work within the framework of male
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Some common words found in the essay are:
Title IX, IX Media, Games Olympic-like, Chandler Media, Committee Pfister, Olympic Games, Gay Games, Games Media, WomenĘs Sports, Olympics Olympics, female athletes, title ix, women sports, participation sports, gay games, male athletes, sports women, values attitudes, female participation, female participation sports, status quo, women sports women, male models sport, uneven playing field, abandon own identity,
Approximate Word count = 2280
Approximate Pages = 9 (250 words per page)
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