Fansided

Nine times female sports fan engagement was condescending and sexist

By Dani Bostick

Apr 18, 2016; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Dallas Mavericks center Salah Mejri (50) and Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban celebrate after defeating the Oklahoma City Thunder 85-84 in game two of the first round of the NBA Playoffs at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 18, 2016; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Dallas Mavericks center Salah Mejri (50) and Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban celebrate after defeating the Oklahoma City Thunder 85-84 in game two of the first round of the NBA Playoffs at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports /
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1. NBC’s Rio Olympic coverage.

How committed was NBC to the female fan experience? So committed that they risked alienating all of their other viewers in order to accommodate non-male fans. It was totally worth it, though. Here’s what John Miller, the chief marketing officer of the NBC Olympics man-splained, according to Jonathan Tannenwald of the Philadelphia Inquirer:

"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. It’s sort of like the ultimate reality show and mini-series wrapped into one. And to tell the truth, it has been the complaint of a few sports writers. It has not been the complaint of the vast viewing public."

The ultimate reality show and mini-series! What a great way to ruin the Olympics and offend women at the same time. How did this play out? There seemed to be fewer events with “LIVE” in the upper right-hand corner than tape-delay reruns.

As a nice touch, producers inserted shots of the various venues for prime time viewing in order to create the illusion that sports were actually happening inside, even though the competitions had occurred hours earlier.  Since women love drama and gossip, NBC made sure to fill up much of their prime-time coverage with details of the Ryan Lochte scandal, preempting coverage of actual sports.

There was also the incredibly awkward and uncomfortable Oiling Down of the Tongan by Several Women (OSDTSW) during NBC’s Olympic coverage. NBC commentators and other journalists made sure to emphasize female athletes’ husbands and children, perhaps in an attempt of keeping things accessible for the reality-TV loving housewives watching back home. Dana Vollmer could not escape the epithet “new mom,” while any male relative of successful female athletes received plenty of coverage.

Commentator Dan Hicks said that swimmer Katinka Hosszu’s coach-husband was “the person responsible for her performance” after she set a world record. Viewers were also reminded that trap shooting bronze medalist Corey Cogdell-Unrein is the wife of a Chicago Bears lineman. And, we can’t forget that high jumper Vashti Cunningham owes her athleticism to her superstar father, NFL great Randall Cunningham.  Three-time Super Bowl champion Michael Carter can take credit for the gold-medal shot put performance by his daughter Michelle Carter.

Next: Special Bonus: Is your fan outreach sexist?

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