Media Portrayals of Male and Female Athletes

The purpose of this study was to examine British national newspaper coverage of male and female athletes competing at the Olympic Games since 1948. A content analysis was utilized to compare all articles and photographs of male and female track and field athletes in two British national newspapers. This study highlighted that within both newspapers, The Times and the Daily Mail, coverage dedicated to track and field events has increased dramatically since 1948. Although differences were found, generally the results showed that, compared with men, female athletes were underrepresented until the 2004 Athens Games. Although this study highlights that participating female track and field athletes have received greater newspaper equality in recent years, the profession of sports journalism is still dominated by men. Reasons for the findings are discussed.