Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Sex Harrassment in Sports Reporting: What Got To Me Today

There has been a lot of hubbub about Mexican sports reporter Ines Sainz and whether or not she instigated cat calls in the locker room while covering the NY Jets, because she is stunningly beautiful and does not dress in a shy manner.  This blog isn't about her today.  It was going to be, but there are two sides to her story, everyone is covering it...blah blah blah...my opinion on the matter is no woman at anytime should be verbally abused period, don't care if she's naked.  IF she is or dresses unprofessionally, that is poor judgment on her part but doesn't excuse derogatory comments.   Now, on to my next point.

I want to be very clear here...I do a blog called Sports For Chicks.  In that blog I do sometimes reference a great looking bicep, a gorgeous face, or even how "generally" awesome someone looks in their tennis outfit (fashion is a chick's second language, doesn't matter who is wearing it!). Never do I inappropriately comment on a person's body, or make any inappropriate suggestions/innuendo therein.  And always, the fluff comments are color commentary for the substance.  I talk sports first, tasteful flattery second.

Imagine how surprised I was then, and admittedly naive, to find a website (while researching the Sainz story) who's sole purpose was to sexualize and exploit female sports reporters. This "guy" who calls himself HogWild and considers himself a dating expert (gag!) has a page where he pictures his top five hottest women who report on the sidelines.  Not only does he post their photos, but the captions underneath those photos are disgusting. He speaks of what he'd like to do to the women, exploits their sexual body parts, and makes jokes about his own physical reactions to the pictures.  As his name depicts, he is a pig.  He is also a coward.  If he yelled out the things he posts on his site, down to the sidelines toward one of those women reporters, he'd get kicked out of the venue.

I understand there is free speech on the internet.  Mr. Pig does have the right to say what he wants.   What I'm hoping to do is to make people aware of such sites, and encourage them to boycott them.  Again, I appreciate the handsomeness of an athlete, (as does the Swuiss Chocolate company who, in one of their commercials, has Federer going through airport security, questioned by two female officers), but there are lines that aren't to be crossed.

The other bummer is how bad this pig makes men appear.  He talks like all men share his opinion.  I'm sure he has some followers, but real men don't behave in such a manner.  I guess if Mr. Pig is a dating expert, he is bound to find out that real chicks don't like what he is dishing out.  Yuck.