University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses

The mistreatment and misrepresentation of Black women in sports media must stop

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The mistreatment and misrepresentation of Black women in sports media must stop

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Content Copyright 2021 Lachelle B. Smith

The Mistreatment and Misrepresentation
of Black Women in Sports Media Must Stop.

by
Lachelle B. Smith

A Thesis Presented to the
FACULTY OF THE USC ANNENBERG SCHOOL FOR COMMUNICATION AND
JOURNALISM
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree
MASTER OF ARTS
(SPECIALIZED JOURNALISM)

August 2021

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

This thesis would not be possible without the help and guidance from the committee. Thank you
to my thesis chair, Sandy Tolan and my committee members Miki Turner and Dr. Allissa Richardson. I’m
grateful for your patience and willingness to help me understand the depths of real journalism.
Thank you to my family for continuously being present in my life and academic journey. The
love and support that you have given me as I encountered challenging times in graduate school is a big
reason I was able to persevere through the end. To my parents that drove 1,400 miles with me from
Louisiana to California in August of 2020 to have my back on me pursuing journalism with my whole
heart, because of both of you I am able to follow my dreams on the wings of your many prayers. Thank
you to my older brother for being my voice of resilience and reminding me that I was meant to be in these
spaces to thrive to my highest potential.
Thank you to my friends who were my shoulders to lean on when I needed encouragement and a
much needed break from this thesis project. Thank you to members of my cohort, we supported each
other throughout this time and all of you have inspired me in ways you would not be able to imagine.
Thank you to Annenberg for welcoming me into this elite company of journalists and giving me
the confidence to embark on my journalistic career. Thank you to everyone who encouraged, helped, and
prayed for me throughout this process, my appreciation goes beyond words.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS………………………………………………………………….ii
ABSTRACT…………………………………………………………………………………..iv
Growing up I never saw a lot of Black women talking sports on TV……………………...1
The Hair Bear……………………………………………………………………………....2
The media industry resembles the identity of this country………………………………...4
Two Black women navigating their way into sports journalist…………………………...10
The only way to make progress is to have allies in the fight……………………………....17
Black creatives are making their own way………………………………………………....21
The fear of not making it in this industry is no longer there……………………………...24
BIBLIOGRAPHY…………………………………………………………………………...26

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ABSTRACT
The following thesis encompasses multiple interviews and personal stories that cover the problem
of diversity in the sports media industry. These interviews are to give first-hand experience that many
Black women in the journalism industry have faced and serve as a call to action for better representation
and treatment for all Black women but in particular in the media profession.
Throughout the project the main focus was to show the harsh truth that many Black
women deal with in sports media. While showing that truth, it also brings to light the lack of diversity in
these newsrooms and organizations. That same lack is accompanied by the few Black women that have
preserved throughout their careers to find themselves at the top of it and despite being at the top are still
having to go through unacceptable treatment.
The first part of this essay details growing up with a passion for sports and knowing at an early
age that I wanted to be one of the few Black women that I knew of getting to report on all-things sports.
What at first was meant to be as a way for me to interact with my brother turned into a dream that has
steered a big part of my life.
This essay also includes interviews with Black women who are all trying to navigate the
competitive industry as working professionals or recent graduates. All of them recount their experiences,
feelings, and futures as they talk about their careers and the painful trials they have encountered
throughout their time as they try to be a Black woman in sports.
The work will provide insight and encourage readers that relate to these struggles to keep pushing
forward in the industry because it is time for a shift in representation for Black women and it is to push
the conversation to the people in charge that making safe and welcoming working environments for
Black women should be a top priority.
1
Growing up I never saw a lot of Black women talking sports on TV

The South is different when it comes to sports. Football is a religion —especially in Louisiana.
Boys, and girls, grow up knowing how to throw a football before they learn to tie their shoes. During my
lunch break at Evangel Christian Academy, I would engage in arguments about the best player in the
NBA. For me, it was LeBron. Others would say it was Kobe Bryant.

Early Saturday mornings I would run outside and grab The Shreveport Times from our driveway.
I’d sift through the paper as quickly as I could to get to the sports section and see how many tackles my
brother had in Friday night’s game .

That love crafted a dream inside of me but, in all the time I spent watching ESPN at the age of 8
years old, with my brother, I almost never saw anyone that looked like me: A Black woman with a
passion to talk about sports and the platform to exhibit that knowledge unapologetically. Sure, I had the
occasional fleeting glimpse of Jemele Hill debating on her show in 2013 or Cari Champion hosting First
Take in 2012, but for me, these were the rare exceptions.

On Sunday nights I would see some of the NFL reporting trail blazers — Lisa Salters and Pam
Oliver. In 2005 when it came to football Oliver was the only Black woman I associated with the NFL. I
look back now and realize how monumental it was to see Oliver during primetime football. My 8-year-
old self wasn’t able to rationalize that Oliver was an anomaly and considered one of the special ones. I
knew I never saw a lot of Black women but I was naive to the limitations of the why and how.

The representation was not there. Barely four percent of sports journalists at major publications,
according to ESPN, are Black women (Lapchick, 2018). For television specifically, the Women’s Media
center reported that barely one in five sports reporters are women, and less than two percent were Black
women (Women’s Media Center, 2017).
2

In my junior year of college at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette in 2018, I committed to
becoming a sports broadcast journalist. I saw firsthand the barriers that were set in place to make this
journey a challenging one.

That fall, I entered my first broadcast class with my TV production professor, a white man and
former TV station videographer,who appeared to treat black and white students differently. Some of my
classmates and I began to think that he had issues with our hair. My professor was not alone. Somehow,
across the industry, certain hairstyles – for Black women - are deemed unacceptable (Callahan, 2019).

But, I put the thought out of my mind and focused on being the best in the class.

We all had this collective assumption that he was talking to us because we understood how our
culture viewed hairstyles and how the industry viewed it. In Black communities changing your hairstyle
is a form of personal expression and beauty.

This professor didn’t know the negative impact he was having on me and the rest of the Black
students. He was proving to us that it was taboo for Black women to culturally express themselves on TV
and that those who did would struggle to land on-air jobs.

The Hair Bear

“There's so many people that don't know what my natural hair looks like. Because for many
years, I've masked it trying to fit into what people wanted me to be in this industry,” said Alyssia Graves.

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Because Graves wanted to be seen as “professional” she damaged her hair by continuously
straightening it and only dying it Black because she was fearful that her desire to dye her hair blonde
wouldn’t be accepted (interview, Graves, 2021).

I later would read Treasure Roberts, a 24-year-old reporter and fill-in anchor for WMBD/WYZZ,
would be bullied into keeping her hair in an unhealthy state because the director felt it was
“unprofessional” to have braids in (Yates, 2020). Roberts would also be advised to leave the clips of her
with braids in so that she would have a greater chance of getting a job.

There would be a similar situation with Brittany Noble Jones, a former news anchor in Jackson,
Mississippi would change from her traditional short bob-like hairstyle to her natural hair. After having a
child and wanting to show her how to embrace her hair, the news director would tell Noble Jones that her
natural hair was not professional for the station (Callahan, 2019).

Dr. Julie Rousseau is an expert in gender studies and the intersectionalities that are encompassed
in the psychological effects certain treatments can have on Black women. Dr. Rousseau has an extensive
resume and was the head coach of the Los Angeles Sparks in the late 90s when the WNBA was taking off
being one of the few Black women in that space..

From firsthand experience and observation in her study, Dr. Rousseau concluded that the stresses
and pressures Black women faced on the job were not normal for other groups of people (interview, Dr.
Rousseau, 2021).

“The psychological part of it is that it's easy to hire someone that looks like me or has the same
type of mindset, socioeconomic status, race, and gender, so it perpetuates itself. When we think about
creating a more diverse, equitable and inclusive environment, we have to really be intentional,” Dr.
4
Rousseau explained. “If you want to be more diverse and inclusive, and making that environment…..it
really begins at the hiring and the retention.”

When Black women join those environments, the isolation and exclusion starts to wear on them.
From feeling forced to conform to what is acceptable. The toll it starts to take on them mentally and
physically is severe (interview, Dr. Rousseau, 2021).

Ultimately this mantra made me leery of wanting to ever express myself with my own hair and I
fell into the trap of believing wearing straight long extensions was the best appearance for me on camera.
I didn’t know at the time how common this type of mistreatment was in the media industry during 2018.

“Isolation, cognitively wears on you. So you're having to muster up more energy and more effort
than someone else who's in an environment that is a part of the in-group,” Dr. Rousseau said. Being twice
as good and having to constantly suppress those feelings are not beneficial for any employee.

“These are experiences that not only make us have to conform, and not bring our full selves to
the environment, whereas others maybe, white women, non BIPAP, BIPOC, non-Black women, don’t
have to change who they are or conform in order to be accepted,” Dr. Rousseau said.

The media industry resembles the identity of this country

Alyssia Graves, a 23-year-old Athletes Unlimited Lacrosse reporter, can vividly remember how
she felt as a 19-year-old journalism student at the Ohio State University in 2017.

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She was grateful for the experience and education she received from Ohio State and credits the
university with helping her secure the internships and jobs she got during her time as a student. All of
those experiences helped prepare her for her current career. career now (interview, Graves, 2021).

Graves still remembers the chills she would get traveling to the games, and feeling the pride of
the Buckeye nation. “I have the greatest pictures that I look back on in videos that I still have in my
phone. Those are moments that I can never get back that will stay with me. The feeling I had, the chills in
certain games and experiences, you'll never feel again,” Graves said.

Yet, she did have some issues at OSU (interview, Graves, 2021).

Graves worked in the football department and at the time couldn’t speak out about some of the
negative experiences she endured as a student worker because she didn’t want to jeopardize her media
access to the team while being a student (interview, Graves, 2021).

For that entire year she would travel with the football team and her four supervisors. Her
supervisors were four white men that Graves says were incredibly nice to her and made the job enjoyable
(interview, Graves, 2021). She does not blame them for her feeling alienated while reporting on the team
from others in tha program.

“I spent a lot of nights in hotel rooms crying, because I was so defeated from the experience,”
Graves said. She makes clear that the players at Ohio State always treated her with the utmost respect and
that they were not the cause of her pain.

“They [Ohio State football players] really are not the root of the problem when I think it comes to
seeing black reporters because they want it,” Graves said. “It was hard because having built those
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relationships with certain players, I got looked at differently because I was a woman and I was a Black
woman. So people think you're dating them or they think you're sleeping with them, or they think you got
some other way in.”

Her tears manifested her feelings of isolation. Some say that what Graves was feeling doesn’t
equate to a problem since some of her experiences may not be deemed “traumatic.” But, as Dr. Rousseau
explained, feelings of isolation and exclusion give birth to traumatic experiences that only people who
have experienced it can understand (interview, Dr. Rousseau, 2021).

Graves battled the emotional burdens of being new in this profession as a Black woman. She felt
the tension as she would walk into a room as though no one wanted her to be there (interview, Graves,
2021). The looks and stares that the veteran journalist that was a room full of white writers and journalists
would look at Graves and make her feel unwelcome with their cold looks. They knew she existed but
Graves often felt completely ignored.

It was rare for Graves to hear a “hello” or “how are you doing,” while doing her job in the
facility. Graves doesn’t divulge all of what she experienced but assured me she could write an entire book
on the things that she negatively experienced while working in the department.

“I spent every day covering either Ohio State football or Ohio State basketball, it was every day
of my life,” Graves said. But she was uneasy about how she would be perceived by others with her
appearance in the department despite working extremely hard to gain their respect at her job.

“How should I style my hair? How should I dress? How do I do my makeup today? If I dress
casually it looks bad. If I dress up, I'm doing too much,” Graves said. “You can never win in those spaces.
“I wasn’t able to be myself. I was trying to be who I thought they would accept.”
7

Despite being conscious of her appearance every day, Graves would walk into post game practice
interviews with other reporters who would never acknowledge her presence. But, there was one moment
where Graves recalls when all eyes were on her (interview, Graves, 2021).

During her time as a student, Graves was registered in a class that taught about women in the film
industry. The class was small, averaging about 20 students. While sitting in her seat on the first day of
class, she noticed a classmate of hers that happened to sit next to her.

That classmate sitting next to her was Ohio State starting quarterback —J.T. Barrett.

Barrett recognized Graves from her working in the department and they held a quick conversation
during class (interview, Graves, 2021).

Later that week as Graves was walking into the media room for the first day of covering the
Buckeyes for post practice interviews, no one spoke to her again. She was used to it but that day was
different (interview, Graves, 2021).

Barrett walked in and spoke to her.

“Everyone turned their heads,” Graves said.

“The second that JT [Barrett] came and said, “Hi.” After that moment I had every single beat
writer and reporter come up to me and ask me how I knew him and how I had that, Graves said. She felt
that they were implying that she had a romantic relationship with Barrett just because he came and spoke
to her as though they weren’t classmates. Then after that, I still was invisible to like 95% of them. But it
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was just like, a very basic and human thing. That got turned into something totally different that it didn't
need to be, because I'm a Black woman in sports. Whereas if JT [Barrett] went to any of the white beat
writers and said, ‘Hi,’ which he can do all the time and has done, nobody is turning their heads.”

That was one of the experiences that Graves felt brought the harsh reality of how this industry
looks at Black women. The assumption that she couldn’t obtain a professional or educational relationship
with a Black player. Graves would continue to feel the pressures to be accepted (interview, Graves, 2021)

“In the big scheme of things, when we would be at post practice interviews, postgame interviews,
Urban Meyer press conferences, it was tough, '' Graves said. The cold stares and purposeful disregard for
her presence in the press conferences would remind her of the obvious. “I was the only Black woman in
the room. The guy that I worked with was the only Black man in the room for much of the season.”

Graves believes that the constant ignoring she feels in the department is similar to how sports
organizations ignore the real problems that are going on inside their departments (interview, Graves,
2021). The uncomfortable conversations surrounding the social injustice of Black athletes and Black
people in the media.

“I look at how sports organizations are run the same way our country is. And I see so many
parallels. The NFL and others weren't built on those foundations, they didn't care about that. So you see it
in the way that the players are treated and when these conversations get brought up, how they diminish
black voices. So it's hard for me to be optimistic because it's like the people that are in power put this
foundation in place from the beginning.”

For Athletes Unlimited, a publication that highlights women in sports. She says it is one of the
most open and safe spaces she’s been part of, while having a real dialogue of what is going on in the
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world. Her articles are on sports and the social injustice that the women go through (interview, Graves,
2021).

“They are doing a great job of amplifying voices of marginalized communities talking about
mental health, talking about all these different things and these conversations that needed to be had,
because when they built their league, those were their top priorities,” Graves said. Graves wrote an article
in February about a Black lacrosse player, Mira Shane, she spoke on building racial equality in the sport
and her fear that being Black would prohibit her from playing (interview, Graves, 2021).

Graves knows that there are big strides to be made regarding her career. She is also aware that the
tone of this country when discussing Black people in any capacity is not where it should be and she is
hoping to help encourage that conversation (interview, Graves, 2021).

But, she is certain that she never wants to hide being a Black woman in any capacity for any job
or opportunity she may get in the future and right now. Graves can be seen with her ash blonde hair and
comfortable two-piece workout attire (interview, Graves, 2021).

“It starts with staying true to yourself. I've damaged my hair, I've changed my clothes and all
types of things in the way I thought I needed to talk and act to fit a mold that is expected of us by people
who don't even care about me,” Graves said. “I think that's the biggest thing if I could go back, I would
just want to have been authentically myself.”

Black women deserve the right to be themselves at any level of the industry. Graves strongly
believes that her experience at Ohio State helped build the boldness that is inside of her today when it
comes to standing up for herself and her Blackness (interview, Graves, 2021).

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“No one should feel the way that I did for an entire year of being judged and being
uncomfortable. Feeling like people don't respect you,” Graves said. “I don't want anyone to feel that way.
So I want women to know about my experience and hope that because of this, collectively, men and
women can come together to create an environment that is a safe space for everyone. Because it needs to
be because sports are for everyone.”

Two Black women navigating their way into sports journalism

A version of the following essay was used in 2021.

As a young journalist looking to get in this competitive market, I pay close attention to other
Black women working in the industry, aspiring to move into bigger markets in the near future.

The climb up the ladder of sports journalism is difficult for anyone, but even harder for Black
women as they try to keep their heads down and make the best out of every situation.

Black women are told throughout their academic and professional careers: Work twice as hard as
everyone else and make sure that as a Black woman you don’t offend anyone or make them
uncomfortable. The message: Shrink yourself; lessen who you are to keep a job; don’t complain that
you’re being discriminated against because of your skin color (interview, Dr. Rousseau, 2021).

Shaquira Martin is a sports reporter at a Wichita, Kansas television station, she has frequently
come up against a conservative culture unaccustomed to an outspoken Black woman from the south who
says and dresses the way she wants to (KSN-TV, 2020). This has resulted in frequent tensions with her
employers and co-workers.

There was the time when Martin, with her master’s degree in communication from Texas
Southern University, was suspended for swearing on air, even though the incident was not live and editors
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could have removed the cursing (interview, Martin, 2020). And she is frequently ridiculed by local
viewers for her appropriate size clothing that is seen as distracting.

Martin’s very presence in the industry cuts against the grain. Barely four percent of sports
journalists at major publications, according to ESPN, are Black women (Lapchick, 2018). In terms of
women sports columnist, The Athletic, a subscription based sports journalism website reported to have
four percent of Black writers, in the four percent -- zero were Black women (Phillips, 2018).

In essence these percentages show why Martin is not only fighting for her rights as a Black
woman in sports but her place as a woman in general. And she is not the anomaly in this data. Many
others that have come before face the same roadblocks. They say they are held to a different standard than
their white colleagues (interview, Martin, 2020).

“I can’t get away with anything,” says Nicole Hutchison, a Black sportscaster at KALB in
Alexandria, Louisiana (KALB Digital Team, 2020). “My co-anchor who is white can mess up an entire
sportscast and nothing will happen.” Hutchison said from her earliest moments in broadcasting, she was
constantly reminded she was a Black woman.

Hutchison is a graduate from Howard University, where she obtained many internships and jobs
with the MLB Network and Washington football team. Despite her sports background dating to her
father, former Chicago Bears running back Anthony Hutchison. She has still dealt with her fair share of
frustrations in the industry (interview, Hutchison, 2020).

“A huge double standard,” Hutchison said, “I try my best not to have any mistakes even though it
is a starter market and I am supposed to be making mistakes because at the next level it won’t be allowed.
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Little stuff like that and the level of respect that people have. It’s a lot, you just have to deal with it at this
point.”

Black women say the harsh truth is that they are not welcomed into sports media (interview,
Martin, 2020). Those who have persevered say they still have to prove their worth in every article and
broadcast.

Even Black women at the height of their fame feel vulnerable. In 2017, former ESPN columnist
and host Jemele Hill was suspended after President Trump decried Black NFL players for kneeling during
the national anthem in response to the murders of black men at the hands of police (Chiari, 2017). Trump
tweeted “Stand for the anthem or sit for the game!”

In response, Hill called Trump a white supremacist, and was suspended (Chiari, 2017). She knew
a consequence would be in her future, “I knew almost immediately that, if I did face some kind of
permanent discipline, if I did lose my job, if I was immediately suspended, I was OK with it.”

Hill said she was being punished for expressing her personal opinion, just like her white
colleagues (Flood, 2018). On the Le Batard and Friends podcast launched by ESPN, Hill says how she
did not regret what she said (Flood, 2018). “I would have felt worse if I felt I took a shot at somebody
who didn’t deserve it,” she said. “If I felt it was a mistake… I probably would have felt bad about it, but I
never did.”

For Martin, the sense of being treated differently simply because she is a Black woman was
fueled in part by an incident that she feared would lead to disciplinary action.

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The email popped up on Martin’s iPhone. She shrieked. It was from her station manager and her
alarmed reaction was almost as watching a child getting in trouble with an angry parent (interview,
Martin, 2020). Martin was just coming off a two-day suspension without pay for an avoidable incident. In
her dark blue dress,

While she was doing a “stand-up,” narrating highlights from a Wichita high school football game,
Derby and Salina South. The flashes of the players running across the field and making tackles run fluidly
while she reads her script, mispronouncing Salina as “Salana,” then throwing her script to the floor in
frustration, “Sa-Lina! Goddammit,” – she said as the camera continued recording. In subsequent takes,
Martin corrected her mistake (Jones, 2020). But the “Salana” take, and Martin’s cursing, were broadcast
that evening, despite the fact that the incident was recorded and could have been fixed before airtime.

That day a Kansas blogger mocked her : “UMMM… YOU’RE STILL ON CAMERA,” the
blogger wrote. Martin was suspended and nearly fired, leaving her to wonder why the editor hadn’t fixed
the gaffe prior to air (interview, Martin, 2020).

“I’ve come to a conclusion because the editor has been there for so long they didn’t want to fault
him,” Martin said. “The narrative of me looking guilty made more sense to them, but the fact it was pre
recorded, that pisses me off again thinking about it.”

Martin was ready to accept her fate and understood what that moment meant for her. She was
already nervous about having one of her first sports anchor jobs, being one of the only Black women
sports reporters in Kansas (interview, Martin, 2020). But she repeatedly made it clear that she felt the
handling of the situation was more personal vendetta against her than it was her own lack of
professionalism.

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Hutchison experienced something similar, when her co-anchor messed up the name of an athlete
during a sportscast, and then inserted wrong footage (interview, Hutchinson, 2020). She said he faced no
consequence, Instead, he and the news director laughed it off, even as they received multiple complaints
around the area. But, if she were to do anything like that, “But I would get crucified,” Hutchison said.

Then there is the question of clothing, and what is considered proper attire for a sportscaster,
especially in a conservative community. “We have gotten some calls from viewers about dresses/skirts
being too short or revealing,” her station manager wrote in an email. “Again – not my personal thoughts
or opinions – it’s about not being distracting to the viewer.” The email further instructed Martin to keep in
mind that Wichita is a conservative community and that she needs to adhere to the culture.

Martin, whose blue dress stopped just above her knees while she wore nude color Gucci tennis
shoes while reporting on Friday night sports (interview, Martin, 2020). Aware of her attire she did not feel
it was revealing, “I’m a representation, If I wear something that isn’t flattering, I look huge,” Martin said,
“I’ve been called everything since I’ve gotten here but a child of God.”

Many women sports reporters such as ESPN reporter Maria Taylor have been seen during
College GameDay and the NBA Draft wearing tennis shoes to match her bodycon and shift dresses as
well, no different than what Martin was wearing (Fleming, 2020).

“I'm a woman from the south who understand that I got hips and I got thighs and I had to grow
the inner confidence within myself to realize this is the body that God has given me and I can't tone it
down,” Martin said, “just like you wouldn't tone your skill sets down in the field like I can't tone down
who I am as a vibration person, to make someone else feel comfortable.”

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Martin’s experience would sound familiar to Hutchison. She, too, received a complaint from a
white woman after wearing an off the shoulder dress on air (interview, Hutchison, 2020). The email was
along the lines of saying that Hutchison looked like she was going to the club. The dress that the viewer
felt was club attire was the same dress Hutchison wore for her college graduation.

“Little things like that just suck,” Hutchison said, “Other women can get on TV with a short skirt
and it's acceptable. It’s totally acceptable for them but not for us.”

For Martin, like many of her Black women peers, the whole experience is exhausting. Like
Alyssia Graves and Nicole Hutchison, Martin has found herself on multiple occasions being the only
woman in press conferences and meeting with coaches and athletes. Her whole life she has felt as a
constant target in the eyes of people in her industry (interview, Martin, 2020). Now with her second
offense and under constant scrutiny, Martin believes the target comes from her white colleagues and
viewers – especially in a conservative town..

“So you put me in a city like Wichita and like I walk to Target and I might get a side-eye because
like I'm very aware of how I present myself I'm very aware of what I represent,” Martin proclaims, --
“When I go out, -- I will wear my Kaepernick jersey to remind people like this is still a fight that we've
been fighting I will wear my arrest the cops that kill Briana Taylor shirt because that is something that we
are still fighting.”

But Martin is still in the ring fighting. She is a Black woman who believes she must be twice as
good as the next reporter, and even then doesn’t feel acceptance (interview, Martin, 2020). “The crazy
thing is I haven’t even been at this new station for more than 70 days,” she said, “and it looks like I’m
always the problem. I know other reporters aren’t getting these same emails. They’re being told they are
doing great while I have to change.”
16

She finds it is taking its toll. “I walk into the newsroom and struggle with the feelings of
discouragement,” Martin said. She reads more of the complaints she has received about her attire and how
she needs to improve her sports knowledge because she is messing up the names of the local teams
(interview, Martin, 2020). The emails are angry and direct, leaving no room for compassion or
understanding that Martin is new to the team.

The situations don’t change, no matter how much time has passed. Press statements of diversity
and support of women of color go unheard. Words without action mean nothing and the present
representation shows that (interview, Wyche, 2021). There need to be more black women in sports and
they should not have to go through the struggle and ill-treatment to prove they belong (interview, Martin,
2020).

Hutchison has hope that the industry will not be male-dominated forever and sees that a lot more
women will start to take over the industry – including Black women, Hutchison said, “They’re looking
for Black females, and they're just looking for women in general. Because we're in this movement right
now of women empowerment, I think that they're starting to get on that wave of hiring women.”

In the meantime, Black women aspiring for careers in sports journalism continue to focus on the
work. Their focus is the only thing that keeps them going and reminds them that they are working a job
that they love despite the challenges that may arise (interview, Hutchison, 2020).

“Let’s go ladies! We are here to work,” That’s the constant affirmation from the Peloton fitness
instructor preaching to Martin in her Wichita, Kansas apartment. Before she gets prepared to go to the
station, Martin has to work out. An hour of fast peddling, she moves so quickly that one can imply that
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this isn’t just Martin going through the motions of fitness, it’s deeper than that. As the water droplets start
to smear the high definition screen, she is confused if they are tears or sweat – usually, it’s both.

A lot of Black women in the industry can relate to the things that Martin and Hutchison have had
to endure to keep their jobs and excel in sports reporting. It comes with some harsh realities that other
people won’t have to deal with. The endurance to keep fighting is difficult but Black women don’t get the
luxury of quitting simply because it gets hard (interview, Martin, 2020). They can’t quit because if they
stop, how will another little Black girl that’s watching sports with her older brother know that this
industry is meant for her?

Later, back in her Wichita apartment, Martin reclines back on her couch after a long day and
props open her laptop to check the Kansas City Chiefs game to see what she will add to her show. She
tries to regain her focus but the frustration is evident on her face as her dog hops on her lap to comfort
her. “If I quit now, there will never be change,” Martin said, “So I have to keep going not only for myself
but for the next black girl that aspires to talk sports.”

The only way to make progress is to have allies in the fight

Cydney Tindal, a 21-year-old recent electronic media graduate from Texas State University,
beams
with optimism as she talks about her love for sports and her hope of breaking into the industry.

She recounts always having a loving relationship with sports as she played throughout her school
years before heading to college (interview, Tindal, 2021).

18
“From a young age, I always knew I wanted to work in sports,” Tindal said. Texas State wasn’t
her first choice for college but Tindal is grateful for the real-world experiences she was able to gain in the
mass communication program.

Her sophomore year she could be seen holding the E symbol microphone as she helped the crew
as a fill-in while they searched for a permanent on-air talent.

Tindal is now entering a competitive and large job market where she feels prepared in her skill
sets from her experience but is not naive to the realities of being a Black woman in the job (interview,
Tindal, 2021).

“I feel like, as a woman in this industry, it's already difficult. But being a woman of color, a Black
woman, there's layers to this,” Tindal said. “ I just feel like sometimes, some people in those higher
positions, if you're preaching diversity and inclusion, then you need to act on that.”

Steve Wyche, a multimedia journalist at NFL Network widely known for breaking the Colin
Kaeperenick story of the quarterback kneeling during the national anthem, attests firsthand from a male
perspective -- that the blame Tindal is putting on the people in charge of hiring more diverse journalists is
justified (interview, Wyche, 2021).

“There are so few Black women producers, so few Black women decision makers. I don't know if
I've ever worked with maybe two or three black women editors, or producers or managers,” Wyche said.
“I have been in this business since 1989. So the people making the decisions about the Black women
behind the keyboard or in front of the camera do not represent them so therefore, that's why I think some
of the stereotypical thoughts are at the forefront.”

19
Wyche brings to the spotlight his colleague at NFL Network, MJ Acosta-Ruiz, who is the first
woman of color to be an on-air host of a show for the station. “She [Acosta-Ruiz] started in 2020. We've
been around since 2003,” Wyche said. “This is a network that covers a league that is 70% Black. Right.
This is a network you turn on, you'll see plenty of Black former players on there, right. We've had two
women of color as reporters this whole time.”

Despite the lack of Black women colleagues Wyche has seen at the network he still encourages
Black women in the industry to continue to fight through these barriers as opportunities are starting to
arise that won't limit them to particular organizations in sports (interview, Wyche, 2021). Giving credit to
the Black women he continues to see accomplishing great things, “any type of generalization to say
women don't want to be leaders is a crock. Because all I see is women, Black women trying to do their
thing.”

“If we as a Black women have the credentials, we have the qualifications, then help us get to
where we want to go,” Tindal said. “I’m not just saying give me a freebie, but at least give me the
opportunity to show you what I’m capable of.”

Allies in the fight for equality is what Tindal believes can help the progression of more Black
women in sports media. She recounts a recent conversation with a friend about how much strength it takes
as a young Black journalist to work to get noticed for her efforts whereas her other counterparts always
get a round of applause (interview, Tindal, 2021).

“It's so ingrained, not just in the industry, but when you look at our society, '' Tindal said. “In our
country it's just the way it's been, but that's how we got to break those things. And we have to have allies
who help break those things, we're 2021. We got to keep moving forward.”

20
The lack of encouragement hasn’t deterred Tindal from pursuing a career in sports. As she
doesn’t speak of a specific incident of her experience with feeling less than when it comes to holding
positions in jobs that she knows she is capable of working -- while still feeling she can’t be the star in the
room (interview, Tindal, 2021).

Tindal remembers the first few days of her internship at Texas State where she was kind of in the
corner observing how she could assert herself into the job. She quickly reminded herself, “We're here for
a reason.”

“I feel like I always try to be humble. Especially, as a Black woman and to be confident, but not
too confident,” Tindal said. “So it's trying to find that balance. Because as terrible as it sounds, people are
going to prejudge us as is. Whenever we walk through, it's already going to be there. We know that and
we've been unfortunately trained to know that. So sometimes walking into those spaces, we want to try to
be a little more quiet.”

Yet the days of being more quiet are over for Tindal as she talks about her role in helping form
Black women GALvanize, a subgroup created from the original GALvanize women in sports bootcamp
and opportunities founded by prominent sports reporter Laura Okmin (interview, Tindal, 2021).

On the website the motto is simple: “A sisterhood of women empowering women.” Throughout
the bootcamp and workshops Okmin has been able to create partnerships with multiple NFL teams where
the women in the bootcamp will work on improving their reporting skills (interview, Tindal, 2021).

Tindal says last summer the creation of Black women GALvanize came from a time of Black
women needing someone to talk when digesting all the Black trauma that was plastered on every news
outlet of the killing of George Floyd, Ahmuahd Aubrey and many others.
21

“We've created this bond, '' Tindal described. “It's been such an amazing experience.We're really
trying to make sure that we're keeping the community and space that we've created in touch and just
making sure everyone feels like they have a space. You have sisters to talk through whatever it is that you
may be going through.”

Tindal knows that her story is just a small piece of the puzzle that is Black women in sports. But,
she knows that her continued fight to belong in the business will inspire other Black girls. Her passion
and willingness to tell the stories of athletes will continue to fuel her determination (interview, Tindal,
2021).

There won’t be a huge difference today or tomorrow but the difference can be there and should be
encouraged. Embracing who they are as Black women will allow a positive message to future generations
that you can be in this business and that there is room for everyone.

“We sometimes feel like we have to change who we are to be accepted in these spaces. But that's
not how it should be,” Tindal said. “We should be able to be confident in who we are in our Blackness.
And that's who we are. I'm just hoping that as years go on and the progression that happens in that space
is more normalized like I'm here in this space because I'm here.”

Black creatives are making their own way

Robyn Neal is a proud Chicago, Illinois native and she embodies every bit of the spirit of
someone who is from Chicago —confident, bold and determined. Growing up Neal knew she wanted to
be in sports and to help people (interview, Neal, 2021).

22
After graduating from the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, Neal accepted a position at
ESPN in the production department. She spent more than three years with the company before leaving for
the NBA. Neal accepted a position at the Boston Celtics as a social media coordinator in 2019 and is
approaching her third year on the job (interview, Neal, 2021). She understands that jobs in the NBA are
limited and doesn’t take the opportunity for granted. But, she knows that there is still a lack of
representation

“There aren't many of us in an organization at all. When I walk into a room, I'm there. I don't
have to say a word. I don't have to do anything at all, you'll know I'm there. It will be my aura, my energy,
the way I dress, the way I present myself. I wear my natural hair a lot,” Neal said. “So you'll notice me
when I come into a room and come into an organization in a city that is known for what it's known for, I
immediately turn heads from the moment I interview.”

Neal says that some of the welcoming conversations from the organization came from some of
the other Black hires that were happy to see a Black woman taking the lead in the social media
department because it lacked diversity (interview, Neal, 2021).

There have been teams in different leagues that have struggled to be diverse and emotionally
woke to the racial injustice that has been going on in the country (interview, Wyche, 2021). As the Las
Vegas Raiders posted on their social media account, via Twitter “I can breathe” in response to the verdict
of Derek Chauvin murdering George Floyd as he laid on the ground with Chauvins knee in his neck as he
yelled out “I can’t breathe.” Raiders Owner Mark Davis took full responsibility for the tweet that was
strongly criticized and some deemed racially tone deaf. Davis assured everyone that he meant no
disrespect and tweeted it himself because he thought justice had been served for the Floyd family (Siese,
2021).

23
The brother of George Floyd, Philonise Floyd released a statement on behalf of the family saying
that they appreciated the Raiders organization for their support and continued effort to fight for justice
(Siese, 2021).

The Las Vegas Raiders social media team does not include one Black person and the backlash
received for their tone deaf tweet sparked a conversation on how there are reasons why Black voices are
needed in sporting organizations because of situations like this (Siese, 2021).

“Anything that touches social issues that is fan facing is not diverse. So me being that person they
love to see it, but it is difficult though, Neal said. “There aren't many like us at the top. So it's hard to see
someone that looks like you that would give you motivation to go into those roles or feel like you can
advance. You always kind of feel limited across the board, because there aren't many women in high
positions, so you never see your room for growth or opportunity.”

Neal doesn’t use the lack of diversity to limit her from striving for the best. She acknowledges
that but knows that there is stronger power in showing how to overcome that.

During the start of the pandemic in March 2020, Neal was on Tik Tok making a video on a job
posting she was sent from ESPN. The video went viral and it led to Neal creating The SportsPlaybook
(interview, Neal, 2021). The SportsPlaybook is a social media page on Instagram with 10.3k followers
where Neal posts sports internships, jobs and advice for every follower trying to break into the sports
media industry .

“I wasn't thinking about having my own entity or platform,” Neal said. After asking herself what
does she see her life being in the next 5 to 10 years as she is approaching 30 in November. One word
came to mind.
24

Freedom.

Neal created The SportsPlaybook for those very reasons. Many Black women aren't getting into
the industry as fast as they hope, Neal believes, because there is a gatekeeping mentality, combined with a
closed network to share job information. She knows that she can be a powerful force in paying it forward
to the next generation of Black women who deserve to occupy spaces in sports (interview, Neal, 2021).

“It's my responsibility to help people along the way because we didn't have it. So now that I have
my foot in the door and I'm able to learn, I'm gonna teach everyone that comes after me so they don't have
to deal with what I have to deal with,” Neal said. “It makes their journey just a little bit easier and I would
hope that once they're in these organizations and working with these teams, that they make it easier for
the people that come after them. Because there's no use in just sustaining yourself and not trying to help
generations to come…..or make it easier for people that look like me, because I know how difficult it can
be.”

The fear of not making it in this industry is no longer there

Similar to Neal, I no longer have that same crippling fear as others have about not breaking into
the industry. With time I’ve come to realize that some things may never change when it comes to how
some people view Black women.

That challenge and those obstacles will always remain as long as the people who place them stay
in positions of power to do so (interview, Wyche, 2021). One of my missions going forward is to
remember why I started in this industry and those feelings that my 8-year-old self remembers.

25
All of those moments of confirmation were for a reason and the experience that I have obtained
over my young career has proven to me that I picked the right profession.

I look back at the history of the Black women in sports and I read about how Jayne Kennedy
Overton was the first Black woman to be a football anchor on CBS in the 1970s. Kennedy Overton would
not only present a Black woman to the sports broadcasting world but would do it to be the best as she won
an Emmy in 1977 for her reporting during the Rose Bowl parade (Bradford, 2021).

History such as that motivates me to know that I do belong in this industry. My dream is the same
as it has always been. To be the best sports multimedia journalist that I can be. If I could go back and
show my younger self what my 23-year-old self would be doing, I believe that she would be proud to
know that what she felt inside wasn’t wrong.

That little girl that stood in front of the mirror with her fake microphone would be at awe to know
that she continues to push to be in an industry that may not welcome her but that she knows that she can
and will be a part of it. Not only for her but for other Black women just like her.

26
BIBLIOGRAPHY

Bradford, Janaé. “Jayne Kennedy Overton: Living Black History.” thehilltoponline.com. The Hilltop
Newspaper, February 24, 2021. https://thehilltoponline.com/2021/02/24/jayne-kennedy-overton-living-
black-history/.

Callahan , Chrissy. “News Anchor Says She Was Fired for Her 'Unprofessional' Natural Hairstyle.”
TODAY.com, January 17, 2019. https://www.today.com/style/brittany-noble-was-told-her-natural-hair-
was-unprofessional-fired-t146857.

Chiari, Mike. “Donald Trump Tweets About Jemele Hill, Says ESPN's Ratings Have 'Tanked'.” Bleacher
Report. Bleacher Report, October 10, 2017. https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2737873-donald-trump-
tweets-about-jemele-hill-says-espns-ratings-have-tanked.

Fleming, Kirsten. “ESPN's Maria Taylor and Other Stylish Female Reporters on the Sidelines.” New
York Post. New York Post, September 16, 2020. https://nypost.com/article/female-sports-reporters-
outfits-style/.

Flood, Brian. “Ex-ESPN Star Jemele Hill Doesn't Regret Calling Trump a White Supremacist: 'I Thought
I Was Saying Water Is Wet'.” Fox News. FOX News Network, December 26, 2018.
https://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/ex-espn-star-jemele-hill-doesnt-regret-calling-trump-a-white-
supremacist-i-thought-i-was-saying-water-is-wet.
27

Jones, Scott. “Ummmm.... You're Still on Camera.” FTVLive. FTVLive, September 23, 2020.
https://www.ftvlive.com/sqsp-test/2020/9/23/ummmm-youre-still-on-camera.
KSN-TV. “Shaquira Martin.” KSN. KSN-TV, June 4, 2021. https://www.ksn.com/author/shaquira-
martin/.

Lapchick, Richard. “The 2018 Associated Press Sports Editors Racial and Gender Report Card.” ESPN.
ESPN Internet Ventures, May 2, 2018. https://www.espn.com/espn/story/_/id/23382605/espn-leads-way-
hiring-practices-sports-media.

Phillips, Carron J. “Phillips: Why Diversity Must Become Sports Journalism's Most Important Priority.”
nydailynews.com, May 8, 2018. https://www.nydailynews.com/sports/more-sports/diversity-sports-
journalism-priority-article-1.3977157.

Siese, April. “Las Vegas Raiders Face Backlash over ‘I Can Breathe’ Tweet Marking Derek Chauvin
Verdict.” CBS News. CBS Interactive, April 21, 2021. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/raiders-i-can-
breathe-tweet-mark-davis/.

Smith, Lachelle, and Alyssia Graves. Personal Interview, June 5, 2021.

28
Smith, Lachelle, and Cydney Tindal. Personal Interview, May 26, 2021.

Smith, Lachelle, and Robyn Neal. Personal Interview, June 6, 2021.

Smith, Lachelle, and Shaquira Martin. Personal Interview, September 16, 2020.

Smith, Lachelle, and Steve Wyche. Personal Interview, June 12, 2021.

Smith, Lachelle. Dr. Julie Rousseau. Personal Interview, June 11, 2021.

Smith, Lachelle. Nicole Hutchison . Personal Interview, November 8, 2020.

“The Status Of Women In The U.S. Media 2017 .” Women's Media Center, 2017.

Team, KALB Digital. “Nicole Hutchison.” https://www.kalb.com. Accessed June 17, 2021.
https://www.kalb.com/authors/nicole.hutchison/.

29
Wyche, Steve. “Colin Kaepernick Explains Why He Sat during National Anthem.” NFL.com. NFL,
August 26, 2020. https://www.nfl.com/news/colin-kaepernick-explains-why-he-sat-during-national-
anthem-0ap300000069107.

Yates, Jacqueline Laurean. “Reporter Shares Powerful Post on Wearing Braids on-Air for 1st Time.” Good Morning
America, August 6, 2020.
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Asset Metadata

Creator Smith, Lachelle Brianna (author)

Core Title The mistreatment and misrepresentation of Black women in sports media must stop

School Annenberg School for Communication

Degree Master of Arts

Degree Program Specialized Journalism

Degree Conferral Date 2021-08

Publication Date 07/08/2021

Defense Date 06/24/2021

Tag black women,Discrimination,hair,journalism,Mental Health,OAI-PMH Harvest,reporting,sports journalist,sports media

Format application/pdf (imt)

Language English

Contributor Electronically uploaded by the author (provenance)

Advisor Tolan, Sandy (committee chair), Richardson, Allissa (committee member), Turner, Miki (committee member)

Creator Email lachellebsmith@gmail.com,lbsmith@usc.edu

Permanent Link (DOI) https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-oUC15292958

Unique identifier UC15292958

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Format application/pdf (imt)

Rights Smith\, Lachelle Brianna

Type texts

Source University of Southern California (contributing entity), University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses (collection)

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