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Just one of the guys: an ethnography on women in sports

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Content Just One of the Guys

An Ethnography on Women in Sports

by

Mesha Mosley

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 of the Degree
MASTER OF ARTS
SPECIALIZED JOURNALISM

December 2021

Copyright 2021 Mesha Mosley
ii
Acknowledgments

First, I would like to thank the lovely ladies and gentlemen who were willing to be so
open with me. They lent their stories, anecdotes, experiences and insights to me for the
sake of this ethnography and for that, I am grateful to no end.

I would also like to thank Prof. Sandy Tolan, Dr. Allissa Richardson and Prof. Miki
Turner for helping me turn this from an idea to the finished product. Thank you all for
your suggestions, edits, ideas, source suggestions and more. Thanks also for your
patience with me as I navigated graduate school, work and a seemingly endless
pandemic.

Lastly, thank you to my family and friends who encouraged me to fulfill my degree and
push through to the end.

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Table of Contents
Acknowledgments ...................................................................................................... ii
Abstract…………………………………………………………………………………………………………iv
Introduction................................................................................................................ 1
Chapter 1: Sister League, Cousin Pay ......................................................................... 3
Chapter 2: I Deal With This Everyday ....................................................................... 12
References .................................................................................................................. 17

iv
Abstract
Just One of the Guys works to highlight the experiences of women who work in
the male-dominated sports industry. Through hours of conversations with female
sports industry workers like professors, agents, coaches and professional athletes, the
consensus was the same: being a female in this industry is not easy. As an upcoming
sports journalist who is also a woman, I wanted to study exactly what that meant and
many of the triumphs and trials that come with working in the world of sports. This
ethnography uncovers the prominent discriminations that female sports professionals
face: 1) there are healthcare and salary discrepancies between males and females, and
2) women in sports are far more likely to be questioned on their knowledge and
credibility than their male counterparts.
1
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Introduction

For hundreds of years, the sports world has been dominated by men. This goes
for not only female athletes, but also others who don’t play the game: coaches, media,
gatekeepers, agents and more. Women have begun to take up their own roles in the
sports industry, creating and shaping their own lanes and narratives to take them to the
next level. As an upcoming sports journalist who is also a woman, I wanted to study
exactly what that meant and many of the triumphs and trials that come with working in
the world of sports.
Just One of the Guys is an ethnography composed of print articles, feature
stories, interviews and profiles, in which the female experience in the sports industry is
examined through the lens of the female sports industry worker. Over the course of 15
months, I interviewed ten different sports industry professionals including athletes,
agents, professors, coaches and entrepreneurs. Whether it’s healthcare and salary
disparities, navigating male-dominated locker rooms and arenas, proving their
credibility time and time again or dealing with sexual harassment, each of them
agreed—it’s not easy.
Over the course of those 15 months I was able to assess some of the most pressing
dichotomies that female sports industry workers face. Each chapter presents a different
challenge, nuance or reward. First, and probably most obvious, is the salary wage gap
between male and female professional sports, which I uncovered specifically through the
stories of female professional basketball players. The second, as experienced by female
media industry professionals, is the consistent harassment and judgment placed on
their competence and credibility as well as their physical appearance.
2
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Chapter 1: Sister League, Cousin Pay

In 2018, after weeks of surgeries, tests and flights back and forth from Finland to the
United States, Bria Goss held her phone, motionless, fearfully listening to the words
coming from her oncologist on the other end.

“I was home alone, and he’s telling me now that [the tumor is] cancerous and we’re
changing the plan, but what does this mean? He said I needed a full hysterectomy, and I
could forget about kids even if I kept the uterus,” she recalled four years later. “In that
moment, I was just scared. It was just such a weird feeling to really comprehend.”

Goss, who now plays overseas and works as an analyst for the WNBA’s Indiana Fever,
was 24 at the time when she learned she had cervical cancer. She had just completed her
first professional season..

“I was freaking out. I didn’t know exactly what was going on even though he had just
literally told me. I was on a flight back to the US within two weeks. My season in Finland
was over right then and there,” she said.

Stories like Goss’s are not uncommon for female professional basketball players. Many
of these women face personal challenges that do not affect their male counterparts in
the same ways. Some have had to take time off because they are victims of domestic
violence. Others have unexpected medical issues, like Goss. Some of her WNBA peers
are single mothers and cannot afford child care because WNBA salaries are
significantly lower than men’s.
3
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In addition to a lower salary, female professional athletes often have a shorter shelf-life
for their careers. The average WNBA career lasts only three and a half years
1
, while the
NBA is closer to five
2
.

Whatever the challenges may be, the female basketball player is often faced with a
difficult ultimatum—forced to choose between her career and starting a family, taking
time to heal her body from illnesses and childbirth or pursuing alternative ways to make
money. Unlike many of their male colleagues, some female players are not getting rich
off their skills.

In 2013, Washington Mystics’ guard Tayler Hill found out that she was pregnant after
her rookie season. But instead of feeling joy and excitement like most new mothers, Hill
felt anxiety.

She was concerned about how to break the news to Mystics Coach Mike Thibault. Hill
was in a compromising position. She was Thibault’s first draft pick as the Mystics’ coach
and general manager, and it was only her second season in the league. Not only that, -
the WNBA did not allow teams to replace pregnant players on the roster until 2015.
Having a child could adversely affect her team.

Because Hill was a first-round draft pick, she would make a base salary minimum of
about $45,000 her second year. The Mystics, adhering to league rules, agreed to pay
her 50% of her salary until she started playing again. This meant that she would be
earning about $23,500. This is less than the average part-time worker salary of $26,507,

1
Rachel Blount, “After Playing Careers End, WNBA Stars Are All Business,” Star Tribune (Star Tribune,
July 26, 2018), https://www.startribune.com/after-playing-careers-end-wnba-stars-are-all-
business/489164801/.
2
Madilyn Zeegers, “How Much Does the Average Nba Player Make in His Career? - Sportscasting: Pure
Sports,” Sportscasting, April 7, 2020, https://www.sportscasting.com/how-much-does-the-average-nba-
player-make-in-his-career/.
4
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according to Glassdoor.
3
The average cost to raise a newborn for one year is $12,980,
nearly half of the money she earned for that season.
4

This was standard for most WNBA teams until this January, when a new collective
bargaining agreement provided paid maternity leave.
5

Other female athletes have faced similar challenges. . Their careers are often less stable
than those of their male peers—especially if they want to have children. But there also
are less obvious explanations why their positions stay on an even trajectory.

For example, in the 2018-19 NBA season, the league generated revenues around $8.76
billion. Its sister league, the WNBA, generated $60 million. That gap means that women
have lower salaries, fewer endorsement opportunities and less of a cushion during the
offseason.

The lowest paid player in the NBA is Lugeutz Dort, a shooting guard for the Oklahoma
City Thunder. He earned $155,647 in salary last season. He makes almost $30,000
more than the highest paid WNBA player DeWanna Bonner, a forward for the Phoenix
Mercury. Her salary is $127,500.

Dort has a career average of 6.8 points and 2.3 rebounds. Last season alone Bonner
averaged 19.7 points, 7.8 rebounds and three assists. Thus, despite outplaying Dort,
Bonner’s lower pay has her contemplating playing overseas and securing outside
endorsements. Last season, she went to Russia to play for Dynamo Kursk.

3
“Glassdoor Job Search | Find the Job That Fits Your Life,” accessed August 10, 2021,
https://www.glassdoor.com/index.htm.
4
Mark Lino, “The Cost of Raising a Child,” USDA, February 18, 2020,
https://www.usda.gov/media/blog/2017/01/13/cost-raising-child.
5
Howard Megdal, “W.N.B.A. Makes 'Big Bet on Women' with a New Contract,” The New York Times (The
New York Times, January 14, 2020), https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/14/sports/basketball/wnba-
contract-collective-bargaining-agreement.html.
5
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Joy Taylor, host of The Herd with Colin Cowherd, believes players should not have to
subject themselves to overseas play if the WNBA gives them a full-time salary.
6

“The WNBA players need to be paid fairly based off of the revenue they bring in and
what will sustainably support the league,” Taylor said. “Meaning they need to be paid in
a way that provides them full-time work year-round so that they don’t have to go
overseas, putting their bodies and careers in danger to injury.”

She is aware that the rate of pay will probably never be the same as the NBA because of
the differences in revenue gains, but notes that “within the confines of the league they’re
in, they need to negotiate pay that is fair.”

Do n’t Call it a Comeback

Goss is the type of person who smiles while telling you about the hardest moments of
her life. And not in a deranged, scary clown kind of way, but in a way that makes you
grateful she ended up on the other side. A way that makes you proud of her resilience
whether you know her or not.

But the now 28-year-old athlete did not always smile so easily. Battles with low self-
esteem, cancer, feelings of unworthiness and potential loss of a dream almost broke her
spirit.

But she didn’t let it.

Goss, the second of four children, was raised in Indianapolis by her parents Derrick and
BeLinda. The Gosses are the definitive sports family. Her older sister DeAirra played
basketball at Western Michigan and Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis.
There, DeAirra became one of the best players of all-time in the program’s history and

6
“The Herd with COLIN COWHERD: Watch Full Episodes on FOX,” Watch The Herd with Colin Cowherd
on FOX, accessed August 10, 2021, https://www.fox.com/the-herd-with-colin-cowherd/.
6
iv
h

now is an assistant coach.
7
Her younger brother Harrison ran track and field and played
football at Kentucky State. Her younger sister Khera plays basketball at Toledo.

As you can imagine with a family of athletes, competition was fierce. Goss wiped her
brow and let out a sigh as she described what was known as “Family Night Fridays,” in
which the Gosses would gather together and play Monopoly, Family Feud or card
games.

“My dad used to beat the s--- out of us in Monopoly,” she said, laughing. Bragging rights
were heavily weighted in their household, and Goss quickly learned how to turn ‘good’
into ‘the best.’

Goss took that competitiveness and reached the highest levels of basketball competition
at an early age, earning the coveted title of Miss Basketball Indiana in her senior year at
Ben Davis High School. She won back-to-back championships and broke the school
record for most consecutive wins—81. She scored more than 20 points in 59 of the 81
games.

“I knew that [basketball] is what I wanted to do,” she said. “Forever.”

After being awarded a full basketball scholarship to Kentucky and graduating in 2016,
Goss worried whether basketball was a feasible career choice. She stopped telling people
that her dream was to play in the WNBA. She gave herself 18 months to be signed to
play somewhere professionally, but she was quiet about what she felt to be a pipe dream.

A few months later, she got a call from a former teammate about an opportunity.

“I know what it feels like not knowing if I’m playing. That first game I felt a weight lifted
off my shoulders.”

7
“DEAIRRA Goss NAMED Women's BASKETBALL Assistant Coach.” IUPUI Athletics, July 18, 2018.
https://iupuijags.com/news/2018/7/18/deairra-goss-named-womens-basketball-assistant-coach.aspx.
7

After spending some time in Finland for her first overseas season, she felt exhausted.
Every game. Her menstrual cycle arrived and overstayed its welcome by a long shot.
She lost so much blood that she had to be taken to the hospital by her coaches in
Finland, where she found out there was a tumor in her uterus.

After a few surgeries and tests, her doctors determined that the tumor was cancerous
and spreading. She needed a full hysterectomy at 24 years old.

Her career was put on hold for about a year, during which she wondered if she would
still have her spot on the team after she recovered? Would she need to sign with
another team?? Would another team even want her?

But, she returned better than ever, earning First-Team All-Finland, Best American of
the Year Award, and named to the Defensive All-Team.

She told herself that she wasn’t broken. She was worthy. And, most importantly, she still
had it.

Now, Goss is in Romania preparing for the upcoming season with Dynamo Moscow.

“From what I went through, looking back,” she said, “it’s just unbelievable.
Unbelievable.”

Like Goss, many WNBA players travel and play overseas to supplement their lower
season salaries. Overseas salaries average around $116,000, compared to the average
WNBA salary of around $75,000, and players are provided housing accommodations
and free medical coverage throughout the season.
8

8
“Overseas Basketball Players Salary: Global Table Chart,” Love At First Fit, May 16, 2021,
https://www.loveatfirstfit.com/guides/overseas-basketball-players-salary-table-chart-for-leagues-around-
the-world/.
8

But playing abroad in the off-season puts players at higher risk of getting injured, which
could affect their careers in the US. Take Breanna Stewart for example. In 2018, after
leading the Seattle Storm to their third franchise WNBA championship and winning
MVP of the league, she ruptured her Achilles tendon during the EuroLeague
championship one month before her next WNBA season was set to begin.

She was benched for the season, confined to cheering on her teammates from the
sidelines. Stewart kept her job, but other female players fear losing their salaries if they
cannot play due to medical issues.

Chronic health issues have hampered the career of Elena Delle Donne of the
Washington Mystics lives with what she calls “Chronic Lyme [Disease].” The 6-foot-5
guard takes 64 pills a day to keep her condition under control.

Due to COVID-19, this past WNBA season, games had to be played in a bubble with only
players and coaching staff. In an open letter to The Players Tribune, Delle Donne
described her disappointment with the WNBA’s decision to deny her application to sit
out for health reasons.

“I’ve been told time and time again over the years that my condition makes me
immunocompromised—that part of what Lyme does is it debilitates my immune
system,” she wrote. “And so when I read that immunocompromised people are at a
higher risk with COVID, I took every possible precaution. I treated COVID like any high-
risk person should: as a matter of life and death.”

Delle Donne filed for a health exemption which would excuse her from play without
affecting her salary. But her application was denied by the league. They determined she
9
was not at high risk of contracting COVID—if she sat out, she would not be paid for the
2019-20 WNBA season.
9

“I’m now left with two choices: I can either risk my life… or forfeit my paycheck,” she
said.

In the NBA, players who chose to sit out of the bubble for any reason lost 1.1 percent of
their salary.

Down the street in Orlando’s NBA bubble, Pelicans’ forward Zion Williamson left to
attend to what the team called “an urgent family medical matter.” In a response much
different from the WNBA, Pelicans executive David Griffin said in a statement: “We fully
support Zion’s decision to leave the NBA campus to be with his family.”

The WNBA declined to comment.

Teams and leagues should begin to extend the same resources for female athletes at the
same rate as they do their male counterparts.

Before the 2019-20 WNBA season began, the player’s association worked with the
league to renegotiate their collective bargaining agreement. The new agreement includes
benefits to cushion the uncertain nature of their profession.

Fully paid maternity leave, higher salaries and paid medical leave are resources the
player’s association fought to include. Players hope that these changes will begin to
move the female professional basketball industry toward equality with the NBA and
other male pro leagues.

9
Coy Wire and Jill Martin, “Elena Delle Donne on Medical Opt-out Denial: 'I WAS SHOCKED',” CNN
(Cable News Network, July 16, 2020), https://www.cnn.com/2020/07/15/sport/elena-delle-donne-wnba-
opt-out-denied-spt-
intl/index.html#:~:text=On%20Monday%2C%20a%20panel%20of,she%27s%20indeed%20at%20high%2
0risk.
10

Some sports fans believe the differences in wages between the leagues reflects the
womens’ talent. If the competition was better or more entertaining, they would be paid
more. Several NBA players, including the late Kobe Bryant, worked to dispel this notion.

In an interview with CNN, the LA Lakers legend said: “I think there are a couple of
players who could play in the NBA right now honestly. Diana Taurasi, Maya Moore,
Elena Delle Donne. There’s a lot of great players out there so they could certainly keep
up with them.”
10

“The WNBA players want more respect. In addition, the WNBA players want to be paid
more,” said David Berri, a professor at Southern Utah, who specializes in the economy
of sports. “Again, no one seems to be saying as much as the NBA. But if the WNBA
wants to be the premier professional league for women’s basketball, it is probably going
to have to change how it compensates its talent.”

Berri suggests the solution lies in revenue sharing, following the approach used to
measure the economic value of a college basketball player.
11

“If the WNBA split its revenue in the same fashion as we see in the NBA, WNBA players
would each receive quite a bit more money,” he explained.

For now, players like Goss, Delle Donne and Hill will continue to show fans just how
much women can do, without the compensation they say they deserve.

“The only option is to keep doing what we do,” Goss said. “For most of us, it’s not about
the money. It’s about the game.”

10
Calum Trenaman, “Kobe Backs Women to Play in Nba 'Right Now',” CNN (Cable News Network,
January 22, 2020), https://www.cnn.com/2020/01/22/sport/kobe-bryant-women-nba-spt-intl/index.html.
11
David Berri, “Measuring Exploitation in Women's College Basketball,” Macmillan Learning, May 17,
2018, https://community.macmillanlearning.com/t5/economics-blog/measuring-exploitation-in-women-s-
college-basketball/ba-p/6026.
11
Chapter 2: I Deal With This Everyday

Joy Taylor who, in addition to her FOX Sports duties hosts her own podcast, is a co-host
at Fox Sports on The Herd with Colin Cowherd, as well as her own “Maybe I’m Crazy.”
podcast. Taylor was previously a moderator for Skip and Shannon: Undisputed after co-
hosting a top-rated morning-drive radio program in Miami for five years. The short but
fiery sports fanatic is from Pittsburgh and is the younger sister of former Miami
Dolphins star Jason Taylor.

MJ Acosta-Ruiz is the host of NFL Total Access. She is the first Afro-Latina to host a
show on NFL Network. She has worked for and with several different sports media
outlets including NBC 7 and Telemundo 20, covering the San Francisco 49ers, Oakland
Raiders and the team formerly known as San Diego Chargers. Prior to getting her start
in journalism, this bilingual football junkie was a cheerleader for the Miami Dolphins.

Both Joy and MJ are not only colleagues but very close friends, and I was able to speak
to them both about their unique experiences as sports media professionals. Our talk
gave a good glimpse into the complexities of working in a male-dominated work culture
and environment.

But first, I wanted to pose a question to them both. What does it mean to be a woman in
the sports industry?

For Joy, it means “doing what [she loves].” Taylor played sports growing up and always
watched sports. For her, covering and talking about sports was what she’s always
wanted to do.

To Acosta, it means being the best that she can be at all times. “I'm just going out there
every day to be the best host I can be regardless of gender. It's proving through work
ethic and preparation that what I bring to the table is of tremendous value.”
12
Both women feel they’ve had to make certain adjustments to navigate the industry
differently than their male counterparts. For many women in sports media, the question
of credibility is posed more often than for men.

“It’s very different being a woman in the sports business than being a man because
you’re constantly having to answer the question of why you’re into sports,” Taylor said.
“Men are never asked that question.”

Studies have shown that there is a correlation to sports reporters’ gender, attractiveness
and perceived credibility. Results reveal that when reporters are of the opposite gender
of an athlete, they are perceived as most credible when they are less attractive. Results
also revealed a gender bias in that reporters are perceived as most credible when
covering the same sex.
12

In essence, the more attractive a female sports reporter is, the less credible she is
perceived to be. And even beyond that, she will be seen as less credible than her male
counterparts when covering athletes that are also male.

Because of these biases, female sports reporters must find ways to adjust within their
careers in order to get the opportunities they deserve.

For Taylor, that means “you have to work harder, you have to take on extra assignments,
you have to sometimes take jobs that are beneath your skill set because there are certain
roles assigned to women in sports that aren’t assigned to men.”

I asked her what she meant by that. What were some examples?

“There aren’t as many jobs available to women in sports, and women in media in
general,” she explained. “So you know, you might have to work like five or six jobs

12
Dustin A. Hahn and R. Glenn Cummins, “Effects of Attractiveness, Gender, and Athlete–Reporter
Congruence on Perceived Credibility of Sport Reporters,” Human Kinetics (Human Kinetics, Inc., March 1,
2014), https://journals.humankinetics.com/view/journals/ijsc/7/1/article-p34.xml.
13

because you can’t get a full-time job. Or you have to take a job that a man wouldn’t have
to do—maybe it’s reporting or producing—things like that in order to get the
opportunity.”

She went on further to say that once they do get the job, there were pressures on women
in the industry to perform at a high standard and fear making mistakes in order to be
seen as worthy.

“You have to be excellent and constantly prove yourself as to why you’re in the business
and just how much you know about sports in general.”

Former ESPN anchor Jemele Hill expressed similar sentiments, citing the backlash that
female reporters get for making small mistakes on-air.

“The immediate reaction from a still-too-large segment of the public is going to be,
‘That’s why women shouldn’t talk sports.’ Even though most guys that are in [my]
positions probably would make a similar mistake, but it’s never going to be about their
competence. It’s never going to be about their gender. It will be for me.”
13

It resonated with Acosta as well. I wanted to know just how many adjustments she’d had
to make in order to successfully navigate her career space.

“There are literally a million,” she said. “To be honest, I have to navigate that everyday. I
deal with this every day. But it's just the way you navigate life as a woman in general. So
applying that to my professional career means I'm not actively thinking of every possible
nuance. I'd drive myself crazy all day if I did that.”

13
Michael Serazio, “'I Still Get Tweets to Go Back in the Kitchen' – the Enduring Power of Sexism in
Sports Media,” The World from PRX, June 13, 2019, https://www.pri.org/stories/2019-06-13/i-still-get-
tweets-go-back-kitchen-enduring-power-sexism-sports-media.
14
Proving themselves does not only apply to other industry professionals. Many times,
media personalities like Taylor and Acosta have to deal with fan criticism and
harassment, especially online.

Taylor, specifically, understands through experience that social media represents an
entirely new set of challenges for females in the sports industry, but she is not afraid to
confront it head on. She is notoriously known to be a clapback queen .
14

“I don’t have a problem getting into it with somebody, especially a random person on
the Internet,” she said. “Like, this is not a person that would say this to my face. Their
name and information is not on these accounts. As far as I’m concerned, they’re
cowards, so it’s not an opinion that would hurt my feelings.”

Other female sports journalists have also spoken up about the way they are attacked on
social media by fans and non-fans.

Tina Cervasio is a sports reporter for Fox’s New York affiliate. “I still get tweets to go
back into the kitchen,” she said. “They’re worried about color of hair and how a woman
looks. If I was as fat and bald as [some male sportscasters], I would not have that job.”
15

Kim Jones of the NFL Network also recalled some of the hate she’s received on social
media. “I’ve gotten tweets that the only reason I have a job is because of my looks,” she
said. “I’ve also gotten plenty more tweets that, you know, I’m an unattractive reporter
who shouldn’t be on television.”
16

14
Vinciane Ngomsi, “Joy Taylor Is THE POISED, Powerful Voice on FS1'S 'The Herd,' and A Clapback
Queen on Social Media,” Yahoo! Sports (Yahoo!, May 7, 2021), https://sports.yahoo.com/joy-taylor-pass-
her-the-mic-130043454.html.
15
Michael Serazio, “'I Still Get Tweets to Go Back in the Kitchen' – the Enduring Power of Sexism in
Sports Media,” The World from PRX, June 13, 2019, https://www.pri.org/stories/2019-06-13/i-still-get-
tweets-go-back-kitchen-enduring-power-sexism-sports-media.
16
Michael Serazio, “'I Still Get Tweets to Go Back in the Kitchen' – the Enduring Power of Sexism in
Sports Media,” The World from PRX, June 13, 2019, https://www.pri.org/stories/2019-06-13/i-still-get-
tweets-go-back-kitchen-enduring-power-sexism-sports-media.
15
The constant criticism about female sports journalists’ looks, credibility and competence
often does not just stop at the cellphone screen.

Taylor expressed the fact that female sports reporters have to deal with “very real
threats—people have stalkers and all types of things that men in the media don’t deal
with.”

Of course, these challenges seem to be further compounded by race. Taylor and Acosta
both spoke on their particularly nuanced experiences as black women in an
overwhelmingly white, male industry.

According to Taylor, “if you are a black woman in any traditional patriarchal space, you
really have to do the absolute most to get there. You can’t just be good, you have to be
excellent. You have to have people co-sign for you and support you, and push to have
you in those spaces.”

“It takes a really tough skin,” said Acosta. “I have been in several situations where co-
workers made it known that they felt I was only in my position to check a box.”

Having a close network of support has helped both of them deal with the complicated
nature of the profession.

“It’s been huge for me to have a network of women in the business, especially a network
of black women in the business, because we all have a very unique experience, not only
just in media but particularly in sports media,” Joy said. “So having those people to vent
to and bounce experiences and information off of and just to have that community is
very, very helpful and it’s really, really important for me.”

Despite the challenges that have been presented, female sports journalists have also
expressed the rewarding aspects of their careers and what they are most looking forward
to seeing change within the industry.
16
“We have a front row seat to sports history,” Acosta said. “We are the eyes and ears for
fans across the globe.”

For some, that comes with a responsibility to use their platform in positive ways. Taylor
finds joy (no pun intended) in having an audience and being able to connect with those
people.

“What’s rewarding is when you get the opportunity to use your voice and your platform
to talk about things that others don’t have the platform to speak about. And just being
able to talk about something that you naturally love and go back and forth, and have
conversations with people that expand your way of thinking and your experience.”

She hopes to continue to use her platform to make room for other women to gain
opportunities in the industry.

“I have created a lot of spaces for women in the business, whether it’s referring them for
jobs, or when I have the opportunity to hire women for positions or working with certain
programs to provide opportunities for women. It’s something that’s very important to
me and something that I actively do.”

When asked if there would come a time when women are given the same respect,
opportunities and credibility as men in the industry, Taylor and Acosta think there is
still room to grow.

“I mean, we gotta dream right?” Joy laughed. “I gotta remain optimistic. I do think that
we are still pretty far away from that, but I think we are progressing in that direction so I
remain optimistic that it will happen.”

“I think there’s a long way to go,” Acosta echoed. “But there are tremendous women in
sports who are forging their own paths and who are both commanding and earning that
respect.”
17
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Raising an Infant.” The Washington Post. WP Company, August 21, 2015.
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19
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Asset Metadata

Creator Mosley, Mesha (author)

Core Title Just one of the guys: an ethnography on women in sports

School Annenberg School for Communication

Degree Master of Arts

Degree Program Specialized Journalism

Publication Date 12/03/2021

Defense Date 12/03/2021

Publisher University of Southern California (original), University of Southern California. Libraries (digital)

Tag Basketball,Football,journalism,media,MLB,NBA,NCAA,NFL,OAI-PMH Harvest,Sports,sports industry,WNBA,Women

Format application/pdf (imt)

Language English

Contributor Electronically uploaded by the author (provenance)

Advisor Daglas, Cristina (committee member), Richardson, Allissa (committee member)

Creator Email mamosley@usc.edu,meshaamour15@gmail.com

Permanent Link (DOI) https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-oUC17896001

Unique identifier UC17896001

Legacy Identifier etd-MosleyMesh-10274

Document Type Thesis

Format application/pdf (imt)

Rights Mosley, Mesha

Type texts

Source 20211208-wayne-usctheses-batch-902-nissen (batch), University of Southern California (contributing entity), University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses (collection)

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Repository Name University of Southern California Digital Library

Repository Location USC Digital Library, University of Southern California, University Park Campus MC 2810, 3434 South Grand Avenue, 2nd Floor, Los Angeles, California 90089-2810, USA

Repository Email cisadmin@lib.usc.edu