Having knowledge of the entertainment world, it seems to be a fast-paced, competitive business. Over the years, sports has been integrated into entertainment, therefore, it has contributed to a business of its own. The goal of a business is to increase revenue and to make a profit, by any means necessary. In regards to sports, society displays this field as male dominant because of the idea that males can be more dominant in the world than women. Also, women’s sports did not come about until the 20th century, while male sports can be traced back to the first Olympics in Ancient Greece. Another factor to genderized sports is the perception of each body: “men are active and athletic, and women, by exclusion, are not” (Ólafsson et al. 5). Furthermore, most female athletes stop playing sports in their teens. This is due mainly because of the low amount of role models that females can look up to in the media. While for boys, they are exposed to their favorite male athletes on different media outlets daily. Boys look up to athletes so much, that they strive to be like them and to one day reach the level of their idol. They will work and play hard throughout high school in order to be drafted onto a professional league for sport that they play. But, what they don’t understand is that, their chances to make it to becoming a professional athlete are slim to none, and if they are able to make it, at what cost? Boys tend to postpone getting a higher education or creating a plan B due to being so focused on making it into the business of professional sports. As many don’t make to the professional level, they become impoverish. Even if they do make it, there is a chance of injury and misspending, which are factors that most likely are not cons... ... middle of paper ... ...hletes Show Progress in Graduation Success Rate." NCAA.com. N.p., 24 Oct. 2013. Web. 06 Dec. 2013. Iceland. Centre for Gender Equality. European Commission. Ed. Kjartan Ólafsson. By Auður M. Leiknisdóttir, Birgir Guðmundsson, Gerd Von Der Lippe, Guðmundur Ævar Oddsson, Margarita Jankauskaité, Martina Handler, and Mirella Pasini. N.p.: n.p., n.d. Web. 16 Nov. 2013. . Keating, Peter. "Next Level." ESPN The Magazine 17 July 2011: n. pag. ESPN. 17 July 2011. Web. 6 Dec. 2013. Meltzer, Alex. "SMU Football Investigation." Timetoast. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Dec. 2013. European Union. Centre of Gender Equality Iceland. Sports, Media and Stereotypes Women and Men in Sports and Media Torre, Pablo S. "How (and Why) Athletes Go Broke." Sports Illustrated. Time Warner Company, 23 Mar. 2009. Web. 10 Nov. 2013.
Wolff, AlexanderGAGNE, MATT. "Is This The End For PENN STATE? (Cover Story)." Sports Illustrated 117.4 (2012): 38. MAS Ultra - School Edition. Web. 14 Apr. 2014.
You see sports everywhere, on your TV and even your local park. The value of sports in the average American is astronomical, sports is a major priority in people’s life. Sports teaches young kids how to be successful (and not successful) at life. There is so much that goes into sports that people who never have played will never understand. With each sport there is specific skill that one must master to be good, and with that takes hours and hours of hard work. You can talk about a certain individual’s skill and capabilities that make him great, but the real value of sports lies within a person. Sports creates determination and a competiveness that can be used in other areas of life, not just sports. There are millions of kids who attempt to become professional athletes but as the level of competition increases the number of athletes decreases, very few of them ever becoming a professional athlete but they are able to take what they have learned from sports into different professions in life. When a kid spends hours in the backyard perfecting his swing it can translate to the kid spending hours of hard work in his job. Companies and business like to hire ex-athletes because they already know what kind of person they are, hardworking and
Professional sports were beginning to be organized in the 1850s. At this point, their salaries, although they were still higher than the average person’s, were not too outrageous. In the 1880s and 90s, baseball players in particular were making on average about $1,750 annually. Even though this was three times the salary of an industrial worker of the time, they were not happy with this amount of money and felt they should be earning more (Baseball n.d.). In the 1970s, the worlds of professional sports took a drastic turn. According to an article by J.L. Carnagie, “Two words described sports in the 1970s: big business. Owners and athletes in major professional team sports knew there was money to be made in their games, and they went after it.” (Carnagie, n.d.) Athletes, especially, realized how competitive teams were becoming, and they were well aware that talent was in high demand. In the beginning of 1980s, the best athletes were demanding even more money; and the majority of the time, they got what they wanted. By end of the 1980s, many athletes were making over a million dollars (Carnagie, n.d.) These increasing salaries were very ironic because when professional sports began they were intended to be a showcase of players’ talent and athletic ability. Professional sports leagues were also supposed to be similar to the Olympics in that they would be free of politics and influence of society. However, by the 80s, they had become all about the star athletes and how much money they could make. By this point, professional sports had evolved into an industry that was focused on entertainment and money, rather than the sports actually being played (Carnagie, n.d.).
It goes without saying that a person's gender, racial and social origins influence their participation in sports. Particular races and genders often dominate certain sports. African Americans, for example, tend to dominate football and basketball, while Caucasians tend to dominate ice hockey. The same holds true for gender as well. Football is an entirely male dominated sport, while horseback riding, gymnastics and figure skating are much more female oriented. How and why did these divisions come about? Determining the origin of gender goes beyond the scope of this paper, however one can speculate about how gender classifications and stereotypes affect one's role in the sports arena.
There has been a link between media coverage and the indulgence of girls in sporting activities in schools. This is primarily because television and other media show sports as a preserve of men. As a result, there are few females in the sporting activities on media. Hence, female students never have role models to ape in sports. Boys find several sources of, motivation to participate in sports.
Luzer, Daniel. "College Guide: The Profit in College Sports." The Washington Monthly. N.p., 18 Sept. 2013. Web. 8 Apr. 2014.
Traditionally men have dominated the world of sports however in recent year’s women’s sports have become popular and with their new found popularity, women’s sports have evolved into marketable leagues of their own. Although women’s sports took a huge leap forward, women players still don’t receive the same financial compensation for playing the same sports in the same arenas as their male counterparts. In Purse Snatching by Donna Lopiano, she points out sexism may have a huge effect on this financial discrepancy between women and men athletes. Analyzing sports economics may point to a different reason why women are receiving such a compensation disparity. Women sports have come a long way, since the days when women were only allowed to watch.
In 1970 only 1 in 27 girls participated in high school sports, today that ratio is 1 in 3. Sports are a very important part of the American society. Within sports, heroes are made, goals are set and dreams are lived. The media makes all these things possible by creating publicity for the rising stars of today. Within society today, the media has downplayed the role of the woman within sports.
Coakley (2009) starts off the chapter by introducing how participation in organized sports came about and how gender roles played a major role early on. He describes how most programs were for young boys with the hope that being involved would groom them to become productive in the economy. Girls were usually disregarded and ended up sitting in the stands watching their sibling’s ga...
Gender inequality is defined as “unequal treatment or perceptions of individuals based on their gender”. In our society there are a plethora of gender inequality related issues, and it is vastly important that these issues are brought to light, and ultimately resolved. In society today, the feminism movement is at an all-time high while lots of gender oriented issues are being questioned and analyzed. The portrayal of women in the media is a major issue in todays world. Various issues such as female athletes not being adequately compensated for their efforts, the media portraying a master image for all females to meet, as well as slut shaming are all vast issues in todays world that must be acknowledged. However, contrary to popular belief,
Riper, Tom V. "America's Most Overpaid Athlete." Information for the World's Business Leaders. Forbes, 05 July 2008. Web. 01 Sept. 2011.
As Miller and Wilson revealed, athleticism is not always analogous with success. Willy regarded Biff highly because he observed Biff’s presence and athleticism, and he believed these qualities would result in immediate success. Today many parents associate sports with success and therefore pressure their children to excel in sports. In today’s society it is very rare that fears of discrimination would cause children to not pursue a lucrative career in sports. Both Miller and Wilson knew the impact of sports on family dynamics, and how sports have evolved from a leisure time activity to a full-time commitment. Clearly, many of the qualitative aspects of sports--competition, teamwork and physical dexterity can contribute to being a success in almost any career.
Lefebrve, Matt. Professional athletes are overpaid and selfish. Quinnipiac Chronicle, 1 Apr 2006. Web. 9 Apr 2014.
Whether its baseball, basketball, soccer, hockey, or tennis, sports is seen all over the world as a representation of one’s pride for their city, country, and even continent. Sports is something that is valued world-wide which has the ability to bring communities together and create different meanings, beliefs and practices between individuals. Although many people may perceive sports to have a significant meaning within our lives, it can also have the ability to separate people through gender inequalities which can also be represented negatively throughout the media. This essay will attempt to prove how gender is constructed in the sports culture while focusing on female athletes and their acceptance in today’s society.
McGlothlin, Bruce. Careers inside the world of Sports Entertainment. Copyright 1995. The Rosen Publishing Group, Inc. New York, New York.