Abstract

Literature suggests that female athletes receive less coverage in media than male athletes and that representation more often focuses on femininity than athleticism. Yet factors other than gender may influence media representation. Race and gender of target readers may impact representation of female athletes. This study reports the results of a content analysis of representations of white and black female athletes in 92 magazines. Representations of black female and white female athletes in Sports Illustrated, Sports Illustrated for Women and Her Sports from two different time periods, 2000-2002 and 2004-2008, were compared. Results reveal that the race of the female athlete and the gender of the reading audience affect the depiction of the athlete as primarily athletic or feminine.

Library of Congress Subject Headings

Women athletes--Press coverage; African American women athletes--Press coverage; Women in mass media; African Americans in mass media; Sports--Periodicals; Content analysis (Communication)

Publication Date

7-1-2008

Document Type

Thesis

Department, Program, or Center

Department of Communication (CLA)

Advisor

Hope, Diane

Advisor/Committee Member

Pugliese, Rudy

Advisor/Committee Member

Pierman, Carol

Comments

Note: imported from RIT’s Digital Media Library running on DSpace to RIT Scholar Works. Physical copy available through RIT's The Wallace Library at: GV709 .W23 2008

Campus

RIT – Main Campus

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