"I can't believe you are not in love with these men," she says, biting her cuticle. Me, the girl who has no fear, was nervous. The exchange between Newton and Rodrigue rightfully spurred a much needed discussion about women and sports journalism, so I decided to ask three former NFL players to speak candidly about their views on women reporters. I said, "Well, you better get used to it now, because there are women all over clubhouses in the big leagues. Players tear off equipment at wooden cubbies bearing their names and numbers, laughing about how Mel Gibson got ribbed at the Golden Globes. I corresponded with them for another two years before the call finally came. These arent your high school gym locker roomsmany are increasingly part of multi-room complexes including lounges and training rooms that media cant accessbut journalists would be hard pressed to find so many sources anywhere else. Team dressing rooms are typically open to journalists before or after practices and games. The issue at hand was equal access to the players in the locker room for all reporters, regardless of their gender. "That's possible," he replied. Getting the killer quote? And here I'd been hoping for a controlled rollout on this thing. And there was Reggie, in nothing but sanitary socks. I mean, because if you sell out the coach, you never get to talk to them again, so I don't want to sell out the coach. Maybe McDonald's was hiring. He carried me to the back of the outfield wall and climbed the slatted boards with his right arm and clutched me in his left. There was a sports editor who would stop by every time he saw me eating, stare at me, and say in all seriousness, "Jenn, if you get fat, we won't love you no more." They see how (or if) players interact; get some idea as to who's happy, who's not, and maybe find out why or why not. Pearlman is a household name when it comes to sportswriters, and Long is one of the most beloved Philadelphia athletes in recent memory. He was really mouthing off at me. SAGAL: He left the Reform Club, traveled around the world in 80 days, came back, ran up the steps, but he was not wearing a jacket and tie. (He later apologized in a newspaper ad, while denying using crude language. Three female reporters were denied access to a NFL locker room this weekend, because of their gender. NBA teams play 82 games a year, not including playoffs and preseason contests. Or like Brandon Grahams locker is next to mine, and he has 40 reporters around him, and someone is bumping into my naked ass. SALIE: Men, that was all men, that was all men, sister. I was 22 years old and the first woman ever to cover sports for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. When men gather at bars and golf courses and any of the other traditional salt licks for male bonding, do they ask the gynecologist what Mrs. Holcombe's hooters look like? The following year, a federal judge struck down the MLB policy on 14th Amendment grounds. Should women be allowed in locker rooms? I had offered the story first to my sports editor, Mike Perry (standard newspaper policy). Now that is underrated, and the goal of every reporterits what keeps us focused. But I had a deadline. We all just kind of deal with it, says Jenni Carlson, a columnist for The Oklahoman and self-described shorter person who fights to see and hear her often giant interview subjects. Readmore, With the 65th overall pick, the Rangers chose Adam Tambellini, a 6-foot-2 center whose father and brother each played for the Islanders. [5], On September 17, 1990, Olson was interviewing players in the Patriots locker room on a practice day. Jerseys are on the floor, not on the playersno jerseys, no name tags, just toweled dudes walking around. Not sports writing, but the best of every column written in the state that year. I began to wonder, what had I done with the last seven years of my life? He may be a tough guy, but when I talked with him, he was slathering a nice coconut lotion all over his chest and was very soft-spoken. ' Herman said. Copyright 2013 NPR. Its a professional setting, and if the reporter is professional, the whole experience is smooth as silk. I remember being scared because I hadn't known how the locker room was going to look or smell or who or what I would have to wade throughliterally and figurativelyto find this man. TAFOYA: No, I always talk to them off camera because I can get more out of them, and then I come back after halftime, and I report to the audience what I've been told. And I have shared that with very few people. Gordon Robertson, locker room guard, stops Robin Herman from entering the Chicago Black Hawks locker room (January 1975). David Cone, Wells's teammate, gave Olson and Marchiano Wells's address. Archival footage of Olson was used in the film, but Olson herself declined to participate in it.[13]. In return for players giving up some privacy, media get a one-stop shop for all the color their audiences could want, while franchises reap the marketing benefits of near-daily publicity. He said he was 16. So I went about my business. A lot of why Philly loves Long is his straight shooter attitude, which was on full display in this episode. I compared my scar (a plate and six screws from a broken ankle) to Mark Tylers scar from his broken leg, with Mark proclaiming mine cooler.. The other was a first-person piece about the last game at Arlington Stadium. ", TAFOYA: I spent about eight seasons before that on "Monday Night Football.". But how was I supposed to do my job with all that crap going on? For the first time in NFL history there will be two female coaches on the. Sometimes I'm kind of quiet in a group interview, and I have this feeling other reporters will think it's because I'm a dumb ol' girl. I understand that uniformsunless they say, "Eb, your man who wears the star" on the lapelare a great aphrodisiac in contemporary culture. locker room was a story. Nope, in fact, I was invisible. I had become a sweating mass of raw nerve endings. I tried to explain that it is probably a lot like being a male gynecologist: the daily procession of personal parts becomes so routine that it ceases to be of anything but professional interest. TAFOYA: But you do that all the time, don't you? I almost said matter-of-factly, "You know, Kenny, you've got a fine head of hair." Her tires were slashed, she received hate mail and death threats, and her apartment was burglarized. or "You wrote a good piece, Jenn, but then your headline writers let you down at the end; what does that feel like?" No one seems to know when the first female Equipment Manager was hired. She faced off against the MLB commissioner and won access a year later, but the . The poster was new. I never went near a bedroom with any of them, but I told him "a woman" because I didn't know how answering "18" to this loaded question would affect my precarious career. So is it awkward for you? The more we try to know about our sporting heroes, the less they tell us. The internet, magazines, and plenty of small family-owned businesses in the Philadelphia area offer the same experience. About two yards down, I see legs behind the batting cage. SALIE: Do you have a minute for me, coach? He might not understand that I meant its thickness and shine were enviable. SAGAL: That's what you do. I asked forand receiveda transfer back to sports. This blogs regular features, including live game analysis, reader discussion, news and notes from Jeff Z. Klein and others, can now be found on the Hockey section front. Each time I stopped pacing, the clerk and guard started toward me. The Herald editor offered her a position handling horse-racing agate. Standard Fraley, so no problems there. Property. So why are they going to think the reporter is any different at first? She is an American humorist and sportswriter who now does reviews for Publishers Weekly and writes for a variety of publications, including the Dallas Observer, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, USA Today, and Sports Illustrated. The rest is all overrated. But this was something else. Like other working people, professional athletes want to leave the office when their shift ends, so they waste no time stripping down to hit the showers. She was a member of the first class of women at Princeton University. I began bicycling and training for a marathon. bit scary, but I was very determined that this had to happen, not for me personally, but for all the young women who wanted to get into this profession. More than two years ago, I told the sports editor I wanted to return to sports. Herman, though, found herself a part of a much larger moment, a wider-ranging battle for equality in the workplace for women. All-Star Game in Montreal said, yes, female reporters At first glance, it wasnt bad. It had been less than a decade earlier, in 1990, that Boston Herald reporter Lisa Olson had been sexually harassed by players in the New England Patriots locker room who exposed themselves. The immediate response is curiosity: Do I get to go in the locker room? So you're a female reporter, you are allowed inside the NFL locker room, you're a pioneer, but there's still places out there, Michele, where they believe in cooties. But hey, I was the center of attention on a baseball field; I could sell out for that. Perfect. The one thing that keeps you focused in a locker room is simplethese guys are not wearing clothes, and the only way you can identify who they are is by face recognition. Cripes, maybe I should just wait til they all get dressed before talking to them? I've always considered the real hurdle of all this to be players' perception of me, not suppressing my thoughts. Summoners Value War. It's like having a male gynecologistif he's fairly comfortable doing his thing, it makes the female patient fairly comfortable. That's when a security guard came up to me to ask why I was there. TAFOYA: No, it is, but the emotional rollercoaster of being a fan, it's just not worth it. They picked threeCindy, because she was a perky cheerleader at the University of Texas at Arlington; Jamie, because she had modeling experience; and me, because I was a pest. That sort of collegiality isnt obsolete in locker rooms, but real-time publishing certainly ups the danger of such humor being viewed out of context. I wrote about civil rights issues and roamed through abandoned warehouses alone in search of skinheads. The Stacks is Deadspin's living archive of great journalism, curated by Bronx Banter's Alex Belth. At the same time, my marriage began taking ugly, unspeakable turns. It gets a lot worse than the predictable . But she still gets recognized as "the girl" who went in the. And theres going to be cameras. Good God, all I had wanted to do was cover sports. It was supposed to be about the fact that I had some negative things to say about my early work environment. The rumor was bogus, but it planted an idea. He had leis, candles, and the whole altar thing going on in his locker. He said I was loitering. The misconceptions about the atmosphere are overrated. During the incident, Ms. Olson said a group of naked players crowded around her to. Well, Reggie Jackson was my first. "And I mean, you put a woman and you give her a choice of 53 athletes . But back in 1975, Robin Herman, a 23-year old reporter for the New York Times, had been trying to get NHL teams to allow her access to locker rooms for a year, with no success. But one thing kept me in sports: I got a Rangers media pass every year. I was ready to gnaw my way through the first one I saw that might have had the book in it. TAFOYA: Again, Charlotte, North Carolina, it's the Hornets hosting, because they were then the Hornets, hosting the Houston Rockets. Its a mind-numbing thing to experiencegetting complete wrapped up in a job and not noticing the other stuff around you. This Is Why Female Sportswriters Can Go in Men's Locker Rooms Melissa Ludtke, a writer for Sports Illustrated, is shown on the job in her office in New York, Jan. 23, 1978, when she was. I concluded my sports hiatus last year with a stint on a special projects news team, collaborating with another reporter on a series about Fort Worth's high infant-mortality rate. Definite double standard here . And I know how smartass remarks work, too. That being said, strip clubs and runway shows are completely different to NBA locker rooms. Its no big deal, and if you don't believe me, watch The Full Monty a couple of timesit gets old real fast and you don't even notice it anymore. Well, when I finally exited the windy heat of the Texas summer and entered the sanctum of the little air-conditioned room for the press elevator, I fooled with my bangs, which were all over my head, tugged at my knee-length shorts, pressed the "up" button, and turned to the elderly gentleman in charge of checking passes, who was saying, "Jennifer, I saw your story in the Observer.". Sometimes I take a seat in the dugout, where a few of the guys are filtering in, grabbing bats and bubble gum. Or at least made me feel that way. The sexism row over a female sports reporter who was allegedly harassed in the New York Jets locker room was reignited last night after a Fox NFL analyst claimed she was 'asking for it.' Man, did I ever realize how my attitude and courage level had changed. (He was a recent addition to the team.) The first time I saw The Best American Sports Writing, I wasn't anywhere near good enough a writer to gain entry into that elite company. She was a travel writer and at the end of a marriage, and we were traipsing around the Four Corners area. SAGAL: Michele Tafoya, we're delighted to have you with us. TV Azteca reporter Ines Sainz says she was the subject of sexually suggestive remarks by New York Jets players. Was I stared at? Before The Best American Sports Writing for that year was in bookstores, I went on a Thelma and Louise-type journey with a girlfriend. He told me I had to leave unless I was staying at the hotel. During this phase of courtship, most men would be reassuring Lassie that her role as a dog star doesn't matter that they just like her nice, shiny coat. Mike called me into his office and told me he was now "into it" for passing on the piece. SAGAL: That's an interesting message for somebody who works for "Sunday Night Football" to send. But the remarks still hurt. I was close to giving up. I have no idea why, except that Nolan Ryan and my daddy are my heroes, and I just have no need of seeing either one of their white heinies. Ken Dryden of the Montreal Canadiens talks to reporters in the locker room circa 1975 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Ive noticed the female athletes still get a closed locker room to shower and change today. Alrighty then, time to search out the first player I wanted to talk toUSC quarterback Mark Sanchez. The reasoning behind this policy is that players are more likely to be relaxed and open with reporters after they have had a chance to cool down and take a shower. Yet anyone who gets self-worth through random sex with a professional athlete is not exactly MENSA material. She has also authored six books and was the first Texas Rangers ball girl. [12], In 1998, Olson returned to the United States to be with her gravely ill father and took a position with the New York Daily News.[1][9]. I dropped my plans to go to the University of Texas and study broadcasting. Olson later wrote a column apologizing to Wells for coming to his house during what was such an emotional time. I admit, some days even the UPS guy looks awful good. Then I did something I had never done. It's a place for changing attire and accessing personal belonging. I began to cry. But I was humbled by the honor. But it struck me that something had changed: that my presence was no longer cause for flouncing; that I'd somehow earned this strange sign of courtesy and respect. I can't remember the number of times I've picked up the phone in the sports department, answered some trivia question, and, when the answer didn't win the guy a bar bet, had the caller demand, "Put a man on this phone." I should have told him how sad it was that he had to rub his own. So while I'm asking him about his family's strawberry farm, I'm wondering if eggs have given him this nice, shiny coat or if he uses his wife's conditioner, and if so, what is it? Some simply called me a "stupid bitch" and hung up. Later that year, Olson and Sam Marchiano were reportedly subjected to a profanity-laced verbal tirade by New York Yankees pitcher David Wells when they approached him at his home to comment on his sudden trade to the Toronto Blue Jays for Roger Clemens. I asked my question; he answered. And what if someone saw me in this state of trepidation? Actually, I tell them, one of the most peculiar side effects of my job is that it seems to run off men in personal relationships. And yet, 40 years after Robin Herman became the first female reporter to enter an NFL locker room, women are still fighting a war against rampant sexism in the industry, with Twitter. In an interview on the March 11, 2011 edition of Bill Simmons' podcast, "The B.S. I hate to invade their pain and their anger and sometimes even their happiness. ", He started yelling again in this really high voice. Not about naked bodies or about crude remarks but about how they would think I feltand how I intended to respond with confidence, no matter what happened. Several were guys who had been my superiors at one time or another and were just so gushing with their praise. I was ready once again to be the greatest sportswriter who ever lived. And a few guys maybe flounced around a little more just for brief amusement. [6] Sullivan observed Olson and determined that she was acting professionally, interviewing Maurice Hurst, but took no other action. I head down the steps, past the seats where I couldn't even afford to sit when I was a kid, open heaven's gate, and walk onto the field. I stood in the Coliseums tunnel and was hesitant. All the culprits are either long gone or have actually apologized, saying they just didn't know better at the time. Readmore, The Islanders sent Nino Niederreiter to Minnesota for Cal Clutterbuck, and took defenseman Ryan Pulock with the 15th over all pick in Sundays N.H.L. Video marketing. Instead of saying so-and-so is a good player, and heres a quote, I include some Vines and GIFs to show why hes so good, says Kevin Trahan, who writes for Vice and SB Nation. A new generation of sports writers has responded to this shift by increasingly using advanced metrics and digital tools to change the genre entirely. In no other workplace in America are you expected to be putting your clothes on, and somebodys going to talk to you. [4] The Herald's then owner, News Corporation, offered to transfer her to Sydney, Australia, where she worked for The Daily Telegraph and the Sydney Morning Herald. [11] On February 24, 1992, her attorney said that Olson had settled the lawsuit on undisclosed terms. I didn't give it a whole lot of thought as I went into the office that day. What does it really matter if the rest of the world knows? I didn't want to be branded as some woman on a crusade. Jenny Kellner. I wrote management repeatedly. Yeah. The Liberty Line is owned and operated by TLL Sports LLC. In 1975, the NHL allowed New York Times reporter Robin Herman into the men's locker room, making her the first woman to enter a hockey team clubhouse. Lately I've just started saying I'm a secretary at Wolfe's Nursery. Prove to them you know your stuff, and you will have proven to them why you belong there. He said he chose to run this piece in tandem with Roger Angell's piece because, all else aside, they were stories by a couple of kids who grew up loving baseball. I was amazed. I can't tell you the bizarre arguments I've had with a few of these creeps who keep suggesting I become a teacher. The executive types weren't too hot on the idea. It reminds me of a debutante waking up in last night's party dress, reeking of beer. People were calling from all over about the piece. It was an area high school coach who routinely tried to get me to drop by his house when his wife was out of town; when I refused for the third time, he refused to provide any more than perfunctory answers to my story questions. Yeah, my ode to the old stadium won it all. And my rule will be I will only look at their eyebrows. We both approached the front desk, where the clerk sided with the guard, saying I could remain for 10 more minutes, but only if I stayed out of the central lobby and remained "mobile." Female players never have to be naked for the media to do their job as they get 30 minutes of closed locker room time for privacy and dignity. I fully expected trouble. Players mostly accept that strangers will see them au naturel. All she wanted was to be afforded the . A girl in the The players were roaming around in towels or standing by their lockers speaking into digital recordersno one was smacking towels on butts, no one was making soap jokes. You know when the line has been crossed because you know about the culture that youve entered . My face broke out. Please enter valid email address to continue. But the reality was, a newspaper did not have space for the words or freedom on the finer nuances of body-part language. He kept muttering. And yes, he gave me a pat on the shoulder afterwards. In 1973 she was hired as the New York Times' first female sports reporter. Its all weve ever known, right wing Josh Bailey, wearing a blue Islanders shirt, skin-tight compression shorts, and knee-high athletic socks, told me after a practice last week. SAGAL: The club was famed for its beverage known as Fish House Punch, which according to legend was so potent, it knocked George Washington out of commission for three days. Whoops! A, Revolutionary officers hid inside from British pursuers who wouldn't enter because they were not members. Ines Sainz: NFL Investigates Jets The repetitiveness and intensity of the format can be more frustrating. Show More. That's before they tell me I don't have any business in the locker room. instantly became the news and television cameras swung to them. He. SAGAL: Or C, Benjamin Franklin became the first and only member thrown out because of his horrible morals? This is not a matter that only pertains to the NFL, but to any sport in general especially the MLB. She impressed her supervisors, and the paper hired her as a paid sports journalist. But then Donna likes the men she meets at Baja. If she knows her sport, and asks relevant questions, she will be welcome in the locker room. I was in the visiting clubhouse waiting to interview one of the Oakland A's this year when one of the players called, "Here, pussy"as though he were calling a cat. While all this was going on, I began helping out with Dallas Cowboys sidebar articles and weekend coverage of the Rangers. It's not a place for socialising. Maybe I should write news or features because I'll never have the fortitude it takes to stay on your toes with one-liners and be tough enough to handle this. I used to write Dallas Cowboys columns in blue Crayola on a Big Chief tablet in the part of my sister's walk-in closet I had designated as the press box. SAGAL: Well, tonight, Michele Tafoya's special segment, What the Hell is Wrong With You People? And it had just started to become something that women could do, and I thought I can do this. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. 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