Female journalists suffer criticism when talking about sports – 09/29/2024 – Sport

Is there public resistance to watching football games narrated by women? Narrators say yes, and social media seems to confirm this thesis. Before X was blocked in Brazil, comments such as “my father loves your narrations, he is deaf” or “women should narrate women’s games, since no one can watch” appeared on the “timeline” when a narrator spoke up.

THE Sheet heard from sports researchers and women who work on television and the internet. Although they recognize progress, they highlight that there is still much to be done to make the environment truly inclusive.

Journalist Denise Mirá states that since the 1980s she has been fighting for space in a sexist environment, dominated by men. A reflection, according to her, of the structure of society.

“If girls continue to be raised to serve and perform domestic tasks without the collaboration of their brothers, this reality will not change. This is also reflected in sport, in which women have progressed, but still slowly”, he says.

Despite this, there are names that show female growth in the sports scene, such as Luciana Mariano, who appeared in 1997 on Bandeirantes as the first woman to narrate on Brazilian TV. Currently, she is part of ESPN and runs the Mina de Passe program, the first dedicated to women’s football in Brazil.

“Unfortunately, it’s a reality. All of us women are still victims of a sexist structure in some way. I transformed all my indignation into strength and hope, I gave it a new meaning when I managed to understand that I wasn’t the problem,” she says.

Inclusion has increased, but at a slow pace. On TV Globo, female participation rose from 15% in 2018 to 43% in 2024. Among the narrators, there are only three, with Renata Silveira standing out as the first woman to narrate a World Cup game on open TV, in 2022.

For Katia Rubio, coordinator of the Olympic Studies Group at the School of Physical Education at USP (University of São Paulo), work needs to be done so that inclusion is not just a marketing strategy.

“My real concern is about the durability of this initiative. I wonder if this approach will continue to be a priority when it stops being a trend,” he says. “Otherwise, I fear women will need to turn to female-specific vehicles to get the visibility they need.”

For Soraya Barreto Januário, professor at UFPE (Federal University of Pernambuco) and researcher with studies in gender, masculinities and communication, inclusion in broadcasters is a market issue. “If the market doesn’t start to see a financial return, I’m sure that large broadcasters will only have internal inclusion policies to a certain extent.”

She warns of the risk of a decline in female inclusion, with the return of male dominance, and sees this issue as critical, highlighting the pedagogical importance of media inclusion. “Yes, it is very important to have women narrators, but this is a cultural construction, and a culture is not built overnight.”

At the Paris Olympic Games, Natalia Lara, from TV Globo, stood out as a narrator in several sports, after intense preparation, reviewing all 48 Olympic sports, with a special focus on those involving Brazilian athletes.

“I receive a lot of positive messages, especially now, with my work at the Olympics,” he says. Natalia uses her social networks to highlight the importance of female representation and respond to those who still resist the presence of female narrators, leaving criticism aside.

She highlights that she sees a gradual improvement. And she points out that, by entering new environments, women open doors and often meet people who are not yet used to hearing their voices.

“I see this as something that, over time, will become natural, with people getting used to and accepting our voices,” he says.

Questioned by SheetTV Globo stated that the broadcaster’s response to the criticism suffered by journalists is to invest in diversity, in order to enrich the broadcasts of all sports on its channels and platforms.

Although criticism is more intense in football, women who work in other sports do not go unharmed. Alana Ambrósio, hired by the NBA in Brazil, comments and narrates the basketball games that are shown on YouTube and Prime Video.

“It certainly has a gendered nature, very specific and clear, when we see the negative comments that are directed at women who work in sport, whether they are narrators or commentators”, says Ambrósio.

Journalist Juca Kfouri, columnist for Sheetrecognizes structural machismo in Brazil and says that, in his experience as head of reporting for Placar magazine in the 1970s, he sought to promote female inclusion.

“Whenever this topic comes up, I make a point of expressing my position to expose machismo. I say: ‘No, you’re not making a technical criticism, you’re making a gender-based criticism’. The root of this is the fear that women can occupy their spaces, whatever the reason,” he states.

Researcher Katia Rubio laments that women are still often limited to covering “women’s sports” and argues that true progress will occur when they have equal opportunities to cover all sports.

Although he recognizes progress since the 1970s, with more women claiming space in sports media, Rubio believes there is still a long way to go.

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