Sport and women's sport: addressing sports ground invisibility

Some will claim women's sport is 'not as interesting' as men's sport, so why should it gain equal media coverage. Others will assert women's sport draws smaller audiences on the field (whether or not borne out by facts), so why should it gain greater coverage on the page or in the airwaves. Yet returning to netball, the ABC bought the rights to World Cup coverage, and it is unwise to assume that this was a move without regard to viewer potential and audience numbers. Indeed, Kate Palmer, Chief Executive Officer of Netball Australia said that the coverage generally 'was very, very good'. This does not support the 'low audience numbers' contention. It is difficult, therefore, to avoid some agreement with Palmer's view that the decision to delay the telecast of the World Cup 'just showed an incredible lack of respect for the athletes and for [the] sport'.

Palmer did say the ABC had 'the upper hand' because 'not a lot of other broadcasters are interested' in televising the sport. This again may be characterised as a concession to the proposition that women's sport simply 'doesn't rate', just as those tennis players asserted.

Yet surely the issue is one that ought not to be dealt with by such glib dismissals. Is male domination of media ownership and administration unrelated to the paucity of coverage of women's sport, the substantially fewer numbers of women employed in the industry as on-screen talent, fewer numbers in 'behind the scenes' roles, endemic unequal pay and fewer promotion opportunities for women, fewer positions for women on-screen at all and particularly upon reaching 'a certain age'?

In 2012, on-screen presenter Miriam O'Reilly, dropped from rural affairs show Countryfile, won her age discrimination case against the BBC. She was one of four female presenters in their forties and fifties 'let-go'. The tribunal said 'a significant factor' in this, and in the choice of alternative presenters, was the latters' comparative youth' and the claimant's age. The wish 'to appeal to a prime-time audience, including younger viewers' was a 'legitimate aim'. However:

… we do not accept that it has been established that choosing younger presenters is required to appeal to such an audience …'

Responding to the decision, the BBC said questions 'for the whole industry' were raised which 'need to be addressed'. The BBC pledged to provide 'additional training to senior editorial executives' and 'issue new guidance on the fair selection of presenters'. The 'fair representation' of people 'of all ages across the broadcasting industry' was an important issue, highlighted by the circumstances leading up to the bringing of the suit by O'Reilly and its outcome. In evidence, O'Reilly said she had been warned by a Countryfile director that she should 'be careful with those wrinkles when high definition comes in'. Nine months later, 'she was axed'.

In her follow-up to the British media in the wake of the Olympics, Culture Secretary Miller's message is that the one hour's television coverage of women's sports versus every twenty hour's of men's sports coverage must be rectified. She issued an invitation to all broadcasters to meet with her 'to discuss how they can improve their coverage'. Despite the London Olympics having concluded, the 'powerful role models' for young women exemplified by London Olympics medallists should remain on-screen, not off it.

Meanwhile, Tessa Jowell leads a campaign to ensure that the number of medals – hence the number of Olympic competitions – at the Rio Games is not skewed. More medals should not be available for winning by male competitors, and more events should not be designated for competitors simply because they are men. Jowell wants equality in competitions, events and opportunities to mount the winning podium.

Let's hope the Australian media joins in as well as looking to its own record, and that Australia's sports ministers take up the campaign, as well as keeping up with the action on the women's as well as the men's sporting fields. It would be embarrassing if any were caught in the humiliating position of Jeremy Hunt, former UK Culture Secretary, who - during the London Olympics – was unable to name any members of the British women's football team. Not one.