As a freshman at the University of Connecticut, seeing both of our teams do well during March Madness was the highlight of my year. It was truly inspiring to see an increase in interest in the women’s side of the tournament. For so many young female athletes, players like UConn’s Paige Bueckers, LSU’s Angel Reese and Iowa’s Caitlin Clark have become important role models.
The more I paid attention to the tournament, the more I learned about the nuances of basketball and the social response to the actions of players both on and off the court. Seeing the large-scale reaction to these actions highlighted the long-standing imbalance in the treatment of players depending on their race and their gender.
I first began thinking about this imbalance during the UConn versus Iowa women’s game. To ensure a win at the end of the game and run the clock, Clark threw the basketball off of Bueckers’ back. At my watch party, the people around me praised Clark for this classic but crafty move, but I was less than impressed. While strategic and unique decisions make the game exciting, I couldn’t help but feel that that move was unnecessary, unsportsmanlike and classless.
That got me thinking: If Angel Reese did the same thing, how would people have reacted? So, I took a deep dive into sportsmanship, celebrations and media coverage. What I found revealed an interesting disparity in how the media treats athletes from sport to sport and, more importantly, individual to individual.
For this entire season, Reese has been slammed on social media for her pregame chants and celebrations. People responded to a mildly profane “Beat they a**” chant by calling Reese “ghetto” and “trashy.” When Caitlin Clark celebrates with the “can’t see me,” dismisses opponents by waving them off or screams “shut the f*** up” across the court, she is praised as a player who possesses competitive greatness and a passion for the game.
Reese reports that for the past year, she has been sexualized, threatened and ridiculed by basketball fans. After LSU’s elimination from this year’s tournament, Reese’s teammates defended her in a tearful press conference, as Flau’Jae Johnson and Hailey Van Lith had nothing but praise and admiration for their teammate. They wiped her tears as she expressed her unhappiness at how she has been represented and how she feels unable to defend herself.
While Reese experienced this mistreatment, Clark received brand deals and was praised on social media and sports outlets for being a role model for young women. Thousands of people have bought Caitlin Clark’s merchandise and have ignored her behavior on the court.
The media representation of athletes does not just differ between those of different races. The unequal treatment of athletes is also apparent when we compare men’s sports to women’s. In 2018, Irish fighter Conor McGregor threw a dolly through the window of his opponent’s bus. While McGregor was raiding the buses, various team members and fighters were injured. This wasn’t the first time that McGregor had been disrespectful. During press conferences and interviews, he verbally attacks his opponents and their families.
While McGregor was punished by the Nevada State Athletic Commission and the law for his violent actions, UFC fans everywhere praised the Irishman for his entertaining personality and passion for his job. While performing community service as part of his plea deal, those at the church reportedly “loved” the loud and profane fighter.
A similar dynamic is noticeable when looking at Tom Brady’s behavior during his time with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. After every sack or missed pass, Brady can be seen throwing a temper tantrum on the field. He smashes his helmet against the bench and screams in the faces of his teammates and the officials. Again, Brady hasn’t received much backlash for this behavior, as he continues to be revered by fans nationwide for his legacy.
While I am excited that women’s sports are finally getting more recognition both through viewership and on social media, it saddens me to see the inequality in the treatment of female and male players, and even between female players. It is my hope that as sports become more equal as a whole, the media and society will adjust their thought pattern to properly reflect the work that these athletes put into their craft. With the sacrifices that these athletes make, I think that it is fair to let them celebrate however they wish without backlash, within reason of course.