One concept I like is The Single Slide Presentation. It is simple, conveys a lot of information, focuses attention on you and your message as the expert, and doesn’t inundate the audience with “death by powerpoint”. For more on The Single Slide method click here and here.

Me playing hockey

While it is Stanley Cup Playoff time, other people are also playing hockey.

I’m outside of Denver battling altitude sickness and playing some hockey with about 25 other women’s teams from around the country. This is what sport is all about-compete hard, have fun, laugh with friends, demonstrate good sportsmanship (it is recreational hockey after all!), and make memories for a lifetime.

…and oh, ALL of us have gone pro in something other than sports.

Game 1: win; Game 2 : tie; Game 3: loss = no championship round

All games played in 24hrs after not skating since mid March means that even my eyelids are sore!

All are welcome and feel free to pass it along!

If you want to join our bracket group, here is the info.

Get in the action now:
http://games.espn.go.com/tcwomen/en/group?groupID=1729

Group: School of Kinesiology
Password: kinesiology

Once you create an individual account and fill out your bracket, there is a button to “Join a Group”. Click on that button and then enter the info above. It is really simple and very fun!

Sports Illustrated 2010 Swimsuit Issue

I became aware of these pictures, from a news story in the Minneapolis Star Tribune that ran today which stated, “Minnesota skiing sensation Lindsey Vonn is among a quartet of Olympic athletes featured in this year’s Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue that is out today in print and online.”  The online version of the SI Swimsuit Issue includes video clips of the Olympic Stars doing their photo shoots.

The critique here is the same, when we DO see female athletes (some of the best in the world at their respective sports!) which happens in only 6-8% of all sport media, they are more often than not in poses that highlight physical attractiveness, femininity, and can be interpreted as sexualized. Is it coincidental that the four female Olympians portrayed here are all blond, attractive, feminine looking, and sexy according to societal norms?Arguably, the Vonn SI cover can be interpreted (or not) as sexualized, but these images are clearly sexualizing in nature and tone.

The obvious target market for the Swimsuit Issue is men.  Therefore, the idea that “sex sells” is viable and research does support that sex sells. What I want to argue however, and some emerging research is supporting, that sex sells sex…but sex does not sell women’s sport.

The point being, by seeing Vonn on the cover of SI, these images of female Olympians, or any other female athlete… does it make the male demographic more likely to attend and pay for a ticket to an event where these women are competing, buy merchandise, or read a story about them? Researchers say it is unlikely. So yes, sex sells sex but it likely does not promote women’s sport or female athletes in a way that helps to grow women’s sport in a meaningful and sustainable way.

The last point I want to highlight is these type of images also reinforce to consumers what is most important and valued in terms of female athletes and females in general, and meaning is constructed from what is chosen to be included and not included. If you want to read more about  how the sexualization of females affects everyone, particularly young girls, go to the American Psychological Foundation’s Task Force Report on the Sexualization of Girls. The report can be downloaded for free, and in short states, “The proliferation of sexualized images of girls and young women in advertising, merchandising, and media is harming girls’ self-image and healthy development. This report explores the cognitive and emotional consequences, consequences for mental and physical health, and impact on development of a healthy sexual self-image.”

Therefore,  I hope to see many more images like the one below in the weeks to follow, as Vonn (who I really hope is healthy enough to race given her shin injury) and other female Olympians have great potential to be positive role models, not only for girls, but for us all.

To see a video segment of me talking with KARE11 reporter Jana Shortal about why sexualized images of female athletes are problematic,  click here.

Lindsey Vonn, Great Athlete..in action, in uniform, on the slope.

There is nothing good about this ad. Evidently this show has a history of offensive ads. Awesome! This is another example of the picture says it all. No commentary needed.

Women & Girls Sport Quiz

1. In what year was the federal law Title IX passed that required gender equity in every educational program that receives federal funding?
2. Who is the greatest female golfer from Minnesota who co-founded and was the first president of the
LPGA?
3. Which governing body of college sport was the largest in the late 1970s?
4. She defeated Bobby Riggs (a former men’s Wimbledon champion) in a tennis match and founded the Women’s Sport Foundation.
5. Which female Olympian in the summer games has the most gold medals?

ANSWERS: 1) 1972, 2) Patty Berg, 3) AIAW has >100 more members than the NCAA, 4) Billie Jean King, 5) Jenny Thompson has 8 gold medals.