Masculinity in sports

Every male sport has a different level of masculinity about it. Michael A. Messner proposes an idea that there are ten themes of masculinity portrayed by sports broadcasts in his article, Center of Attention: The Gender of Sports Media. However those themes are for the most part not as evident in some sports. Not all of Messner’s themes are represented in every sportscast, but a few do happen to stand out. The difference of broadcasts between a professional football game and professional golf tournament present very different characteristics possibly because football is considered a more manly sport.

The first example of differentiation is in the general type of commercials they play during breaks and applies to Messner‘s “Sport is a man‘s world“ {Rereading America page 478} theme. During a football game, the best chance a woman has of being in a commercial is usually only if she’s scantily clad and dancing for beer. She also might be seen on the sidelines in a cheerleading uniform batting her eyes at a stud receiver wearing the newest style of Nike cleats. In other words, she is never depicted as a mother

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The biggest deviation between an announcer at a football game and one at a golf tournament is the fact that in football they talk on a loud speaker and raise their voice in excitement, yet in golf, silence is the name of the game.

A reason for these differences could come from the fact that there are few professional golfers and golf is usually associated with the upper class while there are too many professional football players to mention and football is usually associated with the middle class.

Messner proposed themes that didn’t apply to these two specific sports and even the themes referenced in this essay aren’t very extreme. On the other hand, football helmets mess up the players hair, grass stains cover their uniforms, sweat pours down their faces, and fresh wounds seep blood. As evidenced in sportscasts, football is considered a more masculine sport because there is absolutely nothing feminine about the game except the cheerleaders. Football commercials will also center around heavy-duty work trucks and SUVs capable of climbing mountains or hauling

cruiser boats. Golf has spectators who watch silently in their nice khakis and polo shirts while football has fans who paint their bodies, go shirtless, wear wigs and yell their heads off. Golf commentators never need words to describe a physical fight between two players, or strong controversial words because golf is a much more calm, non-contact sport. Cheerleaders, band instruments, air horns, speakers blaring music, crowd chanting, wild fans and numerous other noise makers often create non-stop ruckus at a football game and when a hush does come over the crowd it’s either for an injured player or the National Anthem. A typical Miller Lite commercial during the PGA Masters will illustrate a group of guys enjoying a bottled beer while playing a round on the golf course. The whole atmosphere of the sports are not the same and geared toward different types of people. Also, a commentator at a football game is more likely to use words associated with fighting and war because it is a rough contact sport. There are differences between every sport, some more than others, and each one is geared to a certain type of person. A typical Miller Lite commercial during the Super Bowl will show a bunch of fat guys yelling at the TV, and each other, while watching a close football game.

Approximate Word count = 780
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)

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