Want Changes in Content? : Change the Decision Makers
Change the Decision Makers

<jats:p> In this commentary reflecting on trends in covering women’s sports on television news reported in Cooky, Messner, and Hextrum’s article “Women Play Sport, But Not on TV: A Longitudinal Study of Televised News Media,” Marie Hardin looks for change by exploring the gender composition of sports newsrooms and how changes in coverage of women’s sports may be integrally linked to an increase of women as sports news decision makers. She argues that for the coverage of women’s sports to increase and be framed in a more positive light, the sports newsroom must move beyond being a last bastion of hegemonic masculinity and that women, as decision makers, must reach a critical mass to meaningfully impact the culture and values of the sports journalism work environment. Hardin closes by considering the opportunity and obligation for university journalism programs to facilitate change in the reporting of women’s sports by advocating for better opportunities for women sports reporters and by educating journalism students about the importance of diversity in the sports workplace. </jats:p>