Call for papers for a special issue of Sport in Society
Contested relations - gender, sport and power in the mass media
For large parts of the population in Western countries media sport is
the sport reality which they consume in their everyday lives. However,
"media sport" has its own aims and rules, and the media do not and
cannot cover the multiple realities on and around sports grounds and gym
halls. The media focus on the big games and on male athletes, but omit
information on politics and economies, on the organization of sport and
on sport for all, e.g. the sporting activities of children and seniors.
The mass media help to shape everyday knowledge about "real sport" and
how it should be played. For the media "real sport" is men's sport, and
previous research has convincingly demonstrated that male athletes get
more media coverage than sportswomen and that men and women are
presented in different ways. Media sport contributes to the perpetuation
of the gender hierarchy in sport and beyond. Here, questions about
backgrounds and reasons, as well as about consequences, emerge.
In this issue of Sport in Society we would like to gather together
articles that will take up these questions and provide an in-depth
insight into the gendered narratives of sports coverage. The articles
could have a focus on alternative gender images, culture and sport,
specific femininities and masculinities, techniques of gender
constructions or media approaches to the gender difference paradigm.
Questions such as the impact of the rising popularity of female
athletes, e.g. during the 2012 Olympics, could also be addressed.
In addition, inclusion and exclusion processes as well as
interrelations and interdependencies between all the players in and on
the field, the athletes, the journalists, the media industry and the
consumers must be taken into consideration.
Specific emphasis will be placed on power relations, in particular the
power of the media to create images and narratives which contribute to a
confirmation or to a change of the gender order in football and beyond.
The papers will undergo a peer review process. Authors will be notified
in the summer of 2013.
Deadline for articles: 1 May 2013. The issue will be published in early
2014
Guest editors:
Professor Susanna Hedenborg, Malmö University
Professor Gertrud Pfister, Copenhagen University
Send your manuscript to: [log in to unmask]
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