In part one I brought you organisations that can help you get into women’s sport, be it as a practitioner, administrator, official or whatever. In part two I’d like to show you round some of my favourite women’s media sites. The stories are out there – you may just have to work a bit harder to find them, because God knows you’re going to find precious little in the mainstream press!
So, firstly, and I know this may be slightly self-indulgent, but I’d like to put in a plug for the site that gave me my first writing break – Women’s Views on News. It’s by no means a sports site, but it does feature sport and a whole lot else. It’s the only site I know that covers news from all over the world that is about women or pertains to women’s lives. There is so much that goes on that we never get to hear about – WVoN aims to reduce that imbalance.
Secondly, the place for all news, results and opinions is Women’s Sports UK. Again I have to declare an interest as I’ve just started to write for this wonderful site. It has recently been revamped and looks better than ever. It covers an amazing range of sports and largely relies on volunteers (like me) to provide the match reports. Really, check it out. If you find they’re not covering something you think they should, get in touch with them as they are always receptive to new ideas!
Sportsister has been going a long time. It’s a busy site, that used to have a lot of news and reports, but seems now to be concentrating on how to get into sport, sports kit, nutrition, etc. it’s a bit of a crossover in my organisations/media sections, but well worth a look.
In a similar vein is Women’s Sport Report. It has the product reviews and health and fitness sections, but also has a few more features and articles on women’s sport.
Sports Liberated is the brainchild of former gymnast Jo Gunston. She describes it as
“A multi-media hub focusing on women and girls in sport.”
It consists of a website, a free monthly digital magazine and a weekly radio show. Jo is also, apparently, looking into TV as an outlet. It is a really professional job and beautiful to look at. I would encourage you all to look at it now (or after you’ve finished this blog!).
Jo is of the opinion (and I think I’ve said something similar at the beginning of this blog) that
“A plethora of women in sport stories are just waiting to be unearthed and it is in the telling of these tales that Sports Liberated, in all its guises, focuses.”
One Twitter devotee you should follow is @WomenSportPress. She basically spends her time calculating how much space national newspapers give to women’s sports. She then tweets this, calling out the relevant sports editor at the same time. Real dedication to the cause! Chief offender seems to be the Metro, but all have been guilty at some point. Must be a demoralising job, but it’s brilliant and I retweet her whenever I can.
Another one to follow on Twitter is @SportsFeminist who dedicates her feed to campaigning for equal media coverage for women’s sport.
The Women in Sport Podcast (WiSP), has been going since 2012, and is a firm favourite. It was started in the States by Chris Stafford, but now they have correspondents in the UK, Australia and New Zealand. It has sections devoted to the latest news, athlete profiles and a “sport in focus”. Well worth a listen and our support.
Women in Sport magazine was launched in a blaze of publicity in 2013. However, I was never able to find a physical copy in any shop and now I only see their Twitter feed. The Facebook page is closed. I have messaged them to find out what is happening and if I get a reply I will update this blog.
Finally, and somewhat bizarrely, Glamour Magazine, not something I would usually have much truck with, started their “Say No to Sexism in Sport” campaign at the beginning of 2015. It’s a publication with some clout and the campaign has been getting a lot of publicity. Good to follow on Twitter @GlamourMagSport.
Besides these lovely general sports outlets there are many sport-specific publications and sites. I can’t cover them all here, but here are a few of my favourites:
She Kicks is the site/twitter feed/publication to follow for women’s football. Jen O’Neill has been editing the bi-monthly magazine and website since 1998! The paper magazine is a beautiful, professional product and is a fitting tribute the world of women’s football. If I’d had this magazine when I was growing up, instead of Shoot, things would have been very different!
Scrum Queens performs a similar service for all things women’s rugby although is online only. Essential reading for anyone interested in women’s rugby.
And last, but very much not least, Crickether.com. The best for news, results, opinion and everything else to do with women’s cricket. You may know I love cricket so I could be very vocal about this, but let’s just say if you have any slight interest in or curiosity about women’s cricket, you can’t afford to miss out on Raf Nicholson and Syd Egan.
I think that’s about enough to whet your appetites. The main thing to know is that most of these publications are put together by volunteers and rely on donations to keep going. There are some great writers out there, bringing the best of women’s sport to you. Please read, follow, comment and love them all!
In the third, and last, part of this series I will be offering you some names of individuals and blogs you may like to follow. If you have any other favourite women’s sports media, please get in touch!
Penny Hopkins 