Google Aims To Squash Disparities In Women’s Sports Coverage
In November 2022, Google announced that it would be partnering with The Athletic– a subscription-based digital sports news outlet– to launch a multiplatform project aimed at supporting the growth of women’s sports journalism.
Women currently account for 40 percent of all professional sports participants. Despite this fact, female pro athletes receive only 4 percent of regular sports media coverage aside from major sporting events such as the Olympics, according to the United Nations Education Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
So, the partnership’s main goal was to expand coverage of professional women’s basketball and soccer while devoting more staffing and resources to this endeavor.
But, according to Kate Johnson, Google’s Director of Global Sports, Media, and Entertainment Marketing, this partnership was just the tip of the iceberg.
Google is a massively lucrative global brand. It is also arguably one of the most well-known companies in the world. So, if the company sets its sights on sports journalism equity, Johnson believes other market leaders will follow.
“If we are doing this, if we are saying, ‘This is worth leaning into for all of these reasons,’ you’d like to expect that other companies would hop on board,” she told Forbes.
Johnson also revealed how she felt this push to become a changemaker in women’s sports coverage after taking a long, hard look at her own company’s practices.
“Listen, this started with our own audit,” she admitted.
“Google is very experienced at spending in sport. So when we did our own audit of how we are spending that money, and then we look at what our role is from a macro perspective, upping our investment level was a huge part of that.”
BalanceFormCreative – stock.adobe.com – illustrative purposes only, not the actual person
Although, what Johnson and her colleagues discovered was shocking. Buying ads against professional women’s sports coverage had an extremely low ceiling– simply because so little of this coverage exists.
This meant that even if Johnson and other Google execs wanted to up their ad spend, there just was not enough inventory for this investment.
Google has since recognized this as a major problem and is now actively pursuing media partners to create supported content.
It is likely that the company will find smaller startups racing to fill the void of women’s sports coverage; meanwhile, legacy outlets still have not shown unwavering commitment to the sector.
Regardless, Google just needs one partner that is willing to spend in order for the whole equation to change.
Johnson claimed that as she enters 2023 planning conversations and how Google plans to spend with its partners, the company’s power and diversity of product areas can act as leverage.
“That’s the time where you have the most leverage to up-level things that you really care about,” she explained.
“‘Hey, by the way, we have a partnership with the WNBA. There’s not enough inventory on TV. What are we doing to do about that, ESPN? How do we make sure that, together, we’re coming in to help solve that?”
The idea of creating stability in women’s sports coverage is critical for building and maintaining an audience of consumers. But, each time women’s sport interest surges, doubts and lack of support cause the trend to stop.
This has inspired Johnson to “build on the tidal wave” in 2023– hoping that mega events such as the 2023 Women’s World Cup are not the only sporting competitions that capture the globe’s attention.
“What I would love to see is just a continuation of last year, which is, in all parts of the globe, this bigger elevation of awareness around these major women’s sporting moments that are happening,” Johnson said.
“So that you don’t have just one event representing all women’s sports, that everybody is elevated.”
At home, media consumers can contribute to change, too. Purchase tickets to a women’s sporting event, tune into female sports coverage that is available in your area, and make your voice heard on social media.
By contributing to ticket sales, increasing TV ratings, and keeping the conversation going online, consumers can show that the demand for women’s sports coverage is there.
If true crime defines your free time, this is for you: join Chip Chick’s True Crime Tribe
Sign up for Chip Chick’s newsletter and get stories like this delivered to your inbox.
More About:Sports
Read This Next
