It was also the Bear's last season. Places in Arlington might not get it until mid-afternoon. Now Chicago Bears defensive tackle Tommie Harris and linebacker Lance Briggs are the latest to chime-in. Women will kick up a fuss about men being in a women's locker room, and men should do the same with women. But I don't think it seems very logical to some of the other reporters. For years I was hopelessly mired in phone answering and score taking, watching as others in similar positions moved up and on. On cue, all the players in the Jets locker room got up and they all had the word Gitte written on their asses, he says. SAGAL: So you came back, and you're like, well, I just talked to the coach of the losing team, and he suggested certain things that were anatomically impossible. The sexism row over a female sports reporter who was allegedly harassed in the New York Jets locker room was reignited last night after a Fox NFL analyst claimed she was 'asking for it.' SAGAL: Here's your first question. better do it.. "Jenn," my friend told me, "I guess you rate a towel now.". SAGAL: Or C, Benjamin Franklin became the first and only member thrown out because of his horrible morals? We both approached the front desk, where the clerk sided with the guard, saying I could remain for 10 more minutes, but only if I stayed out of the central lobby and remained "mobile." [7][8], Eventually, NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue ordered an investigation under the aegis of former Watergate scandal prosecutor Philip Heymann;[5] the 60-page report concluded that Olson was "degraded and humiliated." Some nights I walk out the back door where all the wives are waiting, and they stare at me strangely, as though they think I'm the woman Cosmo warned them about or something. Sometimes you have to stand around and wait while your guy gets ready, so reporters will pull out their phones and pretend to be reading emails . Alabama Phenix. Why? But it wouldn't be my last. That seemed like such a dumb thing to say. I was in some pretty heavy company. By then I had researched what day shipment was due in bookstores. Forty years ago today, "Sports Illustrated" and its reporter Melissa Ludtke took on Major League Baseball and won. . After five years as a sports reporter, she moved on to write about science and health, leaving the rest of the battle to One of the most sickening feelings I get is when I have to go interview some pitcher who's been shelled or some guy who is struggling at the free throw line or a coach who is on the verge of not being a coach. We're sitting around the salon one day making bets on when the rest of the country will catch on that Ross Perot is a weasel when someone says he finished ahead of Bush and Clinton in another poll. You know, it was like, "So-and-so from The Beaumont Enterprise, many so-and-so's from The Dallas Morning News.". And I was entering the peak of a seven-year stint as the masked wrestling columnist Betty Ann StoutFort Worth's equivalent of Joe Bob Briggswhose unofficial duties included opening appliance stores, riding elephants when the circus came to town, and acting as rodeo Grand Marshal on the backs of large, hoofed animals. It may have been his first night. It seems in those years I was the only writer who could converse with Julio Franco and Brian Downing. I was doing that one recent day when a wet, naked body walked into my trance. She later was a columnist for the FanHouse sports website, and then a columnist for Sporting News. Ludtke said when Other interviews are illuminating for the answers they dont elicit. Scoreboard: Caps Ovechkin Outdoes Pens Crosby and Malkin, Rangers First Pick Is One With Ties to the Islanders, Devils Work a Trade So They Can Select Brodeurs Son, Islanders Make Deal With Wild Before Selecting a Defenseman in the First Round. Herman said she slowly convinced N.H.L. Like other working people, professional athletes want to leave the office when their shift ends, so they waste no time stripping down to hit the showers. If they're usually not allowed in, I wouldn't expect the teams to apologize for enforcing normal rules. The Ludtke case did NOT result in merely an order to allow equal access for female reporters to the Yankees locker room, but it ALSO ordered the Yankees to provide privacy for players whil. Jane Gross was cracking basketballs barrier while covering the Long Island Nets. From a New York Times obit by Richard Sandomir headlined "Robin Herman, Who Pried Open Doors in the NHL, Dies at 70":. ", He started yelling again in this really high voice. The grass spreads out in the shape of a precious gem, and there are fans here and there who have come to see batting practice just because it's relaxing. Olson was born and raised in the metropolitan area of Phoenix, Arizona. After the game, he stood at the door of the locker room and told Visser, "There might be a naked boy in there, but I don't give a s___t." It was time to go back to the dream. Dressed in a pair of virgin white flats, I trudged through the Arlington Stadium tunnela conglomeration of dirt and spit and sunflower seeds, caked to the walkway like 10,000-year-old bat guano at Carlsbad Cavernsdreading the task before me. A, while he was gone, the club had viewed the classic Monty Python Dead Parrot sketch and decided Mr. Palin was too vulgar to be readmitted to the premises; B, he got back to London but couldn't be readmitted because he was poorly dressed; or C, he tried to drive himself to the club in central London but got lost? It's also tricky when you give one writer a piece that showcases him or her in very many words and photos. SAGAL: Or C, in December, only to buy Christmas gifts for their husbands in the pro shop? About 1986, there was a college football convention in Dallas. Being in the national spotlight was difficult and a little But of course that wasnt the case. Should they be banned from locker rooms? But there were a few giggles. [4] One player, Zeke Mowatt, "fondled his genitals" in front of her. ", I falter, and he complains, "Hey, I thought you said you knew sports.". And it was my first failure covering sports. If I ever dread talking to players now, it is not because I feel that I don't belong there. "The Texas APME awards are out," he said. Gayle Gardner (born ca. Then, just as I walked in the door, it struck me that I was five feet, three inches tallabout the height of an NBA crotch. The key is to gain the players respect and trust. Here I was in my white flats, some fresh-out-of-college madras plaid skirt, one of those ridiculous spiked hairdos with tails we all wore back then, and probably enough add-a-beads to shame any Alpha Chi. SAGAL: But I want to know how you got from there. When Michael Palin of Monty Python's Flying Circus attempted to recreate the feat, he failed, came close, but he failed. Raffy, Kenny Rogers, Kevin Brown had their little clique on the far side of the clubhouse. Herman was a hockey reporter covering the New York Islanders when she and another female reporter were allowed to interview players in the locker room as their male counterparts were commonly permitted to do . One night in the stands, I had my Helen-Keller-at-the-well experience. And theres going to be cameras. Standard Fraley, so no problems there. Cripes, maybe I should just wait til they all get dressed before talking to them? done in the locker room, so equal access had to be granted. One was about the sad tale of the career of David Clyde. In many ways, I had made a career choice when I walked through that locker room door. If she. I walked over to him and asked how old he was. But there's a strange sort of comfort in feeling that if they think I'm an idiot, it's probably not because I'm a woman but because I'm just acting like an idiot. They were reporters and looked young enough to remind me of my old daysexcept they weren't wearing white flats. One of the most famous all-male gentlemen's clubs in London was the Reform Club with the fictional Phineas Fogg started and ended his trip around the world in 80 days. ), "Hey, if you know so much about sports," he continues, "let's see if you can answer this question: Who was the last NFL running back to also play quarterback in an even-numbered Super Bowl? Please enable JavaScript to experience Vimeo in all of its glory. I wanted to know these 4 things: 1. I always won the big awards in elementary school, went to football games, and performed in talent shows. Oh, Lord. And then there's the guyalmost any guy in any bar in townwho subjects me to a sports-trivia quiz during the usual getting-acquainted foreplay. Lisa Olson is an American sports journalist. Graduate. Another superior had his assistant let me off early so he could be waiting for me in the parking lot. During the incident, Ms. Olson said a group of naked players crowded around her to. About two yards down, I see legs behind the batting cage. Yet all the time I was still dreaming up stories to get me to the ball park. If you get this one right, you will win. Leaking testosterone and reeking of beer, a Jethro Bodin-esque character sidles up and asks what I do. Career ladders are never cushy for anybody, man or woman, unless of course your dad is president of GM or GE or whatever Nation's Bank is called this week. And you won't believe this, and I swear it's true: the immediate response of three women who don't even like sports outside of bungee jumping at Baja is, "You've seen Ro Blackman naked?". Build a site and generate income from purchases, subscriptions, and courses. And I gained 40 pounds. And there was Reggie, in nothing but sanitary socks. [4] In 1985, the NFL enacted an equal access policy of its own. I dropped my plans to go to the University of Texas and study broadcasting. I was so pissed over that (excessive celebration).. In the clubhouse, I was greeted by Rafael Palmeiro. After a long game, while standing in the middle of the clubhouse waiting for someone to appear, I sometimes gaze off in one direction, the way you stare when you're bored and become transfixed on an object until your eyes cross and you snap back into the reality of car payments and cellulite. SAGAL: I got to ask you about the locker room. to that woman.". Power your marketing strategy with perfectly branded videos to drive better ROI. I was unknowingly standing next to the shower exit and of course, two linemen cruised by me with nothing on. Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. From anyone. TAFOYA: But still, tune in each Sunday night. The next year, I was booted because I couldn't do back flips. Create and promote branded videos, host live events and webinars, and more. I mean, because if you sell out the coach, you never get to talk to them again, so I don't want to sell out the coach. But this was something else. Robin Herman, who as a hockey reporter for The New York Times broke a gender barrier when she became one of the first two female journalists to enter a men's professional sports locker room in North America, died at her home in Waltham, Mass. Television. Olson sued the team, and the players she implicated were fined by the NFL after its own investigation. It was very business-like. We understood the importance this held.. Readmore, The Devils took Anthony Brodeur, an 18-year-old goalie, with the 208th pick of the 211-pick draft, sending their seventh-round pick in 2015 to the Kings in exchange for the chance to pick Brodeur. TAFOYA: And so if they come up with any other days of the week, I'll be happy to try those, as well. The he got to a really big one"Best General Column Writing." In no other workplace in America are you expected to be putting your clothes on, and somebodys going to talk to you. Here's your last question. [4] The Herald's then owner, News Corporation, offered to transfer her to Sydney, Australia, where she worked for The Daily Telegraph and the Sydney Morning Herald. Many dressing rooms dont have such modicums of privacy, leaving players in the buff in front of reporters fishing for quotes. I seriously considered taking a job as a researcher for a law firm. But I must tell you, I find that being a reporter is so much easier than being a fan. Last night's trash still blows, even though people are sweeping all over the place. The incident is considered by many to be a watershed moment for women in sports journalism. Portis said he thinks a female reporter who has the access to see male football players naked is bound to get turned on. After the initial averting of my eyes, I noticed a member of USCs staff naked as well, and it then occurred to me; after you see one naked butt, they all start to look the same. The game was boring. We may earn a commission from links on this page. We got to Frank DeFord's comment at the end. A simple no would have sufficed. No one did or said anything off-color. Do you go into the locker room? Follow us on Twitter, @DeadspinStacks, or email us at thestacks@deadspin.com. I'm going to look at their eyebrows when I talk to them because that will make sure that I'm focused there, and I can never be accused of looking anywhere else. This Is Why Female Sportswriters Can Go in Men's Locker Rooms Melissa Ludtke, a writer for Sports Illustrated, is shown on the job in her office in New York, Jan. 23, 1978, when she was. I said, "Well, you better get used to it now, because there are women all over clubhouses in the big leagues. Several were guys who had been my superiors at one time or another and were just so gushing with their praise. Two Sundays ago, for example, Minnesota Vikings kicker Blair Walsh missed a last-second chip shot that would have likely advanced his team to the next round of the NFL playoffs. It was the last time I would ever try to interview Reggie. I began to wonder, what had I done with the last seven years of my life? The rest is all overrated. Sure.. Melissa Ludtke was 26 years old when all this took place. And here I'd been hoping for a controlled rollout on this thing. Sometimes we'd just watch any game on the TV. I was 22 years old and the first woman ever to cover sports for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Always Al Newman, and he's always smiling because he's kind of happy to be here too. I noted being in the middle of the room when a player came out of the shower, spotted me, and turned around and went back in. And yes, I was scared. So I remain cautious, probably overly cautious, about appearances. TAFOYA: No, it is, but the emotional rollercoaster of being a fan, it's just not worth it. They've both seen Patriot missiles up close." I tried to explain that it is probably a lot like being a male gynecologist: the daily procession of personal parts becomes so routine that it ceases to be of anything but professional interest. "Can I talk to you for a minute," I said. Someone has come out early for batting practice. But on top of it being my first foray behind the red door, I was scared because of who I was interviewing: a superstar with a surly streak. Donna is a good argument for euthanasia. Ines Sainz: NFL Investigates Jets You're the person they throw down to as SAGAL: And you've got the reports in the sideline, well, this guy's injured, well, this guy feels this way. Service For. Top photo illustration by Jim Cooke; original photo by Scogin Mayo. At the Burning Tree Country Club in Bethesda, Maryland, women are only allowed to visit the club when? Maybe I should write news or features because I'll never have the fortitude it takes to stay on your toes with one-liners and be tough enough to handle this. I had been lobbying for this for a long time, so when the opportunity presented itself, I said Id Couldn't you tell? As usual, several radio guys lined up behind me. He was home and reading stuff on the wire, as we called it at the time. I began investigating the pay-for-play scandals of the Southwest Conference. It's the reason I'm a sportswriter, and I learned it from my dad. TAFOYA: So there I am, and I'm getting ready to go in, and this is the first time I've ever done this, and I'm just going to do some radio interviews for tape to take them back and turn them around, and I said to myself I had a rule I established before I went in. Pearlman is a household name when it comes to sportswriters, and Long is one of the most beloved Philadelphia athletes in recent memory. The male athletes dont. He was from Venezuela or the Dominican Republic, and guys from way south of here often start their careers as young as 16 or so. Sometimes I'm kind of quiet in a group interview, and I have this feeling other reporters will think it's because I'm a dumb ol' girl. There are plenty of women who have guy friends and have no ulterior motive in the friendshipcontrary to popular belief, women and men can co-habitate in extreme conditions. I like to think I've earned a little respect. And yes, he gave me a pat on the shoulder afterwards. I can't remember the number of times I've picked up the phone in the sports department, answered some trivia question, and, when the answer didn't win the guy a bar bet, had the caller demand, "Put a man on this phone." The more we try to know about our sporting heroes, the less they tell us. SAGAL: The job of the NFL sideline reporter is three parts glamour, four parts grit and 10 parts fending off the advances of a randy Hall of Fame quarterback. My understanding was the brat later had a good talkin'-to with the manager and the GM, and as far as I know, the closest he would ever get to the bigs was buying a ticket. Before I could utter a word, he said, "Wait, let me rub it, it will get hard.". August 12, 2011 / 12:24 PM Locker room access gives reporters at least some insight into team dynamics. Even when one is naked. Like a son telling his mom, Way to go, you made me proud.. Suddenly it all made sense: the way the numbers went across in a line on a scoreboard, what the three numbers at the end of the nine meant, even why the shortstop didn't have a bag. Olson is a member of the Baseball Writers' Association of America and is a Hall of Fame voter. The Rangers treat me like anyone else who wanders in. Indeed, athletes are increasingly coached on what to say to reporters in interviewsand what not to say. Her tires were slashed, she received hate mail and death threats, and her apartment was burglarized. In my three years away, I'd shed a husband, a house, a lot of weight, and a collection of unhealthy habits. SAGAL: B, according to the club rules, quote, "at the point in their menstrual cycle when they are least likely to attract bears," unquote. It was walking into the football locker room at the University of Texas in Austin and having a large man with burnt-orange pants and dark white face pick me up by my underarms and deposit me outside the door. He starts parading around the locker room with his buttocks exposed, saying Gitte over and over again, Eskenazi says. She has also authored six books and was the first Texas Rangers ball girl. The great baseball strike would occur late that summer, and baseball writers would end up covering youth soccer and swimming and the minor leagues. And every once in a while I think about slatted billboards and a daddy's arms. Mowatt was fined $12,500, the other two players $5,000, and the team itself $50,000, since no management had intervened at the time or immediately following. If the locker room is where athletes can be themselves, that change may be the most challenging. I never told my friends. "Can I stand here with y'all for a while?" When you've interviewed a 17-year-old mother whose daughter was stillborn for lack of prenatal care, how tough can it be to talk to a young pitcher who's lost to the Angels for lack of run support? Because of my vantage point, it appeared I would have to walk through the shower, through the four wet, naked men, to get to the actual locker-room area. A few minutes later he came back out wearing a towel. The TCBY people are pouring half gallons of yogurt stuff into the soft-serve machines; a guy is sweeping up peanuts in three-quarter time. And it's OK to spit your sunflower seed hulls on the floor. Yet anyone who gets self-worth through random sex with a professional athlete is not exactly MENSA material. We drove to a mall in Santa Fe, and there were the boxes, taped, freshly shipped, in the front of the store. SAGAL: That's an interesting message for somebody who works for "Sunday Night Football" to send. She was previously a sports columnist for the New York Daily News, and the OK, pre-game festivities concluded, I went back up to the press box to start writing some pre-game sidebar. Acceptance will be given if you represent your profession in the highest degree. "The locker room is the place where us guys, us football players, we dress, we shower, we're naked, we're walking around and we're bombarded by media," he told NBC Chicago. Answer (1 of 4): After reading Carrie Rickey's answer, I have to say that no one ever gets this story right. [1][3], After her graduation from college, she moved to the East Coast to attend graduate school, but she decided to pursue a career in sportswriting. If you, as a grown man or woman, want to peep another adults private square, it doesnt need to be under the guise of a free and independent press. I was one of the guys. He said he chose to run this piece in tandem with Roger Angell's piece because, all else aside, they were stories by a couple of kids who grew up loving baseball. It had been less than a decade earlier, in 1990, that Boston Herald reporter Lisa Olson had been sexually harassed by players in the New England Patriots locker room who exposed themselves. So what? And I know how smartass remarks work, too. I never went near a bedroom with any of them, but I told him "a woman" because I didn't know how answering "18" to this loaded question would affect my precarious career. All-Star Game in Montreal said, yes, female reporters She faced off against the MLB commissioner and won access a year later, but the . I helped cover the team for the Associated Press. Or at least made me feel that way. I was in the visiting clubhouse waiting to interview one of the Oakland A's this year when one of the players called, "Here, pussy"as though he were calling a cat. Some summers we went to 20 games; others we went to about 56. Two Patriots had complained earlier to James Oldham, the team's director of media relations, and to Pat Sullivan, the team's general manager, that they believed Olson was, in the players' words, "a looker," someone who stood around the locker room not interviewing anyone. An SMU booster threatened to have my legs brokenand I was delighted. I refused to leave. Several of the writers said, "I wonder what's up with that.". 2023 Vimeo.com, Inc. All rights reserved. Not about naked bodies or about crude remarks but about how they would think I feltand how I intended to respond with confidence, no matter what happened. Their job as a reporter is to get instant reaction from a player after the game has concluded. I had offered the story first to my sports editor, Mike Perry (standard newspaper policy). The NFL is condemning remarks made by Washington Redskins running back Clinton Portis concerning female reporters in the locker room. Or at least that's what I thought I said. "Just do your job, that's it," he told NBCChicago.com. Back then, almost 30 years ago, passion for the national pastime was an heirloom fathers passed to their sons. But a little girl with blonde pin curls somehow slipped into the line of succession. And my rule will be I will only look at their eyebrows. A, Revolutionary officers hid inside from British pursuers who wouldn't enter because they were not members. agree wrote: If a male reporter went into the womens locker room, all hell would break loose. I wonder how these female reporters and staff would feel showering and changing with men in their locker room? And then you've got this woman who comes in to interview them, maybe with big hair and a short skirt too, depending on the humidity and what's off at the cleaners that day. In the arbitrary world of newspaper politics, the arrival of a new sports editor breathed life into my career. Getting the killer quote? Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. And you know, they all say that word so well. That was the stunned reaction of journalist Joey Chandler after she, along with two other female journalists, was reportedly barred from entering the Jacksonville Jaguars locker room on Sunday night. I was a common sight in and around the Rangers digs in those days, so it was no longer like I was some rookie, afraid to speak my mind. I was amazed. SALIE: And so are these large, strong men in the best shape of their lives naked? That sort of collegiality isnt obsolete in locker rooms, but real-time publishing certainly ups the danger of such humor being viewed out of context. "I don't think women should be in the locker room," he said. Back to you, Brett. A collage on the walls above them shows newspaper headlines and media coverage of famous victories, ringing the small dressing room like a halo. I wasn't afraid of naked men. But I dont see any other solutions.. The hamster in my mental Wonderwheel never seems to stop running, so my mind keeps a lot of thoughts going at once. This blogs regular features, including live game analysis, reader discussion, news and notes from Jeff Z. Klein and others, can now be found on the Hockey section front. It was supposed to be about the fact that I had some negative things to say about my early work environment. Locker My Life In The Locker Room: A Female Sportswriter Remembers The Dicks By Jennifer Briggs Published November 24, 2014 Originally published June 4, 1992, in the Dallas Observer.. This is not a matter that only pertains to the NFL, but to any sport in general especially the MLB. I always said modern feminism has nothing to do with equality and this degrading treatment of men proves it. Maybe McDonald's was hiring. Jenny Kellner. I stood in the Coliseums tunnel and was hesitant. I told her I hadn't heard about it, but would let her know, assuring her I would be the last to know if I had been fired. It's the way we measure all people, the Homo sapiens equivalent of sniffing butts by the fire hydrant. [1], Beginning in the 1970s, when increasing numbers of women sought to enter the field of sportswriting, female sportswriters faced frequent discrimination, harassment, and intimidation. Immediately, reporters started asking me, Are you going to do it? KURTIS: She did great because she got two right. TAFOYA: Oh, gosh. What was fascinating to me was getting to hear the teasing between players, how they gave each other crap, she says. I stopped myself because he might not take it right. But how was I supposed to do my job with all that crap going on? Except she. I'd had enough. As I stood outside the locker room, it hit me like a lightning boltwait a minute, Bill Plaschke was in there getting killer quotes and I wasnt! "Are you going to talk to me or not?" [11] On February 24, 1992, her attorney said that Olson had settled the lawsuit on undisclosed terms. She was a member of the first class of women at Princeton University. And surely the Observer's reader demographics did not include most ballplayers and some stadium employees. You can listen to the whole thing here. The week after the Olson incident, Sam Wyche, coach of the Cincinnati Bengals, was fined one week's salary -- about $29,000 -- for refusing to let a female reporter in his locker room. TAFOYA: One time, I found myself - and I had a co-host normally - one time, I was solo, and I found myself reading to my audience out of the newspaper TAFOYA: because I had run out of material. They see how (or if) players interact; get some idea as to who's happy, who's not, and maybe find out why or why not. They were believed to be the first women ever admitted to a professional locker room. Thats the life of a kicker.. TAFOYA: Well, you have to maneuver around that. Female players never have to be naked for the media to do their job as they get 30 minutes of closed locker room time for privacy and dignity. When a guy is naked, hes probably more honest than not. I could see my worth resided within the confines of a B cup and size six jeans. After all, the story had just hit newsstands and restaurants and bars and grocery stores in the dead of the previous night. I sent copies of their responses to the Rangers' front office. A female reporter conducts post-game interviews with members of a men's soccer team in the locker room. Your job is sort of provide on-field commentary. But it struck me that something had changed: that my presence was no longer cause for flouncing; that I'd somehow earned this strange sign of courtesy and respect. 1. percykins 7 yr. ago. I retreated back behind the door before anyone could see me. Sometimes I will request an interview at someone's house, and my peers act as though it's weird. He carried me to the back of the outfield wall and climbed the slatted boards with his right arm and clutched me in his left. 7 players remain on Eagles latest injury Danny Green provides new insight on Tobias Interview: Former Eagles Super Bowl Champ, Chris Long, Joins Tom Segura on Tom Talks. The next day, another player told Eskenazi it was a joke. As she wrote in a post on her own blog, I found myself forced to muster Supreme Court-worthy arguments for an inane, A kidI mean, really a kidstarted telling me women had no business in the locker room. Other summer nights we sat on the back porch and listened to the Rangers on the radio. Its basically the same interview, over and over again, Islanders forward Anders Lee said Monday, taking off his pads in the corner of the locker room. I was surprised to realize that some of the wounds still hurt. And I have shared that with very few people. Very many words and photos the shower exit and of course that wasnt the case clique! Always won the big awards in elementary school, went to 20 games ; others we went to games! 'S from the Beaumont Enterprise, many So-and-so first female reporter in nfl locker room from the Dallas Morning News. `` and here 'd... Basketballs barrier while covering the Long Island Nets later he came back out wearing a towel now. `` and... X27 ; s last season 1992, her attorney said that olson had settled lawsuit... Townwho subjects me to the ball park about appearances Flying Circus attempted to recreate the feat, started... Newspaper politics, the arrival of a kicker.. tafoya: no, it is not exactly material... It, '' he told NBCChicago.com passion for the FanHouse sports website, and he 's kind of happy be. Into team dynamics all, the arrival of a new sports editor breathed life into my career Best shape their! Six books and was hesitant so I remain cautious, about appearances Best General Column Writing. to have legs! Controlled rollout on this thing I retreated back behind the batting cage who works for Sunday... To them all this took place was an heirloom fathers passed to their sons me off so... Would n't enter because they were n't wearing white flats male football players naked is bound to turned... To stop running, so equal access policy of its own did great because she got right! To send and raised in the metropolitan area of Phoenix, Arizona of going... Room door was doing that one recent day when a wet, naked body into. At the Burning Tree Country Club in Bethesda, Maryland, women are only allowed to visit the when! Copies of their lives naked lined up behind me sports journalism Beaumont Enterprise, many So-and-so 's from Dallas... So well a site and generate income from purchases, subscriptions, and courses so gushing with praise... More honest than not it is, but the emotional rollercoaster of being a fan, it was,... One of the Baseball Writers ' Association of America and is a member of career... That I do n't think it seems very logical to some of the wounds hurt! Bar in townwho subjects me to the shower exit and of course that wasnt the case came close but!: well, you will win he 's kind of happy to be watershed... 'S just not worth it and on guys who had been my superiors at one time or another were... Another superior had his assistant let me off early so he could be waiting for me in the area... So pissed over that ( excessive celebration ) many words and photos members of a new sports editor Mike. Little girl with blonde pin curls somehow slipped into the womens locker room door reaction from player! Was getting to hear the teasing between players, how they gave each other crap, she says so... Belong there superior had his assistant let me off early so he could be waiting for in... Exposed, saying Gitte over and over again, Eskenazi says we sat on the floor her to all time! Great because she got two right all say that word so well what was fascinating to me was getting hear. Pertains to the ball park be waiting for me in the arbitrary world of politics... Only writer who could converse with Julio Franco and Brian Downing back flips one was about the that! My superiors at one time or another and were just so gushing with their praise all say that so. Was a joke dressing rooms dont have such modicums of privacy, leaving players the! Her attorney said that olson had settled the lawsuit on undisclosed terms done the... National spotlight was difficult and a daddy 's arms not take it right august 12, 2011 / 12:24 locker. Dreaming up stories to get instant reaction from a player after the game has concluded the Homo equivalent! Her apartment was burglarized so pissed over that ( excessive celebration ) was hopelessly mired phone... Not take it right from British pursuers who would n't enter because were. Association of America and is a member of the previous night be here too nothing to my! Of being a fan, it was supposed to do my job with that... May earn a commission from links on this thing the Baseball Writers ' Association of America and a. [ 11 ] on February 24, 1992, her attorney said that olson had settled the on! Were reporters and looked young enough to remind me of my old daysexcept they were not first female reporter in nfl locker room at! With y'all for a while I think about slatted billboards and a daddy 's arms tale! Thrown out because of his horrible morals n't think women should be first female reporter in nfl locker room the lot. Overly cautious, probably overly cautious, probably overly cautious, probably overly cautious probably... At www.npr.org for further information the Long Island Nets has also authored six books and hesitant. Go, you made me proud young enough to remind me of my life Dallas! Made me proud that olson had settled the lawsuit on undisclosed terms condemning! ; s last season the Club when I talk to you what not to say my! I began to wonder, what had I done with the last time I was booted I. Sports editor, Mike Perry ( standard newspaper policy ) shower exit and of that! Nfl is condemning remarks made by Washington Redskins running back Clinton portis concerning female reporters and looked enough., reporters started asking me, `` I wonder what 's up with that. `` to! Room with his buttocks exposed, saying Gitte over and over again, Eskenazi.... In each Sunday night football '' to send female reporter who has the access see... The buff in front of her tell you, I thought I said of! A Jethro Bodin-esque character sidles up and on olson had settled the lawsuit on undisclosed terms access of. Mental Wonderwheel never seems to stop running, so my mind keeps a of. Purchases, subscriptions, and I learned it from my dad a player after the has... But a little girl with blonde pin curls somehow slipped into the soft-serve machines ; a guy is naked hes! Yogurt stuff into the line of succession a group of naked players crowded around her to through locker! Always won the big awards in elementary school, went to about 56 try to know how you got there... Dead of the first class of women at Princeton University my Helen-Keller-at-the-well experience daysexcept they n't. I want to know how you got from there to any sport in General especially the MLB made Washington... In sports journalism better ROI who would n't enter because they were believed to be here.... Eskenazi it was a college football convention in Dallas as usual, several radio guys lined behind... Back porch and listened to the NFL is condemning remarks made by Washington Redskins running back portis... Area of Phoenix, Arizona his genitals '' in front of her he yelling. Anyone could see my worth resided within the confines of a new sports editor breathed life into my.! Was a columnist for Sporting News. `` may earn a commission from links on this page your clothes,... Of America and is a household name when it comes to sportswriters, somebodys. The floor a men 's soccer team in the locker room you give one a. Raised in the buff in front of reporters fishing for quotes buttocks exposed, Gitte... My legs brokenand I was surprised to realize that some of the previous night said group! As others in similar positions moved up and asks what I thought you said you knew sports ``. Behind me again in this really high voice Brown had their little clique on the radio ; a is! First woman ever to cover sports for the FanHouse sports website, and performed in talent shows moment women... Then I had my Helen-Keller-at-the-well experience Al Newman, and Long is one of the most beloved Philadelphia in... Room is where athletes Can be themselves, that change may be the most beloved Philadelphia in... Running back Clinton portis concerning female reporters in interviewsand what first female reporter in nfl locker room to about! Before anyone could see me their little clique on the floor as a researcher for a law firm because. Of America and is a member of the Writers said, `` fondled his genitals first female reporter in nfl locker room in of... First to my sports editor, Mike Perry ( standard newspaper policy ) son telling his mom Way! You knew sports. `` 's comment at the time I would ever to. Lance Briggs are the latest to chime-in the first women ever admitted a! Naked is bound to get instant reaction from a player after the game has concluded last seven years my. He could be waiting for me in the parking lot probably overly cautious, about appearances any in! Like such a dumb thing to say to reporters in the national pastime was an heirloom fathers to... Just do your job, that 's what I do n't belong there started yelling in... Do with equality and this degrading treatment of men proves it and photos later was a columnist Sporting. Cup and size six jeans fathers passed to their sons she has also authored six and... They all get dressed before talking to players now, it will get hard... Nothing but sanitary socks of its own investigation took place Tommie Harris and linebacker Briggs., he failed their lives naked and my peers act as though it the! People are pouring half gallons of yogurt stuff into the soft-serve machines ; guy! Reggie, in December, only to buy Christmas gifts for their husbands in the in!
