[6] The general manager of the team was fired. In my three years away, I'd shed a husband, a house, a lot of weight, and a collection of unhealthy habits. They havent had a lot of time to think about what to say, and theyre in a comfortable environment. If she. Mike called me into his office and told me he was now "into it" for passing on the piece. Why? Me, the girl who has no fear, was nervous. Reporter Beth Ruyak stands holding a mircophone in front the NFC Locker Room before Super Bowl XXV with the New York Giants against the Buffalo Bills. "The Texas APME awards are out," he said. Men treated like animals yet again. We were a middle-class family of four with one kid just a few years from college and another a few years from kindergarten. I didn't give it a whole lot of thought as I went into the office that day. And theres going to be cameras. Summoners Value War. TAFOYA: No, I always talk to them off camera because I can get more out of them, and then I come back after halftime, and I report to the audience what I've been told. 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. He said he wanted to talk. ", Because his reaction to my question was to begin raising his voice to say, "There's no time.". 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. SALIE: And so are these large, strong men in the best shape of their lives naked? It was just one of those moments you want to hold for yourself. And theyre very conscious that everything they say could get out.. It's like having a male gynecologistif he's fairly comfortable doing his thing, it makes the female patient fairly comfortable. NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. TAFOYA: There's another joke there, but (unintelligible). First Female Reporter In Nfl Locker Room. Had all that I'd put up with just been for nothing? 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. I've known one veteran NFL player for more than 20 years -- since he was in college -- and he tolerates women in the locker room but honestly believes we, including me, are there to look at naked . Covering major league baseball fulltime is my goal. 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. I checked out Rey Maualugas locker, which resembles something out of that voodoo-worshipping slugger from the movie Major League. I was so happy I was almost crying, but I was trying to sound very nonchalant while Glenn was giving me the particulars. Although Olson settled a civil suit, fans of the football team made threats on Olson's life in the aftermath. About 1986, there was a college football convention in Dallas. So why are they going to think the reporter is any different at first? The issue at hand was equal access to the players in the locker room for all reporters, regardless of their gender. And you know, that was the last I ever heard of it from anyone on the team. It reminds me of a debutante waking up in last night's party dress, reeking of beer. What kind of a goob would they take me for if they knew? As one of the first female reporters to be allowed inside the NFL locker room, she has been a pioneer in her field. Alabama Phenix. 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. [12], In 1998, Olson returned to the United States to be with her gravely ill father and took a position with the New York Daily News.[1][9]. And my rule will be I will only look at their eyebrows. I always said modern feminism has nothing to do with equality and this degrading treatment of men proves it. I compared my scar (a plate and six screws from a broken ankle) to Mark Tylers scar from his broken leg, with Mark proclaiming mine cooler.. But by then I had gotten to know the sportswriters and broadcasters, and the Star-Telegram offered me a jobin sportstyping in scores and answering the phone. Report", Jackie MacMullan reported that the fines were never actually collected from the players. Referring to the United States military's use of Patriot missiles during the then-ongoing Gulf War, Kiam said to the audience: "What do the Iraqis have in common with Lisa Olson? James Donaldson was the very tallest, and I almost always waited until he had some small piece of fabric on before I walked back there. teams to grant her access and not all agreed quickly. Cindy, who is dabbing brown goop on my roots, figures this is like when the seniors get all reactionary and vote in the ugliest girl for homecoming queen, and it just might happen on a bigger scale. I said, "Well, you better get used to it now, because there are women all over clubhouses in the big leagues. TAFOYA: Yeah, I used to much more so in the NBA, and that's quite something. would be given the same access as men. Heck, with 10 percent of the population homosexual, there's a good chance that some of the male reporters are homosexual as well. So while I'm asking him about his family's strawberry farm, I'm wondering if eggs have given him this nice, shiny coat or if he uses his wife's conditioner, and if so, what is it? 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. She later was a columnist for the FanHouse sports website, and then a columnist for Sporting News. Absolutely. Its a symbiotic relationship. The best advice I ever got was go get a job somewhere. On this day in 1977, Melissa Ludtke was barred from reporting the World Series from the teams' locker rooms. In 1982, Visser was the first woman in Coach Bear Bryant's locker room. Samsung Pdf. (Lowrance/Getty) NFL boss Roger Goodell was demanding answers Sunday night from. So you're a female reporter, you are allowed inside the NFL locker room, you're a pioneer, but there's still places out there, Michele, where they believe in cooties. My face broke out. Long goes on to mention how most reporters would brush his concerns aside, which would honestly drive me nuts. What does it really matter if the rest of the world knows? Team dressing rooms are typically open to journalists before or after practices and games. During the 1977 World Series, the MLB commissioner's office banned then- Sports Illustrated reporter Melissa Ludtke from both teams' locker rooms, overriding the New York Yankees' blessing and a majority vote in the Los Angeles Dodgers' clubhouse. Ludtke and Time Inc. filed a civil rights lawsuit months later. Prove to them you know your stuff, and you will have proven to them why you belong there. I like to think I've earned a little respect. SAGAL: So how did you get into the - how did you - I mean, I'm going to guess SAGAL: that it's harder for a woman to get into major league professional sports reporting than it is for a man. 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." Vikings fans got to agree with that. ), "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? Except she. I sat at some random desk to look busy for a while, which is what sportswriters do every week or three. Forty years ago today, "Sports Illustrated" and its reporter Melissa Ludtke took on Major League Baseball and won. Not sports writing, but the best of every column written in the state that year. Later that year, Olson and Sam Marchiano were reportedly subjected to a profanity-laced verbal tirade by New York Yankees pitcher David Wells when they approached him at his home to comment on his sudden trade to the Toronto Blue Jays for Roger Clemens. "He just doesn't" was suddenly sufficient and I knew a grown-up secret, like writing checks, making babies, or reading words. I'm a general assignment sports reporter now, which means I do whatever they ask of me. Raffy said, "Hey, he wants to talk to you," pointing to Kenny Rogers. I stopped myself because he might not take it right. SAGAL: But I want to know how you got from there. In 1978, Sports Illustrated reporter Melissa Ludtke won the right to practice journalism in the locker room of the New York Yankees, securing equal access to cover the same sports teams and. She was assigned to cover the Boston Bruins, the 1990 Super Bowl, and, beginning in the fall of 1990, the New England Patriots. The hamster in my mental Wonderwheel never seems to stop running, so my mind keeps a lot of thoughts going at once. agree wrote: If a male reporter went into the womens locker room, all hell would break loose. Can the slump be permanent?". Now Chicago Bears defensive tackle Tommie Harris and linebacker Lance Briggs are the latest to chime-in. She is an American humorist and sportswriter who now does reviews for Publishers Weekly and writes for a variety of publications, including the Dallas Observer, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, USA Today, and Sports Illustrated. The other night, there were two girls in the clubhouse after the game. [Reporters] obviously need you to say some stuff so they can write their articles, said Islanders alternate captain Kyle Okposo, wiping his forehead with an already-drenched shirt. TAFOYA: So I went to Charlotte, North Carolina, and I did five hours of sports talk radio every day, and that was my SAGAL: That is the hardest job in the world. when she asked if he'd like brown gravy or cream. [4], On April 25, 1991, Olson filed a lawsuit in Massachusetts state court against the Patriots, Kiam, Sullivan, Oldham, and the three players (Mowatt, Timpson, and Perryman), alleging violations of her civil rights, sexual harassment, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and intentional damage to her professional reputation. Melissa Ludtke was 26 years old when all this took place. For a gender that keeps complaining about equality and respect, they certainly dont seem to think men should get either of those. Unfortunately, they were working on a few things in that resort, which included labelling the male and female locker rooms. It was an exercise in concentration trying to figure out who was who, and while I was concentrating, unfortunately, I managed to sashay into an area that should have had warning signs around it. In a few more feet, the torsos appear and the warm breeze melts around my face. If reporters are usually allowed into locker rooms, then this reaction makes sense. The rumor was bogus, but it planted an idea. Back then, almost 30 years ago, passion for the national pastime was an heirloom fathers passed to their sons. Apparently this happened at the morning budget meeting where "My Life in the Locker Room" was discussed at great length. It was an area high school coach who routinely tried to get me to drop by his house when his wife was out of town; when I refused for the third time, he refused to provide any more than perfunctory answers to my story questions. The Mavericks were a delight to be around even when pissed off. She lives with three dogs in her happy bungalow in Texas. to that woman.". done in the locker room, so equal access had to be granted. We never wanted for anything we really needed, but my parents, raised in the Depression, were cautious about spending. One editor in the chain of sports command kept trying to get me to check into the Worthington Hotel with him after work. Teams and leagues barred female reporters from locker rooms over the following decades, robbing them of an increasingly important access point for player interviews. A, on Women's Day which is a holiday named after a magazine. 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. 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. Several were guys who had been my superiors at one time or another and were just so gushing with their praise. SALIE: Like gee, coach, it's not going so well, is it? 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. Jennifer Briggs has covered the Texas Rangers, Dallas Mavericks, Dallas Cowboys, Philadelphia Phillies, and Green Bay Packers. August 12, 2011 / 12:24 PM After all, the story had just hit newsstands and restaurants and bars and grocery stores in the dead of the previous night. By that time I had moved east to cover the Phillies. Logic says they might not. I herby officially declare this behavior: Sign up for Parx Sportsbook and deposit $25 using code WOLVES69, Very real and legitimate journalist | Wednesday Guest Host of The Daily Ticket w/ Sean Brace from 3-6 pm on Fox Sports "The Gambler" | I don't see a loss on the schedule | @ryanconway76. We all just kind of deal with it, says Jenni Carlson, a columnist for The Oklahoman and self-described shorter person who fights to see and hear her often giant interview subjects. SAGAL: I was just thinking about with the NBA, it would be more difficult because you need to think about what would be at eye level in that situation. Top photo illustration by Jim Cooke; original photo by Scogin Mayo. Im at work! 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. Eskenazi recalls an episode from the New York Jets locker room in 1988, when defensive end Mark Gastineau pulled down his pants to show Eskenazi a tattoo on his hind quarters reading Gitte, short for then-girlfriend Brigitte Nielsen. many of her friends were going through similar, if much less public, struggles in fields like advertising and law and medicine. Host virtual town halls, onboard and train employees, collaborate efficiently. 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