Selling Sport: Sports Illustration Not Objectification

From skimpy swimsuits to provocative posing, the advertising industry holds the belief that sex sells. However, there is a line being crossed between using sex appeal and objectifying women in an attempt to increase product sales.

February 2016 issue of Sports Illustrated

As we take a look at the cover of Sports Illustrated Magazine you will see that it does not sell sport at all, rather, it sexualizes women to generate profit by portraying them as sex symbols instead of athletes. The implications with the ideology that "sex sells" negatively affect both female subscribers, and the women being displayed in the magazines. As for men, it is just another way for them to view the objectification of women and maintain hegemonic masculinity.

(Image: February 2016 issue of Sports Illustrated)

Sports Illustrated is supposed to be a magazine about sport, hence the name. Despite the three million subscribers, the majority do not purchase the magazine for the athletic knowledge, but for the sexualization associated with it. Men may buy into magazines such as Sports Illustrated for the pleasure and because of the way women are displayed. Women may purchase it for fashion, or because of the captions that suggest ways that will help them transform into the models on the cover.

Sports Illustrated has millions of subscribers and gains 7% of the magazines' revenue from their swimsuit issue alone. The Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue is one of the most anticipated annual magazine issues, where sales increase up to fifteen times their regular issue sales. So does sex really sell? This perfectly depicts that indeed it does, however it does not sell what it claims to be selling, which is sport.

Hannah Davis, a non-athlete and wife of baseball player Derek Jeter poses for Sports Illustrated

Instead of recognizing female athletes for their ability, the focus becomes on their femininity and sexualized physical bodies. In fact, some of the women depicted aren’t even athletes, but are the girlfriends and wives of athletes. On the other hand, men depicted in Sports Illustrated are portrayed in athletic poses with descriptions of their athleticism. For instance, there is a Male Accomplishments issue but there fails to be a reciprocated female accomplishments issue. This can lead to the women in these magazines feeling objectified and exploited for commercial use instead of for their athleticism.

(Image: Hannah Davis, a non-athlete and wife of baseball player Derek Jeter poses for Sports Illustrated)

A key example of this is shown in the appearance of Serena Williams on the Sports Illustrated cover. Serena Williams is one of the world’s best athletes, yet Sports Illustrated uses Photoshop to reduce her thigh size. This undermines her achievement of being “Sportsperson of the Year” and instead brings focus on making her appear more desirable by making alterations to her strong and athletic physique to an unrealistic one.

Serena Williams's Sports Illustrated cover shoot for her "Sportsperson of the Year" award

With a major focus on sexualization, women buying the magazines get a false sense of what the ideal body looks like. This can make women feel self-conscious, reduce their self-esteem, and can cause mental health problems. With our society placing a large emphasis on physical looks and our constant exposure to over-sexualized and unrealistic advertising, no wonder there are so many young girls with eating disorders and impractical body goals.

https://ca.askmen.com/news/entertainment/sports-illustrated-releases-in-her-own-words-documentary-for-si-swim.html

After receiving backlash against the magazine's intentions and inappropriate depictions, the campaign “In Her Own Words” was released. The goal of the campaign was to represent women as more than just their bodies. The campaign included shots of naked women with empowering words written over them.

The campaign does not solve the problem, as the women are still being sexualized by being naked. Additionally, this does not combat the self-esteem issues readers may adapt because the athletes and models used are still petite, young, and “beautiful”, representing society’s false depiction of what it means to be desirable. The editor even states, “At the end of the day, we're always going to be sexy, no matter what is happening". This demonstrates that the nudity portrayed contradicts the messages of empowerment and highlights Sports Illustrated's focus on sales through exploiting women regardless of the feminist outcry.

(Image 1: Model Ebonee Davis poses for "In Her Own Words" showing her naked backside)

(Image 2: Miss Universe pageant winner Olivia Culpo poses for "In Her Own Words")

Although sex does sell, is it the right method? The answer is no. The intentions of companies like Sports Illustrated that use sex to sell their products are not authentic. Women should be able to choose to be displayed in their own ways representing post-feminism, not being exploited forcefully by the company. This diminishes the women’s self-worth and does not allow society to view them in the light of the athletes they are.

(Image: March Madness 2016 cover of Sports Illustrated featuring male basketball player in an athletic pose)

With Sports Illustrated being just one of the many sport advertisers using the notion that “sex sells”, it is evident that considerable change is needed in the way the sport industry and its companies choose to sell sport. By promoting women of all shapes and sizes, allowing them to flaunt what they please, and incorporating empowering messages and female accomplishments, this will make for a more realistic read that sells sport and not sex.

Roles:

Lead Contributor: Marissa Pomponio

Artistic Director: Alex Klingmann

Website Manager: Kendra Voogt

Editor: Amanda Scarafile

References

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Moss, R. (2015, December 15). People aren’t happy abour Serena Williams’ “photoshopped” Sports Illustrated cover. Retrieved October 19, 2018 from https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2015/12/15/sports-illustrated-accused-photoshopping-serena-williams_n_8809544.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer_us=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNhLw&guce_referrer_cs=ASUGBLvbW-lL8f79UbEKRQ

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Vanderhoof, E. (2018). Meet the first Sports Illustrated issue of the #metooera. Retrieved October 19, 2018 from www.vanityfair.com/style/2018/02/sports-illustrated-swimsuit-metoo-era

Wasike, B. (2017). Jocks versus jockettes: An analysis of the visual portrayal of male and female cover models on sports magazines. Journalism: Theory, Practice, and Criticism. Retrieved October 17, 2018 from https://doi.org/10.1177/1464884917716818