Most women working in male-dominated fields have dealt with some form of sexism throughout their careers, as successful sports reporter Erin Andrews knows all too well.
Working in one of the oldest boys clubs, Andrews has been stalked, targeted for her appearance and subjected to a host of sexist remarks as a female reporter covering men's sports. In an interview published in Elle on Feb. 3, Andrews discussed how many people evaluate her on appearance rather than ability, but don't subject her male-coworkers to the same superficial scrutiny:
There’s always an impression about the way girls look on the sidelines. I’m not going to lie, I really want to look nice. But I feel like it’s such a double standard because the men I work with are gorgeous. Most of them are former athletes and they take really good care of themselves. And I gotta tell ya, their suits aren’t cheap. So, when people are like, "Oh, she paid this much for her jacket," or "She’s wearing these kind of boots on the field," it’s like, "Yeah, but go ask Michael Strahan how much his suits cost."
This isn't the first time Andrews has spoken out about gender-specific challenges. "I was baptized into this world where these sports blogs dubbed me the 'Sideline Barbie,' [and the] the 'Sideline Princess'" she told The Hollywood Reporter in a 2013 interview. "I was not only worrying about the questions I was asking, but then I had men on these blogs critiquing what I was wearing."
Although the sports world has a long way to go in eradicating sexism, we're happy to see an outspoken reporter such as Andrews breaking barriers one game at a time.
Head over to Elle to read the entire interview with Erin Andrews.
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