Should Women Reporters Be Allowed in Mens Locker Rooms?

If you haven't seen a picture of Ines Sainz, a journalist for CNN en Espanol and for Azteca Deportes,...she's not ugly. If you haven't heard how intelligent Ines Sainz is...she's not dumb.

Proof....

Sainz graduated with a bachelor in law degree from Universidad de Valle de Mexico, masters in tax law from Universidad Autónoma de Querétaro and a graduate degree in business administration.

 
Back in September 2010, Sainz experienced one of  "the most prominent instances of harassment directed toward a female sports reporter" according to an article by Indiana University. Sainz was reportedly harassed while doing an interview in the New York Jets locker room.

The "cat calls" and "taunting" sparked a worldwide debate around the question: Should women reporters be allowed in mens locker rooms?

A few days after the event had taken place, running back Clinton Portis (currently a free agent but played seven seasons with the Washington Redskins) was on 106.7 The Fan in D.C. In an article by nbcsports.com, Portis was "was asked his opinion on the Ines Sainz situation with the New York Jets."

Mmmm is that Ines Sainz?? She's pretty

After being informed about what exactly happened to Sainz, Portis went on to say:

“And I mean, you put a woman and you give her a choice of 53 athletes, somebody got to be appealing to her. You know, somebody got to spark her interest, or she’s gonna want somebody. I don’t know what kind of woman won’t, if you get to go and look at 53 men’s packages.” (nbcsports.com)

Ohhh Clinton, I hope you were planning on hell breaking loose because that just did it. (He did later apologize).

"The Ines Sainz thing" as referred to by Washington Post journalist Dan Steinberg, blew up. Steinberg addressed the issue by replying to some of the comments they had been receiving. One of the readers commented "Female reporters shouldn't be allowed in NFL locker rooms unless male reporters are allowed in WNBA locker rooms!!!!" 


Steinberg's response:

Uh, male reporters are allowed in WNBA locker rooms. 

Looks like people need to do their research before they jump to conclusions.

A part of this case that I feel I have to touch on are the opinions of some people that Sainz has the tendency to dress in a scandalous manner. She is a model as well as a reporter (wow...rough life) so she definitely has the body to wear certain outfits that the average Jane couldn't pull off. For the day of the interview with Mark Sanchez of the New York Jets, Sainz wore a white collard shirt and blue jeans. It has been looked at as controversial because the blouse was form-fitting and a few of the buttons were undone.

One of Sainz many outfits.

Sainz is not the only case of harassment toward women reporters. Many of the little "cat calls" get ignored. Would your first instinct be to turn around and call out a 300 pound football player while you are trying to act professional? For me it would depend on what kind of day I was having, do I feel sassy today or do I feel calm? (that goes hand in hand with my coffee/caffeine intake for the day)

In a Washington Post article about the Sainz situation, sports journalist Cindy Boren quickly adds that she is a woman writing about an issue that she has experienced.

"Because the caretaker of this blog is a woman and a sports journalist...and a sports journalist who once had a blow dryer thrown at her for no good reason in a locker room, I've been getting tons of questions about how I view the Ines Sainz incident and Clinton Portis' comments."

Through the controversy, it had been expressed that some people strictly believe women should stay out of the locker room and others believe that would be like "asking if women should vote" -- something that has been around for a long time but is not always taken advantage of.

Here is what Sainz had to say on the Early Show...

The question of should I or shouldn't I enter the locker room has been evident in my line of work. For example, once I was doing a video segment that required me to get a few shots in the mens hockey locker room. I waited until all the guys were out of the room and I had one of the coaches go in and check to make sure all the guys were out. Would it have been okay for me to be in there otherwise?

From my understanding, I am only able to enter the locker room when it is open to the media, even if my reason for entering at any other time is part of something I am doing for my job.

After the mens hockey games at UMD, all the reporters wait in the hallway outside of the locker room. Last week it was the last home game of the season and the hallway was complete chaos. Some of the male reporters started going into the locker room to get their interviews. I stood outside the locker room like an indecisive child.

Do I go in the locker room? Do I wait here? Am I going to see a naked butt? Can I even see a naked butt with out laughing? Get it together Lizz, you can see a naked butt without laughing. (Internal battles and pep talks are a daily occurrence).

 One of the long time sports reporters from the Duluth News Tribune then informed me that it was okay if I went in there as long as it was open to the media. (I never did enter the locker room because my interviewee came out right at that moment -- so no I never saw a naked butt. I know you were all wondering.)

I was then wondering what the rules were for professional sports versus college sports and this is what I found: "During the regular season, NCAA institutions can make their own rules about locker room availability, but during the tournament the NCAA has a uniform policy." (Steinberg)

So for now, Sainz and I can go in as many locker rooms as we see fit. What a pair...the 5'5 college student from Minnesota and the Latina Model (that'll be the day).

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