FEMALE FASHION FAUX PAS PROFESSIONAL

FEMALE FASHION FAUX PAS PROFESSIONAL

I'm not saying they would have treated her any differently, and that is an issue female sports reporters have been struggling with for years, but she would have represented the professional female sports reporter more appropriately. Again, I am not condoning harassment toward a person - even if he or she is dressed inappropriately - but this sports reporter could be probably even more effective and taken more seriously as a 'reporter' if she wore a suit or at least something a bit more professional. But do you have to dress provocatively, with tight fitting jeans and a top while covering the team practice? And then wear a tight black dress as if you are going to a nightclub while covering the game? Poor judgment! Call me old-fashioned, but professionals, whether male or female, should dress appropriately. Yes, this sports reporter from Mexico who is the subject of the NFL investigation with the Jets based on their behavior towards her, is an attractive woman. When I was covering every team in New York and going into locker rooms, I would not have even thought of wearing anything too sexy or provocative in fear of encouraging taunts and comments from the players. However, I will guarantee you one thing - and this does not take away from my original statement that any form of harassment should not be tolerated - but every 'serious' female sports reporter that I know and have worked with, when working, dressed professionally.

These women put up with not only harassment such as catcalls and other child-like antics, but they also had to fight for the opportunity to even go into the locker rooms to have the same opportunities as their male counterparts to get the interviews. Most of my female colleagues, veteran sports reporters who have worked long and hard to establish their reputations and careers and to open doors for other women pursuing careers in sports broadcasting and sports journalism, will have a story (or two or three) of being mistreated at one time or another, whether in the locker room, on the sidelines or somewhere along the way as they were doing business. The 'boys will be boys' mentality can no longer be used as an excuse for misbehavior towards women. But having said that, most of the guys know by now that anything other than 'professional' behavior can't be tolerated. The place is a locker room - smelly, sweaty and normally busy, as print, radio and television reporters jockey for position to get their necessary sound-bites and interviews. Particularly after a loss, the guys can be cranky and downright rude. Whether one is a male or female reporter, the locker room is not a place you want to be. I was at a different game every evening, in a different locker room after every game, interviewing players and getting sound bites for the radio network. I then continued to cover a variety of teams and sports stories for WFAN Radio, where I hosted a weekly call-in sports show for over 22 years. In the mid-eighties, I worked for ABC Radio Sports as a 'stringer,' covering every team in the New York metropolitan area.

First and foremost, no form of harassment should ever be tolerated.

Female fashion faux pas