Women's Media Nation | Social, political, and cultural issues relating to women

KICK IT UP! launches at FIFA World Cup

posted by Pretty Tough | Girls Who Are Fun Fierce & Feminine
Wednesday, June 9, 2010 at 1:49pm CDT

Pretty Tough is the premier brand and media property providing high-quality, specialty content, products and services for girls who are fun, fierce & feminine.

Soccer (or football as it’s known around the globe) is the world’s most popular sport, and Global Girl Media is using the largest international soccer event to help young women find their voices. The non-profit org’s pilot project KICK IT UP! has recruited 20 girls from South Africa and 10 from Los Angeles to report on the 2010 FIFA World Cup taking place June 11 – July 11th.

The goal of KICK IT UP! is to train high-school-age girls to become participant digital video journalists. The project links under-served girls with seasoned broadcasters and journalists, providing training and hands-on experience in story development and composition, HD digital video cameras, editing, and on-air media training. GlobalGirl reporters will create and produce video and blog content throughout the World Cup event.

We were at the Los Angeles launch reception for KICK IT UP! and met the 10 locals girls chosen to participate in this awesome project. Executive Director Amie Williams and National Program Director Kamala-Lopez Dawson were on hand to introduce the girls and the program to an enthusiastic gathering of supporters and press.

The project is being spearheaded by celebrity spokesperson and mentor, Julie Foudy – former U.S. Women’s Soccer Captain and two-time Gold Medalist, and now a senior ESPN sportscaster covering the 2010 World Cup – who will provide GGM participants with help to write, produce and file their stories.

Many girls in underserved communities across the globe are grappling with the specific challenges of high rates of teenage pregnancy, HIV/AIDS, structural violence, drug addiction and broken families. In countless media reports about all these issues, the individual girls’ voice is largely absent. KICK IT UP! seeks to transform the girl as “statistic” into the girl as “subject” giving her tangible tools to report on the reality of her specific situation, as seen against the global backdrop of the 2010 World Cup.

The first World Cup match takes place June 11 pitting host team South Africa against Mexico in Johannesburg’s Soccer City. The United States plays in Group C with its first match on June 12 at Royal Bafokeng in Rustenberg against England.

We encourage everyone to watch the World Cup as this is the first time the event is in Africa, and the whole world will be watching. And be sure to check back for Global Girl Media updates and reports. We look forward to watching new voices emerge to challenge the status quo. You go girls.