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

Twitter: A huge hit in sports, especially for women

posted by ...Because I Played Sports
Tuesday, May 5, 2009 at 12:41pm CDT

When Jayda Evans of the Seattle Times called me a few weeks ago and asked me what I thought about Twitter’s role in the future of women’s sports, I told her that it could only be a good thing.

Jayda, a Seattle Times blogger and writer, later published an article titled “Sports go mad for online pastime with Twitter.”

I love how Jayda wrote this article. Instead of focusing upon huge Twitter celebrities like Shaquille O’Neal and Lance Armstrong, she gave some credit to the ladies who have recently been stepping up to the plate, including Natalie Gulbis (@natalie_gulbis) and over 13 WNBA players.

Not only did she interview the University of Washington athletic director Scott Woodward but she also talked to Hilary Shaev, vice president of WNBA marketing.

She also quoted an online friend of mine, Brendan Wilhide, who started Sportsin140.com, who keeps a Google spreadsheet of verified athletes (male and female) on Twitter.

Then, she interviewed me. Of course, here’s my favorite quote (claim to fame):

Megan Hueter is the Washington, D.C.-based co-founder of WomenTalkSports.com, which aims to elevate exposure of women’s sports.

“If there’s a little more focus on everybody’s individual story and telling that, we can start to generate more attention,” she said. “It’s a little different with the guys. They are so well followed. The trick [for women] isn’t going to be quantities of numbers. But to get these women doing it themselves, having it be their own voice and be very genuine and transparent. That’s where they’re going to succeed.”

But the real credit goes to Jayda, a journalist who not only discusses platforms like Twitter which are literally putting the print journalism industry out of business, but she also seeks to provide gender balance in her discussion about professional athletes. This is something that women’s sports has been waiting for.

But it’s not easy to find Jayda’s blog on the Seattle Storm, which kind-of pisses me off. Here’s what you have to do to find it:

1) Go to Seattletimes.com

2) Click “Sports”

3) Click “Blogs” (not featured and hard to find)

4) Scroll ALL THE WAY TO THE BOTTOM, and click “women’s hoops blog”

Employing one of the most gender-balanced writers that I’ve seen in a long time, you’d think the Seattle Times would do a little bit better job featuring her. I’m (praying) the reason she’s at the bottom is because she’s not going to be writing until training camp begins in May.

Regardless, Jayda’s article is a sign that the grassroots movement of female athletes as active participants in conversations seems to be well on its way. With social media platforms like blogs and Twitter providing athletes in leagues like the WNBA and WPS with the ability to create a voice and share their lives, the possibilities seem endless.

If you’re interested in following professional female athletes on Twitter, embed the WomenTalkSports.com widget (below) or check out our Twitter Lounge.