Who Let Them In?

April 11, 2022
Journalist Lannin (Finding a Way to Play) charts the progress female sports journalists have made over the past 70 years in this brisk and inspiring account. Her profile subjects include Mary Garber, whose coverage of Black high school sports “helped desegregate the sports pages of the Winston-Salem Journal” in the 1950s and ’60s; Lesley Visser, who “became the story” at the 1980 Cotton Bowl, when University of Houston coach Bill Yeoman ordered her out of the locker room in front of TV cameras; and Suzyn Waldman, a former Broadway singer who has been the color analyst and commentator for New York Yankees radio broadcasts since 2005. Stories of discrimination and harassment from male coaches, players, and fans abound—Waldman, for instance, “received used condoms, toilet paper with feces on it, and vile letters, some of which included death threats” from Yankees fans when she first started covering the team—as do episodes of encouragement and support, such as when California Angels manager John McNamara talked newspaper reporter Lisa Nehus Saxon out of quitting. Lannin also delves into the role that ESPN played in providing more opportunities to women and examines how the #MeToo movement has affected sports. With an appealing roster of profile subjects and a trove of insider details, this is a must-read for young women looking to break into the field.

April 15, 2022
Pioneering sports journalist Mary Garber began her career in the 1940s when women weren't even allowed to sit in the press box. After decades in the male-dominated field, she earned numerous honors, including induction into the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association Hall of Fame in 2008. This book honors her legacy as well as the careers of women who followed in her footsteps like Lesley Visser, Claire Smith, Robin Roberts, Suzyn Waldman, Doris Burke, and Christine Brennan, journalists who have covered collegiate sports, the Olympic and Paralympic Games, and the NFL, NHL, and MLB. Lannin, a former Portland Press Herald staff writer, delivers a well-researched, no-holds-barred account of the obstacles and sacrifices these women made to follow their careers, pointing out that while women sports journalists have come a long way, there's still further to climb to achieve gender balance, inclusivity, and diversity, not to mention navigating the changes to traditional news outlets. An important contribution to women's studies and sports history.

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