The European Broadcasting Union has released new guidelines banning sports photographers and camera operators from taking footage of female athletes that could be considered sexualized.
A 23-page document titled Raising the Bar: Guidelines for Respectful Media Coverage in Women’s Athletics, was published in collaboration with European Athletics and a number of prominent female athletes.
It includes detailed visual illustrations showing camera operators which angles and shots are acceptable and which are not, covering events including high jump, pole vault, horizontal jumps and running.
The guidelines specifically target low-angle shots, unnecessary slow-motion footage and other framing choices that shift focus away from athletic performance.
The EBU was clear that the document is not a list of restrictions, stating that “the most compromising shots can be avoided with no loss of storytelling or visual quality.”
The guidelines are not the first attempt to address this issue.
During the 2024 Paris Olympics, the CEO of Olympic Broadcasting Services ordered camera operators to film male and female athletes in the same way to avoid what he described as “stereotypes and sexism.” The conversation around how women’s sport is filmed has been building ever since.
Unpleasant online comments
The response on social media was swift and largely unpleasant. Thousands of crude jokes circulated, with some users claiming the guidelines would destroy interest in women’s sport entirely.
One comment read: “You basically killed any interest in female sports.”
Many other suggested women should “wear some clothes when they compete,” which others have countered by pointing out that sports governing bodies actually require female athletes to wear the outfits in question.
READ MORE:
- Oldest death row inmate executed in Florida had to follow strict final meal rule most people don’t know about
- 16 volunteers recreate 12×12 room showing conditions endured by ‘feral’ children in Ohio ‘house of horrors’
